Considering LEAF - few more questions

[jakespop]

Considering 2015 Leaf and have a few more questions before I pull the trigger. Trying to get real world figures to make sure it makes sense.

30-32 mile morning commute, 45 minutes.
30-32 mile afternoon commute 60-70 minutes

So a total of 60-65 miles daily. 2+ hours of traffic. Can be stop / go, or HWY

Atlanta Heat / Humidity a concern?

Can i drive with the AC on without it impacting battery life. 1 dealer told me to drive with the windows down, another said the normal battery runs the accessories.

Not sure what questions to ask so anything else I need to be concerned about?

 

[abasile]

Running the AC will reduce the car's range, but usually not by more than maybe a few miles.

However, I would not advise the current LEAF for your commute unless you can charge at work, at least at 120 V. Otherwise, you'll be pushing it in winter and as the battery ages.

 

[bbrowncods]

2015 Leaf can make 65-70 miles a day @ 60mph easy. Heat should not be as much an issue as the 2011's.
You will obviously have an advantage with a charge station or 120V plug at work, but not essential. A L2 at home would be needed, especially if you are using the car as a primary source for daily household runs to the store.

 

[billg]

1 dealer told me to drive with the windows down, another said the normal battery runs the accessories.

I think both dealers are "uninformed".

1 - I'm pretty sure that driving with your windows down at highway speed will cause more range degradation, due to increased drag, than running your AC.

2 - Yes, the accessories run off of the 12 volt battery, but where do you think the energy comes from for the 12v battery? It comes from the traction battery, so running accessories while not plugged in will reduce your range, but not significantly.

I stand ready to be corrected by the collective wisdom of the forum.

 

[Nubo]

The power for the AC compressor comes directly from the main pack. The blower runs off the 12V. AC efficiency is pretty good. With an outside air temp of 90F I can see the AC consuming about 600 watts, if the energy info screen is to be believed. That's not too bad; maybe 2 miles of range consumed per hour.

What can have a larger impact is heating. Even in Atlanta you get some cold days. The newer LEAFs have a heat-pump which is more efficient than system on the 2011-2012 models. I don't have experience with those so maybe someone who does could give you a ballpark estimate of the power consumption of a heat pump in Atlanta winter temps.

 

[KillaWhat]

Early adopter; I love my car, but lets be real for a second.

After all is said and done, with the ranages and conditions you have stated, if you cannot get access to at least a standard 120 volt outlet at work, you will, at some point, not be a happy camper.
On the other hand, with 5 or 6 hours of level 1 charging at work, you will make optimum use of what this car has to offer.

It costs me about 2.3 cents per mile to operate, and that's paying the full cost (not that 120 charging at work :roll: )

good luck

 

[keydiver]

I concur: you will not be happy with the Leaf range unless you get GUARATEED charging at work.

 

[jakespop]

Curious to know what range people would consider acceptable.

I can take back roads which are more stop/go and drop my mileage to 25 each way (45 mins to / 60 mins back)

 

[billg]

Curious to know what range people would consider acceptable.

I can take back roads which are more stop/go and drop my mileage to 25 each way (45 mins to / 60 mins back)

Back roads are more fun to drive, a shorter commute and same time to drive. You'll get better efficiency and 50 miles R/T is no problem at all. No question - take the back roads and you'll be a happy camper. I'm getting 100 miles per charge with a mix of freeway and city streets with AC on. 5 miles per kWh is not a difficult target.

 

[eddiebo924]

I'm a newbie too and LOVING my LEAF. (2015 SL)

On the cold range thing. How much does it give up when it's cold and it sits outside for 7 hours. Let's say it's 30 degrees all day.

My commute is about 57 miles round trip and right now I'm getting home at night with well over 40 miles of range left. When I get home in the winter am I going to have 30, 20 or --- miles left?

To the original poster, I vote to go for it. It seems to me that the stop-n-go won't reduce your range at all. The leaf seems to eat that up. It's the 60+ MPH that likes to eat up the power.

Oh. . . And on the 12v question, if you have a solar panel on the top, it charges the 12v. A gimmick for sure but every little bit helps I guess.

Thanks for your thoughts!

 

[TimLee]

Curious to know what range people would consider acceptable.

I can take back roads which are more stop/go and drop my mileage to 25 each way (45 mins to / 60 mins back)

That will help.
But from the perspective of a 39 month, 22,000 mile 2011 LEAF driver that has lost one capacity bar and is close on losing the second one:
2011 / 2012 LEAF is a 40 to 60 mile vehicle, 30 to 35 miles in very cold weather if you like heat under normal speeds.

2013 forward SV or SL with the heat pump heater will do better than the 30 to 35 miles if temperatures stay above about 25F. The heat pump heater is pretty efficient down to 25F to 30F. But if you get 0F and below it is no more efficient than the 2011 / 2012 / 2013 forward S models.

Possible that the heat resistant aka lizard battery in the 2015 may not lose capacity as fast as 2011.

But depending on how long you plan to keep the LEAF, somewhere down the road there will be some issues with 50 mile round trip no intermediate charging commute in the winter.

For Atlanta, not as much winter range loss if you get the SV / SL because it doesn't drop below 25F a lot.

At real cold temperatures there is range loss due to the battery itself getting cold, especially if not in a garage.
But for most people the winter range loss issue is heater use.

 

[TimLee]

... Oh. . . And on the 12v question, if you have a solar panel on the top, it charges the 12v. A gimmick for sure but every little bit helps I guess.
...

Near useless. Not much power from that. Only slightly helpful in keep the 12V charged a bit more adequately on a bright sunny day outside.
The LEAF does a fairly inadequate job of keeping the 12V battery charged.
Solar panel may help a little with that, but leaving the LEAF parked in the sun is bad for capacity degradation.

 

[jakespop]

Thanks for all the feedback. Regarding this quote

For Atlanta, not as much winter range loss if you get the SV / SL because it doesn't drop below 25F a lot.

What is do these models have that the S model does not?

 

[bbrowncods]

They have a more efficient heat pump heater.

 

[LeftieBiker]

More on the heat pump: in mild Winter weather, say 27F to 45F, the heat pump will use about as much as the A/C - a little more on the cold end, especially if the wind is blowing. Between 27F and about 14-15F, it uses noticeably more juice, but still less than the older Leafs. Once you drop below 14F the consumption and range are pretty much comparable to the older Leaf, because the car is using the same resistance heater for virtually all the heat. Given your long commute, ask yourself if the temps ever fall below about 27F, and if they do, you should pass unless you get charging at work at least in cold weather, or you can drive with just the heated seat and steering wheel to keep warm.

 

[jakespop]

Awesome info. Thanks.

As a reminder, the Leaf is a secondary car. It will be my primary commuter vehicle but I've got my good old SUV for those days where the temps may fall too low.
Also found a Nissan Dealer 3 miles away so definitely have options.

 

[GRA]

Awesome info. Thanks.

As a reminder, the Leaf is a secondary car. It will be my primary commuter vehicle but I've got my good old SUV for those days where the temps may fall too low.
Also found a Nissan Dealer 3 miles away so definitely have options.

Given Atlanta's mild winters, I'd definitely go with a car with the heat pump, i.e. an SV or SL. Your range will take less of a hit in winter. Concur with others that you'll want charging at or at least near (walking distance) to work, once the car is a year or two old. Otherwise, you'll be spending your time worrying about whether or not you can use heat and still get home.

 

[LeftieBiker]

Last Winter I carried and used a 12 volt heated fleece throw blanket. I'm not one of those Die-Hards who can shut the heat off for 20 minutes (or the whole trip) so I used the throw over my lap and legs, the heated seat and wheel, and set the car's heat to 68F or so in the worst weather. When it was mild, I enjoyed the heater. I also made a prototype battery-electric personal heater for the driver's leg and foot area, but that was mainly for Prius PIP lessees...

 

[GRA]

Last Winter I carried and used a 12 volt heated fleece throw blanket. I'm not one of those Die-Hards who can shut the heat off for 20 minutes (or the whole trip) so I used the throw over my lap and legs, the heated seat and wheel, and set the car's heat to 68F or so in the worst weather. When it was mild, I enjoyed the heater. I also made a prototype battery-electric personal heater for the driver's leg and foot area, but that was mainly for Prius PIP lessees...

Early on in the forum, before there were LEAFs with heated seats and steering wheels available, there was a lot of talk about workarounds like this, including heated motorcycle jackets and whatnot. While they can certainly work, IMO a car that wants to appeal to mainstream consumers can't require after market, ad-hoc solutions like this. So, if the OP is willing to do something like this more power to them, but for most people it's ridiculous for a car priced around $30k to require it just to meet their basic commute needs.

 

[billg]

Given Atlanta's mild winters, I'd definitely go with a car with the heat pump, i.e. an SV or SL. Your range will take less of a hit in winter.

On the other hand, I have heard that the S has a more efficient A/C, and given Atlanta's nickname of "Hotlanta", that might be just as important. Or maybe it's not more efficient, just more effective. I know that my A/C worked great when the outside temps were 100+.