So first of all, greetings all. I live in Denver Colorado, and I stumbled across the great deals that a used Leaf provides, and now I think I may have been bitten by the electric car bug. I have been doing a lot of pre-purchase research, and I think I have found all the big gotchas, however I would like someone who has actually owned, or does own a Leaf to provide a backstop to my thoughts and point out any other concerns that they have had during ownership, in respect to my locale, and prospective use.
So, as stated before, I live in Denver Colorado. We are typically pretty mild winter weather wise, but it is not uncommon that we have weeks with sub 0F temperatures. I do own a house, but I will not be parking/charging the leaf indoors. This car will need to be parked/charged outside. I do have RV parking on both sides of my house, and running a 30-50 amp 240 volt supply for an EVSE will not be a problem. I have also decided upon a used Leaf, as it will be replacing our second car, which is my primary transportation to/from work. As a second vehicle I don't need to worry about range so much as my daily commute totals ~14 miles round trip, but I don't have charging available at work. This seems to work well within the range limitation of the Leaf, even without at work charging in the winter, provided I get one with a decent battery and work within its limitations.
Through my research I have decided to limit my search to 2013+ models in the SV/SL trim (given the heat pump, the standard battery heater, and to provide some warranty cushion on the battery). Additionally one with the CHAdeMO charger would be a welcome bonus, but not a requirement. Additionally I have already made plans to get one of the Bluetooth ODBII dongles that I can use with Leafspy during the prepurchase test drive/inspection, to hopefully reduce the likelihood of buying a used Leaf with a bum battery. I am also looking to keep the miles on the used vehicle as low as possible as well. I plan on keeping this for several (5+) years and I hope by keeping the mileage low I can extended the amount of time that the range meets my needs.
Are there any other trouble spots that you, as a Leaf owner/former owner, would be on the look out when purchasing a used vehicle?
Do you see any issues with my daily commute round trip distance causing issues during extreme cold? My research now indicates that I should be able to get at least 30 miles of round trip range during extreme cold, which is double my round trip range, without having access to charging at work. Do you believe that this is doable?
I have seen a few posts lamenting insurance rates as being inexplicably high. Is that really a big issue?
My hope is to eventually to transition to an all electric vehicle house. I want to ease into it though, and prove to my wife that it is, mostly, doable with only the occasional once a month/once every two month trip requiring more range than current, or prospective vehicles will provide.
Thank you for any input, or any posts that you can point me to that will help in my continuing research.
So, as stated before, I live in Denver Colorado. We are typically pretty mild winter weather wise, but it is not uncommon that we have weeks with sub 0F temperatures. I do own a house, but I will not be parking/charging the leaf indoors. This car will need to be parked/charged outside. I do have RV parking on both sides of my house, and running a 30-50 amp 240 volt supply for an EVSE will not be a problem. I have also decided upon a used Leaf, as it will be replacing our second car, which is my primary transportation to/from work. As a second vehicle I don't need to worry about range so much as my daily commute totals ~14 miles round trip, but I don't have charging available at work. This seems to work well within the range limitation of the Leaf, even without at work charging in the winter, provided I get one with a decent battery and work within its limitations.
Through my research I have decided to limit my search to 2013+ models in the SV/SL trim (given the heat pump, the standard battery heater, and to provide some warranty cushion on the battery). Additionally one with the CHAdeMO charger would be a welcome bonus, but not a requirement. Additionally I have already made plans to get one of the Bluetooth ODBII dongles that I can use with Leafspy during the prepurchase test drive/inspection, to hopefully reduce the likelihood of buying a used Leaf with a bum battery. I am also looking to keep the miles on the used vehicle as low as possible as well. I plan on keeping this for several (5+) years and I hope by keeping the mileage low I can extended the amount of time that the range meets my needs.
Are there any other trouble spots that you, as a Leaf owner/former owner, would be on the look out when purchasing a used vehicle?
Do you see any issues with my daily commute round trip distance causing issues during extreme cold? My research now indicates that I should be able to get at least 30 miles of round trip range during extreme cold, which is double my round trip range, without having access to charging at work. Do you believe that this is doable?
I have seen a few posts lamenting insurance rates as being inexplicably high. Is that really a big issue?
My hope is to eventually to transition to an all electric vehicle house. I want to ease into it though, and prove to my wife that it is, mostly, doable with only the occasional once a month/once every two month trip requiring more range than current, or prospective vehicles will provide.
Thank you for any input, or any posts that you can point me to that will help in my continuing research.