TomHuffman
Active member
- Joined
- Jun 5, 2013
- Messages
- 40
Nissan is publicly committed to the electric car. The company will reportedly release a new version of the Leaf in the next couple of years with double (or more) range. However, having an electric car with additional range does little good if there is not a charging infrastructure to support it. Tesla seems to be the only electric car company that understands this. By the end of 2016 Tesla owners will be able to reach virtually any place in the country solely by using the Supercharger network, making long distance travel practical for the electric car.
To my knowledge, Nissan has no plans to erect a similar network of quick chargers centered on the Interstate highway system. Looking at the CHAdeMO chargers on Plugshare, huge swaths of the country are left uncovered. Furthermore, many of the existing chargers have limited access. For example, at the Dave Solon dealership in Pueblo, CO the CHAdeMO charger is "for use during normal service business hours, which are not as long as dealership hours."
I don't understand the business strategy of investing tens of millions of dollars into a technology without also making a modest additional investment in the infrastructure needed to make the success of the product possible. A $20 million dollar investment would underwrite 400 CHAdeMO chargers, which--if strategically placed along the Interstate highway system--would make a 150-mile range Leaf a practical choice for long range trips. As far as I can tell, Nissan has no such plan.
I am currently leasing a Leaf. When my lease is up I currently plan to purchase a Tesla Model III, not because I prefer this (as of now concept) car, but because I know that the car will be supported by the necessary nation-wide charging infrastructure.
This seems like such a no-brainer to me I am mystified by Nissan's approach.
To my knowledge, Nissan has no plans to erect a similar network of quick chargers centered on the Interstate highway system. Looking at the CHAdeMO chargers on Plugshare, huge swaths of the country are left uncovered. Furthermore, many of the existing chargers have limited access. For example, at the Dave Solon dealership in Pueblo, CO the CHAdeMO charger is "for use during normal service business hours, which are not as long as dealership hours."
I don't understand the business strategy of investing tens of millions of dollars into a technology without also making a modest additional investment in the infrastructure needed to make the success of the product possible. A $20 million dollar investment would underwrite 400 CHAdeMO chargers, which--if strategically placed along the Interstate highway system--would make a 150-mile range Leaf a practical choice for long range trips. As far as I can tell, Nissan has no such plan.
I am currently leasing a Leaf. When my lease is up I currently plan to purchase a Tesla Model III, not because I prefer this (as of now concept) car, but because I know that the car will be supported by the necessary nation-wide charging infrastructure.
This seems like such a no-brainer to me I am mystified by Nissan's approach.