Does owning a Leaf = your an environmentalist?

[GPowers]

I did a search on this forum and only found one other Leaf owner that bought the Leaf for reasons other then being an environmentalist.

Do not get me wrong there is nothing wrong with buying the leaf to environmentalist beliefs.

I bought the Leaf to stop buying gasoline, at HIGH prices. Price that go up and up for no reasons. Anyone else beside adric22 and myself that bought the Leaf for non-environmentalist reasons?

 

[dpodoll]

I did a search on this forum and only found one other Leaf owner that bought the Leaf for reasons other then being an environmentalist.

Do not get me wrong there is nothing wrong with buying the leaf to environmentalist beliefs.

I bought the Leaf to stop buying gasoline, at HIGH prices. Price that go up and up for no reasons. anyone else beside adric22 and myself that bought the Leaf for non-environmentalist reasons?

+1

 

[TomT]

Make it three now (or maybe I WAS the other one)... The environment was a secondary (and frankly not big) reason for my buying a Leaf...

I did a search on this forum and only found one other Leaf owner that bought the Leaf for reasons other then being an environmentalist.

 

[HighDesertDriver]

We bought it to minimize the cost of gasoline and maintenance on our ICE long-distance traveling car. Most of our daily mileage is within 30 miles of home and the Leaf fits that need quite fine. Additionally, we overpowered our home with PV a number of years ago in anticipation of some sort of electric vehicle. The Leaf will consume our excess annual production instead of just giving it back to SoCal Edison or getting paid a "whopping" :lol: $.04/kWh.

We are far from being "environmentalists," but it seems imprudent to waste free resources that land on our roof. If we didn't have PV on the roof, $.02-$.06/mile for electricity is still better than $.15/mile or more for gasoline. If our goals intersect those of environmentalists or people wanting to poke middle-east sheikhs in the eye, then we have at least one thing in common -- owning a Leaf. Who knows?, if we have one thing in common, perhaps will have two. . .

 

[TRONZ]

It's nice that electric cars have enough virtues for everyone.

 

[Stoaty]

Doesn't matter what your motivation is, the result is the same: decreased dependence on foreign oil, cheaper fueling, a lot less maintenance, zero emissions from Leaf itself (easier to control emissions from a few power plants than millions of already produced autos), opportunity to run off renewables if you install PV or buy renewable electricity from utility, etc. It's all good.

 

[smkettner]

I don't know if LEAF is good or bad for the environment. I bought it for using domestic energy, staying out of the grips of big oil, low maintenance, quiet, dependable, convenient transportation.

 

[thankyouOB]

An environmentalist by any other name is still and environmentalist.

You are an environmentalist if you bought a Leaf to save money on gasoline, or put in solar to stop wasting the sunlight that falls on your roof.

You just either dont know it or are ashamed to admit it.
I cant imagine why.

Maybe you arent if you can answer yes to all of these:
Do you pour your used oil in the street?
Refuse to recycle your newspapers in the recycle bin from the city?
Leave the all the lights and AC on high in your house when you are not home?
Use a hose to wash leaves off your driveway?
Run the water when you shave and brush your teeth?

 

[JimSouCal]

I think any deep ecology environmentalist wouldn't own a car; they'd walk or ride a bike. Me, I am a poser, I guess. This is a great car!

 

[smkettner]

Maybe you arent if you can answer yes to all of these:
Do you pour your used oil in the street?
Refuse to recycle your newspapers in the recycle bin from the city?
Leave the all the lights and AC on high in your house when you are not home?
Use a hose to wash leaves off your driveway?
Run the water when you shave and brush your teeth?

You mean I have to waste all my money to avoid being an environmentalist?
And break the law to boot?

 

[Anonymous]

An environmentalist by any other name is still and environmentalist.

You are an environmentalist if you bought a Leaf to save money on gasoline, or put in solar to stop wasting the sunlight that falls on your roof.

I disagree. Wanting to save money on gasoline doesn't directly imply that you are doing it for environmental reasons. It could simply mean that you can't afford gas anymore and have to find another way. Of course, you could argue that if your way of doing so is to buy a $35k vehicle, well then, that might be different. Spending a lot of money to save a little.... ok, there must be some other reason or you're just not good at finances... Also, I've known people that have installed solar without regard for the environmental aspects. Financial reasons, by various rebate options making it a fairly decent ROI (in some cases, unfortunately not for our house), or to provide power backup in case of power outages (although there are other options that are better for that).

You can add me as another one that didn't buy the Leaf due to being an environmentalist. Granted, I do consider myself a bit of an environmentalist, but it's not why I bought the Leaf. I bought it because of the technology. I'm a geek, and have always been interested in electric <insert whatever here>. Add to that the driving characteristics that EVs have (smooth, quiet, high torque at all "rpms", low maintenance, etc) and it's an incredibly fun toy for me.

However, I do have to add that the only reason I was ALLOWED to get the Leaf "toy" was due to the fact that my boss (i.e. wife) IS very much an environmentalist. She likes it for the environmental aspects, I like it for the nerdy aspects. As time goes by, however, we're both seeing the other's point of view as well.

 

[thankyouOB]

An environmentalist by any other name is still and environmentalist.

You are an environmentalist if you bought a Leaf to save money on gasoline, or put in solar to stop wasting the sunlight that falls on your roof.

However, I do have to add that the only reason I was ALLOWED to get the Leaf "toy" was due to the fact that my boss (i.e. wife) IS very much an environmentalist. She likes it for the environmental aspects, I like it for the nerdy aspects. As time goes by, however, we're both seeing the other's point of view as well.

put your wife on the phone. she will tell us the truth.
seems you are an environmentalist by love and marriage. i am sure she doesnt let you violate my check list, even if you pass yourself off as a geek.

 

[mitch672]

many are "technology geeks" and "early adopters", many are former Prius drivers, some of us are just "cheap" and like saving money. Whatver your reason is, the outcome is the same - burning fewer dead dino's, and putting fewer greenhouse gas's into the environment

 

[hodad66]

My purchase (lease) is a long awaited statement. One that
argues that we should have followed President Carter's warning
and plan back in the late 70's. Imagine the lives saved, the money
saved, the pollution reduced in all those years.

This is the singular reason that I'm stretching my budget to show
support for technological advancements that should have been
unearthed and utilized decades ago.

 

[MrFish]

I'm a moderate conservative, gun owner, fisherman. That being said, most hunters respect the environment and I'm bothered that many conservatives do not respect the environment. I did not purchase the leaf specifically to be green, that doesn't mean I don't like helping keep the environment clean. I purchased it because it financially made sense for me and I'm tired of sending gas money abroad to support governments that don't like my country. I wonder how many dollars from each fill up in my old truck wound up buying bullets that were aimed at American soldiers. I replaced a truck that cost me over $400.00 a month in gas, had 135,000 miles, needed new tires and brakes. I get free electricity at work, car pool lane, and tax credit and rebates = no brainier.

 

[Fabio]

I bought my LEAF to make a statement about how I feel about wasting fossil fuels.
I love driving it because it's quiet, fun & uses the electrons I get from my PV

 

[walterbays]

#2 reason. Weak environmentalist. Save the planet so long as I don't have to give up anything Nice quiet smooth comfortable car with plenty of power and plenty of gadgets, don't have to change how I drive, and save money while doing it. That's easy green.

#1 reason. Too many US dollars going to countries that hate us, finding their way to terrorist organizations that try to kill us. Too many American soldiers' lives risked and lost.

 

[Herm]

I'm a moderate conservative, gun owner, fisherman. That being said, most hunters respect the environment and I'm bothered that many conservatives do not respect the environment.

Most hunters respect the environment and like to conserve, same thing goes for conservatives.. look at who started the National Parks Service and the EPA. If you want the opposite side look at the environmental disaster that the Soviet Union was and Russia is to this day, pollution on a massive scale from the most progressive government of the last century. It all comes back to the tragedy of the commons and the lack of personal property.

 

[pasowino]

I do have environmental tendencies. I compost my food scraps, I raise a lot of my own food, I don't waste resources, but my primary reason was to create demand for electric vehicles. I was concerned that if no one bought them, car companies would give up and go back to making crappy ICE cars. So, my wife and I just thought we would help stimulate demand for EV's and EV infrastructure. We did the same thing with organic produce in the grocery store. It was more expensive, but we kept buying it and now there is a whole section of organic produce.

I guess it's our way of voting with our dollars. Voting with our vote doesn't seem to get us much anymore. :roll:

 

[Anonymous]

#2 reason. Weak environmentalist. Save the planet so long as I don't have to give up anything Nice quiet smooth comfortable car with plenty of power and plenty of gadgets, don't have to change how I drive, and save money while doing it. That's easy green.

Bingo, this is the kind of environmentalist I am too! My wife goes way out of her way to be green, I do it when it's convenient (or fun, like the Leaf and my Xebra). I think there are a LOT of people like us, which is why it's good to have programs and policies in place to make "green" more convenient. Look at the amazing difference curb-side recycling programs have made. Smaller garbage cans, because most things go into the recycling. Can you imagine how much less most of us (and speaking for myself) would recycle if we had to go out of our way to haul it off to a special recycling center?

Case in point, I own an SUV. I love my SUV. It's comfortable, I can haul a lot of stuff with it (both inside and behind) and it's fun to drive. If my wife would have gotten some Scion or Golf (cars she was considering), would that be our primary weekend car? No way, the SUV would be the main driver. But the Leaf? It's more fun to drive (and newer, and more gadgets) than my SUV, so it's now the weekend car. Do I feel dirty when driving the SUV? No way. Although the constant engine noise and vibration has started getting on my nerves, funny how it never bothered me before... :lol: