Nissan News
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When you’re researching your next new car it’s likely that you research not one but many different cars, comparing them on everything from fuel economy and features to reliability and interior space. Electric and plug-in hybrid cars are no different -- but the practicalities of cargo space are often overlooked in favor of range, price and performance. So which electric car offers the most cargo space, and which ones should you avoid if you want to carry a lot of luggage? Here’s just five plug-in hatchbacks you’ll see in 2012 along with their vital statistics. 2012 Ford...
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Five Top Accessories and Modifications For Your 2011 Nissan LeafWe pick five accessories and modifications that will dress up your Leaf electric car to make it more functional, more stylish, or just cooler.
Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield -
Electric Car Revenge is Sweet in Amsterdam With 100 Nissan LeafsThe Amsterdam premiere of the move "Revenge of the Electric Car" is expected to attract fully 100 Nissan Leaf electric cars from all over Europe.
Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield -
2012 Coda Sedan: LA Times Drives Elusive Compact Electric Car“In America, we like everyone to know about the good work we’re doing anonymously,” Jay Leno explained to Top Gear’s James May, discussing his views of the green-car mentality in the U.S. His point: The models we buy affirm their conscientiousness (and our own) with...
Thomas Bey -
Quiet As A... Cannonball? Nissan Leaf Enters Road TripWhile dozens of supercars will be revving up their engines ready for the start of Ireland's upcoming Cannonball Run, the ESB ecars team will be off to a much quieter start. The ESB team's 2011 Nissan Leaf is the first electric car to participate in the Cannonball Run which starts this Friday...
Antony Ingram -
2011 Nissan Leaf Helps Underground Utility CompanyA 2011 Nissan Leaf is providing transportation through the city for the team that's building new power conduit tunnels throughout central London.
Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield -
Bringing a new car to market costs a lot of money -- around $1-2 billion per platform on a new volume vehicle. As any auto industry insider will tell you, it isn’t just money either -- it’s about years of planning, development and testing before a car is ready to make the transition from computer renderings to the dealer’s lot. For most automakers, building a new model involves looking back on years of experience developing engines, tweaking chassis and perfecting drivetrains -- but what does it cost to develop an entirely new range of cars from scratch? That’s a...
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Leaf Drivers Publicly Shame Selfish Charging-Station UserImagine the scenario: You’re heading to a meeting and leave your shiny 2011 Nissan Leaf electric car plugged in at the local charging station, confident that it will have enough charge to get you back home when you return in a few hours. Then you return to find another electric car owner has...
Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield -
2011 Nissan Leaf Electric Car: What We’ve Learned After 5 MonthsAt the end of March this year, I took delivery of our very own 2011 Nissan Leaf. After the first week, we shared with you the good and bad side of Nissan’s first all-electric hatchback and even reported on a mammoth 520-mile two-day trek utilizing the U.K.’s dealer network of D.C. rapid...
Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield -
2011 Nissan Leaf ‘Sells Out’ In Canada? Not QuiteOn August 27th, Nissan North America opened up online reservations for the 2011 Nissan Leaf to Canadian buyers. Two hours later, Nissan had received more reservations than it had cars to sell, prompting some news outlets to report that the car was sold out. Just 40 cars While we’re happy to...
Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield -
Faster Electric-Car Charging Gets Smaller, And That’s BetterIf you’ve got a 2011 Nissan Leaf SL you probably ordered it with the included $700 rapid charging port, capable of recharging its 24 kilowatt-hour battery pack to 80 percent full in a little under 30 minutes using an off-board rapid charger. But direct-current rapid charging stations using...
Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield -
Will The Nissan Leaf Be Heading For The Oscars? At A StretchThe 84th Academy Awards -- otherwise known as The Oscars -- might be many months away, but we’re probably going to see a stretched Nissan Leaf acting as red-carpet transport. Or at least, that’s what we think might be happening after a limousine company has confirmed that it has been...
Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield -
The City of Chicago has put so much time and money into supporting electric cars that Nissan has decided to reward Illinois by moving forward the planned Chicago launch of its Leaf electric hatchback to this Fall. In February this year, Gov. Quinn of Illinois signed a bill investing $1 million in electric car infrastructure throughout the Chicagoland area, installing a network of 280 electric vehicle charging stations throughout the city and surrounding areas. The charging network -- installed in collaboration with commercial electric charging infrastructure 350Green -- includes plans for 73...
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Want A More Accurate Battery Gauge For Your Nissan Leaf? Here’s HowEvery time a new car launches, someone somewhere will try and improve on whatever its maker produced. Traditionally, this has meant improvements on things like seating, engine power and entertainment systems -- but in the world of eco-driving, devices which help improve the driver's awareness of...
Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield -
1899 Vintage Electric Car Sells For Record-Breaking $550,000 In AuctionIf you had over half-a-million dollars to spend on an electric car, which car -- or cars -- would you buy? For $550,000 -- that’s about the same price as the gas-guzzling rocket ship that is the 2011 Mercedes SLS AMG GT3 race car - you could buy 7 Tesla Model S Signature Series Sedans. Or you...
Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield -
2012 Nissan Leaf: The Electric-Car Basics You Need To KnowThe 2012 Nissan Leaf is the second generation of Nissan’s all-electric family hatchback, following on from the highly popular 2011 Nissan Leaf. But one year on from the original Leaf's launch, what's different in the 2012 model? Here's our list of things we think you need to know about the...
Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield -
Ten Percent Electric Vehicles By 2020? No Sweat, Utility CEO SaysHow many people, how soon, could be driving electric vehicles before it makes a significant difference to the grid and the utility needs to increase capacity?
Bengt Halvorson -
This Monstrosity Will Be Your Next Electric-Car Charging PlugIt's almost the size of a misshapen softball, but it may be the charging combo you will have to use for quick charging on future electric cars. The U.S. Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) is in the process of expanding its J-1772 standard for an electric-car coupler from the current round...
John Voelcker -
Back in the 1990s, when it seemed like electric vehicles were gaining traction with consumers, Costco did something unusual: the big-box retailer installed charging stations at many of its California locations. Now, however, those stations are being removed, and electric car fans aren't happy. According to Plug In America, Costco has offered no official explanation for removing the charging stations other than the Xeroxed signs taped to each that read, "Please be advised that this electric charger will be removed on August 15th, 2011. Sorry for the inconvenience." Costco's move seems curious...
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Portland Welcomes Electric Avenue, Showcases Charging StationsWhich electric car charging station is the best? And just how are public charging stations getting used? These are just two of the questions Portland State University and Portland General Electric Co. are hoping to answer with a two-year research project into electric car charging stations and...
Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield -
Nissan Sells 5,000th Leaf, Order Backlog Slowly ClearingIt might be hard to believe, but Nissan has been selling its all-electric 2011 Leaf for nearly eight months. And a few days ago, the company sold its 5,000th Leaf to a U.S. customer. But while Nissan doesn’t officially break down sales on a state-by-state basis, most of those sales are in the...
Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield -
Single-Malt Powered Electric Car Offers Travel Sans HangoverYou might feel a little "green around the gills" the following morning, but a night of drinking Bruichladdich whisky from the UK helps to do your bit for green transportation. Mark Reynier is managing director of the whisky distillery in Scotland, and every day drives to work in his recently...
Antony Ingram -
Top Gear Nissan Leaf Episode Sparks Healthy Debate, Positive ReactionsA little over a week ago, the BBC aired an episode of its popular motoring entertainment program Top Gear in which presenters Jeremy Clarkson and James May searched in vain for an electric-car charging station. They needed to recharge their fully-drained 2011 Nissan Leaf in the rural English county...
Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield -
Nissan Goes Toyota One Better With Cooler-Looking Cargo Ship (Video)Call it the battle of the clean-car cargo ships. First Toyota retrofitted its Auriga Leader car transporter ship with a diesel hybrid powertrain, allowing some energy to be recaptured in a bank of nickel-metal-hydride batteries just like those used in its Prius and other hybrid cars. That ship got...
John Voelcker