Is this car for real? Looks like a standard 4 door compact car.
This is the type of EV we need, not some small commuter thing that not everyone can use.

Nissan LEAF Electric Car | Nissan USA Official Site

Yes, this car is for real. Yes, it is a four door compact hatchback. Nissan are so sure about this car they've built it as an electric vehicle from the ground up - there is no internal combustion engine version of this car available.

Even more remarkably, there is no equivalent compact car from Nissan that is an internal combustion engine car. If you want a Nissan and you want a compact, its electric or nothing.

It's about time...I like it!

Hopefully this one will be for sale and not for lease

Leaving Asian escorts to one side for a moment, Nissan have announced that they have received 56,000 pre-orders for the Nissan Leaf in the United States. They are starting a UK tour for the car in a month's time and interest in the car is very high here - especially since they have announced that European production will take place in the UK from 2013 onwards.

The LEAF should be in production during 2011 and you Lucky American's get your paws on them first.

It will be both for sale and lease from what I know. I am signed up and on the list. Hope to be one of the first to get one.

Pete

I drove Nissan EV-12 today, one of the Nissan LEAF development mules. Obviously it is not the same as driving the LEAF itself, but it should be similar in terms of performance. From what I was able to ascertain on my brief test, the drivetrain is very good with rapid performance from a standing start and a very smooth torque curve.

I also sat in one of the pre-production LEAF cars. It is surprisingly roomy with seating for five and an enormous trunk. The interior is very high tech with lots of gadgets to play with.

I am due to get a drive in the proper Nissan LEAF in a couple of months time.

I read where they install a special charger at your home. My question is, if I travel 80 miles away at the end of it's range can I plug it in and charge it to come back home or is it designed to only charge from the special charger they install in your home. It would be a real deal killer if I am only limited to home charging.

That would be stupid, you really think they'd make you just charge at home? Electric cars must be able to charge away from home too. I think the home charger is a faster charger than just plugging in where handy. However they will have it set up so when public chargers are again put in they will be able to make use of public fast chargers. Just like before. Heck some of those public chargers are still in place and usable.

Pete

My understanding is that in the US, where 110v is used for most household appliances, there will be a faster charger installed in your homes, charging your car from a 240v, 32 amp supply. This will allow you to charge up the car in a quarter of the time than you will from 110v.

However, a 110v charger will also be built into the car so you can charge up whilst you are out and about.

I had a go in the Nissan LEAF development mule recently, and sat in the real Nissan LEAF.

I've posted some photographs and a video of the drive on my web site: Nissan Electric Car test drive

According to Nissan Leaf's website, they are "encouraging g a wide public charging network in the future." They are also "working to encourage third party and government organizations to grow the charging infrastructure." It goes on to say that with the growing acceptance of electric vehicles, they assume more charging stations will be planted. In the meantime, I guess the only option for the first owners of the Leaf will have to charge at their home. Hopefully it won't take too long for them to grow more stations, especially for those who want to take long road trips.