Nissan calls out Top Gear over Leaf Review

[dubbs]

http://news.yahoo.com/jeremy-clarkson-row-over-nissan-electric-car-111205442.html

Jeremy Clarkson, the outspoken presenter of popular British motoring show Top Gear on Wednesday defended an episode of the series in which he deliberately runs out of power in Japanese automaker Nissan's Leaf electric car.
Clarkson drew a furious response from Nissan after Sunday's episode of the BBC programme showed him being pushed
along in a Leaf car after its battery went flat.

The presenter, who has whipped up controversy on numerous occasions in the past, was left stranded in the eastern
English city of Lincoln where there are no public recharging points for electric cars.
He ended the show with the comment that electric cars "are not the future."

Nissan blasted the episode as misleading because the car was not fully charged before starting the journey, but in
comments to the Times newspaper on Wednesday Clarkson refused to apologise, saying: "That's how TV works."
"The piece was about the difficulties of recharging the electric car," he added.

"At no point did we mislead the viewers. Top Gear's job is to say to everybody, 'Just a minute, do not believe (electric cars)
can be run as simply as you have been told. Charging them up is a pain in the arse'."

In an interview after the episode, Andy Palmer, Nissan's executive vice-president, accused Top Gear of deceiving viewers,
saying there were safeguards in place to stop Leaf drivers running out of power.

He pointed out that a device sending Nissan updates showed Clarkson had started the day with the battery only 40 percent
charged and said the car appeared to have been driven in loops in Lincoln until the battery was flat.

Andy Wilman, Top Gear's executive producer, denied the show had misled viewers, saying it was intended to highlight the
"patchy" recharging infrastructure for electric cars in Britain.

In February the BBC was forced to apologise to the Mexican ambassador to London after a Top Gear presenter described
Mexicans as "lazy", "feckless" and "flatulent" in a segment about a sportscar made by Mexican firm Mastretta.

[Gas Man]

I still think they proved a great and valid point.

Anybody got a link to the video of that episode?

[Homeslice]

In February the BBC was forced to apologise to the Mexican ambassador to London after a Top Gear presenter described
Mexicans as "lazy", "feckless" and "flatulent" in a segment about a sportscar made by Mexican firm Mastretta.

I would like to see that episode :lol:

[Dave]

Add Nissan to the list of mfrs never to buy from

[dubbs]

I agree, it shows real world usage and what the consequences would be.

It seems nissan got butthurt from someone showing real world usage of the car. Saying it wasn't fully charged is their defense?

[Particle Man]

I agree, it shows real world usage and what the consequences would be.

It seems nissan got butthurt from someone showing real world usage of the car. Saying it wasn't fully charged is their defense?

Sounds pretty accurate on all accounts.

Saying "This is what the manufacturer says but this is what REALLY happens when you use it like many folks will (i.e. not following the recommended instructions to the letter because people are, by nature, lazy)" seems pretty accurate to me.

[dubbs]

Sounds pretty accurate on all accounts.

Saying "This is what the manufacturer says but this is what REALLY happens when you use it like many folks will (i.e. not following the recommended instructions to the letter because people are, by nature, lazy)" seems pretty accurate to me.

Lazy? how bout needing to use the car away from charging stations/not having time to charge it. It's not like you can go to your everyday gas station and fill up in 5 mins.

[Particle Man]

Lazy? how bout needing to use the car away from charging stations/not having time to charge it. It's not like you can go to your everyday gas station and fill up in 5 mins.

Yeah that too :lol:

[dubbs]

Yeah that too :lol:

Although in Japan, they are starting to come out with these battery swap stations, which would make sense.. When you're running low on juice you go to this place and it's all automated, switches out the battery pack and you're good to go for a while. They say it takes less than a minute.

http://www.fastcompany.com/blog/ariel-schwartz/sustainability/better-place-takes-first-step-towards-electric-car-infrastructure

[OneSickPsycho]

I would think that people who would buy an electric vehicle would commute with it, and plug it in every night. I don't see people buying these things to drive for days on end without recharging. To that point, I think Nissan's argument makes sense... though they do a damn poor job at stating it. However, to the show's point, the e-vehicles are not going to replace ICE vehicles any time soon.

[Particle Man]

I would think that people who would buy an electric vehicle would commute with it, and plug it in every night. I don't see people buying these things to drive for days on end without recharging. To that point, I think Nissan's argument makes sense... though they do a damn poor job at stating it. However, to the show's point, the e-vehicles are not going to replace ICE vehicles any time soon.

Thing is, shit happens.

Say I get home late and forget or the power goes out from a massive storm? I can't not go to work (or to the airport, for example) the next day because I forgot. With IC I can stop at a gas station on the way and fill up. The current infrastructure doesn't allow the same for electric vehicles.

[Cutty72]

Another thing I've never looked into cause I don't plan on getting an electric vehicle, but how long will they hold a charge?
If you plug it in until it's fully charged, then drive a mile to the airport for a month long trip, how much battery life will be left when you return?

[dubbs]

Another thing I've never looked into cause I don't plan on getting an electric vehicle, but how long will they hold a charge?
If you plug it in until it's fully charged, then drive a mile to the airport for a month long trip, how much battery life will be left when you return?

Pretty good question, never really see manufacturers mentioning this.. They always say, just plug it in every night.

[derf]

Another thing I've never looked into cause I don't plan on getting an electric vehicle, but how long will they hold a charge?
If you plug it in until it's fully charged, then drive a mile to the airport for a month long trip, how much battery life will be left when you return?

A guy I used to work with had a prius, and the car would randomly start itself (gas motor) up once in a while for 5-10 minutes to give the battery some juice. That was just from parking it in the morning and not driving all day. He left it (wioth an almost empty gas tank) once for a week sitting at work and it ran itself out of fuel.

[Cutty72]

A guy I used to work with had a prius, and the car would randomly start itself (gas motor) up once in a while for 5-10 minutes to give the battery some juice. That was just from parking it in the morning and not driving all day. He left it (wioth an almost empty gas tank) once for a week sitting at work and it ran itself out of fuel.

I consider this a problem, and a MAJOR design flaw.

[Homeslice]

A guy I used to work with had a prius, and the car would randomly start itself (gas motor) up once in a while for 5-10 minutes to give the battery some juice. That was just from parking it in the morning and not driving all day. He left it (wioth an almost empty gas tank) once for a week sitting at work and it ran itself out of fuel.

I can't see why it would need to do this, unless it's 10 years old and approaching the end of the battery pack's life. People need to understand those battery packs need to be replaced eventually.

[derf]

It does it when the battery gets to a certain point, what would be nice is if you could set the car to charge based on your needs, like if you are gone for a month, only start charging it the last few days so when you return it has a full charge.

Really whay it comes down to is infrastructure and design. If there were charging ports everywhere then it wouldnt be an issue. I also believe that battery packs should be standardized and swappable. Running low on juice? Go to a gas station where an attendant will open up your battery door, remove your old battery and swap in a fresh one for a few dollars.

[goof2]

I would think that people who would buy an electric vehicle would commute with it, and plug it in every night. I don't see people buying these things to drive for days on end without recharging. To that point, I think Nissan's argument makes sense... though they do a damn poor job at stating it. However, to the show's point, the e-vehicles are not going to replace ICE vehicles any time soon.

That is great for someone who buys it as a $35,000+ (though the Feds will discount your taxes up to $7,500 if you buy one) commuter/short errand vehicle. Top Gear's report demonstrates that you don't get something that effectively competes with "normal" cars though.

A guy I used to work with had a prius, and the car would randomly start itself (gas motor) up once in a while for 5-10 minutes to give the battery some juice. That was just from parking it in the morning and not driving all day. He left it (wioth an almost empty gas tank) once for a week sitting at work and it ran itself out of fuel.

I never heard that before but if it is true it is pretty damn stupid. I don't particularly want a car that decides to load the garage up with carbon monoxide all on its own.

[Gas Man]

Electric cars will work for daily commuter cars. It may work for long distances if we get battery swapping stations. That is the way it is. Our love affair with cars is based off the freedom they give us. We are only limited by how long WE the human can safely operate the car (baring we can afford the gas). We simply pull into the gas station, fill up in a few mins and continue on for another 400+ miles. The electric car with it's limited distance will never be able to replace our IC cars unless something in our infrastructure changes...

[Particle Man]

A guy I used to work with had a prius, and the car would randomly start itself (gas motor) up once in a while for 5-10 minutes to give the battery some juice. That was just from parking it in the morning and not driving all day. He left it (wioth an almost empty gas tank) once for a week sitting at work and it ran itself out of fuel.
What the hell

[Kaneman]

Wait a minute....so you can't park a Prius in a garage?

[goof2]

Wait a minute....so you can't park a Prius in a garage?

If it will fire up on its own and run for a while keeping it in an enclosed garage strikes me as a pretty bad idea. I'm not trying to call out the person who posted that but I would have thought I'd have heard about this "feature" before now.

[MILK]

Goof2, they don't do that.

[Homeslice]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kIQ9iv3ZkaM&NR=1

[Particle Man]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kIQ9iv3ZkaM&NR=1

I laughed :lol:

[Homeslice]

I laughed :lol:

Remember, it's OK to insult other countries (like saying that Irish are drunks and Brits don't brush their teeth) as long as they're not poor. If they're poor (like Mexico), it's somehow not OK anymore.

[Particle Man]

Oops.

Oh well. Bus to hell, ticket for one, please.

[Looni2ns]

Top Gear is one of my fav shows. The guys make fun of almost all cars, but here the point is made. Nissan has a great idea, and it may be ok for cities where there are lots of plugs, but, in general, it's a little too early to think it will catch on everyone.