http://cars.chicagotribune.com/fuel-efficient/news/chi-electric-car-buyers-guide-20130404 Should I buy an electric car? By Jill Ciminillo Apr 3 2013
-Do you have a space at your home that is or could be fitted with a 120V or 240V charging station? -Do you drive your car less than 60 miles a day? -Are you an early adopter that likes the coolest, techiest features in computers, phones and cars? -Are you willing to pay a little bit extra for a car to be green? If you answered “Yes” to all these questions, then an electric car might just be in your future. But you have to be honest with yourself about your driving habits and the level of “range anxiety” you might experience. Public charging stations in Chicago are few, so if you cut it close or find yourself to be a high-stress driver, you might look at a plug-in hybrid instead. After the initial cash outlay for an EV purchase, driving an electric car is certainly more cost effective. Let’s use the Nissan Leaf as an example. The range of that car is estimated to be 73 miles. Assuming you use up every mile of that range, Plug In America estimates it’ll cost you $2 to $4 to bring the Leaf back to a full charge. In a regular gasoline vehicle that gets 30 mpg, assuming gas prices hold steady at the Illinois average of $3.46 per gallon, it’ll cost you $8.44 to replace the gas used in 73 miles of driving. Think your car gets 40 miles per gallon? It’ll still cost you $6.32 to refuel. Our top pick for an electric-only vehicle would be the attractive, yet practical Nissan Leaf with its 73-mile range and $37,250 price tag. While we love the sexy Tesla Model S and its 300-mile range, the price tag tops $100K and could be prohibitive. While the EV field is limited with just 5 cars that are available in Chicago, there is a pretty decent range of size and prices. So, if you’re in the market for an electric car, 1 of the 5 should fit your lifestyle. The other downside to electric is the price premium you’ll pay over a comparable gasoline vehicle. In fact, you won’t pay less than $29,000 for an electric car, and that’s for the very small Mitsubishi i. The good news: if you opt for an electric car, you can get a federal tax credit up to $7,500. [© chicagotribune.com ] For all EVLN posts use: http://electric-vehicle-discussion-list.413529.n4.nabble.com/template/NamlServlet.jtp?macro=search_page&node=413529&query=evln&sort=date Here are today's archive-only EV posts: EVLN: ROPITS, Autonomous mobility EV for the elderly EVLN: Expensive German BMW Cruise Electric Bicycles EVLN: Morehead High Competes In The EV Challenge EVLN: Segway developing 3wheel patroller for the public safety market + EVLN: Pink Tesla-S batmobile driven by King Google cofounder Brin {brucedp.150m.com} -- View this message in context: http://electric-vehicle-discussion-list.413529.n4.nabble.com/EVLN-If-Yes-to-all-questions-then-an-EV-could-be-in-your-future-tp4662338.html Sent from the Electric Vehicle Discussion List mailing list archive at Nabble.com. _______________________________________________ UNSUBSCRIBE: http://www.evdl.org/help/index.html#usub http://lists.evdl.org/listinfo.cgi/ev-evdl.org For EV drag racing discussion, please use NEDRA (http://groups.yahoo.com/group/NEDRA)
