At the 89th running of the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb this week, a 100 percent electric Nissan Leaf made history as the first winner of the Electric Production Class. Driven by veteran off-road racer Chad Hord, the Leaf climbed the 12.42 mile hill in 14 minutes 33 seconds.
The Leaf used for the run was virtually stock except for interior safety modifications and more aggressive wheels and tires. Despite few modifications, the Leaf beat several competitors with highly modified internal combustion engines.
"The Leaf was great fun to drive up the mountain" said Hord. "With the instant torque from the electric motor we were able to jump out of the many slow corners and the performance was very consistent from the bottom to the top since the electric motor wasn't affected by the high altitude near the summit like the gasoline powered cars."
Covering the hill in near silence, the Leaf's only sound was from its squealing tires and a a warning beeper installed at the request of the race organizers. The Leaf comes from the factory with a pedestrian warning system that is active up to about 30 miles per hour.
"The Nissan Leaf and Chad both performed flawlessly this week" said Ron Stukenberg, senior manager, Marketing Communications, Motorsports. "This was an innovative way to demonstrate that 100 percent electric vehicles perform very well in highly demanding situations like the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb."
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