2012 Nissan LEAF

Rating from Cartech pioneer

(5)
Comfort:		4 out of 5
Performance:		5 out of 5
Exterior Styling:		4 out of 5
Interior Design:		4 out of 5
Value for the Money:		2 out of 5
Reliability:		5 out of 5

"I was nervous in making the jump to an electric car. I was an early Toyota Prius buyer in 2001 and loved that car, but that didn't require as much deliberation about lifestyle as taking the jump into this car did. I found that a lot of my anxiety was completely unfounded. This car is amazing! Nissan did a fabulous job of making an electric car that takes about the least adjustment that anyone can imagine. It fits my family, has all the creature comforts, and in driving around the suburbs for the first month that I have owned this car, in the middle of a cold, rainy winter, I have never even come close to running out of charge -- with wipers, heater, defrosteres, everything running. Sure, it's not for everyone. It won't make your cross country road trip or even medium sized roadtrips. But for doing the suburban dad thing, commuting to work, hauling my kids around, and running errands, it is a great car. And so cheap to run. I charge at night for less than 6 cents per KWH. Meaning driving 900 miles a month costs me about $13 in electricity. And in 2013, Nissan is really doing a first by making this electric car as affordable as a moderately priced gas family car."

I would recommend this car to a friend: Yes

This vehicle was purchased: New

Primary use for this car: Just getting around

Rating from luckydog1955

(5)
Comfort:		5 out of 5
Performance:		5 out of 5
Exterior Styling:		5 out of 5
Interior Design:		5 out of 5
Value for the Money:		4 out of 5
Reliability:		5 out of 5

"Took delivery of an all-electric, Nissan Leaf a few weeks ago. What a great car. Very comfortable. Performance has exceeded my expectations. Does going from a gasoline powered vehicle to electric take some adjustment? Yes. But it's really no big deal. We've put about 750 miles on it so far in some cold winter weather. No problems. My teenagers love to drive it. So smooth and quiet. Began by using the level I charger. Installed a level II (240V) charger. Wow. Very fast recharge. We're set. I highly recommend this car."

I would recommend this car to a friend: Yes

This vehicle was purchased: New

Primary use for this car: Just getting around

Rating from Jon D

(5)
Comfort:		5 out of 5
Performance:		4 out of 5
Exterior Styling:		4 out of 5
Interior Design:		5 out of 5
Value for the Money:		5 out of 5
Reliability:		5 out of 5

"Great car for around town with no gas and fun to drive. Great pickup with top speed at 90MPH. I am saving over $200 a month in gas and have leased this vehicle for under $300 per month with 15,000 miles per year on a 24 month lease! The MSRP on this vehicle is over $38,000!"

I would recommend this car to a friend: Yes

This vehicle was purchased: New

Primary use for this car: Commuting

Rating from Carmen

(5)
Comfort:		4 out of 5
Performance:		5 out of 5
Exterior Styling:		5 out of 5
Interior Design:		4 out of 5
Value for the Money:		5 out of 5
Reliability:		5 out of 5

"I've had my Leaf for about a month now and already have 1100 miles on it. I typically drive between 45-55 miles per day and have roughly 1/3 capacity remaining in the battery at the end of the day. Just like others have said, your range is really determined by how you drive the car. Fortunately, the Leaf has lots of feedback to the driver about how you are driving. My initial range anxiety has dropped as I've got to know this car more. While the car is not packed with luxury you will find it has most of the required creature comforts. The car comes nicely equipped. Some of my favorite features so far are the remotely activated climate control as well as climate control timer. The steering wheel heater is also a novel innovation as well. I do strongly recommend the using a 240V home charging if you plan to drive it a lot per day (45+ miles) as the 120V charging can take a really long time to re-charge. If you live in an older home like mine be prepared to deal with electrical issues that come with older homes like having a full breaker panel or not enough amps coming to your house through the meter. It can be a hassle but its all worth it in the end."

I would recommend this car to a friend: Yes

This vehicle was purchased: New

Primary use for this car: Commuting

Rating from DamianP

(4)
Comfort:		5 out of 5
Performance:		5 out of 5
Exterior Styling:		4 out of 5
Interior Design:		5 out of 5
Value for the Money:		3 out of 5
Reliability:		5 out of 5

"This car drives very nicely and it's completely quiet. I would strongly recommend it for anyone commuting up to 60 miles a day. We commute around 17 miles (each way) 80% highway at speeds between 65 and 75 mph, and 20% city. We charge it to the 80% mark and we always have around 30 miles on the "tank" when we are back. Driving it on a highway with new asphalt at 70 mph is a total pleasure! There's no noise other than a bit of wind. That being said, if you are a person that freaks out when the gas light pops up, then forget about buying this car. It feels like driving a car with less than a quarter of tank of gas. For our use is more than perfect, but this car is not for everybody. It makes for a very, very nice second car, actually we use mostly this car for all sort of local trips and leave the other car for long trips only. Or, like a friend of mine said, it makes for a nice (and expensive) kid's car, since you know they are not going to drive it very far, and the faster they drive, the shorter their trip."

I would recommend this car to a friend: Yes

This vehicle was purchased: New

Primary use for this car: Commuting

Rating from Gman

(4)
Comfort:		4 out of 5
Performance:		5 out of 5
Exterior Styling:		4 out of 5
Interior Design:		4 out of 5
Value for the Money:		4 out of 5
Reliability:		5 out of 5

"The Leaf is smooth, quiet, handles nicely and has very good acceleration from a stop. The seats are not super comfortable (had to get a cushion for lumbar support), but the interior is nice and modern. The GPS is not great but the infotainment display is pretty good overall. Remote climate control and monitoring (via iPhone app or Nissan website) is really neat. Car can be scheduled to charge at a particular time so you can set it to only turn on when electricity rates are lowest at night. I do this and end up paying less than 2 cents a mile (so operating costs are obviously extremely low compared to a gas-powered vehicle). Seat warmers are very good and minimize need for the heat which drags down the range. Realistic range is more like 75 miles, but if you have a short commute, the Leaf is a good choice."

I would recommend this car to a friend: Yes

This vehicle was purchased: New

Primary use for this car: Commuting

Rating from Alex

(5)
Comfort:		5 out of 5
Performance:		4 out of 5
Exterior Styling:		4 out of 5
Interior Design:		4 out of 5
Value for the Money:		4 out of 5
Reliability:		5 out of 5

"For the folks who gave it one star for range, you have no idea what you are talking about. I drive 40-60 miles a day and get back home with plenty of range left and this is while only charging to 80%. The range meter on the car (called the "guess-o-meter" in LEAF circles) does not do a great job estimating range at the top end, but is more accurate as the battery draws down - this is something you learn how to deal with quickly as you drive the car. For anyone with a commute under 60 round trip, this car will easily meet your needs unless you go 80mph all the time. Range is influenced by temperature and driving habits. Expect 80-90 miles in moderate weather if driven properly. If you drive it like you stole it and run the heat @90, it'll go 50 miles. Expect 3.5miles/KWh (this is after charging losses). In VA where it's $0.10 a KWh, that's ~$0.03 a mile. A 25mpg car with gas @ $3.75/gal is $0.15 a mile. I currently save about $120 a month in fuel."

I would recommend this car to a friend: Yes

This vehicle was purchased: New

Primary use for this car: Commuting

Rating from Carto

(5)
Comfort:		5 out of 5
Performance:		4 out of 5
Exterior Styling:		3 out of 5
Interior Design:		4 out of 5
Value for the Money:		4 out of 5
Reliability:		5 out of 5

"Love it! It's a commuting car - if you use it like that then it's ideal. Inthe are I live there are many chanrge pointsand I find the free PlugShare App the best for locationg charging locations (even better the the on-board navigation charge locations within the cars GPS)."

I would recommend this car to a friend: Yes

This vehicle was purchased: New

Primary use for this car: Commuting

Rating from Terry D.

(5)
Comfort:		5 out of 5
Performance:		4 out of 5
Exterior Styling:		5 out of 5
Interior Design:		5 out of 5
Value for the Money:		5 out of 5
Reliability:		5 out of 5

"We bought a 2011 Nissan LEAF almost a year ago. We have just over 12,000 miles on it at this point. The ride is solid, the car is extremely quite, it's a blast to drive, and it's now our primary vehicle. The battery pack gives the car a low center of gravity so it feels planted in the turns. The car has a five star safety rating which was important to our family. It's also nice to wake up to a fully charged car and not have to hassle with going to gas stations!"

I would recommend this car to a friend: Yes

This vehicle was purchased: New

Primary use for this car: Transporting family

Rating from Nick M.

(1)
Comfort:		1 out of 5
Performance:		1 out of 5
Exterior Styling:		1 out of 5
Interior Design:		1 out of 5
Value for the Money:		1 out of 5
Reliability:		1 out of 5

"Very low battery life it won't last 100 miles, 45 to 50 tops.&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&"

I would recommend this car to a friend: No

This vehicle was purchased: New

Primary use for this car: Work