I'm Here to Research!

[goodluckcharlie]

I joined to do some research, and take advantage of other users experiences on this board! I admit I am afraid to "take the plunge" in owning an electric car, so I figured talking to other owners will help me make a decision! Thanks!

 

[LeftieBiker]

If you give us some necessary info, like how far and often you drive, and where you live, that would help us to help you.

 

[grandizer52]

I joined to do some research, and take advantage of other users experiences on this board! I admit I am afraid to "take the plunge" in owning an electric car, so I figured talking to other owners will help me make a decision! Thanks!

I was in a similar situation...and knew I would buy one, was keeping an eye out back in 10 when I visited japan and took a peek in the Nissan museum, they had a model on a track you could play with... I just bought a 2011 in oct, I know if I was un happy I could unload it for what I picked it up for. "but" if you like to tinker, it's not a bad car.
there are some growing pains with an EV.

good luck on your research

 

[cwerdna]

If you give us some necessary info, like how far and often you drive, and where you live, that would help us to help you.

Yep.

OP, can you update your location info via your user name in the upper right > User Control Panel > Profile tab? That way, we don't need to ask in future posts/threads or do sleuthing to deduce it.

What are your daily driving needs in terms of miles? How much city vs. highway? Will you have the ability to charge at your work/destinations?

 

[goodluckcharlie]

Thanks for the welcome and sorry about the lack of info! I live in New Jersey in the Northwest part of the state. I do mostly local driving (within 10-15 miles from home), but do take an occasional road trip. The farthest I am likely to drive is 300+ miles up to Vermont (1-2 times a year), or 100 miles out to Pennsylvania (once a month). One issue here is it is very hilly, and we get our fair share of cold weather and snowstorms, though you wouldn't know it based on the temperature this past December. It is also considered a rural area here, despite being a little over an hour from Manhattan.

 

[EVforRobert]

Thanks for the welcome and sorry about the lack of info! I live in New Jersey in the Northwest part of the state. I do mostly local driving (within 10-15 miles from home), but do take an occasional road trip. The farthest I am likely to drive is 300+ miles up to Vermont (1-2 times a year), or 100 miles out to Pennsylvania (once a month). One issue here is it is very hilly, and we get our fair share of cold weather and snowstorms, though you wouldn't know it based on the temperature this past December. It is also considered a rural area here, despite being a little over an hour from Manhattan.

Hills, high rates of speed and cold reduce range significantly. Only a Tesla will do all the things you are asking a car to do.

 

[RonDawg]

Thanks for the welcome and sorry about the lack of info! I live in New Jersey in the Northwest part of the state. I do mostly local driving (within 10-15 miles from home), but do take an occasional road trip. The farthest I am likely to drive is 300+ miles up to Vermont (1-2 times a year), or 100 miles out to Pennsylvania (once a month). One issue here is it is very hilly, and we get our fair share of cold weather and snowstorms, though you wouldn't know it based on the temperature this past December. It is also considered a rural area here, despite being a little over an hour from Manhattan.

Unless you can afford a Tesla Model S with the 85 kWH battery, or you simply never stray far from home, no current (pun intended) EV will meet 100% of your driving needs. But for quite a few people, it will meet 75%+ of them.

Are there any convenient car rentals near to where you live? That could take care of your occasional long distance needs. Or, if you have a paid-off conventionally powered or hybrid car, you could keep it for just that purpose (I did with mine). Needless to say, if your spouse/significant other has a car, you could use that.

With your typical driving distance, I wouldn't worry about hills and cold weather as long as you buy an EV with a decent enough battery capacity remaining.

 

[GRA]

Thanks for the welcome and sorry about the lack of info! I live in New Jersey in the Northwest part of the state. I do mostly local driving (within 10-15 miles from home), but do take an occasional road trip. The farthest I am likely to drive is 300+ miles up to Vermont (1-2 times a year), or 100 miles out to Pennsylvania (once a month). One issue here is it is very hilly, and we get our fair share of cold weather and snowstorms, though you wouldn't know it based on the temperature this past December. It is also considered a rural area here, despite being a little over an hour from Manhattan.

Unless you can afford a Tesla Model S with the 85 kWH battery, or you simply never stray far from home, no current (pun intended) EV will meet 100% of your driving needs. But for quite a few people, it will meet 75%+ of them.

Are there any convenient car rentals near to where you live? That could take care of your occasional long distance needs. Or, if you have a paid-off conventionally powered or hybrid car, you could keep it for just that purpose (I did with mine). Needless to say, if your spouse/significant other has a car, you could use that.

With your typical driving distance, I wouldn't worry about hills and cold weather as long as you buy an EV with a decent enough battery capacity remaining.

Given the hilly terrain, cold temps, occasional road trips and assuming this is to be the OP's sole car, I think the OP will be happier with a PHEV (barring the Tesla), at least until the 2nd gen. 'affordable' BEVs arrive, absent renting/borrowing an ICE for trips. I think that would get old if it needed doing every month. A Sonata or Volt should handle virtually all the local driving on the battery; PHEVs with ca. 20 mile AERs can handle most of it. Depending on what AER the EPA gives the Outlander, you may want to wait until mid-year for that if AWD is desired.

 

[tkdbrusco]

If you're looking to learn about EVs. You can visit my site. [REDACTED]. I'm just starting it up so doing consults for free right now. Let me know what you think.

Thanks,
Jonathan

[MODERATORS NOTE - please no plugging of for-profit sites, please become a sponsor]

 

[OakLeaf]

In addition to the excellent comments above (both pro and con LEAF), I would add that you should also consider what the charging infrastructure is like on your anticipated extended travels.

There are other sites out there, but I find http://www.plugshare.com to be a good resource.

Myself, I've been commuting for the past 3 years, 30-40 miles (a mix of local and highway) daily without any trouble, in similar weather and hilly conditions (eastern PA). Having a L2 charger at home is highly recommended (no charging available at work), but I did the first year solely via L1 (120V) and a wall outlet in the garage.

Occasionally, I need to travel to sites in NJ with trips between 80 to 120 miles, and the availability of L3 quick chargers makes this possible, with only a slight inconvenience in additional time to charge along the way.

Not sure if this helps your decision making, but hopefully it does.

 

[powersurge]

You cannot expect to travel 100s of miles on an EV. Also in hilly or mountainous areas, you may need double the electricity that you use on flat ground. 10-15 miles (each way) daily is no problem, even with hills.

If you ever expect to travel far, Basically, forget about an electric car only - . The EV should be your primary daily car and you need a gas car for trips.