Nits! All a bunch of nits that are meaningless had Nissan improved the battery. One should be able to drive 100 miles at freeway speed(65-70 mph) to feel confident in the Leaf for long, one charge per day, commutes.

Remember,the best mileage you will get is when the battery is new. The battery will slowly lose capacity over time from aging and charge/discharge cycles. So you need more battery to start with.

The car looks great; but, the battery doesn't come with the car. It must be rented monthly for over $100 a month. This could be a good thing, if you don't trust the battery. Or, a bad thing because you are always depending on the company for fuel. What if they reprocess the battery?

John:
Good information for Leaf owners, thank you.

I suspect that the repair took more time than estimated because you just don't replace a bad battery module in a battery. I'm sure there is a required balancing and testing period before releasing the repaired battery back to customer usage.

Please forget what you have learned about Pb Batteries. A Li Battery is completely different and is a much different chemistry.

Price wise, Nissan has a long way to go; battery wise they, just like the other EV makers, have an even longer way.

Until Nissan's batteries are less-costly, lighter and can propel the car an honest 100 miles at freeway speeds, it will continue to be limited to a role as a commuter and/or city car,

My suggestion is to lease the car until the Nissan battery technology catches up with U.S. driver's needs. This is the third year for the car and they have not improved the battery one iota...it's still the same with the same problems,i.e., an expected reduction in range of about 30% over 5 years.

And in case we forget where the top priority in EV development should be: "It's The Battery, Stupid!"

Truth from an early adopter:
They didn't improved the energy density of the battery; this mistake will continue to limit the car's use, on one charge. to a city/short range commuter. Yes, the car will go 70 to 80 miles if you keep it below 55 mph, drive on flat land, and, use a brand new, 100% charged battery. Nissan recommends you only charge the battery to 80% to extend the life of the battery. If you do that, you will not get 70 miles.

The battery warrant is for a reduction in energy density of less than 30% within 5 years. And, I expect a reduction in range similar to this with age.

I like driving car. I could love it if it went 100 miles at 65 mph.

So, they did not improved the energy density of the battery; this mistake will continue to limit the car's use to that of a city/short range commuter auto. Yes, the car will go 70 miles but only if you keep it below 55-60 mph and drive in the slow lane with the truckers and...with a brand new, 100% charged battery. Nissan recommends you only charge the battery to 80% to extend the life of the battery. If you do that, you will not get 70 miles.

What happens to the range as the battery ages and depletes from use? Right, the range goes down. The warranty by Nissan covers the battery for a reduction in energy density of 30% within 5 years. That says to me, expect even less range as the battery ages.

How do I know all this?I own one.

Correction:>> 175 lbs lighter

We have advance information the Leaf will be about 75 lbs lighter; but, will Nissan be smart enough to upgrade the batteries to improve the car's range?

I think this is a good move by Nissan for those people who can operate within the nine bar range and it also is assurance that you will not pay for an early battery failure. However, I would like to see Nissan improve the battery density of it's modules so that a reduction of 30% in range would be 30% of 150 miles and not 30% of 70 as it is now.

My hope is that a replacement battery at the end of eight years will provide an excellent range improvement. I could quite easily accept the Ladson Test: Show me a freeway Leaf that will go 100 miles at 65 mph and I'll be happy.