My Experience Driving an Electric Vehicle

I'm a big fan of electric vehicles because of the simple technology used to deliver clean transportation. Regardless of the arguments that electricity generated and used to charge them is unclean, they are much better for everyone including the environment. Besides, if you want a better environment, start somewhere. Clean transport leads to clean energy generation.

I spent most of 2015 researching electric vehicles, models, costs, and functionality in different weather conditions and finally decided to purchase a used 2011 Nissan Leaf in May 2016 for my small business. We do a lot of deliveries within the city and saving on fuel would help.

It has been 3 months now and all I can say is that my Audi Q5 resides in the garage. I sold my Volkswagen Tiguan recently. It is important to note that I live in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada where the only chargers we got are Level 2 chargers. Unfortunately, we do not have any level 3 chargers.

On a daily basis we do between 100 to 180 kilometers which is around 100 miles. The closest I came to an empty battery was 7KM left (4 miles). Never got stuck as I always made sure that there is a charging station near by. So, an hour down time charging away from work gives me enough juice to return to the office and charge there until the end of the day. I never a charger with me in the car, and never had issues. The only time I carried one is when I planned a long distance travel just incase.

What I learned so far

• Range anxiety is only in your head.
• Driving a Nissan Leaf is like driving your gas car one a 1/4 tank of fuel.
  
• It's more fun to drive than any other fuel car and I have been in many.
• This vehicle is so quite and vibration free that I can feel vibrations in the brake pedal from other vehicles while stopped at traffic lights.
• I started favoring businesses that provide charging stations such as Ikea.
  
• Top speed is around 150KM/hour
  
• You can easily extend the range by driving properly! The Energy Info screen helps you maximize energy efficiency while driving thus increasing your driving range.
  

Charging Options

• Level 1 Charger - This is often referred to as trickle charging. The charger provided with the vehicle is a level 1 charger which is plugged into a 110/120V 15A circuit. I use it at home since I charge the car overnight (about 18 hours).
  
• Level 2 Charger - This second level uses 220/240V and varies in current as you can find ones that use a 15A to 100A circuits. However, the Nissan leafs before 2013 have a 3.3kW on board charger which limits you to 15A circuit. Newer models from 2013 have a 6.6kW on board charger that allows you to charge the vehicle using up to 28A. So if you are almost empty, it would take you about 8 hours to charge to 100% on models before 2013 and about 4 hours on newer models.
  
• Level 3 Charger - This is the fastest charger that uses 408V DC and up to 100A to charge the vehicle in about 30 mins. The charge port is called CHAdeMO and shown on the right side.
  
  Earlier models may not have this port available and if you do have it, you only use it for long road trips as these fast charges deteriorate the battery pretty quickly over time.
  

What happens if I'm stuck with no Level 2 Chargers and only 110V outlets available?

There is a simple solution. Quick220 offers a relatively small portable converter power supply that you plug into two (2) 110V outlets and get 220V out that you can use to charge your vehicle with your level 2 portable charger.

Would I recomend a Nissan Leaf

Yes, I would. If you don't want to get a Tesla Model 3, the Nissan leaf is an excellent option. Why would you not get a Tesla model 3?

Well, you may just not like the wait or the dashboard setup. It's a preference thing. But I would definitely recommend a Nissan Leaf.

Is there Youtube videos I can check out

Yes, I would recommend Ian Sampson on Youtube which posts weekly episodes starting from Day 1.