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Nissan Leaf

116 messages,  Last post on Apr 19, 2013 at 9:15 AM

You are in the Nissan Leaf Forum.

What is this discussion about? Nissan Leaf, Electric Cars, Hatchback

Messages Page 3 of 13

#15 of 116 LEAF not for everyone ... by early74b

May 12, 2010 (6:45 am)

Came back after a few days of my original post ... one of the best sites for info on the Nissan LEAF can be found at: My Nissan Leaf
 
Just like my smart fortwo, an EV is not an all-purpose vehicle, until the battery range as well as infrastructure for quick charging changes you'll need to accept that it may be your second car or could be a primary car if you rent something else for longer trips. The battery tech is getting better (Nissan even hints that a next gen battery could have a 200 mile range) but it's not there yet in this price range (the Tesla S and Fisker Karma will have greater range but at a much higher price tag as well as very limited quantities).
 
I can afford multiple cars that are all under cover (plus have 3 drivers who travel in different directions for work, etc.) so the LEAF will be ideal for 2 out of 3 of us for simple work commuting; due to the much less than 50 mile one-way commute we'll charge it overnight so quick charge station access won't be a problem.
 
To answer a few postings here -- Nissan plans to offer several driving opportunities prior to the cars release, nothing posted yet but in the works. MBZ offered the same for the smart (whose deposit was also refundable) so if you don't want to get pre-wired for the garage quick charger, I'd wait to drive it. As to the 48 mile one-way commute, keep in mind that both sides would need a quick charger otherwise you might not get enough juice -- as with gas cars, your mileage will vary so you'll need to check your route to see if this works. The LEAF has an on board range calculator so a dry run to see that you don't exceed the half-way mark would be best to reduce 'range anxiety' --- having a charger on the other side would then just be a bonus.
 
As far as the battery cost --- lot's of speculation that Nissan has cracked the code on getting the cost down as they've been at it for 17 years! Their senior management has said that they will make a profit and the LEAF won't be a loss leader so we'll see!
 
I'm also from a town (NW 'burb of Chicago) that's not among the first few cities so may not see LEAF's being sold here until 2012 but hopefully sooner. We actually have 4 functional charging stations (mostly for EV fleet vehicles) but there does seem to be some interest.

#16 of 116 Leaf "Priced for Everyone"? ad on Edmunds by morin2

May 15, 2010 (5:19 pm)

I'm hoping this car is a huge success and also hoping that the range is slightly higher than expected, due to my 54 mile commute each way. My commute is mostly rural highway 55-60 mph, so that might easier on the batteries. I'll be keeping alert to the reports of actual users.
 
I do find the Nissan ad "priced for everyone" to be misleading. Most people will not qualify for the 7500 tax credit because the credit is not a refundable credit. It requires a tax liability of at least 7500 to receive the full credit. For a joint income, 7500 tax liability comes at 55,550 taxable income. Working backwards from taxable income (line 43), you'd add the value of exemptions (line 42) and also standard or itemized deductions (line40a) to come up with adjusted gross income of at least $83K. Any cap gains or dividends will increase that. So basically, an income will need to be at least $83K with no adjustments or other credits, such as education credits, to qualify for the full electric vehicle credit. In reality, people do have some adjustments and other credits, so the adjusted gross income will likely need to be well over $100K, even $150K for those with 2 kids in college and claiming the education credits, to qualify for the full electric vehicle credit. I don't consider that to be "priced for everyone". Lower income buyers will likely see their full tax liability erased, but will be disappointed that their net cost for the Leaf will be considerably higher than the widely advertised and misleading $25K the ads suggest.

#17 of 116 Re: Leaf "Priced for Everyone"? ad on Edmunds [morin2] by lhanson

May 19, 2010 (6:14 am)

Replying to: morin2 (May 15, 2010 5:19 pm)
Can any remaining tax credit not used be carried over to the following year?

#18 of 116 Re: Leaf "Priced for Everyone"? ad on Edmunds [lhanson] by early74b

May 19, 2010 (7:18 am)

Replying to: lhanson (May 19, 2010 6:14 am)
Very doubtful, it's not treated like capital losses in excess of the annual $3K limit that can be carried over to later years. These types of credits have been in existence since the hybrid's first came out so will probably follow the same logic -- as always, check with your tax professional before assuming anything but I don't believe for instance you can get a 'refund' for the $7,500 if your tax liability is less than that as well as push the excess credit into the following year -- please check the mynissanleaf forum as we have a lively discussion about this very topic and many have weighed in on it:
 
http://www.mynissanleaf.com/viewtopic.php?f=16&t=283">How Will Tax Credit Work?

#19 of 116 Re: Leaf "Priced for Everyone"? ad on Edmunds [early74b] by morin2

May 20, 2010 (5:18 pm)

Replying to: early74b (May 19, 2010 7:18 am)
The discussion on this topic at the mynissanleaf.com site was interesting. As early 74b indicated, you cannot carryover unused non-refundable tax credits. You must have sufficient tax burden to get the benefit of the entire 7500 credit. There is some incorrect advice there by one poster about adjusting witholding. Adjusting witholding has nothing to do with actual tax liability. The best advice is about converting a regular IRA to Roth IRA - which creates additional tax liability in the year of the conversion. Doing that might create enough tax liability to offset the full 7500 credit. In effect, doing so would be like converting an IRA to a Roth IRA for free or greatly reduced tax, if you were going to buy a Leaf anyway.
 
My original calculations were very conservative and did not factor in the indexed cost-of-living changes in the tax table every year and itemized deductions, rather than the standard deduction. When both are factored in, you would need a joint income of close to 150K with few other credits to get the full credit on the Leaf. Fewer than 1% of all taxpayers are in that group - far from Nissan's foolish "priced for everyone" ad. Of course, who would advertise "priced for the highest 1% of all earners"?

#20 of 116 Edmunds Green Car Advisor by KarenS HOST

May 26, 2010 (8:26 am)

Readers Are Talking About 2011 Nissan Leaf, and It's Mostly Good

#21 of 116 Web chat today! by KarenS HOST

Jun 18, 2010 (8:08 am)

Free Chargers to be Provided to Electric Vehicle Buyers; Questions Answered in Live Chat at 11AM Eastern via Edmunds’ GreenCarAdvisor.com

  
 
SANTA MONICA, Calif. — June 18, 2010 — Today at 11AM Eastern Daylight Time, Edmunds’ GreenCarAdvisor.com will provide access to a free live chat about the government program that will provide free home charging stations to early buyers of new electric vehicle including the Chevy Volt, Ford Transit Connect, Nissan Leaf and Smart Fortwo.
 
The chat can be accessed at http://blogs.edmunds.com/greencaradvisor/2010/06/got-questions-about-free-ev-cha- rger-program-get-answers-here.html.
 
General Motors is the sponsor of the chat, which will feature representatives of charger providers Coulomb Technologies and ECOtality. Coulomb was named a co-recipient of Edmunds.com’s Green Car Breakthrough Award earlier this year.
 
  
 
“The grants for home chargers are worth up to $2,000 per household each and in some cases the program will also help cover the cost of installation,” reported GreenCarAdvisor.com Senior Editor John O’Dell in his story at http://blogs.edmunds.com/greencaradvisor/2010/06/federal-grant-for-free-home-ev-- chargers-expanded-by-30-million.html. “In announcing the program yesterday, the Energy Department said that half the money would come from taxpayer funds and half from private contributions.”

#22 of 116 press request by kirstie_h HOST

Aug 19, 2010 (11:13 am)

A reporter seeks to interview someone who intends to buy a Nissan Leaf or Chevy Volt. Please write predmunds.com no later than Friday, August 27 to tell why.
Thanks,
Jeannine Fallon
Corporate Communications
Edmunds.com

#23 of 116 Nissan Leaf battery life by gwiz1958

Aug 20, 2010 (10:58 pm)

I live in Texas where the summer's are extremely hot. I need to use a/c. With a range of 100mpg between charges, it would be interesting to find out how much that range will drop? What if there was a way to have a second battery, one just for heating/a/c use? Maybe have a second one in the trunk to switch with the first one when the charge is depleted? Maybe some day have a compressed solar panel on car to remove heat for interior? gwiz1958

#24 of 116 Price Paid, anyone? by glfan

Sep 13, 2010 (6:44 pm)

So, finally, after waiting for months, I got a quote from a dealer for $1k off MSRP. Is this a good price?

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