Nissan Leaf vs Nissan Rogue (Cost Comparison)

Update: the 2013 MPGe rating for the Leaf is actually 116 (not 99), so the calculations below are actually heavily biased in favor of the Rogue. Feel free to play around with the spreadsheet to see more accurate comparisons.

Following up on my Nissan Leaf vs Nissan Juke cost comparison, below is a cost comparison of the Nissan Leaf and the Nissan Rogue.

Non-calculated Pros & Cons

If you read the intro to the piece above, you can skip this bit:

As always, what matters in a cost comparison is what you actually compare (which factors you choose to include), and what assumptions you make. I’m going to be very conservative in my calculations (as in, lean in favor of gasmobiles). I’m doing so for a few reasons:

1. I think anyone who really cares about human health and the environment is already going to be biking, using mass transit, or at least driving an EV.
2. I’m obviously in favor of EVs, in general, so I don’t want to be (or come across as) biased towards EVs in my comparisons.
3. For simplicity’s sake. Adding in the extra costs I’m going to note below would be more challenging and time consuming. (Of course, if you’re really comparing the costs of these cars in an OCD cost-benefit analysis way, you can add in more variables.)

Now, real quickly, here are some of the factors that are not being included in the cost comparisons below:

Pros

• The benefits to your health, and public health as a whole, from not emitting the pollution that comes from burning gas. (That’s a huge cost, and if you were to add that in, EVs would be the hands-down winner in almost all comparisons.)
• Same thing for the climate. (Again, if you add climate costs in, EVs would be the clear winners.)
• The benefits that come from greater comfort. (EVs are nearly silent and offer a smoother ride.)
• The benefit of not having to stress about gas price swings.
• The benefit of not being as affected by inflation.
• If you have solar panels, being even more protected again inflation and increases in “fuel” prices.
• The time savings from not going to the gas station, not getting oil changes, and bringing your car in for maintenance less often.
• The benefits of reducing our country’s dependence on foreign oil, and thus improving national security.
• Of course, the good feeling that comes with all the benefits above is a benefit in itself.

Cons

• If financing, more likely with an EV since the sticker price is higher, you pay more to the bank/financer.
• If driving a long distance, you have to plan intelligently and take more breaks (or rent a car, if the company you bought your EV from doesn’t offer that for free).

Anything to add? Drop a note in the comments.

On To The Fun!

vs

When it comes to cost, the Nissan Leaf is such a hands-down winner in this case that I’m just going to run three comparisons. If you want to play with the assumptions yourself, here’s the spreadsheet.

As before, maintenance costs per mile and battery replacement costs are kept constant in my 5 comparisons — see the spreadsheet for assumptions. And the $7,500 federal tax credit for electric vehicles is included in all comparisons.

Comparison #1 Assumptions:

• Don’t live in California. (Californians can get an extra $2,500 tax credit.)
• $3.65/gallon of gas. (Average price of gas as of April 1, but likely to go up considerably in coming years, and can vary a great deal from region to region.)
• 12¢/kWh of electricity. (Currently, the nationwide average, but can vary greatly from region to region and based on time of day. Also, some utilities offer extremely low or $0/kWh EV-charging electricity rates.)
• 13,476 miles driven per year. (The nationwide average based on the DOT’s last count.)
• Leaf: 99 MPGe / Rogue: 24 MPG.

Result:

Nissan Leaf is about $3,000 cheaper after 1 year of ownership. You save over $10,000 after 5 years of ownership.

Comparison #2 Assumptions:

• Live in California.
• $4.50/gallon of gas.
• 12¢/kWh of electricity.
• 15,000 miles driven per year.
• Leaf: 99 MPGe / Rogue: 24 MPG.

Result:

Nissan Leaf is over $6,000 cheaper after year 1, and over $16,000 cheaper after 5 years of ownership.

Comparison #3 Assumptions:

• Don’t live in California.
• $3.50/gallon of gas.
• 12¢/kWh of electricity.
• 10,000 miles driven per year.
• Leaf: 99 MPGe / Rogue: 24 MPG.

Result:

Nissan Leaf is over $2,000 cheaper after one year of ownership, and over $7,000 cheaper after 5 years of ownership.

Of course, as you can see, there’s a lot of variation with different assumptions. Plug in your own numbers and see what you get!

Previous comparisons can be viewed here:

• Nissan Leaf vs Nissan Juke
• Ford Focus Electric vs Ford Focus ST
• Ford Focus Electric vs Ford Focus S