Leafs Over Texas!

[1932highboy]

Add another Texas Leaf. I picked up my black SL today from South Point Nissan in Austin. I bought the orphan on May 5th, but it took me this long to get it moved here to Wichita Falls. I believe I have the first Leaf here. The local Nissan Dealer says that have not delivered one yet. I also bought the Schneider EVSE for it.

 

[jhm614]

We got some coverage here in San Antonio!!

http://www.ksat.com/automotive/27957282/detail.html

http://www.kens5.com/news/Nissan-Leaf-keeps-green-in-SA--122370234.html

...there may be some pics in the drive section on Monday in the paper.

I believe as of today we have 3 leafs in San Antonio!

WooHoo! Congrats on the pub! It's good to see Leafer's get recognized!

 

[mbutter]

Are you an Austin Energy/City of Austin Utilities customer? If yes, do you know about Austin Energy's EVSE rebate: $1500 or 50% of station + installation cost, whichever is less?

Yes! I was fortunate enough to fill out the 'initiation form' immediately when the rebate program was announced, and COA was still giving 100% rebate for the EVSE. I received an email on Mar 28 that said they were cutting the rebate to 50%, but anyone who was already signed up was still eligible for the 100% rebate. (confirmed by phone with COA last week).

My Schneider EVSE arrived Friday, and I picked it up that afternoon. It is the first one sold by Dealer Electric. Coincidentally, Dealer Electric was hosting a 'Meet the Vendor' event with Schnieder (Square D) on the same day. Several of the Schnieder reps had never seen the EVSE, even though it is made by their company. They opened the box and played "show and tell" with it. I suppose I can forgive them for delivering me an "open box"

I *could* hook it up myself in a couple of hours (I am comfortable doing my own electrical work), but needs to be installed by an electrician from the 'approved installer list' to qualify for the COA rebate. I hope to have my EVSE operational in the next few days.

 

[aqn]

Are you an Austin Energy/City of Austin Utilities customer? If yes, do you know about Austin Energy's EVSE rebate: $1500 or 50% of station + installation cost, whichever is less?

Yes! I was fortunate enough to fill out the 'initiation form' immediately when the rebate program was announced, and COA was still giving 100% rebate for the EVSE.

You lucky dog!

I received an email on Mar 28 that said they were cutting the rebate to 50%, but anyone who was already signed up was still eligible for the 100% rebate. (confirmed by phone with COA last week).

Have you looked into what that means as far as the Federal EVSE tax credit? I went through the IRS Form 8911, "Alternative Fuel Vehicle Refueling Property Credit" but I did not see anything regarding "other rebates and credits". Can it be that you'd get 100% back from Austin Energy and 50% back from the IRS, for a profit of 50%?! If so, score! (Obviously, check with an accountant.)

My Schneider EVSE arrived Friday, and I picked it up that afternoon. It is the first one sold by Dealer Electric. Coincidentally, Dealer Electric was hosting a 'Meet the Vendor' event with Schnieder (Square D) on the same day. Several of the Schnieder reps had never seen the EVSE, even though it is made by their company. They opened the box and played "show and tell" with it. I suppose I can forgive them for delivering me an "open box"

I *could* hook it up myself in a couple of hours (I am comfortable doing my own electrical work), but needs to be installed by an electrician from the 'approved installer list' to qualify for the COA rebate. I hope to have my EVSE operational in the next few days.

I am considering getting a Schneider as well. At the least, I know I'm not going with those piranhas over at AeroVironment! Please do post about your experience with the unit, either here in this thread or over in the EVSE - Charging Equipment subforum. Thanks!

 

[LonghornLeaf]

I just posted a new thread as I was a lucky boy last weekend. I won a Nissan LEAF contest on facebook to go to the Tour of California cycling race, if you see a guy with too much tour of california or Nissan cycling jersey's it's probably me.
http://www.mynissanleaf.com/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=4064

In other news, I ran Sparky down to 8 miles remaining last night just ahead of the big storm and decided to NOT recharge while the hail was falling.

 

[mckemie]

We just picked up our Leaf (VIN 1008) at South Point (Austin) yesterday. I've never seen a Leaf before and it was FAR larger than I expected. Got home, 30 miles south of Austin, and discovered we have very spotty cell reception on the Leaf. Wrong network for our area I expect. If it worked, the remote access would be VERY nice! First impression is that the "miles left" energy remaining thing is inaccurate, confusing and silly. Why not just give us KWH or percent? Or maybe they have and I haven't found it. If the "miles left" display is to be believed. we will have trouble with our 60 mile commute.

 

[LonghornLeaf]

Congrats mckemie! Enjoy!

The estimated miles will vary depending on driving mode (ECO vs D) and what type of driving you are doing (stop and go city vs highway). If you are in Eco mode and are driving around on city streets at <35 mph, I've found that it stays pretty consistent and drops as you tick off the miles.

If you hop on the freeway, it will absolutely come down to a smaller number faster.

I've found that after freeway driving, the miles will go back up, once I'm back on city streets.

How exactly it works is unclear. What type of averaging is it doing, etc...

The Energy Economy and Energy Usage screens are useful for seeing what kind of kWh usage a particular trip is taking.

 

[clarke]

I just picked up my Leaf on May 20th from Round Rock Nissan (their first Leaf).
I placed my original order on 4/10/2010.
I saw some folks placed orders in Jan 2011 and took delivery before mine was filled. I guess I don't know enough important people.

 

[clarke]

Update update on the eVgo situation. It is official, eVgo has changed the way they handle the ownership of the EVSE and after the 3 year contract you can have multiple options:

...

So there you go with options. I tried my best to lay out cost of everything. This is to help the new people make as much of an informed decision. Each option carries benefits and negatives, so its up to you what way you want to go.

Wow, really nice summary for us Austinites. I have my Leaf, am balking at the $2300 quote from Aerovironment, and am looking at putting some other Level 2 in my garage. I also know of the EVSE cable upgrade, which I would consider more seriously if the AustinEnergy rebate program wasn't there.

 

[AmarilloLeaf]

We just picked up our Leaf (VIN 1008) at South Point (Austin) yesterday. I've never seen a Leaf before and it was FAR larger than I expected. Got home, 30 miles south of Austin, and discovered we have very spotty cell reception on the Leaf. Wrong network for our area I expect. If it worked, the remote access would be VERY nice! First impression is that the "miles left" energy remaining thing is inaccurate, confusing and silly. Why not just give us KWH or percent? Or maybe they have and I haven't found it. If the "miles left" display is to be believed. we will have trouble with our 60 mile commute.

Congratulations on your Leaf!

You should not have any difficulty with a 60 mile round trip unless you are a total speed demon and run the heater at the same time.

If this a 60 mile EACH WAY, then that WILL be a problem.... But not if you can recharge while at work.

Since I control the parking at my office, I simply created an 'Plug In EV Vehicle Only' space in our parking garage near the 110v sockets. The parking sign companies already had a logo with a car having a plug coming out the tail for the sign & everything... Next I need to convince the owners that we need a Blink or AV unit too.

Good luck, it will be a fun drive for you to & from work...

 

[AmarilloLeaf]

I just picked up my Leaf on May 20th from Round Rock Nissan (their first Leaf).
I placed my original order on 4/10/2010.
I saw some folks placed orders in Jan 2011 and took delivery before mine was filled. I guess I don't know enough important people.

Actually what you did on 4/20/10 was to RESERVE the car. Your order was probably in the Fall or Winter. Yes, the sequence was messed up, but not by 8 months. It doesn't appear to be anything sinister such as Payola, it looks more like ineptitude.

You'll love the Leaf. It's a fun drive...

Congrats on finally getting delivery...

 

[aqn]

Add another Texas Leaf. I picked up my black SL today from South Point Nissan in Austin.

And make that an Austin LEAF!

 

[1932highboy]

Not really, I live in Wichita Falls. I bought a orphan from South Point Nissan. It was their third Leaf delivered.

 

[Nugget]

My LEAF arrived last Thursday (19th), unfortunately I was out of town and had to wait till Monday to pick it up. The wait was agonizing! Now that the car is in my possession I can say without a doubt that the car is AMAZING! I actually look forward to the drive to and from work. I believe I am one of 3 in San Antonio. Any other San Antonionian LEAF drivers out there?

 

[jlaw99]

My LEAF arrived last Thursday (19th), unfortunately I was out of town and had to wait till Monday to pick it up. The wait was agonizing! Now that the car is in my possession I can say without a doubt that the car is AMAZING! I actually look forward to the drive to and from work. I believe I am one of 3 in San Antonio. Any other San Antonionian LEAF drivers out there?

Its allmost time for a san antonio rally!

 

[philaphonic]

Just picked up "my" Leaf today from Baker Nissan South in Houston. The transaction went well, props to their Leaf sales rep Shelby Allen. Only hick-up was we couldn't set up CarWings! Turns out "my" Leaf had the wrong VIN so my password didn't work, and it was too late in the day to get anyone at Nissan customer support. Whoever got the car I was supposed to get (3 1/2 weeks ago) also got a free cargo net . But it's day 1 and I'm loving the car.

They also have an orphan Leaf for sale. A silver SL with fast charge port, floor mats, and splash guards. I asked Shelby if they were going to charge a mark-up on it and he said "nah". No waiting on this one!

Phil

 

[kinschan]

I picked up mine on Thursday at David McDavid Nissan om Gulf Freeway after Rafael called me around 10am to inform me
my Leaf was just delivered to the dealership. I have it for 3 days now and 120 miles later, I averaged 4.3 miles/kwh. My rate is 9.1 cents per kwh. It as costed me $2.53 for the last 3 days. Itdrives really good and quiet.

 

[jhm614]

Looks like the cars are starting to flow in a little quicker... Anybody have an idea of how many Texas Leafs there are?

 

[gkalexdc]

Its hard to tell how many TX leafs there are, my Houston Dealer, Baker SOuth, said when they delivered mine, 5/31 that I was number 7 from their dealer. Maybe others on here can ask their delivering dealer how many, and someone could do an inventory.
I sure hope the EV GO network is at work putting IN Freedom (QC) stations !!

 

[mckemie]

Its hard to tell how many TX leafs there are, my Houston Dealer, Baker SOuth, said when they delivered mine, 5/31 that I was number 7 from their dealer. Maybe others on here can ask their delivering dealer how many, and someone could do an inventory.

On 5/24, mine was the 5th out of South Point in Austin.

I sure hope the EV GO network is at work putting IN Freedom (QC) stations !!

I have a low level of interest since I didn't buy the external charger port. But, I haven't seen or even heard talk of chargers in this area. How about elsewhere?

I'm having second thoughts about not getting the external charger port since it now seems like it might be a good way to interface a range extension pack:

http://www.mynissanleaf.com/viewtopic.php?f=37&t=4175