Scots EV pioneer turns a new Leaf 07 | 04 | 2011
SCOTLAND'S FIRST owner of the all-electric Nissan Leaf has just taken delivery of his new car from the sole supplier, Alex F Noble in Edinburgh; and the new Leaf's owner, Christopher Cook is — by his own admission — something of an electric vehicle, and IT, pioneer.
“I have a real passion for the latest technology," Mr Cook, who is a director of IT software development services company, Webprofusion, admitted.
"Having developed an interest in electric cars after seeing a concept version of an electric sports car in 2006, I founded the electriccarbuyer.co.uk site in 2009 as a car comparison site for people interested in purchasing an electric car.
“I’ve been following the development of the Nissan Leaf closely since its announcement in August 2009 and actually reserved my car within 20 minutes of registration opening."
The Leaf, which is currently built in Japan but which will be manufactured in Nissan's award-winning plant at Sunderland from 2013, can quick-charge its battery from zero to 80% in under 30 minutes.
Nissan quotes each full battery charge is good for 100 miles, but 'real life' driving cuts that to closer to 70 miles. But for anyone who drives less than 70 miles a day — and that's the vast majority of us — the range is perfectly acceptable.
And while its 0-30mph sprint is faster than a big petrol-guzzling V6, it's also the ideal vehicle for coping with Edinburgh's nightmare city traffic. The delivery of the first Nissan Leaf in Scotland was also welcomed by David Noble, dealer principal at Alex F Noble Nissan.
“The delivery of the first Nissan Leaf in Scotland is a groundbreaking moment and represents the next phase of Nissan’s vision of bringing sustainable mobility to the mass market in the UK," Mr Noble said.
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Jim McGill
Caption: Alex F Noble Nissan EV relationship manager, Jim Rowan (left), hands the keys of the new Leaf to Christopher Cook, his wife Sarah and their two children.