Nissan Leaf - Weekend Test Drive

craigy_b

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After a chance conversation with my brother last weekend and a segment on Radio Scotland on the Monday I decided to look into electric cars and took a trip to my Nissan dealership. They offered me a four day test drive of the Nissan Leaf which I collected on Friday. The car is due to go back tomorrow so I thought I'd leave my initial thoughts.

The car itself may be a bit of an acquired taste. Its not your typical hatchback shape but then its not your typical car. First impressions of the interior were positive. I had been given the 30Kw Tekna model and I liked the leather interior, DAB radio etc. The dashboard does feel a bit 'plasticy' and I'm not sure how it will wear over time.

On driving it I was pleasantly surprised. My commute is around a 25mile round trip so range shouldn't be a problem. For family days out etc we have my wifes 4x4 so the Leaf will be used for commuting and short family journeys. I initially feared that I would be driving a milk float that would be slow and laboured but that wasn't the case. The power is immediate and its quick to pull away. I'm not the hardest of drivers and the power from the 'engine' was enough to put a bit of fun into the drive, especially compared to my Qashqai 1.6l petrol which is a very laboured drive. I did notice myself relaxing into the drive due to the lack of gear changes and had to remind myself to use my indicators on more than one occasion!

The car goes back tomorrow and I now have to think if its something I want to go for. The car itself ticks a lot of boxes. The dealer, a trainee, told me they had sold an Acenta model the previous week on a 3 year PCP deal at £235 deposit and £235 a month. Having used the Tekna I'd be reluctant to downgrade a model but the £235 a month is the kind of price I want to pay. I wonder how hard he can be pushed? At that price the saving I'd make of fuel would cover the difference on the monthly payments of my current car. Factor in that my current car is 6 years old, has done 61k miles and isn't the most fuel efficient I think the expenses will only increase with MOT's and increasing fuel prices.

Overall I was very pleased with the car and when I look at other options and ICE vehicles then I would struggle to find a better option from a financial point of view. I had looked at the new Insignia but at £259 a month before I put in any fuel its pushing my finances in the wrong direction.

Has anyone taken the Leaf Tekna on a PCP deal recently and how hard did you manage to push the dealer? I'd be interested to know what I can get away with given that Nissan are pushing their Electric July event.
 
Tekna should only add about £10 a month to the PCP. Ask for a quote for your mileage requirements and weigh it up once you have the facts.

Tekna worth the extra for the led headlights (much better on back roads in winter), and the heated seats and steering wheel...
 
I figured that heated seats and wheel were an unnecessary gizmo on a car you can preheat while plugged into your house. And a waste of electricity if you aren't :) Biggest thing against it for us though was that at the time they weren't offering it on a 3 year lease, only a 2.
 
Tekna should only add about £10 a month to the PCP. Ask for a quote for your mileage requirements and weigh it up once you have the facts.

I expected the difference to be more to be honest. I'm not in a position where I'm in any rush to buy so I'm hoping that doing the old 'walking away' trick might push things in my favour. :smashin:

As I said the salesman I spoke to was a trainee and I would think telling customers what other people paid might not be the done thing - unless of course they overpaid.
 
I figured that heated seats and wheel were an unnecessary gizmo on a car you can preheat while plugged into your house. And a waste of electricity if you aren't :) Biggest thing against it for us though was that at the time they weren't offering it on a 3 year lease, only a 2.

I would probably tend to agree that about the 'unnecessary gizmos' but then they are half the reason I keep coming back to AVForums, my house is full of them! :facepalm: A 3 year deal would always be my preference, getting out just before the 'MOT years'. Also, by that time we'd be another 3 years down the road to EV cars being the 'norm' and hopefully more options for the next step.
 
If you're not in a mad rush for the car, you could wait to see what LEAF2 (unveiled on 6th Sept) is like before committing to an order... The deals are set per quarter, so 1st July to 30th September should be same pricing.
 
To be fair to the Tekna, we hadn't realised that it had LED headlights while the Acenta had halogen :facepalm: Am I correct though that the Tekna still has halogen full beam ? I've also heard it said that the tyres on the Tekna are not only vastly more expensive but reduce range, or is that a myth?
 
To be fair to the Tekna, we hadn't realised that it had LED headlights while the Acenta had halogen :facepalm: Am I correct though that the Tekna still has halogen full beam ? I've also heard it said that the tyres on the Tekna are not only vastly more expensive but reduce range, or is that a myth?

The Tekna does seem to have halogen bulbs so i assume these are used for full beam. I wasn't aware of the theory behind the wheels but I'm hoping that with the money I save on fuel any expenditure will be easily absorbed. Hopefully with the length of my commute and annual mileage the tyres and range shouldn't be too much of an issue.

I also have to say that the Leaf2 looks interesting - far more of a conventional shape. I suppose it depends on the price at the end of the day. If nothing else it may be another tool to push for a better deal.
 
We're on a 6000 miles p.a. lease so yeah, I guess tyres are unlikely to be an issue :thumbsup:
 
I'm struggling to see how a Tekna can be leased for only £10 a month extra being as it costs £2000 more or am I missing something?
Looking at their online PCP configurator with an approx £4k deposit, it's £30 a month more for a 30kW Tekna over an Acenta over 3 years and worse than that over 2.

If you can get it for £10 a month extra, go for it :thumbsup:
 
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Yup, tekna was more than 30 a month extra when I looked into it. Metallic paint (650) costs around 10-15 more a month.

@craigy_b how many miles a year was that quote for? We've got a deal for 800 deposit and 250 a month for the acenta 30kwh doing 20k a year, but I've had to push quite hard to get this.
 
Nissan tends to really push deals end of Q1 and than end Q3. By Sep/Oct time we'll have full info on the next Leaf, the Tesla Model 3 will be in full production, I can only see prices of the current Leaf going one way.

If you can afford to wait a few weeks that's what I'll be doing......Bare in mind some of us EV converts have been waiting on the next gen Leaf and Tesla Model 3 production to start for the last few years!!!
 
That sounds like a fantastic price, jassco :clap: (better deal than we got :thumbsup:)
 
Yup, tekna was more than 30 a month extra when I looked into it. Metallic paint (650) costs around 10-15 more a month.

@craigy_b how many miles a year was that quote for? We've got a deal for 800 deposit and 250 a month for the acenta 30kwh doing 20k a year, but I've had to push quite hard to get this.

The price he stated was just in conversation so I don't know the exact details. I'm going to go back this afternoon and see where we stand. It may be that I hold off just now if it means saving a fair bit each month.
 
Nissan tends to really push deals end of Q1 and than end Q3. By Sep/Oct time we'll have full info on the next Leaf, the Tesla Model 3 will be in full production, I can only see prices of the current Leaf going one way.

If you can afford to wait a few weeks that's what I'll be doing......Bare in mind some of us EV converts have been waiting on the next gen Leaf and Tesla Model 3 production to start for the last few years!!!

My first test drive will be in the new Leaf when released.

Maybe I'll finish the test run with the well-known 'EV smile' :eek: :)
 
After a few missed calls and my salesman taking his day off on the day I returned the car I eventually managed to get a quote from them. Asked about the 24Kw Tekna model and the price they cme up with was a deposit of £299 and £299 a month on a 3 year PCP deal with 8k miles per year.

At that price I think I'll be hanging off just now. I'm not in any rush and I'm sure if there are better offers available then they won't be shy in calling me back.
 
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"8" years?
 
Tell them to try harder.

Just taken delivery of our 30kw tekna 3 year pcp 8000 miles. 250 deposit, 239/month. Free podpoint install. Even better deals earlier in the year, but such is life.
 
Free Pod Point is not a perk ;) But I'd say that's an excellent price and better than the deal we got end of April
 
Tell them to try harder.

Just taken delivery of our 30kw tekna 3 year pcp 8000 miles. 250 deposit, 239/month. Free podpoint install. Even better deals earlier in the year, but such is life.

I wasn't really expecting a deal like that, more like 250 p/m but they would certainly have a sale at that. What colour did you go for? They were trying to push me towards the red when I was in the showroom, obviously to keep the price down.

Give me something to put to them if they get in touch again. What dealer was that through?
 
I wasn't really expecting a deal like that, more like 250 p/m but they would certainly have a sale at that. What colour did you go for? They were trying to push me towards the red when I was in the showroom, obviously to keep the price down.

Give me something to put to them if they get in touch again. What dealer was that through?
"Flame red" as that's the free colour. Doesn't look half bad.

Nissan Aylesbury. I went armed with copies of the classified threads on here!
 

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