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| Chevy Volt |
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| Nissan Leaf |
Overall Range
The Leaf is the winner as far as being most environmentally friendly is concerned. It has an engine capable of just over 100 horsepower and on a full charge it can go just over 70 miles; however, it takes a few hours to charge up the high performance battery. The Volt makes sense for green drivers that want more out of their money at the pump. You can get about 35 miles on a charge and nearly 400 miles from a full tank of gas. Volt offers 37 MPG, whereas the Leaf offers about 99 MPGe, which the Volt ranks near to at 93 MPGe.
Features and Specs/Safety
The Volt offers a spacious cabin with seating for four, and has some unique styling features that are very desirable, high-tech and futuristic. The Leaf also offers this same couture of design. However, the Leaf seats five persons, not four, and is a bit more spacious. The federal government has not yet performed its crash test ratings on either of these models. Both models feature full airbags and anti-lock brakes, and the Volt even offers a pedestrian alert function.
Pricing
With most hybrid and electric vehicles that are available these days, you will have to pay a bit more money than you would for normal gas-powered cars. Still, these two models offer some competitive prices and serious bang for your buck. The Leaf actually beats out the Volt by nearly 8,000 dollars, which is shocking. A well equipped Volt will run you around 40k, whereas a similarly equipped Leaf will only cost you about 32k, mostly because the vehicle is smaller than the Volt and costs less to manufacture.
