2013 Nissan Leaf SL Oppositelock passenger review.

"Alex B" (alexb420) 04/22/2014 at 17:52 • Filed to: Nissan Leaf

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The Nissan Leaf. Not welcome by most auto enthusiasts. So far here on Oppo, I haven't got too much hate for it, so that's a good sign! Because it's Earth day I though it might be a good day to post a formal post about it.

The Nissan leaf came onto market in 2011. It was the first mass produced BEV (batter electric vehicle). It only has 107 hp and 187 pound feet of torque, but all that torque is available from zero RPM, this makes the Leaf quite a zippy car. The torque number was reduced for 2013, from 207 pound-feet to only 187.

( Full Disclosure: I'm too young to drive. Therefore this is a passenger review.)

Exterior: 6/10

The Leaf is a polarizing car. You either love it or hate it. Lets start up front. The defining feature here is the headlamps that are huge and pop out of the hood. The reason for their shape is to deflect wind over the wing mirrors. The side is nothing special really. The back 3/4 view is the one I don't like. The car looks like it has been stung by a bee. Not good. I do like the back straight on though.

Interior: 7/10

The interior is decent. The seats are comfortable, the arm rest and the doors are padded with leather which is a nice touch. The dashboard lacks any kind of soft touch material though. The layout is logical. Everything is within reaching distance. The four outboard seats and steering wheel are heated. That's a nice touch that you usually don't find in a car at this price class.

Acceleration: 7/10

What I'm about to tell you is based on how it felt from the passenger seat. This car has good get up and go. 0-40 is where it shines. 40-60 it begins to fall of a cliff. This is good for the Leafs preferred environment, the city. Bro trucks have been beaten by the little Leaf. Giving them a little bit of their own medicine.

Braking: ?/10

I can't really judge here, after all, I've never touched the break pedal! If you want more information on the brakes you could read !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!!

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Ride: ?/10

Again, here I really don't know how to judge. The car feels GROUNDED TO THE GROUND!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Seriously though, it feels planted. It rides over bumps better than our 2008 Odyssey. Driving, the car is very quite as you might have expected. Wind noise is noticeable on windy days.

Handling: ?/10

Can't judge here either as I'm not driving it.

Gearbox:

How do you score a reduction gear?

Toys: 8/10

It's a tech-y car, so it has some cool toys. It has car wings, something that Nissan has had in the JDM market for awhile. It includes functions like Google POIs, Google send to car, and RSS feeds. There also is an App for the car as you may have expected. The two main functions of the app are Checking state of charge, and turning on the climate control. The AT&T 3G data connection is pretty reliable, but there are times when the connection is weak. Oh, and the solar panel on the roof. People seem to be amazed by it! It only charges the 12v battery, so it's really more just for show.

Audio: 5/10

We didn't opt for the premium package (Bose stereo and around view monitor) because the dealer had the SL in the color we wanted already on the lot. We kind of regret that decision looking back, but that's life! The base stereo isn't that great, it's simply lacking. Under hard acceleration it sounds like a jet!

Value: 7/10

Yes, EVs do come at a premium. We got our SL in the $34,000 neighborhood. The federal tax credit of $7,500 plus the $3,000 from the state of PA (no longer in effect) got it theoretically down to $24,000, which is attainable for most people. The tax credit takes $7,500 of your taxes for the tax year you bought the car. If you want to take advantage of the full $7,500 your taxes must be over $7,500, our taxes are way over $7,500 so this was no problem for us. It would've been a tougher sell if there was no tax credits or rebates. For 36k you could have a BMW X1, Mercedes Benz CLA, Volvo C30 (was on sale the time we bought our Leaf). Electricity for charging the car each month comes to around $30.00. That's less than half of what it cost to fill up the Liberty! Running costs are very low as you might have expected from an electric car.

So, that's a little bit about the Leaf! Sorry about the bold sections. I got Kinja'd.

jkm7680 > Alex B 04/22/2014 at 17:57

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Nice review!

Oh and it's brake, not break :)

Alex B > jkm7680 04/22/2014 at 18:00

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Thanks! It's fixed now. Sometimes my brain decides not to work in the afternoon. ;)

Dunnik > Alex B 04/22/2014 at 18:06

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I once saw a Leaf abandoned on an airside service road at Pearson . Presumably, the little Datusn had run out of juice. I thought it looked rather lost and forlorn, poor thing.

Vince-The Roadside Mechanic > Alex B 04/22/2014 at 18:08

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Nice write up I am looking forward to more of these as I can't drive (legally).

jkm7680 > Alex B 04/22/2014 at 18:14

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Haha same, my brain doesn't really work from 11pm onwards :P

I enjoyed the review though, good information!

Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire > Alex B 04/22/2014 at 18:19

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This misalignment is killing me.

Alex B > Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire 04/22/2014 at 18:30

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Yeah! I'll never be able to unsee that now. : /

DancesWithRotors - Driving Insightfully > Alex B 04/22/2014 at 18:43

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I test drove one, one time... It was actually fun, but the Mazda has a huge range advantage.

PetarVN, GLI Guy, now with stupid power > Alex B 04/22/2014 at 22:31

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There are 5 cool Nissans you can buy new in the US today

1, is the GT-R (obviously)

2, is the Maxima. a 290hp v6 family sedan that looks good, and is apparently a really good driver. the "unsung hero" of the $30K midsize range

3, The leaf. It's got electro-torque, and I think it looks great!

4. Juke Nismo. Body kit? check! more power? check! loads of tech? check! I love the looks on these, and they seem to be rare and cool! now just need to find a 6M/T one with the nav package...

5. Xterra. My stepdad had one. Although it's thirsty, it is one of 3 true off-roaders you can buy today. The jeep wrangler and FJ being the other 2. It's also fast, with a 0-60 time that shames almost all other crossovers, and some older hot hatches (about 7 seconds)

Dsscats > Alex B 06/10/2014 at 20:59

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You can't drive!? YOU SHOULN'T BE ON OPPO...

...is what an asshole would say. I've been on Oppo since I was 14.

What will your first car be?

Alex B > Dsscats 06/11/2014 at 08:01

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Well, I know I could drive, but laws and regulations keep me from driving! I'm 14 right now actually. As for my first car... There are sooo many. I think I would like a Mini Cooper for a DD. My dad likes them too, so it wouldn't be a terribly hard sell for him I think. My mom might say it's too unsafe and small tough. You know how moms can be. ;-) Also, reliability worries my a bit with the Mini. I know I want to have a Volvo C30 at some point in my life. We almost ended up with one instead of the Leaf, but if was just too small for our needs. I love those things. It'd just so hard to pick one. Do you have any suggestions?

Dsscats > Alex B 06/11/2014 at 09:09

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If you get a Mini, avoid the autos like the plague. Driving manual is much better and the 6 speed in the R53 S is the best manual I've ever had the privilege of using. C30s are amazing, but I find it hard to believe how well they've kept their value. Don't do what I did and get something sporty an unreliable. I guess the ideal mix would be an S2K or SW20 MR2 depending of your parents. Does either of your parents drive manual?

Alex B > Dsscats 06/11/2014 at 10:30

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They used to! They both know how, but haven't had a manual car since the late 90s I think. I know my dad would go back to a manual car, but my Mom would be a tougher sell. She feels that if she was to injure her leg (ankle more specifically. She sprained it a couple of times this winter) she couldn't drive it until her ankle healed. But we have two cars so it's a non issue really.