It's always interesting seeing these sorts of discussions. On HN, every now and then you uncover a conversation about what's financially reasonable, between the guy making $450k/year and the guy making $45k/year.
Many people don't want to spend $250/mo on gas. Whether they do or not is separate.
I had a Nissan Pathfinder once and it was okay when gas was $2-2.50/gal (16 gallon tank, $40/wk, $150/month). Once it got to $4.00/gal damn right I found alternatives to driving that Pathfinder. The 20 minute walk to the store in the hot, Florida sun didn't seem so bad anymore.
I have many friends who bought SUVs (for the "utility") and commuted way out from the exurbs. They had no choice but to eat the cost of $100 fillups while looking for cheaper alternatives.
Yeah, not sure what that guy is on about. Both prices are lower than the Leaf's nominal price, and I've heard you could get ~$10k worth of tax credits or something with the Leaf. Unfortunately I don't remember the details, but I met a guy who leased a Leaf who told me about all this. He got a pretty sweet deal on the lease too.