Foldable Bicycle in Cargo Area of Leaf?

My Nissan dealer offers FREE L2 charging, but it is 2.1 miles (3.4 km) from our house. This is just a little too far for a convenient walk, but it would be a very, very easy bike ride. I have a garage full of bicycles, but getting a bike in/out once or twice each week is somewhat inconvenient and probably hard on the interior of the car, too. So, here's my solution: a simple, foldable bike that will live in the cargo area of my 2015 Leaf.

More specifically, I'm considering the the Dahon Uno for about US$400: http://dahon.com/mainnav/foldingbikes/single-view/bike/speed_uno-7.html This only weighs about 24 lbs and folds down in a few seconds to about 26” x 11” x 31”.

Has anyone else tried anything like this? Good idea? Bad idea?

A regular mountain bike (smaller preferred) will fit in the Leaf, but a folding bike would be much easier. Just remember that the smaller the wheels on the bike, the less fun it will be to ride it. I also suggest you cut a piece of indoor-outdoor carpeting to fit over the entire cargo area of the car, plus the backs of the ear and/or front seats. I got some, thinner nice grey recycled carpet that folds easily, for $20 for a large roll. I then cut it to roughly fit. Use that to protect the paper-thin upholstery of the car when the bike is inside.

Or you could take the $400 (and a bit more) and install a L2 charger in your home. It seems like quite the inconvenience to drive to the Nissan dealership to charge, not to mention taking up their charger all the time, not leaving it for others who need to charge in an emergency.

How about a hatch mounted bike rack? ~$50 and use any bike you have.

MartinChico said:

Has anyone else tried anything like this? Good idea? Bad idea?

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Yes, with that very brand of bike as a matter of fact (though I'm not sure of the model). Not me, but a former LEAF (and now a RAV4EV) owner.

I do think you have to ask yourself how amenable your local dealer will be to your idea. I'm thinking not much.

aarond12 said:

Or you could take the $400 (and a bit more) and install a L2 charger in your home. It seems like quite the inconvenience to drive to the Nissan dealership to charge, not to mention taking up their charger all the time, not leaving it for others who need to charge in an emergency.

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Point well taken. However...

I asked my local dealer--explicitly and multiple times--about the offer of free charging and he (in writing) gave me the green light. Charging at home will cost me, say, $4, so if I do this 100 times over the next 5-10 years, the bike has paid for itself.

There are 3 L2 chargers, and I will be very careful to NOT leave my car there after it's charged. My plan is to check the estimated time to 100%, then be back at that time to remove the car. I really don't want to be inconsiderate to other EV drivers.

mwalsh said:

MartinChico said:

Has anyone else tried anything like this? Good idea? Bad idea?

Click to expand...

Yes, with that very brand of bike as a matter of fact (though I'm not sure of the model). Not me, but a former LEAF (and now a RAV4EV) owner.

I do think you have to ask yourself how amenable your local dealer will be to your idea. I'm thinking not much.

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Point well taken. However...

I asked my local dealer--explicitly and multiple times--about the offer of free charging and he (in writing) gave me the green light. There are three L2 chargers, and I will be very careful to NOT leave my car there after it's charged. My plan is to check the estimated time to 100%, then be back at that time to remove the car. I really don't want to be inconsiderate to other EV drivers.

Also, I should point out that I've never seen more than 1 of the charging stations being used at any one time.

I own a Dahon bike actually. It's a great bike. I highly recommend it in general. I bought it years ago so I could fold it up and put it in the plane (C-172 /G) for various trips. I love it. The model I have most closely resembles the Espresso D24, and it would be very easy to fit it in the back of my leaf, probably without even folding down the seats. That model looks more like a normal bike. I think some of their other models look goofy, personally.

That said, I spent my first 2 months of Leaf ownership trying to get as much free charging as possible, and resisting the urge to purchase a level 2 EVSE, only to finally break down and buy the darn thing anyway. I eventually got sick of being inconvenienced just so I could save a couple of bucks a day on electricity costs. I do still take full advantage of free charging when it is available, and convenient, but I no longer go out of my way for it just because it's free. I'm guessing that's a pretty common story.

p.s. I added folding pedals and a more comfortable seat to mine.

MartinChico said:

...Has anyone else tried anything like this? Good idea? Bad idea?

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Have a Dahon Vitesse D7HG, which is the Uno with a multispeed hub. Carry it in Fit EV behind the rear seats when day tripping. It's easier to unfold than mounting a bike on a rack, and it’s secure inside the car when not riding. And it’s Aero, so range doesn’t suffer. I can’t recommend charging at the dealer, but the Dahon is an excellent match for an EV.

My plan is to check the estimated time to 100%, then be back at that time to remove the car.

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You will be a lot less unpopular if you charge to 80% instead. My understanding is it takes much longer to go to 100% with a QC, and I'm not sure the time estimates are exact.

Seems like a few folks are interpreting my desire to use the nearby Nissan dealer's L2 charging station as possibly selfish or inconsiderate. (Ouch!) I have to defend myself a bit by pointing out a couple of facts:

(1) When asked for clarification, the dealer's written response was: "The L2 240's are available to you free of charge during our business hours. I encourage you to take advantage of them."

(2) There are three L2 charging stations at this dealership. I have never seen more than one car using them; most commonly I see all three unused and available.

(3) I have only used these chargers one time, and I returned about 3.5 hours later--when the car was nearly 100% charged--to bring the car home. This is how I will use these; I won't simply leave the car there all day.

With regards to buying a $400+ bike to leave in the Leaf vs. installing an ($400-ish) L2 station where we live: We are currently renting, so installing a charging station (or even a dedicated NEMA L6-30 outlet) is probably not a reasonable option right now. Also, I'm a cycling enthusiast, so possibly riding 2.1 miles to/from the dealership every week or so--likely while running other errands on the bike--would be enjoyable for me. (Also, the generally mild weather and flat terrain here in Chico are very conducive to cycling in general.)

I hope this clarifies the situation. Now am I off the hook?

Sure! ;-) If you aren't depriving anyone else of a charge that's fine. In most places there are far more EVs than L-2 charging stations, so it's kind of a sore subject.

I have a Dahon Boardwalk. Fits fine in the Leaf, even in the 2011 I used to have which had much less rear cargo area than the modern Leaf.

adric22 said:

I have a Dahon Boardwalk. Fits fine in the Leaf, even in the 2011 I used to have which had much less rear cargo area than the modern Leaf.

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Ah, yes. Good point. The chap I noted also was in a 2011.

If you have the wherewithal to "push the boat out", I personally would go for a Brompton (with the obligatory upgrade to a Brooks saddle):

http://brompton.com/our-bikes" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Another thought is to get a really cheap bike and keep it chained to a fence at the dealer's place.

Bob

1st post here, but I have a thing for bikes, so I've found the smallest folding bike that is ride-able. Here are 2 of them folded up in our other car, a Prius C:



2 bikes and 2 scooters folded up in a Prius C:


Even smaller than my Brompton:




I have no doubt it would fit in a Leaf. As far as using the dealer's charger... why not? They're offering it up to secure the sale, so what's a few thousand kWh that the sales guys doesn't pay for?

When we were picking up our Leaf from the dealer (had only 25% charge during the test drive), there was a Volt parked there charging. No one said anything.

LeftieBiker said:

My plan is to check the estimated time to 100%, then be back at that time to remove the car.

Click to expand...

You will be a lot less unpopular if you charge to 80% instead. My understanding is it takes much longer to go to 100% with a QC, and I'm not sure the time estimates are exact.

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If using a DCQC, the charge rate starts to drop rapidly at around 80%. Once you are somewhere around 85%, you are charging at L2 rates.

Regardless of charger, once you get into the high 90's, the rate drops to basically an L1 charger. So that last 1% can take forever.

Also, the Leaf estimate to charge tends to be way on the long side, you're usually at 99% a hour or more before the estimated end time. One of the nice things about Chargepoint chargers, even when free, is you can use the app to check the current charge rate.

I've taken advantage of free chargers all over Los Angeles. (Thank you LADWP) Why not just get a hitch and a regular bike attached to a bike rack?

See my signature for all the quick charges and L2 charges I've done for free.

And if you were me, you would electrify your bikes too!