The Leaf is part of the Nissan range of fully electric vehicles, and has become a bit of an EV icon. Considered to be the first global mass-market electric car, well over half a million have been sold since 2010, and it’s now in its second generation.
The Leaf name, often stylised as LEAF, stands for ‘Leading Environmentally-friendly Affordable Family vehicle’, and the eco-friendly design is something that Nissan is very keen to highlight. The car achieved full marks in the Green NCAP Clean Air Tests, making it one of the most environmentally responsible EVs to be produced to date.
Key highlights of the Nissan Leaf
The main selling point of the Nissan Leaf is its impressive value-for-money, sharing a price point with much smaller offerings. But it’s also an advanced model, with tech including the clever ProPILOT system that steers you within your lane, brakes and accelerates to follow the car in front.
With the maximum five-star rating from Euro NCAP including a 93% adult safety rating it’s about as safe as low-cost EVs get, too. There’s space for four adults and a boot that’s substantially larger than similarly-sized electric hatchbacks.
The Leaf also has Nissan’s e-Pedal system, which allows full one-pedal driving by using regenerative braking to bring you fully to a stop. The low-cost 39kWh model offers extremely affordable motoring, but there’s faster and longer-range versions available too.
Don’t forget, also, that the Nissan Leaf is one of very few EVs built in the UK. If you like to support the British car industry then that’ll be a unique selling point.
Nissan Leaf performance & range
The Nissan Leaf offers nippy performance even in base 39kWh form, making it perfect for zipping about town, with 0-62mph taking just 7.9 seconds. It’s not that long ago that those numbers were hot hatchback performance.
This smaller battery version of the Leaf offers 168 miles of range on a charge, which means it’s more suitable to regular commutes and local journeys than frequent long distances. However, opting for the 59kWh Leaf e+ gives you a healthier 239 miles of range, perfect for stretching its legs more often. The e+ is also surprisingly quick, completing the 0-62mph sprint in 6.9 seconds.
The Leaf’s modest charging speeds may put you off, but remember the battery is relatively small so you won’t be waiting ages. In fact, you can rapid charge the standard model from 10-80% in 43 minutes, with the e+ taking just under an hour. Both use CHAdeMO DC charging connectors which you’ll find as standard across the GRIDSERVE Electric Highway.
Tech specs
Similar models to the Nissan Leaf
Unsure about leasing a Nissan Leaf? The good news is that there are plenty of others to choose from. The closest competitor on the market today is probably the Renault Zoe. With Renault being part of the Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi Alliance, there are many similarities between the Nissan electric and Renault electric range. It’s smaller, though, so for a similar size model check out the MG4 or Volkswagen ID.3.
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The Nissan Leaf has consistently remained one of the most popular EVs on the market, thanks to a range of factors. These include the fact it offers a quiet and refined drive, it’s reasonably priced compared to other alternatives, it has an intuitive one-pedal driving mode and is reliable.
Leasing with GRIDSERVE allows you to enjoy brilliant customer care from the best EV experts in the business. You can also benefit from cheaper prices thanks to our great relationships with the top electric car manufacturers in the UK.
There is a range of different options to choose from for the popular Nissan Leaf model, including the Acenta, N-Connecta, Tekna, e+ N-Connecta and e+ Tekna.
The Acenta is the entry-level edition and provides 16-inch alloy wheels, body-coloured door mirrors, chrome handles and a grey bumper finish. The interior also has black cloth upholstery, along with an eight-inch touchscreen that has smartphone connectivity, cruise control and a multifunctional leather steering wheel.
Next up is the N-Connecta, which has 17-inch two-tone alloy wheels, privacy rear glass, an eight-inch touchscreen featuring sat-nav, a 360-degree parking camera, plus heated leather seats and steering wheel.
If you go for the Tekna edition, you get the top-spec version. This features Nissan’s autonomous driving assistant as standard plus heated front and rear seats. The sound system is also improved with seven Bose speakers. It also has 17-inch two-tone alloy wheels, privacy rear glass and automatic fully LED highlights, plus dual-zone climate control, cruise control and an e-Pedal system.
The e+ N-Connecta has the Nissan Safety Shield that has a lane-departure warning, automatic emergency braking, adaptive cruise control, lane intervention and high-beam assist. On the technology side, there is an eight-inch touchscreen plus an Around View monitor that can sense any moving objects to warn the driver.
Finally, the e+ Tekna has 17-inch alloy wheels, a 360-degree surround-view camera, tinted rear windows, plus an eight-inch touchscreen infotainment system. This is all combined with heated seats and steering wheel, cruise control, automatic emergency braking and lane-keeping assist.
The e+ N-Connecta and e+ N-Connecta are the Leaf editions with the largest range, officially set at 239 miles, which equates to around 203 miles as a real-world estimate. Other editions vary in range, plus other factors can affect these figures, such as driving style, weather and the weight of the car.
The maximum power charger that the Nissan Leaf can take is 46 kW, which can replenish the battery from 10% to 80% in just 43 minutes, allowing you to get back on the roads in no time at all. If you’re using a home charger, the Leaf can be charged from empty to full in seven hours at a charge power of 6.6kW.