Test Drives i3 and Leaf

TBi

Well i took these two cars out for a test drive last week. Both are very interesting and in both cases the dealers left a bad taste in my mouth. Do these people want to sell cars?

The leaf was bigger than i expected. The boot is massive. For some reason it always looked small in pictures. The drive reminded me of the boaty feel you got in an E-Class (i hope that's a compliment). The car felt bigger on the road than what it was. It felt well built. The one thing that turned me off was how soft the seats were, especially in the back, my leg started to hurt after a while. Not sure if it was positioning or the seat. The dealer turned me off by saying the 4k scrappage deal was over, even though it is still advertised on their website and inside the dealership. They said that they'd make an exception if i took a car from stock...

The i3 was a totally different experience. Much faster, much more oomph, and you could tell it was a BMW. Surprisingly capacious in the inside, shame about being a 4 seater. Boot was small but i was expecting that. The seats to me were a lot more comfortable than the Leaf (although not as comfortable as the mk4 prius). One foot driving felt weird but good. Although turned off that the dealer kept an ad up for a car that was sold last week (which we wanted to see) and the ad didn't match the car we looked at fully.

NIMAN

Are you seriously thinking of taking the EV plunge?

Disappointing to hear that the dealers aren't making a real effort to push these cars, they are the future whether they like it or not.

I'm getting tempted myself to change the family car to an EV when I come to change, as it does a lot of short runs to shops, in-laws and school. EV would be perfect. The only issue for me is that I have 3 kids under 7, so I need a bit of room for car seats in the rear. At present the FR-V is ideal, but if I thought I could get a mix of car seats and boosters into a Leaf I might just end up driving one.

TBi

NIMAN wrote: »

Are you seriously thinking of taking the EV plunge?

Have been thinking about it for a while. Just need the wife to give up the mini. The car will be for her so she needs to be happy with the range. She's an eco hypocrite, wants an electric car but prefers to keep our little gas guzzler .

If you are interested then definitely take one for a drive. I drive a 5 series most days so most eco friendly cars are a step down. The i3 definitely felt up to snuff but the leaf was a bit lower quality. Very high quality for a car of that range though so depending on what you are coming from you might be really impressed.

Also an issue for us is also that the mini is a very high spec (bought by someone in the boom fully loaded who couldn't afford it so had to sell on at a very very reasonable price). It's very hard to find a car which matches it.

NIMAN

To be honest I would expect the i3 to feel better built and more luxurious than the Leaf, it is a BMW after all and you are paying a hefty premium over the cost of the Nissan.

But it might be hard to justify the cost for what will be a family runaround.

As for saying your Mini has all the bells and whistles, aren't the EVs all meant to be be incredibly well spec'd??

TBi

NIMAN wrote: »

As for saying your Mini has all the bells and whistles, aren't the EVs all meant to be be incredibly well spec'd??

Still lower spec'd than our mini. Biggest difference is electric and a bigger screen for idrive.

cros13

TBi wrote: »

Do these people want to sell cars?

No, they'd really rather you bought something else. It takes more knowledgeable sales people spending more time with a customer to close an EV. And then an EV sale usually has a drastically lower margin and basically no service business after sale. So.....with few exceptions, most dealers only carry EVs to satisfy conditions of their contracts. This is why Tesla doesn't want to sell through existing dealers.

I once showed up to a Volkswagen dealer with a €34k bank draft in my pocket looking for an eGolf for my parents and they basically treated me like a leper. Wouldn't even allow me a test drive, give me a solid price and they left me waiting for over an hour.

It's annoying that to buy an EV you have to suffer through that kind of crap. But the cars you get on the other side are more than worth the trouble. I have both an i3 and a Leaf. The i3's my fun car and the Leaf is the practical hauler for a family member. The more you drive either the more you love 'em.

samih

TBi wrote: »

The leaf was bigger than i expected. The boot is massive. For some reason it always looked small in pictures. The drive reminded me of the boaty feel you got in an E-Class (i hope that's a compliment). The car felt bigger on the road than what it was. It felt well built. The one thing that turned me off was how soft the seats were, especially in the back, my leg started to hurt after a while.

The front leather seats on SVE are way better. As a matter of fact it was totally unexpected and a happy surprise when my car was delivered. Defo agree with the rear seat with you and the XE/SV front seats were not great either.

The shape of the Leaf makes it look like a small car but as you find out it's actually a large car. To give you the idea the wheelbase is only 3 mm shorter than mk 1 SAAB 9-5 so it's surprisingly roomy inside.

BoatMad

TBi wrote: »

Still lower spec'd than our mini. Biggest difference is electric and a bigger screen for idrive.

What's missing from the leaf.? I can't think what you would add to a leaf SVE

BoatMad

samih wrote: »

The front leather seats on SVE are way better. As a matter of fact it was totally unexpected and a happy surprise when my car was delivered. Defo agree with the rear seat with you and the XE/SV front seats were not great either.

The shape of the Leaf makes it look like a small car but as you find out it's actually a large car. To give you the idea the wheelbase is only 3 mm shorter than mk 1 SAAB 9-5 so it's surprisingly roomy inside.

I find the side bolsters uncomfortable on the leaf fabric seat bases. Primarily cause me arse doesn't fit inside the space between the bolsters

cros13

BoatMad wrote: »

I find the side bolsters uncomfortable on the leaf fabric seat bases. Primarily cause me arse doesn't fit inside the space between the bolsters

That would be on account of you not being a slight japanese man. I have also had repeated ergonomic issues due to suffering that particular personal failing.

BoatMad

cros13 wrote: »

That would be on account of you not being a slight japanese man. I have also had repeated ergonomic issues due to suffering that particular personal failing.

Interesting I don't have the same issue in my nissan navara pickup ? ( a fine big mans car, now where did I leave me gun rack accessory )

samih

BoatMad wrote: »

I find the side bolsters uncomfortable on the leaf fabric seat bases. Primarily cause me arse doesn't fit inside the space between the bolsters

I don't have that particular problem but I have a slightly weak lower back and the support on the SV was lacking quite a bit. I found the see too soft in general even when waiting at a charger. However the flipside is that one of the reasons why the SVE feels harsher on the road is the harder seats, the other reason being the 16 vs 17 inch tyres. I was used to a high standard of seats in the saab and the SVE fronts are as supportive as those.

The back seat on our SVE is way too soft (I think I never tried the one in demo SV). It really bugs me every time I travel there that the seat is so mushy. Luckily I don't travel there that often.

TBi

BoatMad wrote: »

What's missing from the leaf.? I can't think what you would add to a leaf SVE

I meant the BMW was lower spec than the mini. On paper the Leaf is well spec'd but lacks the sunroof and integrated parking sensors. I know you can add these to the leaf but they don't integrate nicely into the display like on a BMW. The BMW also lacks leather seats and comfort access (not as much a deal breaker as heatpump or dc charging).

I much prefer parking sensors than a camera. Also I don't like touchscreen infotainment systems. I can control some of iDrive without taking my eyes of the road. With the leaf I was constantly taking my eyes off the road to change settings. I find it much more dangerous. Also as i'm used to iDrive I found it easier to navigate than the Leaf's system.

TBi

cros13 wrote: »

That would be on account of you not being a slight japanese man. I have also had repeated ergonomic issues due to suffering that particular personal failing.

Is your BMW a rex or BEV? I know it's probably hidden deep in the i3 thread but what's your typical range? My wife travels 80-100kms a day on 100kmh roads with no charger where she works. She won't buy if she thinks she'll need to charge during the day.

cros13

TBi wrote: »

Is your BMW a rex or BEV? I know it's probably hidden deep in the i3 thread but what's your typical range? My wife travels 80-100kms a day on 100kmh roads with no charger where she works. She won't buy if she thinks she'll need to charge during the day.

I have a REx. I'd definitely recommend the BEV over the REx. REx is just not worth the money.
Buying a REx excludes you from future battery upgrades as an additional kick in the nethers.

I have a 187km commute up the M7, the 34kWh BEV would be able to handle my commute without charging.

TBi

I'd be getting the older model. There is one they are selling off at a good price with nice spec.

The new one is nice but too much for my coffers. What range do you get from the Rex on battery?

cros13

TBi wrote: »

I'd be getting the older model. There is one they are selling off at a good price with nice spec.

The new one is nice but too much for my coffers. What range do you get from the Rex on battery?

100-150km depending on season and driving speed. City driving in the summer I have got as much as 180km. BEV gets 10-20km more due to lower weight plus a heat pump.

Definately go for the BEV. The older BEV can be upgraded to the 34kWh pack, trading the existing pack in for credit, and there is another new pack with double the range of the 22kWh pack due next year. BMW currently insists that battery upgrades will never be an option for the REx.

If you are looking at an older i3, make sure you have rapid charging. it's standard now, but a few BEVs came in without it. The car is basically unsalable without rapid charging.

stesaurus

TBi wrote: »

Is your BMW a rex or BEV? I know it's probably hidden deep in the i3 thread but what's your typical range? My wife travels 80-100kms a day on 100kmh roads with no charger where she works. She won't buy if she thinks she'll need to charge during the day.

The i3 BEV should have no problem with that range. Really bad weather may mean she'd need to keep an eye on things but should be fine.

Water John

Best of luck with the i3 if you buy it. BTW, 2 places in Cork sell Leaf. Found one of these very helpful when we purchased.

TBi

Water John wrote: »

Best of luck with the i3 if you buy it. BTW, 2 places in Cork sell Leaf. Found one of these very helpful when we purchased.

The place i was looking was in Limerick. Didn't know there are two places for Leaf in cork. I know there are two dealerships in the city but they are both the same company overall.

EDIT: I forgot about Fermoy nissan.

TBi

Well deposit down on an i3. The second the deposit was down they mentioned 'extra's i could get. Something about panel protection and another one about scratch repair. Not sure if they are scam's or worth it.

Anyway hoping i made the right choice.