LEAF owner drives from Santa Monica, California to Tucson, Arizona
An adventurous Nissan LEAF owner drove from the Southern California coastal town of Santa Monica to Tucson, Arizona not because he needed to, but because he wanted to showcase what could be done. Stopping primarily at Nissan dealerships along the way for refueling needs, Jerry Asher or “EVJerry”, took about a week to make the trip. Stopping at Nissan dealerships along the way in Imperial, Yuma and Phoenix, among others, Asher was able to use Nissan’s EVSE network to assist him along his journey.
Future LEAF may power your house
Nissan is currently evaluating turning the LEAF into an emergency generator for a household. Nissan’s Global Zero Emissions Business Unit honcho, Hideaki Watanabe, has tasked his engineers with coming up with a prototype by the end of the year. We do not look to see this on the 2012 LEAF, but more likely, something that may show up on LEAF 2.0 in about 4 years.
New source of electricity created
University of Minnesota researchers have developed a metal alloy that can convert heat to electricity. Currently in the testing and evaluation stage, the alloy moves from a non-magnetic state to a magnetic state when heated, thereby creating electricity. For those so inclined, a full technical brief may be read here.
EV charge infrastructure building out nationwide
AAA Auto Club South in Tampa Florida will be installing up to 100 electric vehicle (EV) charging stations in the Tampa Bay area. Ten stations will be installed initially as part of ChargePoint America. Kansas City Power & Light (KCP&L) will also be installing ten charging stations in the greater Kansas City, Kansas area by the end of the summer. These stations will be installed by KCP&L in partnership with the Metropolitan Energy Center. KCP&L is also looking at an additional ten charging stations to be incorporated into the midtown area starting later this year.