Need Help - Deciding Between 2020 LEAF S PLUS & Tesla Model 3 Standard Range+

My wife has a VW Golf, and the Kona is even shorter than that. It is a little bit taller however.

 

Yeah, the Kona is not very long. It is only a few inches longer than my previous Prius C, which was a pretty small car. That's good, because it makes for more room in my garage. Meanwhile the front cockpit area and head room is just fine, and very comfortable. Back seat leg room not so great, but that's not where I spend any time. It is high though, and when back seat down, pretty good cargo area. We do have another SUV, so when more room is required, that's what we use.

 

I have been looking at this for a long time. Here are my thoughts

One thing you have not shared is your usage pattern. Every day use (20-40 miles every day), long road trips, short commutes to the grocery store?

We have tried the Leaf a couple of times, and thermal management is important to us as we live Arizona. However, Leaf has never made a compelling case even though it had a lower price than Tesla. Leaf has been sold in US for a long time, even may be longer than the Bolt. Yet they have not crossed the 200K mark where the have been selling cars since 2011 in the US

They have sold about 161,000 cars till 2019 (https://carsalesbase.com/us-nissan-leaf/) and about let us 20,000 this year, leaving them with enough room to continue to enjoy the tax credit up to 2022. So popularity wise, there is no comparison. Resale value, will be higher on the Tesla than on the Leaf. After five or six years, the Leaf will be worth say $10-15,000, the Tesla should be worth twice as much, especially if you autopilot.

Second, the Tesla is a Sedan and can accommodate 4-5 people easily? Nissan Leaf is hatchback and smaller. Again, your preference, but value for money should be a consideration

Third, a reason for the lower price on the Nissan Leaf is due to some discounts that I see ((employer discount of $3000, state incentive of $2500). Would you get that on a Tesla. If you get that on a Tesla, the price difference is essentially the $7500 federal tax credit. If you only get it on the Leaf, then the difference is between $10,000 and $13,000.

Next question is autopilot. There is a hefty $8,000 for the autopilot. With autopilot, your costs are around $49,000 out of the door for the Tesla Model 3. (I am sure you can live without the autopilot, but ....... You could always add it later if needed, you cannot add the propilot later)

So here is bottom line as I see it.

Feature vs feature (even without autopilot or propilot), Tesla has a lot more going for it including size, comfort, handling, on going improvements, charging network, resale value etc.

From a pure price point of view, you could save between $7500 (federal tax credit) to over $13,000 with the Nissan. So it is simple, based on your usage pattern, you have to decide what makes more sense. If it is just one or two people traveling and you make short trips to the office or run small errands (less than say 800-1000 miles a month), the Leaf should meet your needs and saves you a lot of money. If you take long trips, more people, longer commute, Tesla is worth the money. It comes down to your usage, your preferences, dollars and cents. This forum can you help see the different sides of the coin, but the ultimate decision is your.

 

The interesting thing about this is in the front seat, it is roomier than the Leaf (2013 at least) and the configuration of the trunk space makes it a much more usable space.

 

Can you imagine if Hyundai designed a ground up EV, you wouldn't have to compromise on interior space. Under the hood of the Kona is a complete waste of space as it has to allow for a gasoline engine and it also has the transmission tunnel traveling through the back seat even if it's reduced in height. Picture a Kona with a shortened hood, more space in the back seat area and a flat floor yet it would still be the same length as now, maybe even a bit shorter. Actually, much like the Bolt, while I don't like the design of the interior the openness and available space is quite nice.

 

So along the lines of this:
https://www.carscoops.com/2020/06/2021-hyundai-45-ev-what-itll-look-like-powetrain-everything-else-we-know/

 

Take a look at post #9. No mods at all, and I have a frunk on my Kona, fair sized one, too.
https://insideevsforum.com/community/index.php?threads/hyundai-kona-frunk.8585/#post-101378

 

That's the price for full self driving. Autopilot is included in the base price. Confusing, I know.

 

YES!!!

 

I stand corrected, thanks