My first Leaf

[Arithecat]

I'm looking at buying a 2016 leaf. The dealer sent me pictures of the dash but I don't know how to interpret the condition of the vehicle based on these pictures. Would anyone be willing to help me understand what these pictures mean and what the lights on the dash mean?

 

[cornbinder89]

The dash indicators aren't that descriptive of condition. That said they can help. Without seeing what they sent I can't advise further, however I can suggest the following.
1st realistically access your needs for the car, in other words what distance and type of driving you are planning for the car. Then take a test drive in the car, for the likely type of driving and distance. Keep in mind in the coldest weather range drops alot and is partially dependent on how much heat you require while driving.
So if you expect to drive it 50 miles a day with 50% expressway and 50% in town, make the test drive doing just that.
You should arrive back at the dealership with more than 25% state of charge showing. If it can't do that easily then you are likely to be disappointed.
Depending on where you are located, the temp in April might be the most favorable for an electric, so I would look at the range indicated when the car is at full charge, to be double the expected use in one day.
Being that these years (I have a 2015) don't have large batteries and expecting 70 miles or more in a day will not be realistic, and lead to a major disappointment.
If you are buying to use local in town run about, it will do very well. High speed uses power much faster than slow speed, and many stops and starts doesn't reduce the miles like it does with a gasoline car, electrics thrive on low speed, stop and starts.

 

[cornbinder89]

Nope, nope nope. the far right meter shows only a few bars, don't walk away, run!
The far right shows "battery health" It starts with 2 red "bars" and goes to 12 total. That one shows 3 bars! The least I would consider is 9, for my use which is about 25 miles a day though the coldest winter. My guess is that one will not 5-7 miles on a full charge.

 

[Drew21]

On the far right of the lower dash display you can see 3 (out of 12) battery state of health bars. To put this in "regular" car terms, this vehicle would be like buying a car with a one gallon gas tank.

Unless your daily driving is very limited (like commuting a few miles across town), this is not the Leaf for you.

On the other hand, depending on the manufacture date of this 2016 Leaf, there may still be (a few months of) battery warranty. If purchased cheaply, this car might qualify for a replacement battery or a buyout from Nissan.

However, based on the question you asked about the condition of the car, I'm going to assume that you're not interested in taking chances about maybe getting a replacement battery sometime potentially months in the future.

Out of curiosity, what's the asking price? Where (generally) are you located? I wonder what horrible things were done to that battery in 42K miles?

 

[Arithecat]

On the far right of the lower dash display you can see 3 (out of 12) battery state of health bars. To put this in "regular" car terms, this vehicle would be like buying a car with a one gallon gas tank.

Unless your daily driving is very limited (like commuting a few miles across town), this is not the Leaf for you.

On the other hand, depending on the manufacture date of this 2016 Leaf, there may still be (a few months of) battery warranty. If purchased cheaply, this car might qualify for a replacement battery or a buyout from Nissan.

However, based on the question you asked about the condition of the car, I'm going to assume that you're not interested in taking chances about maybe getting a replacement battery sometime potentially months in the future.

Out of curiosity, what's the asking price? Where (generally) are you located? I wonder what horrible things were done to that battery in 42K miles?

The region is the Georgia Tennessee area. It has had three owners. I'm not really sure what's going on with it. But I noticed on another thread that there could be a warranty assistance program. I also asked myself the same question. What on Earth could have happened to it in under 50,000 miles?

 

[cornbinder89]

I think a better analogy would be, would you buy a car that burn a qt of oil in 25 miles? That is about what you are looking at.
The car burning oil can be brought back by rebuilding the engine (pouring a lot of money into the newly purchased car). The same is true with this Leaf, it can be brought back by pouring large amounts of money new battery. A new replacement will likely cost you around $14,000.

 

[Arithecat]

The region is the Georgia Tennessee area. It has had three owners. I'm not really sure what's going on with it. But I noticed on another thread that there could be a warranty assistance program. I also asked myself the same question. What on Earth could have happened to it in under 50,000 miles?

Thanks to everyone who reached out to help me! : )

 

[Dooglas]

I noticed on another thread that there could be a warranty assistance program.

Depending on the battery, the battery depletion warranty expires after 5 years or 8 years. Probable that the warranty no longer applies. I don't think this is the vehicle for you.

 

[Eddie16]

Don't buy it! 3/12 bars is ridiculously low. In case you are not aware: many say the 30kwh "lettuce pack" (?) battery supplied in 2016-2017 models, is the WORST battery pack Nissan produced. I conclude that the dealer/person trying to sell you this car, is about as unethical as they come. So tell the dealer you'll be happy to buy it as soon as they put a new 40kwh pack in it for a lot less than the $13.5K I was quoted by a Nissan dealer.