Haven’t we been lucky with the weather this summer? We are
absolutely loving these long, sunny days. But it’s just sods law that when we
set off on our family road trip last weekend to test the new Nissan Leaf
in conjunction with Lookers Group, typical order was restored and we
experienced four seasons in two days! That’s the British summertime we know and
love.
Not ones to let it dampen our spirits we packed a multitude
of clothing and saw it as a positive that at least we would get to put the car through
its paces.
We bundled the Little Inspiration into her car seat first
thing in the morning hoping that she would take a morning nap en route to pick up the car, but, that’s where we were wrong. We heard cute
giggles and chattering from the back seat letting us know that nap time was off
the agenda today.
We let her off as a road trip is quite an exciting thing and
we were also in good spirits looking forward to heading up into the Yorkshire
Dales, the most picturesque countryside anyone could wish for.
It wasn’t just excitement we were feeling though, we were
nervous, as the car we were road testing was an all electric vehicle. I have
never even driven an automatic before, being firmly of the opinion that without
a clutch and a gear stick, it is just a bit, well, weird.
We had no concept how far we would get on one charge or if
it might conk out on us in the middle of nowhere, which, as new parents,
absolutely peaked the anxiety levels. We didn’t know where we would charge it,
or how to even do it. There were so many questions to ask.
Fortunately Lookers were brilliant and put our minds at ease
instantly. You could tell they were used to dealing with slightly worn around
the edges, ragged parents and made an effort to engage with the Little
Inspiration, which she absolutely loved.
As we walked into the large and bright dealership to sort
out the paperwork, we were offered a drink and somewhere to sit. We blurted out
our questions and were immediately reassured that we would get 154 miles out of
each charge. We knew that we would easily make our trip there and back with
that, so we instantly relaxed.
They also explained that at most motorway service stations
you can have it charged and ready to go in 30 minutes, so in the time it
would take us to have a coffee, we would be up and away again. Far from
our expectation of sitting around for hours on end whilst it slowly recharged!
We looked for our closest charging point near to our
accommodation and was surprised to see so many of them. I guess you don’t tend
to look for them until you need them but they really are everywhere, including
many car parks.
It was time to get our stuff loaded from our car over to the
Nissan Leaf and as we approached this sporty looking hatchback, our other
concern flooded back that we wouldn’t be able to fit all of our stuff in it.
Gone are the days when we could travel with a rucksack and a prayer. We now come
laden with baby paraphernalia that would rival Mothercare.
As we unpacked our car and loaded the new one with travel cots,
mattresses, prams, high chairs and luggage, it soon became apparent that there
was ample room for all of it. Unlike in our Audi A3 which was packed to the
rafters and had stuff on the backseat, the Nissan Leaf wasn’t even completely
full.
We did feel the interior could have been a bit higher spec,
as it did have quite a lot of plastic but perhaps you can go higher spec if you
pay a little more and actually, with young children around, practical and easy
to clean is all that matters.
Once we’d been shown around the car by Leanne, we pressed the start
button and nothing! I looked at her waiting for her to say I’d forgotten to do
something but she assured me it was on, it was just THAT quiet compared to my
diesel chugger.
As we said our goodbyes to Lookers and hit the road, the
Carnivore and I talked about how on earth pedestrians would even hear the car coming as you can’t hear a thing and I guess this is one of the potential issues
with electric cars. We are so used to hearing as well as seeing cars when we cross a road.
We slipped it into eco mode whilst we drove the busy streets
of Leeds, still cautious to conserve the battery life. Soon the city gave way
to the countryside, as buildings became quaint stone cottages and roads became
nothing more than single lane tracks with rolling fields and sheep either side
of us.
We often venture over to the North Yorkshire Moors from where
we live but the Yorkshire Dales is an area we often have to go when we have a
weekend to spare. We decided we would go over towards Skipton and the beautiful
Bolton Abbey and explore a bit.
Once we left the city we imagined it would struggle for
power and other cars would leave us for dust but we held our own and could get
our foot down when needed. In fact it gave a nice constant burst of energy
rather than the juddery chug you sometimes get from diesels.
We scaled the rolling hills and windy roads on the edge of
the Yorkshire Dales, using brake mode to help us on the downhills which made
light work of driving.
Soon enough we arrived at Bolton Abbey and was immediately
impressed with its beauty. It could have rivaled a watercolour painting with
it’s scenic river running through it, every shade of green in the nature surrounding
it and the majestic ruins peeping out between the tree canopy.
We unpacked our picnic and found a shady spot under a tree to
roll out the blanket and tuck in. The ducks had similar ideas and tried to take
the Little Inspiration's sandwiches but she found it hilarious.
After we had eaten, we bought an ice cream and took a lovely
walk by the river all the way to the Abbey before the rain & wind came.
On
the way back the Carnivore crossed the famous stepping stones and we climbed up
into the tree canopy. It was quite a feat pushing a buggy all that way.
Soon we were back at the car ready to take shelter from the
rain and wind. It continued to be a smooth and even drive and didn’t wheel spin
even in the very wet conditions. It glided effortlessly up some pretty mighty
hills and hill starts were a dream as it didn’t roll back.
There were a couple of moments when we forgot there was no
clutch and ended up with a double stomp on the brake which brought us to an
emergency stop. Luckily there were only sheep to witness it. I suppose with a
lifetime of driving a manual it would take some getting used to.
After we drove through some more breathtaking countryside we
reached our digs for the night, which was a working farm and equestrian centre. It was at the bottom of a very rough dirt road, not that we were bounced about by the
Leaf.
In front of us was the most astounding view out
over the moor and dale beneath. We tootled along avoiding geese and hens
idling around the farm.
They even had a free range pig called Daphne who was
just adorable. All grey and spotty, she was supposed to be a micro pig but
ended up quite ginormous.
In many ways it was the country dream, we could even see
horses peeping over their stable doors from our bedroom. We loved showing the
Little Inspiration around the farm and she showed her appreciation by
demonstrating her farm animal noises.
The accommodation was bijou but lovely, with a barn door
looking out over the farm and moor beyond. After we unpacked the car and set up
the cot our bellies rumbled, the picnic having worn off some time earlier.
The Carnivore had a tasty steak and blue cheese sauce, which
put a big smile on his face, and I went for the Herbivore halloumi burger and
chips. The Little Inspiration had a baby-sized bowl of tomato pasta and garlic
bread.
Satisfied and exhausted from our busy day, we headed back in
the Leaf in a huge downpour before driving underneath a huge rainbow. I don’t
know if we have ever been that close to one before and it was so beautiful.
We headed back to the farm and parked up the car for the
night, overlooking the purple and orange glowing sunset over the dale.
After we eventually got the Little Inspiration to sleep,
we collapsed into the big, farmhouse bed ourselves and drifted off to the sound
of horses whinnying quietly.
The next morning was a hive of activity on the farm but
luckily anything post 7am is now a lie in to us and we were up with the lark. The
hens had already laid and we were given some warm, fresh eggs to take on our
travels.
We packed up the car ready to go in search of a hearty
breakfast and some more adventuring but the weather had other ideas.
It was cold, rainy and howling a gale so we headed for
Saltaire Village to take in the historic UNESCO world heritage site. We enjoyed
eggs all ways at Don’t Tell Titus before abandoning the very soggy weather and
heading back to reality.
The Nissan Leaf took care of lights, wipers and blasted some
much needed warm air into the car, so that all we had to do was drive. As we
arrived back at the dealership we saw that there was still plenty of battery
life to spare and were impressed with the range we had achieved. It might not
be quite right for the Carnivore’s long work journeys, yet, but it would suit my
driving needs perfectly.
We like to do our bit for the environment and an eco car
would be of interest when I come to upgrade next. Although zero emissions are offset
by the need to power it using fossil fuels but if they can find affordable
renewable energy sources, we can see that these cars are the future.
As well as the government incentives to buy one, they are
just nice cars to drive, which completely surprised us. We are both quite into
cars but would have no qualms in owning one in the future.
We transferred all of our paraphernalia back into our own
car and bade the Nissan Leaf and Lookers farewell.
We had such fun showing our
baby girl the beauty and scenery of the Yorkshire Dales and can see it being a
family favourite for our adventures for many years to come.
nice
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