First ride: Nissan Leaf 30kWh

[=” ” ]Update: The federal government now has the Promotion of e-mobility decided, We therefore update the e-car articles, tests and driving reports again. This original article is from October 17, 2015 

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The Col de Turini is also just a pass road in the French Maritime Alps. Nothing you should know. If you follow the D2566 from Sospel to the north, you cross this pass at 1.607 meters, changing to the D70. A small plateau, a dusty crossroads, a few old houses. Nothing, you should know. For real. Unless you're a rally fan. Then you know this historic place, this legendary special stage of the Monte Carlo Rally. You have to know it! A certain Walter from Regensburg once hunted here, hissing turbo, milling all-wheel drive, up the mountains. Today we're humming an electric song of praise!

Nissan Leaf 2016 (30kWh) in the driving report

Don't talk, do it!

So a new battery. Greater. Anyone who is not familiar with electric cars will ask themselves why a battery justifies such a driving report. Let's go back a little. The Nissan Leaf is not much less than “the electric car" on the market. The best selling. A modern beetle, so to speak. Just without exhaust fumes. And when you talk about electric cars, the second sentence always says: “But, the range.” True. Range is a problem. Still. It doesn't help if you use the statistical average. “Statistics” don’t drive more than 50 km in one go. But electric cars are not bought by statistics, but by people. And the range problem is a real one. An existing one. But Nissan is doing something. And that’s where the “bigger” battery comes into play.

The battery itself isn't any bigger. It needs as much space as before. If you compare the battery of the electric car with the tank of a “fossil car”, then the Leaf does not use a larger tank from now on. But battery technology is not as simple as pouring gasoline into a tank. In the new Leaf with a 30 kWh battery, the battery packs are no longer made of lithium manganese, but of a lithium-manganese-nickel-cobalt oxide (NMC) structure, which means that the energy density of the battery pack can be increased. The 24 kWh became 30 kWh. The 24 kWh version of the Leaf remains on offer and is now available for €730 cheaper.

creep speed

In the NEDC cycle, the range of the Nissan Leaf (30 kWh) increases from 199 to 250 kilometers, making the most successful electric vehicle the longest-range electric car. Leaving out the premium sled from Tesla and the hydrogen car from Toyota.

250 km range – that should easily be enough to drive the Col de Turini from Nice and then get back to the sophisticated coastal town. A circuit of less than 180 kilometers should be feasible for the Leaf. Now. With that “big” battery.

From Nice, rush hour traffic torments its way through narrow streets. Stop & Go. The most important domain of the e-mobile. Almost noiseless, only a faint whirring of the 109 hp electric motor can be heard. It should go up from the coast to over 1.600 meters, so despite full batteries, the journey starts in eco mode. Everything then happens a little more subdued.

The 255 Nm of the electric motor hides a little behind the doughy, gentle tuning of the “power pedal”. You can't say gas anymore.

Newtons meter, a lot!

The first 10 kilometers give us time to get to know the Golf-sized Leaf. His appearance is described quite well with “different”. Glowing eyes with LED headlights (optional), a round butt, narrow and high taillights. In the interior you immediately notice that everything is a little different here. E-mobility seems to have to stand out visually.

And e-mobility can mean driving fun. The dominance of a torque that can be accessed at any time suddenly makes the initially absurd idea of ​​“climbing” the Col de Turini in the footsteps of the rally cars a necessary pleasure. From Sospel the country road becomes a pass road. Left, right, the corner angles are constantly changing. Rugged rocky slopes, frightening slopes. And things are going up, constantly. The 255 Nm is used. At any time. No turbo lag, no lower revs and never in the wrong gear. If you hit the apex of the curve, the electric motor will pull the Leaf's approximately 1.5 tons up the hill.

That's how it should always be.

The Leaf's chassis is pleased with the low center of gravity of the whole load. In this way, driving comfort and reasonable cornering can be reconciled without having to rely on a super complex chassis.

However, the seats have not been optimized. Here it becomes clearer what the “Leaf” is all about. City vehicle, country vehicle and never behind the wheel for particularly long. Easy to get in, no low seating position, more practicality for everyday life. The trunk also matches this, with 370 liters it can easily be mentioned in the article.

Collect ions

At the pass, the battery has lost 70% of its supply of powerful ions, which are around 220 kilometers from the start.Air conditioning on and the first few meters without Eco mode “on” caused the range display to become pessimistic). At the pass there is a good 30 kilometers remaining range (or 4.9 kWh) left. Not enough to get back to Nice. And even though there are now over 2.000 fast chargers in Europe, up here, where you can still hear the angry chatter of wastegate valves on quiet nights, here there is maximum “leakage current” from the socket.

However, advantage II of the electric vehicle comes into play when going downhill: the AC motor becomes a dynamo and with a maximum of 30 kWh it charges the kinetic energy of the downhill ride back into ion power. The small joystick, which replaces the gear lever between the driver and passenger, offers a “B mode”. As soon as this is activated, the Leaf recuperates as soon as the “stromer pedal” is released. This makes braking almost unnecessary, especially in the city. However, maximum recuperation does not always make sense; on the flat, “rolling” can be more efficient. Once something is in motion, you shouldn't slow it down.

Braking down the Col de Turini is however - pardon - recuperate, always a good idea. Last but not least, in order to avoid acquaintance with the absurdly tiny route limits. On one side you smash with fervor on the mountain, on the other side you fall incredibly deep beforehand. Neither is a good idea.

Nissan Leaf - Can now go longer and further

Actually, the new “Leaf” is also the old one. The revision is limited. Well, a heat pump for the heating, a new multimedia system, more clever recuperation and a 26% increase in range. No electric car in its class can last longer on electricity. Nissan keeps the Leaf with a 24 kWh battery on offer. Anyone who rents the battery (€79 per month) enters the electric Golf class for €23.060.

Whoever wants to experience the range advantage of the new energy pack must expect at least € 28.060. And of course we have arrived in Nice again. With more range than at Col de Turini at half time. That's how it is with recuperation, you have to get used to it first.

The vehicle registration document for the Nissan Leaf 30 kWh

All photos: Nissan. Exception: Cover picture: By Johannes Boehm!