Well, the Nissan Leaf electric car demo at the Tring Eco Fair, held in April, seems to have caught the interest of one of the Lib Dem Hertfordshire County Councillors. Nick Hollinghurst, who represents the Tring & Villages Division, and his wife, Rosemarie Hollinghurst, finally got around to booking a test drive at Aylesbury Nissan in a Leaf Tekna.
He and his wife found the experience of electric driving “interesting and different”.
Nick said,
“The transition would be quite easy for people with automatic cars, but those used to a gear stick and clutch need to make a few adjustments. Driving is definitely easier and smoother but you have to be careful to keep the speed down and make sure the acceleration is not too fierce. An electric car can deliver near to full torque straight away so pushing your foot down too fast when leaving a roundabout can spin the wheels and waste energy – as well as producing remarkable acceleration. In addition the braking effect of the motor with power off is very slight compared to that of an internal combustion engine – so it rolls on quite well when you take your foot off the accelerator pedal.”
“Fortunately there are driving modes you can switch into that help. One, “Eco Mode”, basically damps the response to over-excited or impatient drivers to give a smoother and more economic drive. The second one, “Braking Mode”, switches in regenerative braking which makes the motor act as a dynamo to generate power when you take you foot off the pedal. This mimics the braking effect of a standard engine to slow the car, but of course is saving energy by recharging the batteries to some extent”.
“Of course it does have a conventional brake, as well as a foot operated “hand brake” for parking or hill starts. Oh, and because the motor is virtually silent, it is fitted with an externallly audible electronically generated “car noise” to warn pedestrians it’s coming.”
“However once you get used to the differences – in about 5 minutes – then you get a really smooth, well controlled ride in a very easy-to-drive car.”
“You gets bags of power if you need it, but in general it’s simpler and smoother and I think it encourages a safer attitude to driving. It’s really cool!”
Next week Nick and Rosemarie are going to take a Leaf for their own unaccompanied 24-test. Then it’ll be decision time.