My list of things I'd like to see changed on the Gen 2 LEAF

[waidy]

I did tried it in ACC mode but cannot set timer (screen is blank and nothing happen when hitting the blue carwings button). Were you able to program timer in ACC mode? I wonder if I got the pre-production LEAF

My screen works just fine in ACC mode and I can program the timer as well.

Are you certain you haven't turned the display completely off? In ACC mode, the screen should work normally, as does everything else in the car EXCEPT the ability to put the car in "D".

I am pretty sure the display was not turned off because once I did the power-on, the display shows up.

 

[waidy]

Perhaps Leaf should learn from driver's behaviors and adapt itself to higher and higher battery SOC settings before it goes into turtle mode.. after all none of us want to see Leafs stranded on the side of the hwy, and Nissan would have to pay for the tow job after all.

Yes and no. There has to be a cut-off point where Nissan throws up their hands and says "We TRIED to tell you!!"

First, the "Low Battery Warning", both visible and audible. You get that somewhere around 17 miles. That's a LOT of time to safely get off the road and to a charging station or at least park it safely. Then, you get a VERY Low Battery warning, again, visible and audible. That's your last warning as your remaining miles show "---". The next warning you get will be Turtle Mode, reduced power, and that warning means you're about to shut completely off in very short order....perhaps as soon as 1 mile, but possibly more.

On an ICE, you get the 'low gas' warning light and then what? A dead engine.

Nissan gives 3 warnings before you go dead-in-the-water. I think that's plenty.

Actually, I don't mind at all if the LEAF goes to "power saving" mode at the first warning. It is really not much J1772 chargers within 100 miles radius from where I live. Best of all, it would be nice that the "power saving" mode can be programmable by driver in the LEAF. I am adding this (programmable "power saving: mode in kWh) to my wish list for Nissan on my next input.

 

[tedbe]

Leather interior and 6.6 kW would be great. I test drove the Leaf, am in the order queue, seriously considering buying one...but:

I'm sorry, but $34K for any car and I don't get leather seats, or even an option to order them? The cloth seats in the Leaf are tacky and the lack of power adjustment of the seats is also tacky. And there's no lumbar support. Memo to 20-something designers: know your market, many of us are 50+, lumbar support is not a luxury!

6.6 kW but not until version 2.0? Please, you're not Microsoft, don't make the early adopters pay full price for something that will get an upgrade in a year.

• Leather interior.
• 6.6kW charger
• Less bulbous/eco/koi styling.
• One fewer placebo solar panel.
• Tighter or programmable steering feel.
• HID headlights (unless the LED ones are equivalent)
• In-handle optical sensors for automatic "no touch" unlock (See: Prius)
• Geek Screen with state-of-charge and numbers galore
• Motor seats, driver memory, heated mirrors & seats, dual-zone climate, upgraded soundsystem, ah hell, an Infiniti badge!

 

[Uccello]

Great thread, it is nice that all the suggestions are in one place so we don't have to look for them to much. (Even thought this whole section is about suggestions)

1. Advanced metrics for energy usage, including SOC info
2. An easy way to accurately measure the energy required to travel to a destination using two or three different routes. By comparing the routes with detailed usage, you'd be able to select the most efficient for the amount of time you travel.
3. Raise the door armrests
4. Ability for the timer to have dual settings for a single day. So if drive to work I can recharge to 80%, then drive home and recharge again with the timer to 80%. (Currently to charge during the day you have to disable the nighttime charge)
5. Option for the charge override button to allow an 80% charge instead of the default 100%.
6. Optional purchase directly though Nissan. With expected reliability and simplicity, we should be able to place an order online and pick it up at a Nissan warehouse and avoid all dealership issues.
7. LED light in the charging port when the cover is open.
8. Waterproof key fob.
9. Please have the Z-car guys tune the steering and suspension. It is a super fun car to drive, but a little tweaking could make it mythic.
10. Left hand grip in the hatch door. The single grip handle on the right side is ok, but not everyone is right handed.

As for the CW nag screen, I think it is actually a legal document, which is why is comes up each time. If there was an accident and the two parties went to court, the data theoretically could be requested during discovery. Having it come up each time pairs the driver with the data. So the data should be more accurate than the memory of the driver about the conditions right before impact.

As for better Blink integration that a lot of people mentioned, we hardwired ours and haven't had any problems that others have. (knock on wood)

-u

 

[Mx5racer]

make it easier to open the charge lid door.
A button at the front of the car tied to the remote ?
for something that we have to do every day they did not make it very convenient.

 

[TEG]

HID headlights (unless the LED ones are equivalent)

I find the LED headlights to be great. I have another car with HID and it really isn't any better than the LED.

Improvement ideas:
More regen when you lift off of the accelerator pedal. (The car wants to coast until you start pushing the brake pedal.)
A small LED light under the charge port door so it is easier to find the J1772 socket in the dark.
A button on the keyfob to open the charge port door.
6.6kW charging for sure.
Please get rid of the Nav "press OK" nag screen!
Not a change for the car, but we need L3 chargers in the USA. They have over 600 in Japan and about 100 in the UK right now, but only a couple in the USA. Why are we so far behind?

 

[BnBinSD]

Replace the gear selector/park lever and the parking/emergency brake with push-buttons.

The current lever is a very poor and confusing human-interface design. After several days of driving, my wife still forgets which direction to move the parking brake (do I push down or pull up?). On the first day we got the car, she thought you had to press the button on the gear shift in order to select another gear, as is done on other car models to shift out of park. And of course the confusing issue of, pull the selector back to go forward; push forward to go back - argh!

All of these design interface issues could be so simplified by making these work like radio-buttons that are labeled and light when pressed. The parking brake would need separate on and off buttons to permit pressing on twice for maximum braking. No training or memorization required except the double push for the PB when conditions require it.

 

[BnBinSD]

Provide a remote hatch release button on the key fob, as well as a motion-sensing activator that could detect the owner's foot being waved back and forth beneath the rear bumper (Ford has this handy feature). And ideally power lift for the hatch.

Very handy when both hands are full with groceries or whatever.

 

[Deleted member 1622]

Without a doubt, it's a new SOC meter. Give us a 100-point meter that decreases with some kind of regularity, and shows the actual charge left in the battery. The 12-bar pseudo meter with its unknowable algorithms is the weakest link in the car to date.

Josh

 

[davewill]

Without a doubt, it's a new SOC meter. Give us a 100-point meter that decreases with some kind of regularity, and shows the actual charge left in the battery. The 12-bar pseudo meter with its unknowable algorithms is the weakest link in the car to date.

Josh

Hell, I'll take 50 points, or even 25, just as long as zero means no-go and max means FULL, and it's as linear as the HW allows.

 

[LeafTalk]

I want a tailpipe that blows soap bubbles. :lol:

Seriously though, Most of the requests listed here would make a really good Gen II Leaf. I don't know why they didn't put an unlock button on the charging hatch (like the button you get on the door handles.)

 

[planet4ever]

Move the shift control to the dashboard, like the Prius.Twice already my hand has tried to find something there and ended up turning on the windshield wipers. Moving that would have two other effects: (1) make the reverse/forward positions seem less illogical, and (2) leave room for a much larger console box.

Incidentally, my wife pulled up on the parking brake lever thinking it was a way to open the console box. I agree that the brake interface is very badly designed.

Ray

 

[Amped4LEAF]

6. Optional purchase directly though Nissan. With expected reliability and simplicity, we should be able to place an order online and pick it up at a Nissan warehouse and avoid all dealership issues.


Believe me, Nissan would prefer to sell the car directly to the customer as well but this illegal in the States. A new car sale MUST go through a state licensed dealership.

 

[Drnel]

1) double or triple range. 48-64kw battery. I love non Eco mode and constantly switch between the too while driving. Non Eco for highway merges or fast sprints to 40 mhp. Eco mode all other times.

2) redesign the ugly body. Make it look like 4 door z or the fister or protype electric jag or something radically different with very low front move motor to mid engine location put it in the center put batteries everywhere along the bottom. It may raise getting in and out of the car. think outside the box on car design.

3) Led or oled for everything.

4) I love the handling but could benefit from electronic shocks like on new vette and Ferrari and lowered by 1 or 2" inches. I threw on some 17" drags black centers with polished rims and michilen super sport 2. Hot.

5) ceramic brakes. Lighter in all the right paces. Carbon fiber wheels as an option.

6) solar panel the entire roofline.

So much to improve internally I don't have time to discuss.

7)

 

[Herm]

6. Optional purchase directly though Nissan. With expected reliability and simplicity, we should be able to place an order online and pick it up at a Nissan warehouse and avoid all dealership issues.
Believe me, Nissan would prefer to sell the car directly to the customer as well but this illegal in the States. A new car sale MUST go through a state licensed dealership.

It probably cant be done, but to be fair to the existing dealership network the MSRP will be increased 5%.. this will motivate dealers to behave... and dont play games with allocation.

 

[EVDRIVER]

6. Optional purchase directly though Nissan. With expected reliability and simplicity, we should be able to place an order online and pick it up at a Nissan warehouse and avoid all dealership issues.
Believe me, Nissan would prefer to sell the car directly to the customer as well but this illegal in the States. A new car sale MUST go through a state licensed dealership.

It probably cant be done, but to be fair to the existing dealership network the MSRP will be increased 5%.. this will motivate dealers to behave... and dont play games with allocation.

That will make it even worse, the more the dealer can make the more games they play.

 

[OrientExpress]

Here are some thoughts from our 2 weeks with the car:

1. The power steering is too numb and over-boosted. My wife says it steers like a "little old ladies car". Give the steering some road feel, drive a Civic Hybrid and make it like that.

2. The steering column does not adjust in and out, just up and down. My wife and I are long legged , and we end up driving the car like we are driving a Fiat. The "arms out" method is fine for old Italian cars, but not a modern car.

3. The drivers arm rest is too low for the tall seating in the car.

4. The glove box is too weird a shape that nothing really fits, and it is hard plastic so anything in there rattles and slides around.

5. "Transmission selector" Up for reverse and down for drive? That is nuts or is a try at PRNDL?

6. Why all of the 20th century style filament light bulbs in 21st century car? LEDs for all lighting!

7. Navigation/Phone voice communication. So weak and barely usable. Why no natural language prompting? (Call Julie at home) Every other manufacturer has it, why not Nissan?

8. Climate control. Why such of a power penalty if you just want to have the fan on to circulate air?

9. The horn - Was Droopy Drawers the product manager on that? Put a real horn in.

10. Why no dead pedal? It's a 20¢ piece of plastic.

11. The Homelink on the Rear View Mirror is too far to reach easily

12. Why don't the two time displays sync with each other?

13. The charging time is too long. Need faster charging.

14. Navigation map display colors are not good for older people. Light green text on a bright yellow background can be invisible to seniors.

15. The storage for the 110V charger cord needs to be optimized for the space in the boot. There are much better ways to store to cord and yet make it portable.

16. Why doesn't the "return" button on the steering wheel act on the return prompts on the Radio/Nav display. And while we are talking about the steering wheel controls, Why right and left for volume up and down? (But I noticed that all the Nissan steering wheel control UIs are just as un-ergonomic as on the Leaf, so it is a systemic issue that probably won't be fixed on one model line)

17. The smartphone applications are nice for what they do today. Some interesting telematics functions could be "where is my car?" "remote unlock/lock" "anti-theft tracking". Once NFC (near field communications) becomes available on smart phones, the phone could replace the key fob.

18. Of course the issue right now is public charging infrastructure. I hope that us early-adopter squeaky wheels will be a motivation to expedite public charger installation.

19. Lastly build a car that will go 150 miles or more on a charge in regular traffic with the A/C on, and that sells for 35K and the world will beat a path to your doorway!

 

[EVDRIVER]

I have to admit the steering is really starting to bug me and its FAR to sensitive. The NAV is the really poor by Japanese standards and almost more of an irritation then helpful. I also don't see why they don't have basic voice commands like cars that are six years old, particularly when they lock out the controls when driving. Perhaps this car was designed for the Japanese market first with the interior, steering, etc. I give the Nissan product dev people a D on this car and all its cheapness and poorly executed features and pathetic Carwings software with no functional value. I could never imagine Toyota developing so many poorly executed features and poor functionality. As much as I applaud Nissan for first out the gate this will likely be my last Nissan product. Now with no L3 charging and perhaps a likely standard change Nissan is sure to take some heat from consumers on their short sightedness.

 

[TomT]

The numb, over-boosted steering is still the number one thing I do not like about the driving experience of the car. I thought I might get used to it but I have not; it annoys me every time I get behind the wheel. It reminds me of a 60s/70s American Luxobarge.

This should be an easy thing to fix in software. Hopefully someone, if not Nissan, will do so!

I have to admit the steering is really starting to bug me and its FAR to sensitive.

 

[TomT]

+1

The NAV is the really poor by Japanese standards and almost more of an irritation then helpful. I also don't see why they don't have basic voice commands like cars that are six years old, particularly when they lock out the controls when driving. Perhaps this car was designed for the Japanese market first with the interior, steering, etc. I give the Nissan product dev people a D on this car and all its cheapness and poorly executed features and pathetic Carwings software with no functional value. I could never imagine Toyota developing so many poorly executed features and poor functionality. As much as I applaud Nissan for first out the gate this will likely be my last Nissan product. Now with no L3 charging and perhaps a likely standard change Nissan is sure to take some heat from consumers on their short sightedness.