George Parrott, Contributor
Articles
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What is the basic purpose of the new electric cars? For most of us, it is as a city or local commuting vehicle.
The basic commuting "appliance" might be optimized to: 1. cost as little as possible... -
Electric-Car Warning: Check Your Utility Bill Carefully!
It is apparently quite possible that the local utility company that provides the power to charge your new electric vehicle may not have "all its ducks in a row" when it comes to charging you properly for that electricity. I recently bought both a 2011 Nissan Leaf and a 2011 Chevy Volt, and well...
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How Much Gasoline Can You Save With A Hybrid Or Plug-In Car?
As of the middle of April, gasoline is approaching $4.00 per gallon across the United States and oil is surging past $110 per barrel. More and more energy observers are talking about "$5 per gallon fuel" here in the U.S. So how do you minimize your gasoline costs and maximize your mileage? What...
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BMW ActiveE Lease Price: $499 A Month For Electric 4-Seater
The choices among electric cars just keep getting better, as BMW has now announced the lease details for the first stage of its evolution into BMW-branded electric cars. The ActiveE, an all-electric version of the 1-series, will be available for lease requests later this summer. It will be offered...
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Consumer Reports: Usually Thoughtful, Not Always Accurate
Last week, the Associated Press distributed a video report called "Are Electric Cars Worth the Price?" (It's embedded at the bottom of this article.) The video featured this author as an example of someone who owns both the 2011 Nissan Leaf and the 2011 Chevrolet Volt, and it included commentary...
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Plug-In Hybrid MPGs: Is Parallel or Range-Extended Better?
These are exciting times to be a car shopper, as the choices in every possible category just keep getting better and more fuel-efficient. The options for ecologically sensitive hybrid buyers have taken a major step forward with the introduction of the 2011 Chevrolet Volt and the imminent arrival of...
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Electric cars like the 2011 Chevrolet Volt and 2011 Fisker Karma get around the problem of range anxiety the old-fashioned way: They use gasoline engines.
They do it because the battery systems of...
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Renting an Electric Car: When Is It Smart, When Is It Dumb?
One way for potential buyers to get familiar with electric cars is to rent one. Several rental companies, among them Enterprise, have announced plans to rent 2011 Nissan Leaf and other electric models at selected locations. Renting an electric car lets you spend far more time in one than the...
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Electric Cars: How the 2011 Nissan Leaf & 2011 Chevy Volt Differ
Not all electric cars are the same. Buyers can now choose between "pure" battery electric vehicles and a car with a combination power train termed either a range-extended electric vehicle, which uses a gasoline engine to generate electricity to run the car, or a plug-in hybrid (PHEV) that adds...
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Level 3 Quick Charging For Your Electric Car: How It Works
The formal name for what many of us more casually call “Level 3” charging is CHAdeMo, which is the only currently installed standard to reduce electric-car charging time for an 80-percent charge to less than an hour. The CHAdeMo interface is an option on the 2011 Nissan Leaf; on that...
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2011 Nissan Leaf Electric Car Buyers Eager For Order Followup
On August 31, 2010, Nissan opened the ordering process for its 2011 Leaf, and over the follow months has gradually extended the initial markets on the West Coast and Tennessee to include a wider geography. The ordering process for the 2011 Nissan Leaf is unlike that for almost any previous new car...
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Is The 2011 Nissan Leaf The Truly Invisible Electric Car?
After three weeks of using our new 2011 Nissan Leaf for most of our local commuting, it has a valued and important place in our two-car family. We appreciate the driving economy and features of the car. But it has been shocking how little notice the car has received. As one of the first half-dozen...
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2011 Nissan Leaf vs 2011 Chevy Volt: Strengths & Weaknesses, By The Man Who Owns Both George Parrott
Many comments are appearing on the internet taking enthusiastic positions for either the new 2011 Chevy Volt or the 2011 Nissan Leaf.
It seems most readers are in one "camp" or the other.
In our...