eric85
EV Enthusiast
Posts: 13 
LEAF OWNER?: No
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Post by eric85 on Dec 6, 2015 12:12:19 GMT 11
I live in Sydney (Inner West) and I'd love to buy your second-hand Leaf from you! According to Wiki, the Leaf is the most popular all-electric car in Australia, a whopping 488 cars registered between 2010-2015. In light of climate change, that's an absolute disgrace (not directed at any of you fine people of course). I absolutely can't afford to spend >$20k on a car, and I'll need to run an extension lead out from my apartment on to the street to charge it every night, but apart from those limitations, I'm super keen to own an EV as soon as possible. |
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Post by Phoebe on Dec 6, 2015 14:07:42 GMT 11
I plan to sell mine about 2023  , when I turn 80 and should give up driving! |
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Post by Feng on Dec 6, 2015 14:36:41 GMT 11
Pretty sure you'll just be upgrading to an autonomous LEAF by then!
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Post by Feng on Dec 6, 2015 19:55:30 GMT 11
I absolutely can't afford to spend >$20k on a car, and I'll need to run an extension lead out from my apartment on to the street to charge it every night, but apart from those limitations, I'm super keen to own an EV as soon as possible. Hi eric85, Welcome to the forum. The cheapest LEAF on Carsales.com.au is a low, low $21,500: www.carsales.com.au/private/details/Nissan-LEAF-2013/SSE-AD-3720286/?Cr=0 The only problem is it's in Victoria so you'll have to arrange transport for it. Running an extension out of your apartment sounds a bit risky unless you're sure it's foolproof. |
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Post by gabzimiev on Dec 6, 2015 20:59:58 GMT 11
the Mitsubishi i-miev are cheaper than the LEAFs but harder to find these days. the other option is not a car e motorcycle scooter pushbike. extension lead to the street may not be safe as a permanent solution maybe charging at work would be a better option.
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Post by jacky on Dec 6, 2015 22:22:06 GMT 11
I absolutely can't afford to spend >$20k on a car, and I'll need to run an extension lead out from my apartment on to the street to charge it every night, but apart from those limitations, I'm super keen to own an EV as soon as possible. Hi eric85, Welcome to the forum. The cheapest LEAF on Carsales.com.au is a low, low $21,500: www.carsales.com.au/private/details/Nissan-LEAF-2013/SSE-AD-3720286/?Cr=0 The only problem is it's in Victoria so you'll have to arrange transport for it. Running an extension out of your apartment sounds a bit risky unless you're sure it's foolproof. This is definitely a good buy. The car is just a little bit older than mine and it has done only 17,600 km. Mine did 25,000 km. Running extension cord out of an apartment is a big concert. The legal liabilities (such as tripping over others) need to be understood. Eric, will you park it on the street? |
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Post by rusdy on Dec 6, 2015 23:32:01 GMT 11
At AUD21,500, that's a steal!! This must be a record low to date? I bought mine second hand for AUD25k, and I thought I was lucky! I never intended to spend more than 15k for a car either. But my bias for anything electric is far too great  , so I bit the bullet. I couldn't go i-Miev due to the need to seat 3 adults and 2 kids. Once the Leaf arrived, I'm so surprised with the build quality. There is no way I can compare Leaf with my old 2006 Corolla (as you can tell, I'm a cheapskate in cars). The Leaf is simply much, much better build. I'd be happy with a tin can with Leaf range (i.e. 5-seater i-Miev, no offense to i-Miev owner, of course  ). |
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Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
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Post by Deleted on Dec 7, 2015 9:18:29 GMT 11
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Post by rusdy on Dec 7, 2015 11:38:50 GMT 11
I didn't know volt is only 4 seats. It looks too big for only a 4-seater  I don't mind about the whine. Again, I'm very biased in anything electrical. I've been surrounded by hundreds to thousand kW VSD (Variable Speed Drives) some years in my career, so, maybe I got accustomed to electric whining  . I have to admit, I have very, very unhealthy negative bias to 'Internal-Exploding-Engine'. So, any car that does serial hybrid with ICE, I simply loathe them. Yes, it is unhealthy bias (with a bold too!). I think I need to see psychologist about this unhealthy bias of mine  . My household is now free of any exploding engine (even my lawn mower is electric). Too bad all my consumer goods still need to be transported by exploding engine, but that's another topic (a.k.a climate change) |
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eric85
EV Enthusiast
Posts: 13
LEAF OWNER?: No
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Post by eric85 on Dec 7, 2015 11:39:05 GMT 11
This is definitely a good buy. The car is just a little bit older than mine and it has done only 17,600 km. Mine did 25,000 km. Running extension cord out of an apartment is a big concert. The legal liabilities (such as tripping over others) need to be understood. Eric, will you park it on the street? Hello all, thanks for replying Thanks for the link to the $21500 car, that's encouraging that the price is coming down, but it's still out of reach. I just can't do >$20k. My car budget is $2-5k every few years. Good point Jacky with the legal liability of the cord. I'm reconsidering night time charging. I estimate I will only need to do a ~10 hour charge twice per week, so I'll do it during two out of the three week days when my wife is home. I have to park on the street; I live in a block of apartments with no parking. Surely an extension cord on the footpath, during daylight hours, two days a week isn't a problem. It's almost the same as if I was vacuuming the car. What if I put my unit number on the dash? |
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Post by rusdy on Dec 7, 2015 12:31:32 GMT 11
Hi eric85, Sorry to hear that (that electric car is simply beyond your budget). If climate change is your motivation, then I have to be honest electric car will not solve your problem (cheaply). So, until affordable clean transport [1] is available for general public, I highly encourage you to get an electric bicycle instead [2]. If this is also not suitable for you, then unfortunately 'Internal Exploding Engine' is still the only option  . Notes: [1] My opinion, the only affordable clean transport in the future is public transport powered by renewable. Personal transport will be too expensive in the future, if the world decided they want to move away from fossil fuel. I'm watching Paris talk closely, with great pessimism. [2] It is by far, the cheapest form of transport, after accounting ALL form of fuel and time saved: Cheapest Commuting Challenge |
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Post by Feng on Dec 7, 2015 12:43:04 GMT 11
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eric85
EV Enthusiast
Posts: 13
LEAF OWNER?: No
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Post by eric85 on Dec 7, 2015 12:51:21 GMT 11
The i-MiEV has an unacceptably small crumple zone at the front, sorry Mitsubishi. I've seen a woman killed in a minivan for this reason, so I'm not interested. My block of units literally has no car spaces. Everyone is required to fight for street parking, simple as that. I have a 50% chance of getting the park in front of my unit on any given day, so the extension lead would only be across out 5 metre common garden and the 5 metre footpath to the road. I've just found a fast charger a 10 km drive from me in Sydney (CHAdeMO DCFC). I might have to rely on that twice a week instead. Honestly, if I worked at my local council, I'd shut me down. We can't have unaccompanied power cords in public places  |
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Post by jacky on Dec 7, 2015 12:52:46 GMT 11
This is definitely a good buy. The car is just a little bit older than mine and it has done only 17,600 km. Mine did 25,000 km. Running extension cord out of an apartment is a big concert. The legal liabilities (such as tripping over others) need to be understood. Eric, will you park it on the street? Hello all, thanks for replying Thanks for the link to the $21500 car, that's encouraging that the price is coming down, but it's still out of reach. I just can't do >$20k. My car budget is $2-5k every few years. Good point Jacky with the legal liability of the cord. I'm reconsidering night time charging. I estimate I will only need to do a ~10 hour charge twice per week, so I'll do it during two out of the three week days when my wife is home. I have to park on the street; I live in a block of apartments with no parking. Surely an extension cord on the footpath, during daylight hours, two days a week isn't a problem. It's almost the same as if I was vacuuming the car. What if I put my unit number on the dash? Have you also put the fuel savings in your budget? |
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eric85
EV Enthusiast
Posts: 13
LEAF OWNER?: No
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Post by eric85 on Dec 7, 2015 13:02:44 GMT 11
Hi Jacky, good point on the petrol savings. Yep I reckon I'll save about $2,000 per year. Still doesn't help me with the fact that I only have $15,000 in the bank, so if I buy a Leaf for, say, $19,000, I'll be living hand-to-mouth for a year as my bank account recovers. Still up for it! |
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Post by duncan on Dec 7, 2015 13:38:54 GMT 11
meh $21 is the asking price, not the selling price Don't give up.... |
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eric85
EV Enthusiast
Posts: 13
LEAF OWNER?: No
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Post by eric85 on Dec 7, 2015 14:57:05 GMT 11
Hi eric85, Sorry to hear that (that electric car is simply beyond your budget). If climate change is your motivation, then I have to be honest electric car will not solve your problem (cheaply). So, until affordable clean transport [1] is available for general public, I highly encourage you to get an electric bicycle instead [2]. If this is also not suitable for you, then unfortunately 'Internal Exploding Engine' is still the only option . Notes: [1] My opinion, the only affordable clean transport in the future is public transport powered by renewable. Personal transport will be too expensive in the future, if the world decided they want to move away from fossil fuel. I'm watching Paris talk closely, with great pessimism. [2] It is by far, the cheapest form of transport, after accounting ALL form of fuel and time saved: Cheapest Commuting ChallengeHi Rusdy I think you might be right, long term. But I foresee at least a 20-30 year transition period to fully electric public transport or, say, fleets of really cheap Google cars that are hired liked taxis for a low monthly fee. But in the meantime, personally owned electric vehicles are going to be a big help in my opinion. I warmly encourage the upper class in Australia to buy new EVs, and for the middle class to buy second-hand EVs. Anyone buying a new petrol car needs a slap in the face. I do a lot of research on climate change. Here's my list of ten things every Australian adult can consider in 2015: 1. Switch to a 100% renewable electricity plan; 2. Contact your local MP and tell him or her that a carbon tax is urgently important to you; 3. Shift your savings, particularly your super fund, into fossil free funds; 4. If you own property, install solar panels; 5. Make plans to buy an electric car within the next 10 years (ie don't buy a new petrol car); 6. Sell all your shares in companies that derive >20% of their revenue from mining or burning fossil fuels; 7. Eat less meat, particularly from bigger animals; 8. Donate to a charitable carbon offset programme, such as Greenfleet, as you are able; 9. Donate to a not-for-profit climate activism group, such as 350.org Australia or the Climate Council, as you are able; and 10. Speak up about climate change amongst friends and family, and encourage them that meaningful action can and should be taken without delay. |
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Post by jeffjl on Dec 7, 2015 15:05:35 GMT 11
I plan to sell mine about 2023 , when I turn 80 and should give up driving! Will it have gone 10k by then? |
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Post by Phoebe on Dec 7, 2015 15:23:45 GMT 11
I plan to sell mine about 2023 , when I turn 80 and should give up driving! Will it have gone 10k by then? Maybe |
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Post by EVangelist on Dec 8, 2015 23:20:22 GMT 11
I absolutely can't afford to spend >$20k on a car, and I'll need to run an extension lead out from my apartment on to the street to charge it every night. The comments here about public liability are real. If someone tripped over the cord and injured themselves, you could be sued and go bankrupt. Seniors have been known to trip over uneven council footpaths and break bones or worse. IF you seriously wanted to do this, you would need to use the purpose-built cable covers that outdoor events people use - they are black and yellow and have hinged flaps either side of a cable tunnel. I would also suggest that you speak to your local Council about it to get their OHS endorsement and approval to do it (if they would even contemplate it). And after all that, I would only charge during the day and never at night. A better option might be to convince council to install a street charger and dedicate a space to EVs - solves your parking worries All this is academic though if you can't get an EV. |
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Post by EVangelist on Dec 8, 2015 23:22:11 GMT 11
Surely an extension cord on the footpath, during daylight hours, two days a week isn't a problem. It's almost the same as if I was vacuuming the car. No, it's not. When you are vacuuming the car you are there and can warn passers-by. You don't want to sit in your car for 6 hours while it charges. |
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Post by EVangelist on Dec 8, 2015 23:43:34 GMT 11
I do a lot of research on climate change. Here's my list of ten things every Australian adult can consider in 2015: 1. Switch to a 100% renewable electricity plan; 2. Contact your local MP and tell him or her that a carbon tax is urgently important to you; 3. Shift your savings, particularly your super fund, into fossil free funds; 4. If you own property, install solar panels; 5. Make plans to buy an electric car within the next 10 years (ie don't buy a new petrol car); 6. Sell all your shares in companies that derive >20% of their revenue from mining or burning fossil fuels; 7. Eat less meat, particularly from bigger animals; 8. Donate to a charitable carbon offset programme, such as Greenfleet, as you are able; 9. Donate to a not-for-profit climate activism group, such as 350.org Australia or the Climate Council, as you are able; and 10. Speak up about climate change amongst friends and family, and encourage them that meaningful action can and should be taken without delay. Wow you are even more activist than me. I have done (1), (2), (3), (5), (6), (9) and (10). I divested all my Super early this year, just before the resources crash Coal is dead, investors are deserting it like someone called "fire" in the cinema. Ironically a carbon tax increases the financial feasibility of nuclear, so that is an "unintended consequence". In fact some of the most vociferous industry activisim for a carbon price in the USA is from the nuclear industry. But renewables are now close enough in LCOE to make nuclear unviable, and not a single nuclear power plant has been built anywhere in the world in the last 10 years that was not fully or partly underwritten by Government. Private investor capital no longer touches it - payback period is too long and now too risky with rapid change in renewable economics. Solar panels would be very difficult to install on my house due to the height and pitch of the roof, but it's something to keep in mind, particularly with battery home storage becoming a very real option in 1-2 years. I would love to go completely off grid if it was feasible. I am however changing all my lighting to LED - ceiling halogens in particular. LED technology is now good enough that 13W COB-type LEDs produce a brighter light than 60W halogens (50W + 10W transformer) with the same single-emission-point crispness and a very nice slightly-whiter light. I just had to wait long enough for the technology to get there at a not too insane price. I mainly eat kangaroo meat. Roos aren't "farmed" like cattle, are native, and don't release anywhere near as much methane. And the meat is very good for you (very lean and high in iron). I am trying to convince my employer to mandate that all staff flight bookings include the carbon offset fee, no ifs or buts. It's only about 0.6 - 1% of the fare - a pittance. I've got a reasonable hearing so far but no action yet. |
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eric85
EV Enthusiast
Posts: 13
LEAF OWNER?: No
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Post by eric85 on Dec 9, 2015 2:27:59 GMT 11
I absolutely can't afford to spend >$20k on a car, and I'll need to run an extension lead out from my apartment on to the street to charge it every night. The comments here about public liability are real. If someone tripped over the cord and injured themselves, you could be sued and go bankrupt. Seniors have been known to trip over uneven council footpaths and break bones or worse. IF you seriously wanted to do this, you would need to use the purpose-built cable covers that outdoor events people use - they are black and yellow and have hinged flaps either side of a cable tunnel. I would also suggest that you speak to your local Council about it to get their OHS endorsement and approval to do it (if they would even contemplate it). And after all that, I would only charge during the day and never at night. A better option might be to convince council to install a street charger and dedicate a space to EVs - solves your parking worries All this is academic though if you can't get an EV. Thanks for your comments EVangelist, I appreciate it. I have decided to abandon my plans to rely on extension cords lying across the footpath. There is a fast charger a ten minute drive from me, so if I can find a Leaf for <$20k then I'll just charge it there twice per week, should be good. I'll take a book |
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Post by Cachexian (Gordon) on Dec 9, 2015 7:34:05 GMT 11
Or you could get really good at 10pin bowling.
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Post by markrmarkr on Dec 9, 2015 21:17:55 GMT 11
The comments here about public liability are real. If someone tripped over the cord and injured themselves, you could be sued and go bankrupt. Seniors have been known to trip over uneven council footpaths and break bones or worse. IF you seriously wanted to do this, you would need to use the purpose-built cable covers that outdoor events people use - they are black and yellow and have hinged flaps either side of a cable tunnel. I would also suggest that you speak to your local Council about it to get their OHS endorsement and approval to do it (if they would even contemplate it). And after all that, I would only charge during the day and never at night. A better option might be to convince council to install a street charger and dedicate a space to EVs - solves your parking worries All this is academic though if you can't get an EV. Thanks for your comments EVangelist, I appreciate it. I have decided to abandon my plans to rely on extension cords lying across the footpath. There is a fast charger a ten minute drive from me, so if I can find a Leaf for <$20k then I'll just charge it there twice per week, should be good. I'll take a book Only problem with this plan is the DCFC isn't that reliable. But there is a slow charger you could use at Steve Jarvin in the next suburb. So if the FC is US, and you are desperate you have a plan B. Which suburb do you live in anyway? |
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eric85
EV Enthusiast
Posts: 13
LEAF OWNER?: No
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Post by eric85 on Dec 9, 2015 21:27:48 GMT 11
Only problem with this plan is the DCFC isn't that reliable. But there is a slow charger you could use at Steve Jarvin in the next suburb. So if the FC is US, and you are desperate you have a plan B. Which suburb do you live in anyway? Argh, I am really relying on that North Strathfield CHAdeMO DCFC for my Leaf plans. I'm happy to visit it at odd hours with a book for an hour or so. But the Burwood Steve Jarvin charger isn't good for me because it's one of the 4 hour chargers, not the 30 minute / 80% chargers. Why do you say the DCFC isn't reliable? I'm in Ashfield. |
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Post by jacky on Dec 9, 2015 22:19:52 GMT 11
Only problem with this plan is the DCFC isn't that reliable. But there is a slow charger you could use at Steve Jarvin in the next suburb. So if the FC is US, and you are desperate you have a plan B. Which suburb do you live in anyway? Argh, I am really relying on that North Strathfield CHAdeMO DCFC for my Leaf plans. I'm happy to visit it at odd hours with a book for an hour or so. But the Burwood Steve Jarvin charger isn't good for me because it's one of the 4 hour chargers, not the 30 minute / 80% chargers. Why do you say the DCFC isn't reliable? I'm in Ashfield. Everything will break down. In Australia, no rapid charger site has resilience (i.e., more than one rapid charger installed in the same place to avoid single point of failure). As a reference, there are 2 25kW public rapid chargers in Melbourne. One of them broke down earlier this year and took 4 months to repair. A month or 2 later, the same rapid charger was broken and took a month to fix. During the first 4 months out of service period, the other rapid charger was broken as well. That means during that period (I remember that was about a month), there are no rapid chargers available in Melbourne. If you only rely on rapid chargers, you will be stuck. |
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Post by Cachexian (Gordon) on Dec 10, 2015 6:55:20 GMT 11
See if Ashfield council will install a type 2 in the mall or at the pool?
Could you charge there overnight?
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Datsun2000
EV Tyre Kicker
Posts: 8
LEAF OWNER?: Yes
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Post by Datsun2000 on Dec 11, 2015 1:30:21 GMT 11
Hi Eric85 and everyone else, my first post.
I'm the lucky new owner of the $21,500 Leaf you speak about. I live in Adelaide and bought the car sight unseen (crazy I know). I'd never driven an EV or even had a closeup look at a Leaf. I knew however, after reading for years that it was the best current EV option for me. I flew to Melbourne, picked the car up and drove it 70km across town to the transport depot. I stopped at the Swinburne University fast charger and had some lunch. It wasn't necessary but I was excited about getting my first charge. It all worked perfectly. I picked it up in Adelaide today. I've driven it 150km already and I'm loving every minute. What a great car!!! So have hope eric85 that a sub $20k Leaf is not that far away. Good luck with your search.
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Post by caskings on Dec 11, 2015 1:36:28 GMT 11
Congrats Datsun2000! Welcome to the club. Did it have the full 12 capacity bars (the thin bars to the right of the larger state of charge bars)/
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, when I turn 80 and should give up driving! 
, so I bit the bullet. I couldn't go i-Miev due to the need to seat 3 adults and 2 kids. Once the Leaf arrived, I'm so surprised with the build quality. There is no way I can compare Leaf with my old 2006 Corolla (as you can tell, I'm a cheapskate in cars).
). 
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. My household is now free of any exploding engine (even my lawn mower is electric). 
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