thats gonna be pretty huge if they get propilot as standard. that would leave a 10k difference between the 2 cars for people that want autopilot
As mentioned above, it's not standard.
Maybe it's just me but I don't think Tesla get enough credit for their supercharging network. It makes a huge difference during road trip. This lady's video is a good example of how much worst it is to do a road trip when you don't have fast charging available.
The speed is a key point, but not the only one. Notice how many stations were at each of her stops? (Spoiler: 1) The combo of relatively slow speeds
in addition to fewer stations at each location means they are effectively useless for trip planning. You don't know whether the single station will be functional, whether someone else will have just pulled in for a 1-hour stop, etc.
Leaf Gen 2 will definitely give M3 some competition. There will be other cars coming soon too to do the same. I think Tesla and the investors know that already. Leaf is less than 20k (after incentives). 150 mile range (perfect for daily commuter, soccer moms), autopilot, fun to drive. I think it checks off many boxes. Not bad if you lease is for less than $300/month and leave your luxury car in the garage for the weekend.
Leaf is not < $20k after incentives including ProPilot.
From what I understand the Leaf 2 still has passive battery cooling. This is a major problem in my eyes. Especially for people who live in hot climates.
Indeed. I have not seen specifics on the Leaf's BMS, but all indications that I have seen are that it's still passively-cooled. I'm not ready to suggest that this definitely indicates that the new Leaf will see large degradation, but it's
likely that it will see greater degradation than the Model 3 or Bolt, both of which have active cooling systems.
All in all, the new Leaf is a great step forward for Nissan and the Leaf brand. But I think it's a relatively big stretch to compare it directly with the Model 3. Let's take the 'reasonable base' of each, which in my mind is the actual base Model 3 vs the Leaf SV (so you're not stuck with 3.3 kW charging on a 40 kWh battery). Let's also ignore incentives, since they vary by location and are also likely to be equal for both cars. This leaves us with a $35k Model 3 vs a likely $33k Leaf ($30k + destination + SV upcharge of around $3k between the two add-ons). For that extra $2k you're getting 70 more miles in range, Supercharger access, Tesla's OTA updates, a cleaner interior (I realize some may prefer the Leaf's, so discard this one if you please), a much peppier drive, a larger interior, and likely a lower degradation rate.
I think the Leaf's core selling point will be its availability for the next 12-18 months. For folks who didn't place a reservation in early 2016 for a Model 3, they can get a Leaf likely in the next few months. It's also a good choice for folks who really want to spend the minimum possible to get in to a reasonable-range EV. But I don't think it's a very good competitor for the Model 3, nor do I feel that Nissan intended it to be (at this stage--let's revisit in late 2018 when the 60 kWh version and pricing are available).
Easy choice for this Leaf owner-with-3/31/2016 Model 3 reservation: I'm going Model 3.
