2011 Nissan Leaf Takes On Laguna Seca [Video]
Last Sunday, the Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca hosted Refuel 2011, the third annual track day for electric cars and motorcycles. The event was open to anyone with an electric car, ranging from the Tesla Roadster to DIY conversion cars. This year’s event was the first time that fully electric production vehicles from mainstream car makers were present at the event.
Joe Nuxoll, Tesla employee and racing instructor achieved the fastest lap time in the production electric class and the Nissan Leaf wasn’t far behind. The Leaf was two seconds behind the Tesla with a commendable time of 2:10.223. Leaf owner Nadar Assemi took a video of the Leaf competing on the track. The Leaf surprisingly didn’t suffer from overheating issues like the Tesla and the DIY cars did.
“To my surprise almost every other EV out there (production or otherwise) had heat management issues after 2-5 laps. Tesla’s were hitting power cut by lap 4-5. Most of the other kit cars could do one or two laps due to heat or range issues.” Explained Assemi on a Nissan forum. “Conversely, the Leaf was pulling strong all day and the battery temp gauge didn’t move over 6 bars. Energy efficiency on the track was a stellar 1.2-1.3 m/kWh.”
Check out the video after the jump!
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[Source: The Car Connection]
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The winning time in the Tesla was 1:50 - that's a full 20 seconds faster than the Leaf in 1 lap!! How can you say that isn't far behind?!!! Check your facts!!