The Nissan LEAF Is The Least Expensive EV and Possibly the Best Commuter You Can Buy

The historical significance of the Nissan LEAF cannot be overstated. Fourteen years ago, it was the first 100% Battery Electric Vehicle (BEV) sold in the U.S., released months before the first sedan from that company that bears Nikola Tesla’s name. As newer models came on board from various manufacturers, the LEAF remained among the most affordable. Today, it is clearly THE most affordable BEV, and Nissan of Rochester wonders if it might be the one for you. 

Let’s Start with the Affordability Part

The LEAF’s starting price is $28,140. That is less than half the current average price of a BEV and a little over half the price of the average new car. Other BEVs are faster, charge faster, and can go much farther between charges, but little of that matters if you’re buying a car as a daily commuter.

The LEAF is exceptional at what EVs do best. It is perfect if you need a car to commute to work, perform daily routine tasks, you can charge at home, and have another car for long trips. Thousands of vehicles are bought each year for this purpose. Many of them are compacts, like the LEAF, which also provides a hatchback body style for convenience. However, few other compact cars can start every morning, ready to go 149 miles without visiting a gas station, and get the equivalent of 121 mpg. (MPGe). 

Putting Range Into Perspective

One hundred forty-nine miles (from the 40kWh battery pack) may not sound impressive when other BEVs are getting 250-300, but if your daily round trip commute is anywhere near the average of 42 miles, the LEAF offers 3.5 times that, and thus provides more than enough buffer for side trips. If commuting is what you plan to do, why carry the battery weight for a distance you never intend to use? If you need more range, the LEAF SV Plus carries a 60 kWh battery with 212 miles of range. Again, that isn’t a record-breaking BEV number, but if it is more than you will likely use, it doesn’t matter.

With a Level 2 charger at home, it will take about 7.5 hours to fully charge a LEAF with the 40 kWh battery and 11 hours for the model with the 60 kWh battery. Of course, that is assuming you returned home with a nearly depleted state of charge. If you are commuting or driving a similar distance around town, chances are you will have plenty of range left when you come home to recharge, and the recharge time will be less. If you charge overnight, it is irrelevant anyway.

Enjoyable to Use Everyday

In keeping with its mission, the LEAF offers a functional cabin with an attractive digital driver’s display and an 8-inch touchscreen display compatible with Apple CarPlay® and even Apple Watches for charge status and notification. Car and Driver described  the LEAF’s seats as  “…La-Z-Boy comfortable; the spacious rear seat offers plenty of room for adults, too.” Car and Driver also fit seven carry-on suitcases behind the rear seat and 19 when the seats were folded. They also found acceleration from 0-60 to be 7.4 seconds, which is neither leisurely nor neck-snapping, but it is plenty for the daily routine. Meanwhile, the car is whisper-quiet and offers the ease of one-pedal driving.

Not to be overlooked is the lack of powertrain maintenance. Tune-ups, oil and filter changes, coolant checks, and other activities we simply accept with internal combustion engines do not apply. Electric motors are very simple machines with very few moving parts. Your maintenance will likely be little more than rotating and changing the tires and replacing the wipers and cabin filters.

When an EV Just Makes Sense

All of this is a very practical argument for a very practical car. Other manufacturers spend their time developing EV full-size trucks, 3-row SUVs, and sports cars, but the LEAF simply does what EVs do best—a reasonably priced, comfortable vehicle that takes care of the daily routine.  And it does it better than any internal combustion engine model can hope to. 

If you have a need for a car to perform the daily commute or similar daily routine tasks, and can set up a charger for home, you should come to Nissan of Rochester and look at the Nissan LEAF. The first, most affordable, and the most sensible EV on the market.