It is hard matching EPA estimates for any car, especially hybrids. I found some helpful Prius Mileage tips, some of which are counter intuitive.
“..rapid acceleration to speed followed by cruising is actually more efficient, though counterintuitive”
“, keeping the windows open is more economical. The rationale: Battery drain from air conditioning uses more gasoline than aerodynamic drag caused by open windows.”
This one will have everyone passing you: “Remember that for every mph above 55 in a Prius, you could lose up to one mpg, mostly due to atmospheric drag — even with its advanced aerodynamic body.”
“..motor-generators (MGs) reach their maximum rpm at about 42 mph, which forces the engine to run to prevent damage to the MGs. So at speeds above 42, the engine must run, which creates added friction. This must be compensated for to maintain speed, causing a reduction in fuel economy.”
Replacing a vehicle with a fuel efficient model has the biggest aggregate potential reduction in green house gas emissions at 31.4 millions of metric tons of carbon a year. Even more than Weatherizing a home (21.2), buying energy efficient appliances (11.7), or carpooling (6.5).
Tesla Model S is the first luxury production electric car.
Nissan Leaf Electric Car, the first affordable mass-market zero emissions electric car, is now available for ordering with a whopping $7500 Federal Tax Credit on New Qualified Plug-In Electric Drive Motor Vehicles through December 31, 2011. The credit will begin to be phased out for each manufacturer in the second quarter following the calendar quarter in which a minimum of 200,000 qualified plug-in electric drive vehicles have been sold by that manufacturer for use in the U.S. The credit is available against the alternative minimum tax. The Leaf is a real car with speeds up to 90 mph and 100% available torque right off the line.
We drove the Nissan Leaf in late November 2010 at the San Francisco International Auto Show and found that this virtually silent car drives just like any other car. It has very light steering and is very fast off the line. The interior dashboard is very high-tech, while the cabin is similar to other cars in its class. They say it seats five people but the rear seating area is pretty cramped. All in all we were pretty impressed by this cutting-edge vehicle.
Replacing a vehicle with a fuel efficient model has the biggest aggregate potential reduction in green house gas emissions at 31.4 millions of metric tons of carbon a year. Even more than Weatherizing a home (21.2), buying energy efficient appliances (11.7), or carpooling (6.5).
The drops the price to as little as $25,280 after-tax savings. California adds a Electric Vehicle Purchase Rebate $5000 rebate while funds last dropping it even further to $20,280! See what type of conventional car you can buy for $20k. Check your local state for its rebates. The Chevy Volt unfortunately does not qualify for this level of rebate. Georgia also has a $5000 rebate that the Nissan Leaf should qualify for.
It is all electric, not a hybrid car and is rated for a 73 mile range on a single charge by the EPA, although this might vary. Nissan has been quoting a 70 – 130 mile range depending on driving technique and terrain. The Leaf has regenerative braking that recharges the battery when applying the brakes. The car gains about 30% from this technique. Using the air conditioner or heater will reduce range by 10% or more. This car is not for everyone. The Leaf is made in Japan and Tennessee. Nissan makes it, so you don’t have to worry about an unknown new company that may go out of business in a couple years. The car is partly made of recycled materials and they use wind power to power a portion of their factory.
The Leaf comes with a home charging dock that requires a Level 2 or 220/240V 40AMP dedicated electric circuit (even though it uses only 20A), so additional costs of approximately $2200 (50% tax credit available via Alternative Fuel Vehicle Refueling Property Credit) will be incurred to upgrade your garage. An electrical conduit must be run from your electrical panel to the vehicle parking area. You can use a standard 110V outlet for charging, but charging times are extremely high. This is most helpful in topping off your charge while at, say a friends house.
Approximately 3000 free level 2 chargers are available in San Diego and Los Angeles Counties to owners of Nissan Leafs and Chevrolet Volts.
Charging Times and Energy Cost
Charging the battery to 80% of its capacity with a special rapid 440V charger takes about 25 minutes. Note that the 440 V charging requires an optional $700 port on the Nissan Leaf. There are limits to the number of times you can fast charge per day. After three fast charges, The Leaf will slow down charging due to heat worries.
A full battery charge occurs in eight hours with 220/240V charging and cost approximately $2.28 in electricity at normal electricity rates. EPA rates this as a 99 “miles per gallon equivalent (MPGe). The energy content of 1 gallon of gasoline is 33.7 kilowatt-hours. The 2011 Nissan Leaf has a 24-kWh battery pack of which it uses approximately 80 percent. (Approx 19 kWH of charging, average per kW of electricity is an expensive $0.12/kW in California.) The EPA quotes $561 as the average annual electricity cost for the Leaf. By comparison, the annual fuel cost of a Toyota Prius, which the EPA estimates gets 50 miles a gallon, is $867. An average car is rated at $1000+.
Nissan’s ads quote 38 miles traveled for one dollar of cost vs 19 for a Toyota Prius Hybrid. Kiplinger listed Nissan Leaf fuel cost at an optimistic 2 cents per mile, Prius 6 cents, VW Jetta Diesel 9 cents, and Honda Accord 11 cents. The Leaf is projected to use 0 – 76g of Carbon Dioxide (CO2) per mile driven compared to 153-229 for a Prius Hybrid.
The Nissan Leaf includes a GPS that will tell you how close the nearest charging stations are. This information is updated as new charging stations are built. The onboard computer also communicates with smart phones to alert you to charging status and more. Three years of updates are included in the purchase price.
Several electric utility companies have special rate plans for charging electric vehicles. Some of these rate plans require installation of a second power meter, so they can measure how much energy you are using to charge your plug-in electric vehicle.
Consumers Energy has a flat $35 rate for each vehicle, up to 300 kWhr
How can we best reduce our carbon footprint and lower greenhouse-gas emissions. According to interesting research from Thomas Dietz of Michigan State, some actions generate small results. They also calculated the likelihood of households actually taking the step.
Replacing a vehicle with a fuel efficient model has the biggest aggregate potential reduction in green house gas emissions at 31.4 millions of metric tons of carbon a year. Way more than Weatherizing a home (21.2), buying energy efficient appliances (11.7), or carpooling (6.5). Of course it costs far more to buy a new car and utilizes a lot more carbon to build the car.
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