I like the Leaf, a shame it's expensive and the range isn't great. Refreshed one is to have a larger battery.
Still miss my Insight, it was a great car. A redeveloped version with essentially what the modding community have done would be brilliant: switchable level of battery power as/when you want, electric top-up charging at home and a beefier battery. All wrapped up in a ridiculously light frame full of motorsport know-how. Mrhrm...
Thats a thought wonder how battery efficiency deteriorates over time.
The Lion battery in my lap top lasts less and less over time and has to be replaced. Same with phones.
Gradually worsening range + massive extra upfront cost + £8k+ to replace could be the elephant in the room as far as economy saving sense is concerned.
Environmental excuse on battery manufacture and power source (fossil fuel) may be suspect too.
Maybe Renault has the best idea with £80pm (think) rental.
2021 Lapis Blue Plus 6 You know it makes sense! 2016 Carmine Red 991.2 C4S
Battery life is all linked to charging cycles in terms of discharging etc. I think you'll find most of the hybrids have software monitoring these types of things. As some of you'll know my daily runner is a hybrid so I did look at this.
I read somewhere a few days back that a number of the mainstream manufacturers are pulling out of the electric market due to cost of production and uptake. I still fancy a wind turbine or solar panels at home linked to a micro hydrogen generation plant.
The Renault idea is terrible. Why should you lease something that should be included in a steep purchase price?
The reason mobile/laptop batteries don't last long is due to who they're manufactured by, how advanced they are and people not following instructions on longevity. My Insight's batteries were manufactured by Panasonic and likewise had a warranty of 8 years/100k miles - bear in mind this is a warranty that is comparable to a rustproofing warranty on a new car! Manufacturers won't give you anything near that on anything even remotely wear and tear. A modern diesel will need the DMF replacing at least once in the same time, as way of comparison. My Insight's were still holding perfect charge after 11 years and that is late '90s technology.
The Leaf, and I assume the Tesla, will ask you to plug it into the mains every night to condition the battery and keep it tip-top much like a trickle charger.
No different to a normal battery though if you leave it unattended for 2 months. It's patent misuse, like all the Porsche Carrera GT customers who petitioned after burning out their clutches simply because they couldn't manage them.
As someone once said regarding America's penchant for stupidity warnings:
'Why don't we just take the labels off everything and let the problem solve itself?'
Ooh! Cicerone I think if you were American, you would be a Red Neck Republican.
Hey, did you see Piers Morgan getting his ear chewed.
I know this is a serious subject but how can you hope to bring in gun control when so many Americans feel like this guy.
(Charlie - hope your not packing a "Magnum 44" in your new M3W)
Alex Jones Piers Morgan Part 1. 1776 Will Commence ... - YouTube ► 7:22► 7:22 www.youtube.com/watch?v=AtyKofFih8Y 2 days ago - Uploaded by LesGr0ssman Alex Jones Piers Morgan EXPLOSIVE Interview Part 1 Video Tonight ... series of loud tirades ...
2021 Lapis Blue Plus 6 You know it makes sense! 2016 Carmine Red 991.2 C4S
I'm actually left of centre politically judging by questionnaires I've done, and I think that does include a huge element of personal responsibility. If I buy something that I am unfamiliar with I will read the manual to understand my obligations. Nothing is maintenance free.
The oft-quoted 'health and safety' isn't a bad thing, i.e. if you ran a supermarket and thought 'someone could slip on that' you would rectify it before it happened. However, if someome asked for a cup of fresh coffee they shouldn't have to be told that it is hot!
At the risk of turning into JTL...
My dad's trade was carpets and wood floors. In the '80s Vax had an ironic commercial whereby the woman hoovered up some ridiculous substance (in the postscript to the main ad). My dad had a customer who bought a stain resistant carpet from him and a Vax at the same time. A week later she comes back in and demands her money back because the carpet is 'faulty'. Upon enquiring it turns out that to test her new vacuum she has mixed liquid cement, poured it on the carpet and then tried to use her Vax on it. When it didn't work, of course it wasn't the Vax that was to blame as the lady in the advert had done the same thing successfully!
After being laughed out of the shop my dad received a letter from Trading Standards a few days later requiring him to send a sample of the carpet to DuPont in Switzerland so that they could test it for stain resistance. When someone from TS finally came into the branch and he had opportunity to explain what had actually happened the representative's briefcase was snapped shut and they said, 'I don't think you'll be hearing any more from us.'
The Renault idea is terrible. Why should you lease something that should be included in a steep purchase price?
....because it's transferring the part of the car which causes most anxiety to would be customers from the capital cost of the vehicle to being part of the running costs.
Whatever the truth of battery life, the experiences most of us have had with the batteries of mobile phones and laptops do not fill us with confidence as regards the life of the battery pack of an electric car. With Renault's approach, this risk resides with the manufacturer and not the consumer.
You know it makes sense! 
