First Capacity Bar Loss And What To Expect

[OrientExpress]

The generation of the battery also has much to do with it. 2018-2020 batteries are a new chemistry and design making them much more durable. 2016-17 batteries are more durable than earlier batteries, and late 2013-2015 batteries are better than 2011-2012 batteries.

Then there is geography, weather, and driving style. I'm not sure that there is a one answer fits all situations.

 

[LeftieBiker]

2016-17 batteries are more durable than earlier batteries,

Heh! On what, exactly, do you base that whopper...?

 

[OrientExpress]

Well they are, you know that. They aren't as good as the newest design, but they were a good incremental step forward. I am amazed at how few owners of 16-17 cars that have indicated degradation aren't familiar with the SW patch to fix the phantom degradation.

 

[LeftieBiker]

I'm sure that the folks who have had the patch applied, and then had the "phantom" degradation return, will disagree. As will all the people who had cells go bad. As it stands right now, the 2015-2016 Lizard pack is the best one that Nissan has made. There are some good 30kwh packs, but the defect rate is high enough with those to disqualify them from your high praise. Do try to get your information from places other then Nissan brochures.

 

[kaih23]

Wow, everybody is jumping into this.

Truth is, each car is different. The batteries will deteriorate with time at different rates..

If someone is currently using their car to their full capacity (driving many miles and coming home with a low charge battery), then you may want to think about selling it now, because the Leaf is really not the car for you.

Tomorrow, the battery will deteriorate to the point you cannot make the trip you were able to make today.

Then you will be forced to sell it quickly.

2015 Nissan Leaf SL owner (original owner in MD).
Purchased in 05/2015 - est. range was 116 miles range when new.
03/13/2020: Current miles on vehicle 85,000 miles.
My commute: 75 to 100 miles daily (17k miles annually roughly)
My charging habbit: 6% to 100% charging daily ( I charge twice, once at work (L2 charging) and once at home (outlet). Also, when I do 300+ mile daily trips, I use the Chademo charging.

Today (03/2020) - I lost one bar and est. range is 90 miles, still original battery

I read that the first few years is the worst degradation and the degradation slows down. So, I'm thinking I shouldn't lose my second bar until at 160k miles, in 4-5 years. The vehicle is rated for 84 miles and after losing one bar, I still get 90 miles after 85,000 miles. My savings in gas and maintenance is approx. $13,600. So, the car will pay for itself at 160k miles. Driving electric is so awesome!!

 

[eaf]

I read that the first few years is the worst degradation and the degradation slows down. So, I'm thinking I shouldn't lose my second bar until at 160k miles, in 4-5 years. The vehicle is rated for 84 miles and after losing one bar, I still get 90 miles after 85,000 miles. My savings in gas and maintenance is approx. $13,600. So, the car will pay for itself at 160k miles. Driving electric is so awesome!!

You're thinking wrong because the first bar covers the highest drop in SOH percentage (15%). All following bars will start disappearing faster (each one for 6.5%).

 

[SueC56]

I bought a 2016 SL in Aug 2019. How can I tell if it has had the battery software update done?

Sue

 

[goldbrick]

There might be a firmware revision change that you can see with LeafSpy but any dealer should be able to tell you over the phone if you have your VIN handy.

 

[Virtuallydead]

Rats!

Lost my first capacity bar sometime in the last month.

Ahr:52.9 SOH:85.2 Hx:74.4 km:76700 GIDs @ fully charged: 249

Oh well, ...knew it would happen sooner or later.

 

[downeykp]

Dont feel so bad. I have lost 7 bars at 38000 mi.

 

[rwaudio]

I just bought a 2013 S. 118,760mi, 55.49Ah, 84.84% SOH, Hx =80.27%. 4QC’s, 7408 L1/L2. Car seems good, replaced outer tie rod ends, rear brake pads/discs and front control arms as the ball joints were bad, parts were dirt cheap on rockauto, with good penetrating oil everything was easy to replace. Biggest problem remaining is the charge port door doesn’t close. I suspect it’s not worth fixing as those parts seem expensive.