Electric Nissan Leaf 2019 drive test, review, specifications and pricing

The Driven

The arrival of the 2019 Nissan Leaf with 40kWh battery on the Australian auto market this week marks another important step towards electrification of transport in Australia.

At a starting price (and we stress this is a starting price, and before on-road costs) of $49,990, it joins the Hyundai Ioniq as the only other EV in Australia that has an RRP of under $50,000.

A quick search on Car Sales indicates that you’re more likely to pay in the vicinity of $57,000 drive away, less if you’re savvy enough to talk a salesman down a grand or two.

That sounds expensive for what is essentially a medium-sized hatch – but then, with the electric powertrain you get the added advantage of less maintenance fees (electric vehicles have a fraction of the moving parts of internal combustion engine vehicles).

You also get, as with any other electric vehicle, freedom – freedom from the pump, from having to go out of your way to fill up at a price that fluctuates on a daily basis. Instead, you can simply plug in at home, likely at a pre-agreed rate with your electricity provider.

And for the new Leaf in particular, thanks to a deal Nissan has cut with charging infrastructure provider Chargefox, you’ll also get discounted recharging when out and about using a network being rolled out from Cairns to Adelaide, and even in Tasmania and around Perth.

To read the full story on RenewEconomy’s electric vehicle dedicated site, The Driven, click here…