All Electric Family

This weekend the White family went all electric.

No we haven’t lost our minds, Karen’s Altima is in the shop and was retained over the weekend. We were offered and took a loaner vehicle. A LEAF of course 🙂 The Altima’s heater core is being replaced. Something that doesn’t require maintenance on an all electric!!

Being without a gas vehicle isn’t a problem at all!! We had no plans for any long trips. We did take the loaner to Nashville last night to eat Indian at the Bombay Palace. Recharging of the loaner LEAF is via 120v which is considerably slower than the dedicated 240v unit we have for our regular LEAF. However we haven’t been left short due to the slower charge times. After retuning with just 1/6th charge left at 8pm last night, the car was fully charged by 9am the next day. A dedicated charging station is a convenience, not a necessity.

LEAF twins at home.

As you can see the loaner has been adorned with a jazzy wrap to better advertise the LEAF. We call it the ‘Pace Car’. It goes back Monday as long as the Altima is ready for pick up. Newton Nissan do a great job offering free loaner vehicles for service customers.  This isn’t the first LEAF we’ve had from them, it is  the first for us to keep overnight however. The loaner is a 2011 model like our own, its serial number is just a few hundred more than ours. However it has just 1,500 miles compared to our 18,500. Newton Nissan do not practice good charging habits, and allow the vehicle to charge to 100% full at all times. As a result its range is slightly less than ours despite being slightly newer and with considerably fewer miles. Nissan recommend charging to 80% full as a routine, with charging to 100% reserved for when you know you’ll need it. This practice extends the batteries life.

All Electric Garage