Destination Likelihood

[Cheezmo]

I can only guess about your feelings, however I suspect the D pedal behaves in a way that seems more familiar to you. But that's just pedal position. ECO or D, this car must seem to you like it's pushing through molasses. Pedal position aside, is there some reason the car is more fun to drive in D?

Ray

Actually the whole point is that in D, it doesn't feel like molasses. The 100% torque right from start and lack of "pause" for shifting makes it feel every bit as spirited off the line as the other cars I drive (I don't need to rocket past the speed limits like those cars could and the Leaf might balk at). And I still contest it isn't just pedal position, except at the extreme, when you change the pedal position in ECO you don't feel directly connected to the power train like you do in D. Maybe it is just because of what I am familiar with. I know it isn't an E vs. ICE thing, because when I drove a loaner Nissan Versa, I felt like it was on ECO minus steroids.

 

[gergg]

Interesting post for me....I took my first test-drive in a LEAF yeasterday, my thoughts.

I have no idea if the car was in D or Eco, wish I did.

I thought the car drove nice, it was comfy, quiet, and plenty of pep while certainly not fast. I've heard about the torque pushing you back into the seat, I did not feel that which makes me wonder if the car was in eco mode, then again I have no idea if eco mode makes any difference in the feel of the car relative to torque. Granted, I now drive a VW diesel which has torque in the 240 range where the LEAF only has 207. Don't get me wrong the car moved fine for me, I would be totally happy to drive it, just a little surprised at the lack of that torque feeling. I really want this car, it is so cool, the dealership I was at has never sold a LEAF, ever, they said they always end up "selling" their inventory to other dealers at some point in time due to uninterested customers.

 

[Cheezmo]

I really want this car, it is so cool, the dealership I was at has never sold a LEAF, ever, they said they always end up "selling" their inventory to other dealers at some point in time due to uninterested customers.

Tell him to make you a good deal so he doesn't have to say that any more.

 

[gergg]

Tell him to make you a good deal so he doesn't have to say that any more.

Eh, I didn't have to, he mentioned it to me, just not quite ready to pull the trigger.

 

[ztanos]

Your suggestion that preferring a more aggressive power response on the accelerator implies disregard for speed limits is insulting.

No, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to suggest that at all. What I was trying to say was that people used to high powered cars are likely to associate accelerator position with amount of acceleration, and that is what they get with D. To reverse the bias from my previous post, people used to wimpy cars are likely to associate accelerator position with amount of power, and that is what they get in ECO. Historically I have driven more Beetles and Priuses than anything else, with the occasional miscellaneous econobox along the way. These are clearly what you would consider to be wimpy cars, so the ECO pedal behaves in a way that seems more familiar to me. But that's just pedal position. ECO or D, this is the liveliest car I have ever driven. I don't always use ECO, but it makes things a lot more fun on curvy roads, just as I used to shift into B on my Priuses and downshifted my Beetles.

I can only guess about your feelings, however I suspect the D pedal behaves in a way that seems more familiar to you. But that's just pedal position. ECO or D, this car must seem to you like it's pushing through molasses. Pedal position aside, is there some reason the car is more fun to drive in D?

Ray

Just on the few test drives I've taken, I can honestly say that D is more fun than my 160hp sport compact. However, to the same token, ECO feels like I am using way too much energy just to get to driving speeds. I am sure this is a mental thing, but I feel D needs less to get going. 3/4 throttle can't be good for energy.

 

[LEAFfan]

I can only guess about your feelings, however I suspect the D pedal behaves in a way that seems more familiar to you. But that's just pedal position. ECO or D, this car must seem to you like it's pushing through molasses. Pedal position aside, is there some reason the car is more fun to drive in D?
Ray

Actually the whole point is that in D, it doesn't feel like molasses. The 100% torque right from start and lack of "pause" for shifting makes it feel every bit as spirited off the line as the other cars I drive (I don't need to rocket past the speed limits like those cars could and the Leaf might balk at).

ECO will give you the same 100% torque as D. You just have to put the pedal to the metal. I always drive in ECO because I can get more range as it reduces energy consumption. And I always take sports cars off the line in ECO. Sometimes, I even chirp the tires. It seems to be that you don't like the regen in ECO as it is much more than when in D. I usually throw mine into 'R' instead of using regen and coast to the lights.

 

[Cheezmo]

I don't think I ever said anything about regen. In fact I would love the accelerator behavior of D paired with the regen of ECO.

It is all about the feel of the accelerator between idle and punching it. You talk about it like it is an on off switch but it is the curve of how you get from 0-1 that matters to me. D just feels so much more "connected".

 

[mkjayakumar]

I don't think I ever said anything about regen. In fact I would love the accelerator behavior of D paired with the regen of ECO.
.

That's what I would like to have. The fun of driving a zippy EV and the savings of a good regen. It's like having the cake and eating it too.

 

[Cheezmo]

That's what I would like to have. The fun of driving a zippy EV and the savings of a good regen. It's like having the cake and eating it too.

I tried driving aggressively in ECO today. There just wasn't enough of the pedal motion that felt responsive, like only from 75%-100%. The "on/off switch" feeling, or at least having to really tightly control pedal motion in that 75%-100% range. I could perhaps learn to deal with it, but there is no real incentive for me. I just love the smooth consistent power feeling in D.

 

[hill]

Thanks for you answers guys. All the help you can give me makes me more comfortable.

Last one, I swear.

My alternate return trip is highway with:

18.6mi @ 55mph
24.9mi @ 65mph
1.2mi @ 35mph
.7mi @ 50mph
.6mi @ 25mph

We just did a 60+ mile round trip on the freeway last weekend, averaging between 55mph & 60mph. When we got home, we still had about a quarter charge left ... and that was with the weight of 2 people in the car (totaling appx 370+lbs). So your solo trips base on the miles you're describing are a snap.

 

[TomT]

+1

I don't think I ever said anything about regen. In fact I would love the accelerator behavior of D paired with the regen of ECO.

That's what I would like to have. The fun of driving a zippy EV and the savings of a good regen. It's like having the cake and eating it too.

 

[DaveinOlyWA]

i used to drive

.2 miles @ 25 mph
7.8 miles @ 40 mph
42 miles @57-60 mph

total 50 miles. i usually got home with anywhere from 24-35% SOC left. now the remaining battery range is due to my actual driving distance varying up to 58.7 miles (i track mileage and charge daily)

now, my trip was mostly freeway so minimal stop and go. yours appears to be a lot of traffic control involved and not anticipating traffic flow well can hurt you, but you should have more than enough range left over at the speeds you are driving

**off topic**

on the eco verses drive discussion. you only need to drive other cars to appreciate Electric in any mode. if you want the "first off the line" feeling, Eco will do that as well. sure the pedal is heavier but that is by design because if you are trying to get the extra mile, its easier to hypermile.

Drive pedal is frequently too sensitive especially in lower speed driving.

i have the opportunity to drive all kinds of cars and they fall into two categories. ones that have way too much power (some will actually idle at near 20 mph!) and ones that do not. the ones that dont have power feels like i am driving a car with a badly slipping transmission. this is what happens when you are used to driving a single speed, direct drive EV.

so whether it be Eco or Drive, it is way way way better than gas

 

[ztanos]

Well, I currently drive a saturn that won't pass emissions. I get consistently 35 mpg, but it has a small vacuum leak. 200k miles is probably more than to be expected out of this car, so I am really ready to be done with all the maintenance and get the LEAF. I am just waiting on the pricing and ordering information for the 2013 (want that 6.6 charger, no I won't use it much, but when I do I drink XX) and I am making the plunge. I have to say that it is due to everyone on this site that is making me more and more comfortable with the range of this car. Obviously mmwv based on how I drive, but that can be said with my saturn as well. If I drive 80 in my saturn I can watch my fuel gauge drop just like I would with the battery bar. 100 miles/tank isn't that much less than 300 miles/tank, but boy would that extra 200 be sweet. Just want to say thanks to everyone for being so awesome on this site.

 

[ztanos]

Now to decide what color I want, lol.

 

[mkjayakumar]

Go for the blue or the red. Nothing else !!