Florida

[Weatherman]

Eve, thanks for the recommendation on a solar panel installer.

I have three, large marine aquariums, which cost me about $200/month in electricity to maintain the lights, pumps and temperature control. The electricity demand rises and falls over the course of the day and from season to season at almost an exact match to the amount of sunlight hitting my roof. It always bugged me I was spending so much money fighting the effects of solar radiation when I could be benefiting from it.

I've got to keep the pumps running at night (about a continuous 0.58 kWh draw), but, at least I can offset the lights and A/C requirements during the day.

 

[N1ghtrider]

Who was the first to make 100 miles plus on a charge, when compared to your total miles on your Leaf? Tonight I broke 100 (102.2 actually ), as I hit 455 total miles on the car. My car has had 5 charges, the first by the dealer and 4 by me. I got 93 miles on the first charge, which was my best until tonight's.

I used the air conditioning about 30-40 miles of this charge, but when cooled down a couple of days ago into the 60s and 70s I was able to turn off the climate control. I always run in ECO, except to show off acceleration to people I take for rides (twice done this charge).

All but about 18 miles of this 102.2 miles was on city streets at about 30-42 mph. I put the rest on the interstate at 45-55 mph.

I reached "low battery" at 94 miles, with 11 miles to go on the gauge. At 8 miles to go (98 on odometer), I hit "very low battery" (the --- signal), so I headed for my neighborhood and drove the last 3.2 miles within a mile of my house.

 

[Brightonuk]

Great job N1ghtrider
I have not needed to push the mileage as I am still enjoying the "I can go a fast as I want to and it does not cost me anything" syndrome and “yes my electric car can accelerate faster than your Honda Civic” but it is nice to know I could get 102+ if I dive conservatively.
It would seem you could squeeze another 10 miles ???
Are you going to be at the meet?

In addition, talking bout the meeting does anyone want to try the horn upgrade at the meet?

http://www.mynissanleaf.com/viewtopic.php?f=37&t=4000

If so I will bring ramps, it is a difficulty level of 1 to complete this let me know and I will be happy to help out but you will need to do a little prep beforehand.

This also goes for anyone that wants to switch out their fog lights for HID or LED’s as the underside is the only way to get to them.

 

[hodad66]

Brightonuk, that's so funny because my Volt is constantly in "sport"
mode and I swear that I'll be lucky to get through the three years
without a ticket..... :shock:

 

[LTLFTcomposite]

There is a blue 2012 SL that looks homeless over at Maroone in Delray.

 

[Weatherman]

With a VIN of 15194, the person who ordered it probably got tired of waiting. That car just recently became "In Stock".

Did you also notice how the "est. arrival" list has just about dried up? None at Kendall, Ft. Lauderdale or Pembroke Pines. Just the two for Miami and two for Delray. That’s it.

After a month, my orphan, at Weston Nissan, is still sitting in their inventory.


In spite of the fact that South Florida should be the ideal environment for electric vehicles (mild weather, flat terrain, relatively inexpensive natural gas and nuclear power for electricity), the adoption rate for electric vehicles is very low.

 

[N1ghtrider]

Weatherman:

Is your Leaf really number 15616? I thought the numbers were in order of delivery and that only 10,000 would be delivered this year.

 

[Weatherman]

Is your Leaf really number 15616? I thought the numbers were in order of delivery and that only 10,000 would be delivered this year.

Yes, as I'm guessing yours is 16408. It's the "sequence number" (last six digits) on the VIN. The sequence numbers on the 2011s ended somewhere just shy of 10000, and the 2012s picked up at 15000.

I recall some press reports that Nissan said around 20,000 LEAFs were delivered in 2011. That would include both 2011 and 2012 model year cars.

 

[N1ghtrider]

That's right. I am 16408 instead of 06408.

 

[BrainDonor]

That's right. I am 16408 instead of 06408.

You can edit your profile and correct the VIN... ;-)

 

[BrainDonor]

In spite of the fact that South Florida should be the ideal environment for electric vehicles (mild weather, flat terrain, relatively inexpensive natural gas and nuclear power for electricity), the adoption rate for electric vehicles is very low.

That's a good observation. I think it's a general lack of awareness of the LEAF in South Florida. As LTL mentioned earlier, I too am surprised by the lack of questions I'm getting about the LEAF. I've shown it to my friends and family, and they were all eager to learn more and test drive it. However, the general population does not know or care. Perhaps when the gas prices go up they will eventually wise up.

P.S.: My 10 year old nephew made a comment tonight that when he grows up his first car will be electric. ;-)

 

[keydiver]

I actually had two different gentlemen approach me today while I waited in the Leaf for my wife. Both knew a little about the Leaf, and asked lots of questions. The one guy said he had been seriously considering buying one, and even more so after talking to me. Most days aren't this good though.

 

[LTLFTcomposite]

I know it's way too early to predict, but I fear the LEAF may be in for some rough sledding. Once you get past several thousand enthusiasts I fear most people quite frankly are just not really smart enough to grasp the idea. Then when you see the window sticker with the 38k price and the 73 mile range they quickly move on. I doubt the dealer sales force sees it as anything more than an annoyance, they need to be selling 100's of cars each month, not creating confusion in the customer's minds, so good chance they blow it off in discussions with the customer, who is already walking in the door with preconceived ideas about what's good and bad. Probably most of them are still looking for V8's.

In the meantime, I'm having a ball with mine.

 

[N1ghtrider]

I was surprised as I exited a parking garage in downtown Miami yesterday when I asked the youthful attendant in the booth if he liked my new car. I said "It is all electric; no gas; quiet, huh?" He surprised me by responding: "Sure thing, it's a Nissan Leaf, right?"

 

[BrainDonor]

Happy New Year everyone!

Weatherman, keydiver, will you be able to attend the meet-up on the 14th in Delray? Brightonuk, how about you? I assume you'll make it, so I put you in the confirmed list. My apologies if you already responded and I missed it.

So far we have:

Confirmed:

• LTLFTcomposite
• spike09 (needs charge)
• N1ghtrider (needs charge)
• BrainDonor
• Brightonuk (needs charge)

Unconfirmed (yet):

• Weatherman
• keydiver

Unable to make it (this time):

• evenoelle
• Now7grandkids

If we have more folks which need a charge than available EVSEs, there are plenty of things to do in downtown Delray so you can make a day of it while letting the car charge. Or, you can come earlier (for breakfast?) and charge up before the meet-up. Just a thought... ;-)

 

[Brightonuk]

Sorry mate yer I will be there

I did post earler that I can bring ramps if anyone wants to swap out the Meep Meep Horn (best mod so far)

 

[DaveinOlyWA]

dont underestimate the interest in EV driving in your area. i live in Olympia WA which has a huge environmental element here that has adopted EVs, hybrids, alternative transportion, etc. bigtime and I still run into people who are clueless as to what the Leaf is

mostly, its people who have heard of the Leaf but didnt know it was for sale yet, etc.

but the time to buy an EV is now. WA State offers a tax credit for EV purchases thru 2014 (that is a $3,000+ chunk of change!!.. vehicle sales tax varies up near 9%!!)

WA State also has extended the EV Highway Project to the entire north/south length of I-5 and unlike the National Project, has already broken ground on the first of 9 planned DC quick charge stations

They have also mandated that all state fleets investigate and implement alternative vehicle options as much as possible. the DOT in Lacey has over 100 Priuses in its fleets. (reputed to save the State over $200,000 in fuel every quarter)

but despite all that, most the residents here are very much EV clueless. but that will change. i went from driving 7 months in my Leaf before i saw another in my area to now seeing about 5-6 around here and that will multiply.

remember for every one of you Leaf drivers; 100 will see you, 10-15 will seriously consider it, and 1-2 will buy.

 

[BrainDonor]

Sorry mate yer I will be there

Sorry, my bad! So the list is up to date then...

 

[BrainDonor]

... WA State offers a tax credit for EV purchases thru 2014 (that is a $3,000+ chunk of change!!.. vehicle sales tax varies up near 9%!!)

WA State also has extended the EV Highway Project to the entire north/south length of I-5 and unlike the National Project, has already broken ground on the first of 9 planned DC quick charge stations

They have also mandated that all state fleets investigate and implement alternative vehicle options as much as possible. the DOT in Lacey has over 100 Priuses in its fleets. (reputed to save the State over $200,000 in fuel every quarter)...

If only Florida was as aggressive on the EV front as WA. Our utility, Florida Power & Light, builds itself as "... a clean energy leader, [having] one of the lowest emissions profiles and one of the leading energy efficiency programs among utilities nationwide." However, their TOU metering and solar PV (after all, we're the "Sunshine State") programs are a joke. One good thing is that our standard electricity rates are relatively low at about $0.11 per kWh.

 

[DaveinOlyWA]

... WA State offers a tax credit for EV purchases thru 2014 (that is a $3,000+ chunk of change!!.. vehicle sales tax varies up near 9%!!)

WA State also has extended the EV Highway Project to the entire north/south length of I-5 and unlike the National Project, has already broken ground on the first of 9 planned DC quick charge stations

They have also mandated that all state fleets investigate and implement alternative vehicle options as much as possible. the DOT in Lacey has over 100 Priuses in its fleets. (reputed to save the State over $200,000 in fuel every quarter)...

If only Florida was as aggressive on the EV front as WA. Our utility, Florida Power & Light, builds itself as "... a clean energy leader, [having] one of the lowest emissions profiles and one of the leading energy efficiency programs among utilities nationwide." However, their TOU metering and solar PV (after all, we're the "Sunshine State") programs are a joke. One good thing is that our standard electricity rates are relatively low at about $0.11 per kWh.

it is easy to see WA's motivation. we currently have a HUGE resource of power that we use relatively inefficiently and still cant use it all but at the same time, the fast population growth in the western part of the state has forced us to use hydrocarbon options like the coal fired plant 35 miles south of me to meet peak demand while our grid at night is running at 25% of our baseload requiring us to sell the coal power as well as the water.

so what we have is a TON of power running thru the dams at night that we dont use (estimated to be able to charge 5 million+ EVs at night without any threat to grid stability) and have to sell at cut rate prices.

to alleviate that, the Columbia River Basin (most of which looks like the Moon) is lined with industry that requires huge amounts of power. Google, Microsoft, Amazon, etc all have server farms here but even with refrigerating a 150,000 Sq foot building full of hot running servers, we still have power to burn.

so what looks to be a "gimmee" by the State is really a ploy to better utilize the the resources we have