Plus new batteries twice... dream

 

Just like transmission failing, oil leaks, timing belt etc... I rarely keep cars more then 8 years, so not an issue for me.

 

Don't read me wrong, I would like this to work but you have been reading my experience, anything with battery has let me down way before the marketing time ( i think they count months as years).

Also in the frigid north having the battery feed the engine, heat the cabin and light the way at minus 10F when there is 6" of snow on the ground is wishful thinking.

Re-Energizing at destination is problematic since there is no infrastructure outside of you own garage.

Please let us know your true experience once the novelty has passed.

For my location in the world The best choice would be in order:
1- Direct injection Diesel (mitsubishi already make this but not for NA market as the American don't like diesel, (48 MPG.!.))
2- Alcohol fuel cell
3- Hybrid with a small diesel as APU
4- Electrical fed by something new as battery source.

 

I hear ya, if I were you I would stay away from electrics and as I said it will not work for everyone. I'd love to replace Outlander with a hybrid/diesel version myself...

 

They ship all of the LEAD back to us in the form of TOYS and CRAYONS

 

Actually, you're quite far in CO2 debt. Read up on the CO2 footprint from the construction of your Leaf. I bet you dollars to donuts that it's worse than if you continued to drive your Outlander for the rest of your life. Manufacturing the batteries for the Leaf is one of the dirtiest, nastiest, most toxic jobs there is. Not to mention all the "high tech" composites that went into it's construction... most of which are fossil fuel derivatives.

Far too many people only see exactly what is in front them, without looking at the costs that got them to that spot in the first place.

 

Sure and you might be right, but I am not the one to care about this though. Although Nissan claims otherwise:

http://www.nissanusa.com/leaf-electr...r/faq/view/100

Even if the process is dirtier, which btw could be controlled, with electrics you won't be contributing to CO2 as much as oil burning car on the road during its lifetime.

Anyway, as I recall people did not have much faith in hybrid cars when they first appeared, but 10 years later Prius is the most popular car on the road. I was actually skeptical about hybrids as well and I still can't stand Prius which is more expensive then Leaf after all incentives and not nearly as efficient. Electrics today are not perfect with short range and slow recharge, but I am a strong believer that they are the wave of the future.

Would I buy electric today if I didn't have Outlander or another 2nd car? No way! Although, I know some are willing to take their chances.

 

If you like Electric, Mitsubishi's next generation Outlander will be a plug in Hybrid. The best of both worlds. You will see it in three years.

 

Hey Klas, congratulations on your new car. But I would have to disagree with you on a lot of your points. EV cars are basically just starting to take off and chances are that they may be a fad. Just imagine if one day OPEC countries would gang up and drop the prices of oil to below $40 per barrel, the incentive to buy an expensive EVs will be even less attractive. Nissan Leaf, basically is a $32K Nissan Versa (a $14K car) with battery packs. I know that there is a $7500 tax credit in USA but I totally disagree with it. No offense to anyone but I don't feel like sponsoring anyone a new car with my tax money, let the better/cheaper/more logical technology win. Right now EVs are not it. EVs right now are not any cleaner than gasoline counterparts either. First, batteries don't appear out of thin air, to create a batter pack is to create pollution/toxic waste. Electricity has to come from somewhere too. To recycle a battery pack is to create even more pollution to the point where average gasoline car over its life span will not pollute the Earth any more than an equivalent EV. Then there is limited driving range, rather long battery charging, suspect performance during freezing temperatures, and lack of general EV infrastructure in this country. Right now, to me, they seem like rather expensive toys. Toyota Prius works because it doesn't rely just on electricity/battery, plus its actually affordable without any tax incentives. Also, Toyota Prius is far from being the most popular car. Its actually the most popular here in USA and Japan, but even in USA it is not in the same level as Ford F150/Chevy Silverado or Toyota Camry/Honda Accord sales wise.

So basically right now EVs seem to be way overpriced. You can get a Nissan Versa for $14K, that leaves you with about $11K for fuel, and with EVs, right now, no one knows the real life time battery longevity, plus depreciation value of EVs doesn't look to be the greatest: http://green.autoblog.com/2010/08/29...might-be-high/

One good thing about pure EVs is that except the batteries, overall maintenance should be a lot cheaper. At its core, EVs are actually a lot simpler than gasoline engines. Basically you don't need transmission, no exhaust system, the need for maintenance of the engine becomes almost non-existent because there is no sophisticated gasoline engine with hundreds of different moving parts that can break down at any given time. So its not all doom and gloom but it is a rather immature technology and infrastructure. Right now I am actually more interested in technology such as Chevy Volt, actually there are rumors that Mitsu in its next generation Outlander will release a gas/electric version. Its a nice stop gap before car manufacturers figure out longer lasting batteries per charge, faster charging times, and the actual infrastructure will be in place such as EV charging stations all over the places.

 

Strange... the only time I smell like oil is after I have crawled from under my car after changing the said oil. And I like the smell too.

You probably had something wrong with your engine that it made you smell like oil during a commute.