Term
Initial payment (months)
Term
Initial payment (months)
Leasing this car includes.
Manufacturers warranty
In the event of an unexpected mechanical issue, you're all covered!
Road tax
That's right, all deals include road tax. No hassle. No fuss. No fees.
Breakdown cover
Just in case worst comes to worst. You'll never be left stranded.
90 mph
Top speed
150 bhp
Power
7.9 secs
0-62
40.6 kWh
Battery size
168 miles
Range
60 mins
Charging time
Electric
Fuel
Front Wheel Drive
Drive-train
Key features.
Not your futuristic-looking Tesla or VW ID.3, the second-generation Nissan LEAF is a fairly normal-looking electric car. As harmless to the environment as an actual leaf, enjoy the seamless and noiseless drive that comes with pretty much every electric. Time to get charging.
City.
242 mi.
Combined
Combined.
168 mi.
Low
168 mi.
High
168 mi.
Combined
Standard and fast charging available
Charging port location.
Front Front.
Charging port
Front Front.
Fast charging port
Battery.
40.6 kWh.
Battery capacity
39 kWh.
Battery useable
Between 0 - 0
Charge times.
60 min
Rapid charger (50kW)/(20-80%)
7 hr 0 min
Installed home charger (6.6kW)/(0-100%)
How much is it to insure?
Compare insurance quotes for this Nissan Leaf.
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As the all-electric revolution gathers pace, June Neary wonders whether she could really live with a Nissan LEAF
Ten second review.
I'd never considered myself as the sort of person who would buy an all-electric car. The whole idea of plugging in every night to power your car has to me always seemed about as natural as shovelling coal into it. And the prospect of starting out every lengthier journey wondering whether enough charge was available to complete it has never particularly appealed. With the launch of Nissan's second generation LEAF though, I thought I'd give EV motoring another chance.
Background.
Buyers moving into electric vehicle ownership for the first time will also find the transition easier once they get behind the wheel of this LEAF. There's a high-set SUV-like driving position, but otherwise the feel seems at first glance very much as you'd get in any ordinary family hatch. Closer inspection though, reveals some unique LEAF cabin features; a stubby little auto gear lever and an instrument binnacle display that curiously mixes an analogue speedo with an accompanying customisable colour TFT display. Pretty much everything else you'll need to know is delivered by the centre-dash 7-inch 'NissanConnect EV7' monitor that nearly all variants get. It's not as sophisticated as the screens you get in rival EV models, but with smartphone-mirroring and navigation including a map showing local charge stations, it delivered most of what I needed to know. I wanted to know about charging - and you will too. A 7kWh 32 amp wallbox for your garage comes at no extra cost - which is just as well because charging from a domestic plug would take a yawning 21 hours. Using the wallbox, that figure reduces to just 7.5 hours. If you find a rapid charging point - they're at Nissan dealers and in motorway service areas - you'll be able to replenish your battery to within 80% of its charge in around 40 minutes. Nissan reckons the daily charging process will add no more than about £25 to your monthly electricity bill. Which doesn't seem much when you take into account the huge savings you'll be making on fuel.
Design and Build.
The LEAF purchasing process is a whole lot simpler than it used to be. The previous first generation model was sold either complete - or with a battery that you had to take out a separate rental agreement for. Prior to plumping for either one route or the other, all kinds of elaborate calculations were needed based on likely future use. There's none of that now: this second generation LEAF wants to be seen as an ordinary alternative to any normal Focus-class family hatch, so it's only sold complete, just as one of those would be. At prices that range in the £23,000 to £29,000 bracket. I should point out that these are the subsidised figures that buyers pay after subtraction of the generous £4,500 government grant that still applies to all-electric cars. For reference, these days you only get a £2,500 grant towards a Plug-in hybrid - and nothing towards a conventional hybrid. Which helps explain why a LEAF can offer you much more technology than you'd get in something like a Prius hybrid; yet undercut that Toyota by almost £1,500. As before, LEAF buyers are limited to a single five-door body style, plus of course front wheel drive, along with the auto gearbox that all EV models have to have. Trim levels range from base 'Visia', to 'Acenta' and 'N-Connecta' all the way up to the top 'Tekna' variant I tried.
Market and Model.
The LEAF surprised me. Most likely buyers will probably be considering this as a second or maybe even a third vehicle for short-run use. I'll wager though, that once they get one in the driveway, they'll be using it for 80% of the time. I did.
Cost of Ownership.
The Nissan LEAF has always been a car that divides opinion. Some love this fully electric vehicle for its bold engineering and surprisingly enjoyable driving dynamics, but to date, many other green-minded potential buyers have struggled to make a case for it. But things are changing. For the latest model year, the brand has introduced a fresh driving sound to alert pedestrians to this car's approach. And it wants to bring the uprated 59kWh 'e+' version of this model more to the fore with its longer driving range. Plus value has been prioritised across the line-up. Of course, some of the previous issues still remain. The car is still quite expensive to buy, the looks will divide opinion and you won't even be able to consider it unless you have off-street overnight parking. Little by little though, all-electric motoring is widening its customer reach. And, as it's always been, the LEAF remains right at the forefront of that change.
Summary.
The Nissan LEAF has always been a car that divides opinion. Some love this fully electric vehicle for its bold engineering and surprisingly enjoyable driving dynamics, but to date, many other green-minded potential buyers have struggled to make a case for it. But things are changing. For the latest model year, the brand has introduced a slightly smarter look. Plus value has been prioritised across the line-up. We remember vividly setting off in the first generation LEAF model back in 2010 and struggling to get much more than 60-70 miles out of it between charges. With this second generation design, Nissan claims a homologated WLTP driving range of 168 miles from the standard 39kWh model - or 239 miles (WLTP) from the alternative 'e+' version with its 59kWh battery. Even if you think in terms of a 'real world' driving range being about two-thirds of those total figures (which is our experience anyway), you can't deny that these readings represent an impressive improvement, representing a 50% increase over the final version of the original generation model. The 39kWh lithium-ion battery that virtually all LEAF models still use produces 110kW (which equates to 148bhp) and 320Nm of torque - making the LEAF feel quite fast from a standing start: Nissan say that the 0-62mph time is about 9.8s. In the past with LEAF models, the amount of retardation you got when lifting off the throttle meant that the brake pedal was something you rarely needed to use. With this second generation model, you'll hardly need it at all thanks to 'e-Pedal' technology that can bring the car to a complete stop when you come off the accelerator. The key news here though is that the larger 59kWh battery 'e+' version of this car has now been priced much more accessibly - and this uprated model's longer 239 mile driving range could be key in convincing potential buyers who might otherwise be swayed by longer-running EV rivals in this segment. In terms of design, Nissan has made this MK2 model sleek and quite practical - boot space is rated at 435-litres for example. As for charging, well if you can find one of the 50Kw charging points springing up in our cities, you'll be able to re-charge your LEAF to 80% of battery capacity in just 40 minutes. For home use, Nissan can now sell you a 7.5Kw domestic charging point that will be able to fully re-charge the car in five and a half hours.
I'd never considered myself as the sort of person who would buy an all-electric car. The whole idea of plugging in every night to power your car has to me always seemed about as natural as shovelling coal into it. And the prospect of starting out every lengthier journey wondering whether enough charge was available to complete it has never particularly appealed. With the launch of Nissan's second generation LEAF though, I thought I'd give EV motoring another chance.
Buyers moving into electric vehicle ownership for the first time will also find the transition easier once they get behind the wheel of this LEAF. There's a high-set SUV-like driving position, but otherwise the feel seems at first glance very much as you'd get in any ordinary family hatch. Closer inspection though, reveals some unique LEAF cabin features; a stubby little auto gear lever and an instrument binnacle display that curiously mixes an analogue speedo with an accompanying customisable colour TFT display. Pretty much everything else you'll need to know is delivered by the centre-dash 7-inch 'NissanConnect EV7' monitor that nearly all variants get. It's not as sophisticated as the screens you get in rival EV models, but with smartphone-mirroring and navigation including a map showing local charge stations, it delivered most of what I needed to know. I wanted to know about charging - and you will too. A 7kWh 32 amp wallbox for your garage comes at no extra cost - which is just as well because charging from a domestic plug would take a yawning 21 hours. Using the wallbox, that figure reduces to just 7.5 hours. If you find a rapid charging point - they're at Nissan dealers and in motorway service areas - you'll be able to replenish your battery to within 80% of its charge in around 40 minutes. Nissan reckons the daily charging process will add no more than about £25 to your monthly electricity bill. Which doesn't seem much when you take into account the huge savings you'll be making on fuel.
The LEAF purchasing process is a whole lot simpler than it used to be. The previous first generation model was sold either complete - or with a battery that you had to take out a separate rental agreement for. Prior to plumping for either one route or the other, all kinds of elaborate calculations were needed based on likely future use. There's none of that now: this second generation LEAF wants to be seen as an ordinary alternative to any normal Focus-class family hatch, so it's only sold complete, just as one of those would be. At prices that range in the £23,000 to £29,000 bracket. I should point out that these are the subsidised figures that buyers pay after subtraction of the generous £4,500 government grant that still applies to all-electric cars. For reference, these days you only get a £2,500 grant towards a Plug-in hybrid - and nothing towards a conventional hybrid. Which helps explain why a LEAF can offer you much more technology than you'd get in something like a Prius hybrid; yet undercut that Toyota by almost £1,500. As before, LEAF buyers are limited to a single five-door body style, plus of course front wheel drive, along with the auto gearbox that all EV models have to have. Trim levels range from base 'Visia', to 'Acenta' and 'N-Connecta' all the way up to the top 'Tekna' variant I tried.
The LEAF surprised me. Most likely buyers will probably be considering this as a second or maybe even a third vehicle for short-run use. I'll wager though, that once they get one in the driveway, they'll be using it for 80% of the time. I did.
The Nissan LEAF has always been a car that divides opinion. Some love this fully electric vehicle for its bold engineering and surprisingly enjoyable driving dynamics, but to date, many other green-minded potential buyers have struggled to make a case for it. But things are changing. For the latest model year, the brand has introduced a fresh driving sound to alert pedestrians to this car's approach. And it wants to bring the uprated 59kWh 'e+' version of this model more to the fore with its longer driving range. Plus value has been prioritised across the line-up. Of course, some of the previous issues still remain. The car is still quite expensive to buy, the looks will divide opinion and you won't even be able to consider it unless you have off-street overnight parking. Little by little though, all-electric motoring is widening its customer reach. And, as it's always been, the LEAF remains right at the forefront of that change.
The Nissan LEAF has always been a car that divides opinion. Some love this fully electric vehicle for its bold engineering and surprisingly enjoyable driving dynamics, but to date, many other green-minded potential buyers have struggled to make a case for it. But things are changing. For the latest model year, the brand has introduced a slightly smarter look. Plus value has been prioritised across the line-up. We remember vividly setting off in the first generation LEAF model back in 2010 and struggling to get much more than 60-70 miles out of it between charges. With this second generation design, Nissan claims a homologated WLTP driving range of 168 miles from the standard 39kWh model - or 239 miles (WLTP) from the alternative 'e+' version with its 59kWh battery. Even if you think in terms of a 'real world' driving range being about two-thirds of those total figures (which is our experience anyway), you can't deny that these readings represent an impressive improvement, representing a 50% increase over the final version of the original generation model. The 39kWh lithium-ion battery that virtually all LEAF models still use produces 110kW (which equates to 148bhp) and 320Nm of torque - making the LEAF feel quite fast from a standing start: Nissan say that the 0-62mph time is about 9.8s. In the past with LEAF models, the amount of retardation you got when lifting off the throttle meant that the brake pedal was something you rarely needed to use. With this second generation model, you'll hardly need it at all thanks to 'e-Pedal' technology that can bring the car to a complete stop when you come off the accelerator. The key news here though is that the larger 59kWh battery 'e+' version of this car has now been priced much more accessibly - and this uprated model's longer 239 mile driving range could be key in convincing potential buyers who might otherwise be swayed by longer-running EV rivals in this segment. In terms of design, Nissan has made this MK2 model sleek and quite practical - boot space is rated at 435-litres for example. As for charging, well if you can find one of the 50Kw charging points springing up in our cities, you'll be able to re-charge your LEAF to 80% of battery capacity in just 40 minutes. For home use, Nissan can now sell you a 7.5Kw domestic charging point that will be able to fully re-charge the car in five and a half hours.
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