2012 LEAF SL FOR SALE

[CJBROWN]

One Leaf at at time... LOL

 

[Deleted member 7875]

I am fairly sure that loss of the Leaf 5 Star safety rating after 2012 is due to more stringent "Small overlap frontal crash test" requirements which were added. Differences between 2012 Moderate overlap frontal crash test" and "Small overlap frontal crash test" requirements after 2012 are explained here: http://www.iihs.org/iihs/ratings/ratings-info/frontal-crash-tests

Nissan Leaf was not alone in loosing the 5 Star rating. Several auto manufacturers are playing catch up, and this does not mean the new Nissan Leafs are any less safe than the former 2012 5 Star ratings. The bar has been raised.

 

[EAGERBEAVER]

NoMoShocks, I am pleased that someone finally replied to my post on the cause of the Leaf crash safety rating downgrade, starting with the 2013 model year. Yours may be part of the reason for this downgrade, but it does not explain why the Frontal and Side crash safety ratings for the driver remained at 5 stars and the ratings for the front and rear seat passengers dropped to 3 stars.

My reasoning was that the movement of the battery charger to the motor compartment, directly in front of that passengers seat, congested the crumple zone in that location and caused the downgrade for that passenger. It attributed the downgrade for rear seat passengers to the removal of the charger's housing structure in the cargo compartment.

I had hoped that my post would stimulate a response from the Leaf's safety engineering department and rectification of this life-threatening problem, but it did not. Perhaps the marketing department has greater influence and took a "Let sleeping dogs lie" approach. Now I can only hope that at least the 2017 redesign will rectify this problem.

The newer crash safety tests did not have comparable effect on all EVs, Volt being an example. Volt marketers emphasize the Volt's crash safety superiority over the Leaf in its advertising campaigns. The combination of a 100% electric (for 95% of travel) and an engine driven vehicle (for the other 5%) is much superior to a plug-in hybrid. It is the best choice until charging infrastructure build-out is completed and range is extended. That will enable complete conversion to 100% electric vehicles that are within the financial capacity of the vast majority of Americans. This superiority over all hybrids is from both an economic and environmental perspective. So Nissan should never have given the Volt or any other vehicle this marketing advantage.

Neither my personal nor my professional code of ethics allows me to recommend 2013-2015 Leafs for purchase by families. I would like to, because there is at least one important feature in later Leaf models that is not in the 2012. That is B Mode regenerative braking, the value of which I have previously described in this forum.

Until someone can convince me that the later models are safe for travel with passengers, I will continue to recommend them only for commuters who do not carry passengers more than occasionally.

 

[Deleted member 7875]

Sounds reasonable. I am just so happy with all the safety improvements that have come along since 1960 when all us kids slept in the back of the wagon. There were no seatbelts. Now, you got me thinking Volt again. Need to see when the new and improved is scheduled to arrive. Or, get another 2012 Leaf. My daughter will be driving soon and all her driving will be local for a while. When she starts driving on longer trips, we will probably just loan her the Prius.