Overview & Reviews

The 2011 Nissan Leaf is an all-new model.

• Intelligent navigation system.
• Spacious, quiet cabin
• Snappy acceleration
• No more gas stations

• Home charger is a necessity.
• Limited recharging points
• Limited cruising range

User Reviews:

Showing 1 through 10 of 20.00

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  A history making car! - 2011 Nissan Leaf
  By R. Edelman - October 19 - 4:54 am

  Why is this a history making car? Because the Nissan Leaf was one of the first practical and affordable all-electric sedans. I purchased this car new in 2011. Back then, the Leaf was made in Japan. Now they are made in Tennessee, but I dont think there should be a difference in quality. My Leaf has almost 50,000 miles on it, and it has been reliable and almost completely trouble free. It is deceptively roomy inside because there is no fuel tank or exhaust system. Maintenance costs are low. The original tires lasted 45,000 miles. To recapture the kinetic energy of the car, most of the braking is done by the drive train. This is called "regenerative braking", and allows the drive train to act as a generator to charge the battery. All electric vehicles and hybrids utilize regenerative braking. Not only is regenerative braking energy efficient, it allows the brakes to last a long time. For example, I also own a Toyota Prius with over 100,000 miles on it, and the brakes have never been serviced. Driving an electric car is fun. The electric motor provides all of its torque instantly, which allows excellent acceleration from a stop as well as on the road. It is quite, and there are no vibrations. There are no exhaust fumes or oil leaks, and the drive train of the car tends to stay clean. The down side of any electric car is the battery. Batteries are heavy and expensive. They become less efficient in very cold weather, and they lose charge capacity as they age. Both of these translate into reduced range. And you need access to a 220 volt charging station to recharge the car in a few hours. The Leaf is sold with either a 24 kWh battery or a 30 kWh battery. I recommend the 30 kWh battery as it provides a range (when new) of about 100 miles, rather than the 75 miles provided by the 24 kWh battery. That 75 mile range provided by the 24 kWh battery when new drops down to about 55 miles after 5 years. So, the larger battery will allow you a more generous range even after the car is several years old. Despite the battery issue, I really enjoy the Leaf ownership experience. Nissan service and support has been very good. Based on my Leaf ownership, I have become a fan of electric drivetrains, so much so that I am now on my second Leaf, one with the 30 kWh battery (which was not available in 2011). I do not think that I will ever go back to owning a car that is not either all-electric or a hybrid. Nissan should be commended for taking a big risk in developing and marketing the Leaf. I think that the commitment to manufacturing an all-electric car will pay off for Nissan in the future.

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  Turning over a new Leaf! - 2011 Nissan Leaf
  By anewleaf1 - October 4 - 9:39 am

  Weve only had our 2011 Leaf for two weeks but already we are in love with this car. Gas has gone up $.20 since my last fill up in my old car, so Im already saving more money. The car has great "get up and go", it isnt anything like the hybrids you hear about not having any power to them. I can leave everyone at the stop light if I want to. The first few days I found myself speeding frequently. The interior is very comfortable, even for adults in the back seat. It sits up a little higher than the sedan I traded in, which is nice. This car is all electric so its not for someone looking to drive it a long way. I only use it to commute to work and run errands so its perfect.

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  <50% battery capacity at 90,000 mi & more issues - 2011 Nissan Leaf
  By Rick SantAngelo - September 10 - 8:52 am

  The gauge is wrong, though I am missing only 4 bars my battery is under 50% of original capacity, a maximum charge from one bar to full is less than 10Kwh, my driving experience is 40 mi or less on a charge at this point in time. At 60,000 miles the dealer checked and told me that 3 bars down (which was my state at the time) was to be expected even though I experienced under 50 miles. My brakes pulse wildly at high speeds and I am on my third set of tires. Based on the revised battery warranty, a buyer should be well aware that their car will be worthless after 5 years and no one in their right mind should buy one used. All along the way my dealer (and the designated technician) demonstrated a total lack of knowledge and expertise on this car, and to this day has no idea about replacing a battery. As recently as this year (5 yrs after introduction) Nissan still does not have any description of what is covered ON A LEAF under their own extended warranty which demonstrates that they have not figured out yet how to deal with this technology.

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  After over a year of ownership - 2011 Nissan Leaf
  By eniac - July 10 - 1:48 pm

  Ive owned my LEAF for over a year now and have put just over 10,000 miles on it. The car is still really fun to drive and weve enjoyed every single mile. Everything is still tight, no rattles or wind noise. As for operating costs, I had the tires rotated twice (for fre at Discount Tires), annual battery check at the dealership (also free), and I replaced the cabin filter for $11 and had it detailed on its birthday for $60. Other than $342 in electricity to "fuel" it for the entire year, thats my total costs so far.

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  Just Buy It! - 2011 Nissan Leaf
  By peterhi - April 19 - 9:04 am

  I have been driving my Leaf for 1 month, with 1,000 miles. Had a very difficult decision to sell my 2007 Lexus IS250 which I loved, and was worried to be driving an econobox tin can. I have no regrets at all! Believe it or not but it drives just as well as the Lexus, is more quiet, just as smooth, accelerates well, and just feels good to be doing the right thing! I have a 20 mile r/t commute to the office; with side trips, often am driving 35-40 miles which is perfect. I have a gas car for longer drives but rarely use it. Take advantage of tax credits while you can! Nissan put lots of research and money into this vehicle to get it right the first time. Just Buy It!

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  Good so far. - 2011 Nissan Leaf
  By pacoug - June 11 - 9:11 am

  Im in Pennsylvania so I havent experienced the reduced range that comes from cold winter temps yet. That comes in a couple months. But I can tell you right now this thing makes a much better commuter than I thought it would. My drive to work is about 12 miles, about 30 minutes each way. It works in my life and would work for most urban commuters. I didnt intend for this car to do much duty besides going to work and back; essentially its the third car. But its becoming my choice for anything within 20 miles of home--which is most of what I do day-to-day. If this car fits your life you might consider it. Im still probing the range limits to see what I can and cant do.

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  Well built, loved the quiet - 2011 Nissan Leaf
  By rufustf - January 11 - 3:06 am

  We are in TN, so only Nissan dealers are supplying the charging stations making "range anxiety" a very real concern for me after hours driving. It will just take more planning until I adjust to it. When DC quick charging stations are more available, range anxiety will be much reduced. Handles very well.

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  Love this car, but man it cost me. - 2011 Nissan Leaf
  By Zac Held - June 1 - 11:57 pm

  Its a great car. The car itself is completely vanilla, but I love how smooth and quiet it is. At stoplights I think my other gas car has something wrong with all the vibration. The acceleration is linear and totally smooth. Not visiting gas stations is awesome. Its fun to sneak up on people in parking lots. The range anxiety went away after a month of owning the car, although its starting to come back. The BIG HOWEVER, I have had the car for over five years now, it has less than 60k miles and my battery capacity is now half of what it was when new. I was a responsible battery charger, and live in a mild climate. Since it is just out of warranty (4 years) its up to me to cover the cost of the replacement battery. I can currently go about 40 miles if I dont use the heater, and my work is about 40 miles roundtrip. I know all batteries degrade over time, and I was comfortable of having to replace it. What totally caught me by surprise is the cost of a new battery; quoted by my dealer is $8000. A quick blue book value of my car is about $6000. The horrible depreciation of the car combined with the cost of a replacement battery, completely make the economics of owning this car a terrible deal. For $8000 I could buy nearly twenty thousand gallons of gasoline! At 25 miles per gallon I could travel 500,000 miles! All these leafs are going to have to be converted to golf carts in retirement to get any value out of them. Update 2-18. Car has about 68,000 miles now. Still gets me back and forth to work, but due to battery degradation the heater is only allowed for small spurts to defrost the windows in the winter. It is a great car durability wise since I have only had to change the tires so far, and drives like the day it was new. We tend to drive it less miles now because the range anxiety of driving to new places is resurfacing. Bad news is that battery degradation and the cost to replace it is crazy. Buying a used one that doesnt need to go very far makes sense. Today a 2011 leaf in my area goes for 5000-7000. Not sure what a battery costs today, if its still $8000, no way that makes sense. The battery needs to be closer to $1000 to even think of changing it.

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  LEAF exceeds our expectations! - 2011 Nissan Leaf
  By doeskin - February 10 - 2:12 pm

  Took delivery about a week ago; the car is wonderful, very well engineered, fun to drive; range exceeds their promises; Blink charging station is very user friendly and fun to use; comfortable seats ... we sold our Lexus RX350 since taking delivery because it would probably just sit in the garage. You will not be disappointed!

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  Car of the Future - 2011 Nissan Leaf
  By jackie_gt - September 17 - 5:56 am

  Just LOVE the new car. It exceeds my expectations in all areas. I highly recommend buying an SPX Level 2 EVSE portable charger that can auto detect voltage. This also charges the Chevy Volt. I use it to charge my Nissa Leaf. Plugs into an outlet similar to a electric dryer outlet at home and similar ones at my businesses. As of 9-22-11, price $749 + S+H.