Nissan Leaf News

Good news for Leaf owners! Nissan came out with some exciting news today, and stated that they will be matching GM on the length of the battery warranty. So what does that mean? Well, for 8 years and 100k miles, you will have full manufacturer coverage on your battery. Nothing like a little peace of mind.

Chevrolet and Nissan are playing a nice game of tit for tat at the moment, as both are trying to get the largest foothold into the marketshare. Nissan matches Chevrolets warranty terms, and Chevrolet has a lease planned out that’s only $1 a month more than the Leafs.

All we know is that we expect the San Francisco Bay Area to be covered in both cars, as enough high tech companies employ many forward thinking people. Dealerships in the Bay Area, such as Boardwalk Auto Center should do well, as they have both Chevrolet and Nissan franchises, and will allow customers to see both cars side by side to see which one is the best for their needs.

Tags: boardwalk auto center, Leaf battery warranty, Leaf News & Information, Nissan Leaf Bay Area, nissan leaf blog
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Just when you thought you had the perfect vehicle to creep up on people, animals, and the blind community, Nissan decided to take all of the fun out of it. While they have a point that it is safer for everyone to hear an otherwise mostly silent car, they picked a mix of Star Trek, and the pounding, anxiety inducing active sonar sounds from Das Boot. Thankfully Nissan has added a kill switch to turn the noises off (they turn off anyway past 18mph), but next time you turn the car on, the noises will return.

Suffice to say I’ll have a DIY removal posted a few hours after I get my Black SL…

A petition is starting. Hopefully someone in DC sees this! While these videos are old with the proposed sounds added in, they get the annoying sounds across well.

Tags: Leaf News & Information, leaf pedestrian safety, Nissan Leaf Bay Area, nissan leaf blog, nissan leaf noises, Nissan Leaf Redwood City, Nissan leaf VSP
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Cruising through MyNissanLeaf, we came across a fantastic post by planet4ever. I’ve been really excited that I found this messageboard for awhile now (even linked to it from the Boardwalk Nissan Home Page), and it’s finds like this that prove how useful, and how community oriented boards like that can be. planet4ever took his time to scour NissanUSA’s website, and found multiple .pdf files that have all the information about the tax credits, rebates, discounts, parking and the list goes on.

Thanks to his hard work, here is the motherload of links to show you how all the programs work on the Nissan Leaf, across all the states. Who knew if you had a Nissan Leaf in San Jose, you can park in some metered spots for free!

Federal

• Alternative Fuel Vehicle Refueling Property Credit
• New Qualified Plug-In Electric Drive Motor Vehicles

Arizona

• Electric Vehicle Charging Equipment Income Tax Credit
• Reduced Annual License Tax for Electric Vehicles
• Electric Vehicle Single Occupancy HOV Lane Use
• Electric Vehicle Parking Preference

California

• Purchase Rebate for EV
• EV Car Insurance Discount – Farmers Insurance
• Single Occupancy HOV Lane
• Los Angeles Department of Water & Power Rate Reduction
• Pacific Gas & Electric Rate Reduction
• Southern California Edison Rate Reduction
• Sacramento Municipal Utility Rate Reduction
• San Joaquin Valley Electric Vehicle Rebates
• Free Parking: San Jose
• Free Metered Parking: Hermosa Beach
• Free Metered Parking: Santa Monica
• Electric Vehicle Purchase Rebate: Vacaville

Colorado

• Refundable Income Tax Credit for Electric Vehicle Purchase
• Refundable Income Tax Credit for Fuel Station Purchase

Connecticut

• Free Parking: New Haven

District of Columbia

• Reduced Annual License Tax for Electric Vehicles
• Reduced Registration Fee for Electric Vehicles

Florida

• EV Car Insurance Benefit
• Single Occupancy HOV Lane

Georgia

• Income Tax Credit for Electric Vehicle Purchase
• Income Tax Credit for Electric Vehicle Charging Equipment
• Electric Vehicle Single Occupancy Use of HOV Lane

Hawaii

• Free Parking Facilities

Illinois

• EV Purchase Rebate

Iowa

• EV Purchase Income Tax Deduction

Louisiana

• Refundable Income Tax Credit for Electric Vehicle Purchase

Maryland

• EV Excise Tax Credit

Michigan

• EV Personal Property Tax Exemption
• Emissions Inspection Exemption

Missouri

• Emissions Inspection Exemption

Nevada

• EV Taxicab Life Extension

New Jersey

• Sales & Use Tax Exemption for Purchase of Electric Vehicle

New York

• EV Charging Station Income Tax Credit
• Single Occupancy HOV Lane

Oklahoma

• Income Tax Credit for Purchase of Electric Vehicle
• Income Tax Credit for Purchase of Electric Vehicle Charging Station

Oregon

• Income Tax Credit for Purchase of Electric Vehicle and Electric Vehicle Chargers
• Income Tax Credit for Purchase of Electric Vehicle Purchase by a Business

Rhode Island

• Income Tax Credit for Electric Vehicle Purchase
• Excise Tax Exemption: Town of Warren

South Carolina

• EV Purchase Income Tax Credit

Tennessee

• Single Occupancy HOV Lane

Texas

• Electric Vehicle Purchase Rebates
• Free Metered Parking: San Antonio

Utah

• Income Tax Credit for Electric Vehicle Purchase
• Unlimited Use Of HOV Lane by Electric Vehicles
• Free Metered Parking: Salt Lake City

Virginia

• Electric Vehicle Local Property Tax Exemption
• Electric Vehicle Single Occupancy HOV Lane Use

Washington

• Electric Vehicle Sales & Use Tax Exemption
• State Funded Electric Vehicle Charging Stations

Thank you again for all of the hard work planet4ever!

Tags: Boardwalk Nissan, List of Nissan Leaf Incentives by State, Nissan Leaf Bay Area, nissan leaf discounts, nissan leaf free parking, nissan leaf rebates, nissan leaf san jose, nissan leaf tax credits
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While it doesn’t get as hot in the San Francisco Bay Area as it does in Phoenix, we’re glad Nissan is testing for extreme temperature use. Although it was only in the low 100 degree range today, one doesn’t have to work hard to think how miserably hot that is to us lucky few in more mild climates.

Not only was the sun blazing, but Nissan pulled out the stops with a Black Leaf. AZ really is a fun place to spot pre production cars doing testing (especially just south of Cordes Junction on I-17’s steep inclines), but it seems like this Leaf is very close to a production model. Fresh from the streets of 19th Ave and I-10, here is a Leaf in the wild:

Tags: Boardwalk Nissan, Nissan Leaf Bay Area, nissan leaf san jose, nissan leaf spotted, nissan leaf spy shots, nissan leaf testing
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Scouring the ‘net for tidbits of news, and found this little gem. Courtesy of jaimev at www.mynissanleaf.com, here is a video taken at the Amgen Tour of California:

Sadly there isn’t any video from inside the Leaf, but there are some really cool shots of the under car aerodynamics. Looks like quite a bit of buzz going on in that tent, so we hope a few more orders came through for Nissan!

Tags: Boardwalk Nissan, Leaf News & Information, leaf videos, Nissan Leaf Bay Area, Nissan Leaf San Francisco, nissan leaf san jose
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Assuming you wanted to drive your Leaf from San Francisco, CA, to Sacramento, CA, you’d be stopping over somewhere for some period of time to recharge. It’s around 90 miles and it would be foolish to try to venture out that far without a plan of where to stop for awhile. You might make it, but then again, you might not.

The nations first DC quick charger just went online in Vacaville, and that splits the distance almost in half. Range anxiety? Gone. Future of EV motoring? Full speed ahead. The I-80 corridor is full of commuters that run from the Bay to the Capitol, so this is a perfect spot.

The quick charger is located in the Bella Vista Park and Ride, just off I-80 and Davis Street. The self powered facility has solar panels to power the charging stations, and the rest of the facilities lights and services. This $1.7 Million, 45kW facility came online in March, and the Eaton quick charger was installed at the end of May.

May this facility help out EV drivers, and be a model of many more to come!

Tags: Boardwalk Nissan, first DC quick charger, Leaf News & Information, Nissan Leaf Bay Area, nissan leaf charing, nissan leaf range
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Well, we all know to make LEAFs you need to have plants (sorry, bad pun), but for us in the United States, it’s great to hear that one is going to open on our side of the Pacific. While the LEAFs are currently being produced in Japan, Nissan just broke ground on a new plant in Smyrna, Tennessee, and starting in 2012 not only will the LEAF be made in that town, but also the batteries.

What does that mean for the USDM market? 1,300 more jobs in the EV sector will be created, as we’ll need to ramp up production to meet the already insatiable demand. The plant is gearing up to be capable of producing over 200,000 advanced technology batteries annually.

The battery plant is located next to the current production plant that is currently getting retooled to produce the LEAF. Currently the Smyrna plant produces the Maxima, Altima, XTerra, Frontier, and the Pathfinder. There is no word yet on which vehicles will remain in production there when the LEAF starts, or what models might see a reduction in production.

The current plant in Smyrna cost Nissan around $2.1 Billion USD, and their new plant is planned to cost $1.7 Billion USD. Nissan isn’t on the hook for the full amount upfront though, as Nissan took a $1.4 Billion USD loan through the Advanced Technology Vehicles Manufacturing Loan Program.

We can’t wait to see more American jobs in the green sector, and sales for hundreds of thousands of EV’s each year!

Tags: Boardwalk Nissan, Leaf News & Information, Nissan Leaf Bay Area, Nissan leaf production, Nissan plant in Smyrna
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Nissan has done an amazing job so far building a lot of hype around the LEAF. It’s pretty easy to see why, as there are a lot of people out there who can benefit from the car, especially at its price point. Only odd thing though, is how you’re actually going to get one.

It was first laid out that your $99 would secure your spot in line, and that you’d be able to pick a dealer. If you were routed to the NissanUSA website through a referral URL from a dealership, the dealer option would be gone, and you would order directly from the dealer that referred you. Lots of Redbulls were consumed, pots of coffee downed, and a few tense moments went out from IT departments all over the place as the dealers built up their web presence to steer as many people as possible to the LEAF ordering.

So now that 13,000 LEAFs have been ordered, what is the system? Well… it still seems that it is being refined. Dealerships learned of a slight snafu that didn’t allow Nissan to share customer information with them, so picking a dealer went by the wayside, and it seems dealers were assigned arbitrarily.

Nissan is also going to be providing a home visit from an Electrician for future LEAF owners, so they can learn first hand what they should do. There are currently no stipulations on an installation of a charging system at home, but one would greatly benefit from it.

As more news comes out about how Nissan is refining the ordering process, we’ll update all of the other EV pioneers out there!

Tags: Boardwalk Nissan, how to order a nissan leaf, Leaf News & Information, Lease a Leaf, Nissan Leaf Bay Area, reserve a leaf
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Nissan USA is a proud sponsor of the Amgen Tour of California, and during the intense Race, Nissan has been showing off the LEAF.  While it’s great Nissan has a $500 off special for Californians during the race, we’d love to see more of the LEAF. We were unable to get the time out of the office to take some video of the race, even though it passed within 10 miles of our office. We’ll have to see if we can catch up with them as they pass through Bakersfield and put some seat time in.

Andrew Messick, president of AEG Sports said: “The debut of the new Nissan LEAF will be an exciting addition to all of the interactive elements already available for fans at the 2010 Amgen Tour of California. Nissan’s commitment to the environment aligns perfectly with the goals of the Amgen Tour of California, and we are proud to have them as the official vehicle sponsor of the race.”

Combine a great EV with Nissan’s Partnership with Team RadioShack, and have that team led by Lance Armstrong and Levi Leipheimer, and you have an event every Californian should stop by to see.

Tags: amgen tour of california, Boardwalk Nissan, nissan leaf, Nissan Leaf Bay Area, Nissan Leaf Redwood City
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Imagine driving past this gorgeous waterfall in perfect silence. Windows down, and all you hear is the roar of mother nature sending water off the side of a cliff. In the beginning of 2011, you’ll be able to. Nissan is planning to sell the Leaf in the early part of 2011 in Hawaii, just after the first Leafs roll out to the Western States and Tennessee. Hawaii has shown commitment not only to the Leaf, but also the infrastructure to support an EV.

King Windward Nissan has started the certification process that all Leaf supporting dealers will have to go through, and given the fierce competition that is native to dealers in Hawaii, the others should be quickly following. Similar to the initial markets in the mainland, Nissan will only be delivering cars that have firm orders, so if you’re looking for a Leaf, you’ll be out of luck if you’re planning on window shopping one from the dealerships inventory.

While you’re ordering your Leaf, take a moment to think about the importance of the Leaf making it to Hawaii so quickly. Hawaii has rapidly become very aggressive on clean energy goals, and plans to have 70% of their power demands met with clean energy by 2030. Given that they use oil for 90% of their energy, it is only natural that they would be keen on using the abundant resources available to them. Whether it’s wind turbines, geothermal energy, solar panels, or hydro-power, Hawaii has it all, just not in enough numbers. Planning to expand on all forms, they will go from the most oil dependent state to the least in a very short time.

What would be better than driving an EV around a tropical paradise? Knowing that the electricity in your battery was harnessed in a clean manner.

Tags: Boardwalk Nissan, Leaf News & Information, Nissan Leaf Bay Area, nissan leaf blog, nissan leaf hawaii, Nissan Leaf Redwood City, nissan leaf san jose
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