Nov 23rd, 2010 by Ross Edwards
The 2011 Nissan Leaf has been given an official fuel economy rating of 99-mpg. If that sounds strange to you, it’s probably because you know that the Nissan Leaf is a 100% electric car that doesn’t use any gasoline.
The Environmental Protection Agency has developed a formula for rating the efficiency of electric vehicles. The agency rates 33.7 kilowatt hours of electricity as equivalent to a gallon of gasoline, according to The New York Times.
The EPA also rated the Nissan Leaf’s range and the results were pretty disappointing. Nissan has said that the Leaf would have a 100 mile range, but the EPA rated the Leaf as having a range of 73 miles before needing a recharge.
While the high mileage rating is impressive, the yearly savings when compared to other economical cars is not. The EPA estimates that the yearly cost of fuel for the Leaf will be $561, while the Toyota Prius will cost an average of $867, not very much more. The Toyota Prius has a gasoline engine that allows it to quickly refuel. The Leaf needs to be plugged in to recharge, which can take seven hours to complete.
The Chevrolet Volt, which uses a gasoline engine to recharge its electric motor when the motor’s charge runs out, has not yet been given an official EPA rating. A GM spokesman says that the Volt’s more complicated powertrain is probably to blame for the slower rating process.
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[…] Nissan Leaf received a 99-mpg equivalent rating, but does not have a gasoline engine like the Chevy Volt’s to extend the car’s range […]