Nissan Leaf e+ scores five-star Green NCAP rating

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No exhaust gases and an efficient electric drivetrain help the Leaf e+ achieve full marks from Green NCAP.

Nissan’s Leaf e+, which brings greater range via a larger battery to the normal Leaf electric hatch, has scored a five-star rating from Green NCAP.

The European assessment program for testing the efficiency and ‘greenness’ of cars is a consortium comprising European governments, motoring clubs, consumer groups and universities. It is supported by the safety program Euro NCAP which is partnered locally to ANCAP.

The Leaf e+‘s five-star rating was awarded this month, with only the Lexus UX300e also given full marks. The Renault Captur plug-in, VW Golf GTE plug-in and Audi A3 TDI all scored below four stars.

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Other vehicles to have gained a five-star Green NCAP recently include the Ford Mustang Mach-E electric car, Fiat 500 electric, and Hyundai Nexo.

The Leaf e+ scored 10 out of 10 on both the clean air index and greenhouse gas index thanks to a lack of tailpipe emissions that obviously hampers any vehicle using a combustion engine. “The Nissan LEAF e+ is a pure electric vehicle and no pollutants are emitted at the tailpipe. Accordingly, the car scores the maximum index of 10 in this part of the assessment,” says Green NCAP.

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On its own ‘energy efficiency index’, Green NCAP awarded the Leaf e+ a 9.9 out of 10, saying that from its own lab tests the battery and electric system are very efficient, although there was a drop off in very cold conditions. “In one of Green NCAP’s four tests rating the vehicle’s efficiency behaviour, the Nissan LEAF e+ exceeded Green NCAP’s lower threshold and scored less than the maximum possible. This test is the WLTC conducted at an ambient temperature of -7°C. However, the energy efficiency index of 9.9 is still close to the maximum score due to the generally low consumption of the battery electric powertrain.”

The Leaf e+ is equipped with a larger 62kWh lithium-ion battery over the normal Leaf which brings a claim of 385km of range under the WLTP combined cycle. Green NCAP concluded from its own testing the real-world average range is 306km at a consumption 22.7kWh per 100km.

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