Nissan Leaf test drive UK

The Nissan Leaf test drive UK tour is under way and at last after hearing so much about it, I finally get to drive the car. Michael has had a few test drives before, so today he was passenger and I was driving.

I have driven other electric cars previously. We have owned a G-Wiz since 2006, been part of the CABLED trial with the Mitsubishi iMiEV and have test driven the TATA Indica EV. This experience means I have something to compare it to.

First impressions from the outside are better than I thought. The Nissan LEAF is a well built car and the styling is more like a standard car than some of the other electric cars on the road. Inside the seats are very comfortable. There is plenty of leg room in the back, allowing tall people to be accommodated and spacious enough for three people. There is also plenty of luggage space in the boot.

One of the main concerns for me is whether the new car is suitable for the family. We have two young children, so it is important that they are comfortable and there is room for all their stuff and friends. The LEAF being a five-seat car suits us better than the i MiEV, which is only a four seater and the G-Wiz which is a 2 plus 2. The LEAF is bigger than any of the other electric cars available; it is about the size of a Ford Focus or VW Golf. The LEAF fits in perfectly with our family requirements.

During our trial with the Mitsubishi i MIEV we kept a diary of our entire car use, so we know that on average we drive 22 miles per day. The LEAF has a claimed range of 109 miles. Depending on our driving style, we will only need to charge up every 3-4 days. We do have occasional longer journeys, but even most of these are well within the range. With a fast charging network in place we would only need to use a petrol car for holidays.

Time for a quick explanation of the displays inside the car. There are three separate displays on the dashboard.

The main display in front of you shows the battery charge, temperature of batteries and how much power you are using or putting back into the batteries.

The top display shows you your speed and a simple 'tree' display to demonstrate your economy. As you drive economically, a graphic of a tree starts to grow. If you continue to drive economically, the tree grows more branches. As you continue to drive and complete your first tree, another tree starts to grow. Eventually you can grow four trees. At the end of my short drive, I had grown the tree to its second branch.

The third display is in the centre of the dashboard and provides satellite navigation and in car entertainment.

The LEAF is like driving an automatic car, no gear change to worry about unless you want to change between Eco and drive mode. This change can be done easy by moving the gear knob right and down, this allows you to easily switch between the two.

In drive mode and ready to go, foot on accelerator and we are off. The car is very smooth and, as you would expect, very quiet. I had about 15 minutes drive around the streets of Birmingham with maximum speeds of 40mph. The acceleration is very quick with plenty of speed for overtaking. I know the car goes well at higher speeds as Michael has reached the top speed of 100mph on a test circuit.

I found the car very easy to drive and manoeuvre with good visibility all round. The LEAF fits into our family requirements for a car and would be used for nearly all our driving. We need to look at the Finance options available so we can make a final decision.

Return from Nissan Leaf test drive UK to electric car blog page.