TEST DRIVE: Inhabitat Conquers Range Anxiety in the All-Electric Nissan LEAF

Inhabitat has been following the development of a bevy of <a title="TEST DRIVE: Inhabitat Takes a Chilly But Impressive Ride in the Mitsubishi i EV" href="http://inhabitat.com/test-drive-inhabitat-takes-a-chilly-but-impressive-ride-in-the-mitsubishi-i-ev/" target="_blank">electric cars</a>, but the question for the average driver remains: Will an electric car leave you stranded? The issue is so common it has a name: <a title="Inhabitat: range anxiety" href="http://inhabitat.com/index.php?s=range+anxiety" target="_blank">range anxiety</a>. The all-electric <a title="Nissan LEAF" href="http://www.nissanusa.com/leaf-electric-car/index#/leaf-electric-car/index?intcmp=EV_Micro.Home.Homepage.Home.P1" target="_blank">Nissan LEAF</a> was named <a title="World Car of the Year" href="http://www.nissanusa.com/leaf-electric-car/index#/leaf-electric-car/tags/show/awards" target="_blank">World Car of the Year</a> in 2011 and has been changing the game as it enters the mainstream market in 2012, but can you really drive one as far as you need to if you don't live in a city center? We aimed to find out. Inhabitat tested a Nissan LEAF on a country commute for a week to see how it handled hard roads, highways, and even not being charged overnight. Read on to find out how it all played out.

Our first concern with the LEAF was that the range would fall far below the expected 90 miles, but our tester actually pulled out a few runs of 100+ miles.

The wheels aren't low-rolling-resistance like on the Chevy Volt, so you can drive over a variety of surfaces without skidding. But the car is so quiet that driving over larger gravel is irritatingly noisy.

The LEAF's headlights protrude from the hood of the car. Whether that's a good thing comes down to personal taste.

Long headlights match the extended taillights, which are really the only clues that this average-looking car is a futuristic green vehicle.

Standard mirrors, standard everything, except that drivetrain.

The antenna is adorable, but cats think so too, so you may want to park your LEAF inside.

The LEAF uses a small solar panel to power non-essential systems. We love the diamond design and how it compactly fits on the back of the car's roof.

The hatch extends a bit past the back wheels, which gives the car the look of a guinea pig in the back, but it helps give you average storage in the rear.

You won't see these taillights on any other car on the road.

We liked how the rear window was less rakishly angled than other green hatchbacks we have driven. This means less reflective glare from the sky.

The LEAF has won all sorts of awards already, including World Car of the Year 2011.

The charger cable comes with its own backpack strapped to the side of the storage compartment.

It's a good thing the LEAF has heated seats, because these are an efficient way to keep yourself comfortable in cold weather instead of killing your range by cranking the heat.

Nissan is planning to release an entire range of electric vehicles based on the LEAF's powertrain, and with this green power already integrated into the company's standard interior equipment, we think they can get these cars to market faster than any other automaker.

It's a relief to have a nicely weighted driver door on the LEAF. Some electric cars sound like tin cans when you slam the non-insulated doors.

Also nice are the power controls on all doors. Manual windows are cheaper and lighter, but these keep your life simple.

It's a little inconvenient to have to push a button by your left knee to reset the trip computer and control other functions way up on the display above the steering wheel, but it works.

The LEAF charges in the front. Just be sure to pull the correct lever, or you will release the nearby trunk lid by mistake.

The only truly confusing thing on our test car was the efficiency meter on the left of this top display, which is a dial over a pine tree shape that is supposed to "grow leaves" as you drive more efficiently. It doesn't make a lick of sense in the real world, and you will ignore it.

The lower instrument cluster display also features a slightly confusing efficiency meter, in the form of an arc of dots that shows when you are recharging your battery by braking and when you are using a little (or a lot) of power by accelerating. It's an awful lot of digital real estate to spend on one function.

The steering wheel is just fine, except that one of the buttons sticks out a bit too far and tends to snag your hand.

Like all other electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles, the LEAF has push button start.

The car's audio and HVAC controls are compactly arranged and work well. But you won't want to touch the HVAC as it strips 13 miles off your estimated range when you turn it on.

Navigation works well, and automatically switches to night lighting mode, which is always nice.

Our favorite menu by far was the charging menu, where you can program a timed charge for your vehicle, find a charging station by location or proximity to your location, and monitor the battery system.

Charging is such a big deal with this car that the charging menu gets its own button on the bottom right to pull up your options.

The LEAF is available with satellite radio and all the usual fixings.

We like how obvious the On/Off button is in the center of the HVAC controls, because we regularly flipped the system on just for a moment and then wanted to be sure it was totally turned off a minute later.

The front of the center console has a nice cubby for smart phones, heated seat controls, and average size cupholders.

This Nissan LEAF features a unique electric gear shifter that is similar to the plug-in Prius's. Flick it left and then up or down to put it drive or reverse.

The parking brake is electric too, making it a ton of fun to push the button to turn the car on, flick the car into gear, and pull the parking brake off with just three quick movements.

The LEAF shows a nice attention to detail in the rear seat. You are getting a decent car from front to back.

Simple controls, but again power everything. If the LEAF works for your commute, it will work for your life.