Any advice on choosing a 12v battery?

[tgeliot]

A friend just had her 12v battery go bad (in her Leaf), and I had to go help her out. I want to have mine checked so that I don't get into the same situation (I have a 2015 and I suspect it's the original battery). I want to be prepared in case they say it needs to be replaced. Does anyone have advice on what 12v battery to get?

Based on very little, I would guess that the Leaf doesn't present much of a challenge to a 12v battery, because the battery is never asked to turn over an ICE engine. Based on that, I'm inclined to get a cheaper option. Thoughts?

 

[LeftieBiker]

Get an AGM battery, in the 51R configuration - and the R is important. Leafs are harder on their 12 volt batteries than they should be, in many cases, but not all. If you live in a warm climate, then a lithium car battery will also work great. If cost is an issue, then get the least expensive AGM type lead battery.

 

[SageBrush]

Get an AGM battery, in the 51R configuration - and the R is important. Leafs are harder on their 12 volt batteries than they should be, in many cases, but not all. If you live in a warm climate, then a lithium car battery will also work great. If cost is an issue, then get the least expensive AGM type lead battery.

Not just AGM. Buy a deep discharge battery, not a starter battery (those with high CCA.)
'hybrid' are also OK, meaning they are somewhere between a deep discharge type and a starter type.

 

[goldbrick]

+1 on getting an AGM battery. While the Leaf doesn't need a lot of 12V power to operate, it also does a fairly poor job of keeping the 12V battery fully charged, which is important for the life of a flooded lead-acid 12V battery. An AGM battery lasts longer under those conditions. Lithium 12V batteries do even better but they are expensive and have issues in cold weather.

The original size/type is 51R but a type 35 will also fit. I put a Optima Yellow top type 35 in my Leaf when the original 12V battery died since that was the only size that was available locally. It's a bit bigger than a 51R but fits easily except that the top hold-down bracket needed to be replaced with a universal one.