by "benjrblant" (benjblant)
Published 04/12/2017 at 17:19
by "benjrblant" (benjblant)
Published 04/12/2017 at 17:19
No Tags
STARS: 3
I mean, the Leaf isn’t exactly a pretty car. In fact, its kinda bad. Actually, it’s pretty ugly.
Actually, its hideous.
But, entice the thought if only for long enough to scroll to the comments and express your anger.
This is a new, not titled, visual monstrosity 2017 Leaf discounted to $21,350. New, as in, 3yr/36,000mi basic warranty, 5yr/60,000mi powertrain warranty, but most importantly: 8 year 100,000mi battery replacement warranty. Granted, this is if the battery loses 9 bars of capacity or more (on a 12 bar scale.)
Pending that your employer can share an outlet or install an EV charging station for a tax break, it could be charged for little to nothing.
Uncle Sam is presently offering a $7500 tax incentive on these hideous beautiful machines. The state I’m presently residing in is offering $5000 in tax incentives.
So, if you’re still here, that’s $12,500 in tax returns for next year. Subtract this from the cost of the poo on wheels car and we’re at $8850.
Pros : Since its not a moto , the better half can also operate it. Since it has a roof, it’s good for 12-month operation. It has four seats, but I’d be hard pressed to find another two humans that would be OK being seen in it. Maybe a doggo?
Cons : Nissan Leaf.
Would you drive one for about $1-3 per 100 miles of travel and $8850 + TTL? If it proves to be just the worst thing on pavement, it could probably be sold in a year for around $9k, so that would be a wash.
"benjrblant" (benjblant)
04/12/2017 at 17:55, STARS: 0
kinja! why u publish article when draft was started and not when i click publish?!?!
"Bytemite" (bytemite)
04/12/2017 at 17:58, STARS: 2
I’ll pay you a dollar to not give that to me for free.
"benjrblant" (benjblant)
04/12/2017 at 17:59, STARS: 0
Even if your only vehicle gets 15mpg?
"smobgirl" (smobgirl)
04/12/2017 at 17:59, STARS: 0
A friend got a used one reaaaalllly cheap and while the interior is far from luxurious they do have a lot of features. First car I’d been in with heated rear seats!
"Rainbow" (rainbeaux)
04/12/2017 at 18:04, STARS: 3
If I didn’t need to drive 150-300 miles daily, I’d probably already have one. Not sure why there’s so much hate around here; this is pretty much the ideal city car/daily driver. More money for the race car that way.
"PotbellyJoe and 42 others" (potbellyjoe)
04/12/2017 at 18:05, STARS: 0
There are used ones for around $6k that are 4-5 years old but with no miles, add $1k for the charger and installation they’re not bad values.
I have a brother looking to get a “$5k” beater to go to and from work and maybe an errand into town and am totally recommending one.
He has other cars, so if all he’s going to do is short trips, may as well.
"benjrblant" (benjblant)
04/12/2017 at 18:05, STARS: 2
Yes! I’m thinking of it primarily for commuting. It’s a disposable purchase to save use of the daily driver and cut down on costs to get around town.
"Stapleface" (patrickgruden)
04/12/2017 at 18:06, STARS: 0
I’d drive a leaf. If my commute didn’t exceed the range.
"benjrblant" (benjblant)
04/12/2017 at 18:07, STARS: 1
Yakima load bars with solar panels on top?
"Shift24" (the-nope)
04/12/2017 at 18:08, STARS: 1
As a person with a 15 mpg vehicle. Yes. Would rather drive a brick than that.
"Chuckles" (chucklesw37)
04/12/2017 at 18:12, STARS: 1
This is a good question. Everyone has their price. For me, until a few months ago the answer would have been about $500, because I lived in a city of 80,000 people and zero public charging ports, in an apartment complex with no place to charge, and working at a company that had no place to charge either.
Now, I’m renting a house with a garage, in a city with a few public chargers, and my daily commute round trip is less than 25 miles. Now, my answer is more like $5,000. More than that, and I’d rather buy something used that’s more interesting, and can work on longer drives. Twice this week, I’ve left work and spontaneously gone on drives that wouldn’t be feasible in a Leaf.
"benjrblant" (benjblant)
04/12/2017 at 18:17, STARS: 1
This is great insight and logic. Thanks for your input!
"BrianGriffin thinks “reliable” is just a state of mind" (briangriffinsprius)
04/12/2017 at 18:19, STARS: 1
Your logic is exactly right. My “normal” commute is 25 miles each way, I have a garage, and I have two other cars. I’d totall rock a Leaf if my office complex had charging stations.
But it doesn’t. And I’m detailed out to a location 75miles from home one way. Soooo, no cheap Leaf.
"fintail" (fintail)
04/12/2017 at 18:24, STARS: 1
Amusingly enough, you can find used ones for around 5K right now. Hilarious depreciation.
"415s30 W123TSXWaggoIIIIIIo ( •_•))°)" (415s30)
04/12/2017 at 18:34, STARS: 1
I like them because they look sci fi, I would drive an Aptera if I could. I hope Elon takes over that dead project. If I had a place to charge it I would, I generally go 16mi to work, I would commute in an EV in a second but I have a condo and nobody has said anything about installing power in the lot. I only care about my old cars, I could care less about what I park in a garage in the city. There is a guy near me too that buys previously leased Leaves and always has at least five, not expensive either.
"benjrblant" (benjblant)
04/12/2017 at 18:37, STARS: 0
There are tax incentives to offset the expense of installing a charging station. Mention it to the condo owner/management company and see if they’ll go for it.
"415s30 W123TSXWaggoIIIIIIo ( •_•))°)" (415s30)
04/12/2017 at 18:39, STARS: 0
Yeah well, after I got out of the military in Hawaii I worked for a solar contractor on the bases on Oahu. My condos are on top of a hill and have huge open flat areas on the roofs for what could be hot water solar at least. They did get it for the pool finally. There are tons of covered spaces too, they could do PV and put that to charging and night lighting around the complex. I think eventually they will have to since in CA there will be tons of EVs emerging for DD cars.
"Corkscrew'd" (corkscrewd)
04/12/2017 at 18:56, STARS: 0
Think of it this way: You get an electric people mover for the cost of a slightly used sports car. That means more money (and more gas) for said sports car!
And, you’d have money left over for a paper bag to place over your head so your friends don’t make fun of you when you’re doing a grocery run!
Honestly I’d think about it if it was two doors and looked like the 370Z.
"Svart Smart, traded in his Smart" (svartsmart)
04/12/2017 at 18:57, STARS: 1
It would have to be extremely cheap. Cheap enough to buy outright and keep as a second car parked at my parents’ house. Right now, I live in a mid-century apartment building that doesn’t have its own parking facilities, so tenants with cars have to park on the street (as I do) or rent a space elsewhere in the neighborhood. Overnight charging simply isn’t an option for me.
"benjrblant" (benjblant)
04/12/2017 at 19:00, STARS: 0
In this situation, I’d be expecting to get a full charge at work and park on the street overnight. My commute would be around 25 miles, give or take.
"Corkscrew'd" (corkscrewd)
04/12/2017 at 19:01, STARS: 2
Get for free, and then flip it. Then buy a Miata.
"BaconSandwich is tasty." (baconsandwich)
04/12/2017 at 19:10, STARS: 0
I actually wouldn’t mind getting a used Leaf as a daily commuter. Other financial obligations come first, over a new-to-me car. Although between a used Leaf and a used Volt, I’d go for the Volt.
"I hoon, therefore I am" (hookemdevils22)
04/12/2017 at 19:13, STARS: 1
It’s incredibly enticing as is, though I bought my place near a train stop so I could commute by rail or bike anyway.
It is, however, the perfect around-town mobile: silly cheap, low cost-of-ownership, minimal maintenance. I’d do it in a heartbeat if I had a short (for the average American) car-only commute.
"boxrocket" (boxrocket)
04/12/2017 at 19:37, STARS: 0
If there wasn’t a comparable Focus Electric or Ford [any] Energi in the same price/options bracket, and it was at least $3-5K less than said vehicle, and my own car was permanently inoperable, and it were a blue or green (why the hell isn’t that a color for a car called the LEAF?! It should have colors for all seasons!) SL trim with all the options, I’d buy one. For my commute (under 5 miles) it’s more than acceptable, and I think it has a quirky charm, and I like how the torque (what there is of it) is immediate.
And for Halloween, I could make it look like it’s impaled by a large simple wooden spear and add letters to the back above the model badge “I’m a” and below the model badge “on the wind. Watch how I -”.
"benjrblant" (benjblant)
04/12/2017 at 20:17, STARS: 0
Downside to the hybrid/plugin is that they’re not eligible for the tax credits that EVs are.
"benjrblant" (benjblant)
04/12/2017 at 20:21, STARS: 0
Hybrids are not elegible for the tax incentives that EVs are. If they were, I wouldn’t be writing about an ugly Leaf.
If my commute was 5 miles, I’d bike it. No questions asked.
"benjrblant" (benjblant)
04/12/2017 at 20:23, STARS: 0
There have been a few articles about the depreciation on them. It’s primarily because of the tax incentives, but also from Nissan’s production quantities.
It’s pretty tough to sell a lightly used one when you can take $13k off the top of a new model in tax credits.
"benjrblant" (benjblant)
04/12/2017 at 20:26, STARS: 0
$6k, plus $1k for the charger brings it up to $7k. Add some maintenance stuff, might need new pads, maybe a tire or two, then you’re somewhere around $7500? Maybe $8k? Why wouldn’t you get a new one for $8900 complete with a warranty and maintenance? Then flip it for close to that in 3 or 4 years and you could very well net under $1k for transportation costs.
"fintail" (fintail)
04/12/2017 at 21:14, STARS: 1
Good point. Low-ish range can’t help either.
Probably a screaming bargain if one has access to charging infrastructure and never drives very far.
"Dr. Zoidberg - RIP Oppo" (thetomselleck)
04/12/2017 at 21:30, STARS: 0
I wouldn’t buy it for any price at this stage in my life. My wife has a long commute for work and drives vast distances to hang out with friends in her spare time. I visit my parents often (who in a different county) and there is certainly no charging station at their house. I have a vehicle provided by my employer for commuting so it doesn’t make sense for me there either.
While I do have lots of short drives (to the park, grocery store, etc.), it’s also one of the few times I actually get to use my personal vehicle, which I enjoy. The leaf does not tickle my fancy nor does it have the 3 pedals that make even a Tercel enjoyable to drive.
"benjrblant" (benjblant)
04/12/2017 at 21:34, STARS: 1
Funny that you bring up the tercel, cause this has been on CL for a while and I’d “10/10 would hoon” it if this machine wasn’t in need of an engine.
https://denver.craigslist.org/cto/6073770228.html
"Dr. Zoidberg - RIP Oppo" (thetomselleck)
04/12/2017 at 21:37, STARS: 0
That one is pretty good. Rust looks like some gentle spotting. I’d drop a 4A in it and be done. And by “I” I mean “you” because I can’t do that shit.
"Orange Exige" (OrangeExige)
04/12/2017 at 21:49, STARS: 0
I wonder if I could have convinced my gf to get one if it was this price... I’d still drive it a ton (and naturally challenge myself to eke the most out of it), but it wouldn’t be my car. Her Prius C makes so much more sense because it’s our long-range car - far more comfy and much better fuel economy than the Mini. Going forward I don’t think I could convince her to get a car with a 100 mile range when we have this balance already. (Plus it’s my workplace that has car chargers, not hers....)
I’d love an electric car for commuting but I’m not sure a Leaf would do it. I’m a sucker for hatches, so it wouldn’t be last (I’d rather drive a Model X, but I’d rather dd a smaller hatch - a Leaf isn’t a just comparison though) but it wouldn’t be first either. (Realistically) BMW i3 then Fiat 500e (though realistically I don’t even think they sold it on the east coast).
9k for a new Leaf, I say Nice Price though. It would be a killer commuter and around-towner. I couldn’t make it my only, but it’d be a real solid second (commuter) car - especially if you can charge it at work.
"The Crazy Kanuck; RIP Oppositelock" (jukesjukesjukes)
04/12/2017 at 22:34, STARS: 1
It is pretty, it looks like a mini Juke.
"BaconSandwich is tasty." (baconsandwich)
04/12/2017 at 22:59, STARS: 1
Doesn’t matter to me - no tax credits up here in Alberta.
"gmporschenut also a fan of hondas" (gmporschenut)
04/13/2017 at 01:25, STARS: 0
for 9 k yes. My only reservation is I drive @65miles and occasionally have to make some runs so maybe 90. 100 is a little too close for me.
"PotbellyJoe and 42 others" (potbellyjoe)
04/13/2017 at 07:52, STARS: 0
Because my state doesn’t have incentives on the new ones after the federal money, so it’s still $10k more to buy new.
"pip bip - choose Corrour" (hhgttg69)
04/13/2017 at 08:14, STARS: 1
i would need to be paid a lot of cash to consider one let alone buy one
"boxrocket" (boxrocket)
04/14/2017 at 00:04, STARS: 0
My commute (I meant to say >5mi each way) is all hills, several of which are fairly steep and long, and I have to wear semi-formalwear for work, and there’s no shower on the premises, so biking is out. Motorcycling could be possible except I start my day around 6AM and motorcycles tend to wake the neighbors (two of which have motorcycles so there’s ample evidence to support this).
With my examples, I was thinking used, and along the lines of CPO or CarMax for pricing and warranty. There’s little incentive to buying new with the staggering deals on even barely-used (under 5k miles) EVs and Plug-In Hybrids