1. By Alex Kamau

2. What do you do when your camera or phone is low on battery? Like most people I would recharge and reuse the battery that I already have. Rechargeable batteries have become one of the most efficient way to save money when it comes to cameras, phones and also toys reusing the batteries means no new batteries need to be purchased. How can this technology be even more useful to the world? The Nissan Leaf is the answer, the worlds first fully battery powered car!

3. What's so good about the leaf? Currently in the uk fuel prices are the highest ever in the world, drivers are now paying up to £1.40 a litre for petrol and even more for diesel. If you could have a car that you can recharge over night, or pay less than half the of the price of petrol when you need to refuel wouldn't you be a happier driver? The Nissan Leaf is the worlds first electrical car, powered by a 24kWh/over 90kW rechargeable lithium-ion battery which is capable of 100miles before it needs recharging.

4. Tell me more…… The leaf being powered by a battery means that there is 0 emissions from the car thus proving electric powered cars are the possibly the only solution to eco- friendly driving at the present time. The Leaf will cost about £2 for an overnight charge at household costs, which will get you 100 miles in comparison to a gently driven Golf diesel DSG would use about £9 in fuel for those 100 miles, the Leaf’s battery technology not only saves the environment it also saves money [Top Gear 2010-07-26.]

5. Any other uses for this new technology? The leaf’s concept of being battery powered can also be used on motorcycles. The Nissan leafs battery concept would be particularly better on motorcycles because motorcycles are smaller, lighter and have smaller engine capacities which would mean that the battery power consumed would be less on motorcycles hence less need to recharge saving electricity. The Nissan leaf’s eco-friendly assessment computer is a useful concept in car manufacturing that can be used in new cars to ensure drivers are fully informed on how they are driving.

6. What will I miss out from a petrol car? On long distances (over 100 miles) the leaf will run out of battery power hence stopping the journey Currently there are not that many charging stations for the leafs battery around the uk The battery charging does take time so if in a rush the Nissan leaf may cause delay If your used to high speeds of over 95mph the leaf is limited to 0-60mph acceleration in 12 seconds, a top speed limited to 90mph

7. What will I gain? Driving the leaf means that you will save money when it comes to driving cost. The price of electricity is not going up but the price of petrol is meaning you will not be affected The leaf will inform you of how to drive ec0-friendly so even when you get into a petrol powered car the eco driving may continue 0 emission means you will be saving the earth from the harmful gases and also government grants

8. Conclusion Most importantly the Nissan leaf will save you money When buying a leaf you are eligible for the plug-in car grant for up to £5000 in the uk and similar amounts around the world. Raising awareness is also a key factor in the Nissan leaf, when people see and here about how much money and the gains of an electrical car more people may buy one and the more electrical cars the less the emissions. The Nissan Leaf being the first electrical car will encourage other manufactures to make similar cars offering a variety of similar cars to drivers.

9. References [Top Gear Review 26-07-2010 - http://www.topgear.com/uk/car-news/nissan-leaf- driven-2010-07-26.] http://www.topgear.com/uk/car-news/nissan-leaf- driven-2010-07-26. Video link : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m6wZaHoNlME