The Nissan Leaf sounds like a laptop computer turning on or off, but in between this you don't hear any engine sound at all.
And that is my first impression of driving an electric car.
You do not have the sound of the engine to guide how fast or slow you feel you are driving, how much drag on the motor, if there is a need to change gears.
Not that you need to.
Driving the Nissan's Leaf is my first electric car experience, and it's part of the Australian Electric Vehicles Conference held in Brisbane yesterday.
The Leaf will be on the market in the "second quarter of 2012" after some make their way into Australia for local testing early in the year.
The Nissan is a five-door, five-seat sedan in the mould of a small four cylinder sedan. Think a Corolla, or a Mazda 3 hatchback.
It has a push button start and switch off, two foot pedals - brake and accelerator- and, like any automatic, no gears.
It works from an "intelligent key" and turns on or off, as long as the key is close to the driver or the passenger.
The electric motor generates 80 kilowatts and more torque than a Nissan X-Trail, which is a 4WD 2.5 litre petrol motor and generates its maximum torque at 4000 rpm.
It has two drive modes; drive and eco, and you do notice the difference, particularly when the air conditioning is on.
You select gears from a joystick between the front seats and the handbrake is simply a switch.
In eco mode, the car is slower to respond in city driving, but it is not a hindrance. It takes just the sharpest moment to accelerate, but I imagine you would quickly get used to this.
However in conventional drive mode, it is decidedly perky and brisk, with good smooth, balanced cornering.
Above the steering wheel is your "fuel gauge" measuring battery power, and in the middle of the console is a another gauge that tells you the impact of the air-conditioning, or the heater, of your choice of eco-mode or drive mode on the car's battery life.
Paul Kreuger is Nissan's sales manager. As we were driving down Roma Street we were using "around five or six kilowatts" of power, he explained.
As we slowed a series of white dots started to drop back on the "power band", part of the fuel gauge.
"What you are doing is re-generating power back to your battery, as you slow, as you pull up," he said.
All electric vehicles will have the same "plug in" system.
To plug it in at home, an electrician would need to put in an extra 15 amp plug, like for a stove or hot water system.
Otherwise, it takes between 20 and 30 minutes to charge.
The air conditioning absorbs the equivalent of seven kilometres from your battery life, which gives a range of between 160 and 170 kilometres.
I asked Paul how much it would cost to charge at home.
"At home you are charged at 20.7 cents per kilowatt, so just multiply that by your battery capacity - 24 hours - from a completely flat battery it is going to cost you $4.80 or $4.90 to get a 160 or 170 kilometre range," he said.
The Nissan Leaf has all the standard modern facilities for running radio, CD, and bluetooth from your steering wheel and it is decidedly comfortable with good visibility.
All up, a surprisingly strong performer with good handling that is nippy and comfortable.
Better than I expected.
Specifications:
- It has a lithium ion battery (called a Li-ion) and a range of 170 kilometres on a full charge.
- zero emissions;
- power assisted front and rear disc brakes;
- battery life; after five years up to 80 per cent capacity; after 10 years, 70 per cent capacity.
- Nissan's cost, slightly above the Mitsubishi I-Miev which sells at around $48,990;
- medium sized boot; well layed out interior.
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