Newbie, contemplating a Leaf, have ownership questions.

[downeykp]

I am hoping that you have a pv system in Kona. If not charging will be really expensive at $.44 a kwh.

 

[theaveng]

2nd: I am sure range anxiety is beat to death here, but of course I wonder if anyone has really missed the versatility of a petrol/diesel car? Does anyone wish they might have considered a Volt instead?

Range will drop to 58 miles in the first two-to-three years (80% times EPA rating) as the Li-Ion batteries age. Some forum members have discovered they can no longer reach their jobs. Nissan says it will stabilize at that value and not lose any more.

I'd buy a hybrid. My insight is a "different" looking car that also gets 62mpg highway rating. Or a leased Leaf so you can get rid of it (and avoid the ~$10,000 batt replacement cost). Or a Used leaf circa 2014...... there will be a ton of them in dealer lots and likely for cheap (around $15,000).

I chose options 1 and 3.

 

[EatsShootsandLeafs]

2nd: I am sure range anxiety is beat to death here, but of course I wonder if anyone has really missed the versatility of a petrol/diesel car? Does anyone wish they might have considered a Volt instead?

Range will drop to 58 miles in the first two-to-three years (80% times EPA rating) as the Li-Ion batteries age. Some forum members have discovered they can no longer reach their jobs. Nissan says it will stabilize at that value and not lose any more.

I'd buy a hybrid. My insight is a "different" looking car that also gets 62mpg highway rating. Or a leased Leaf so you can get rid of it (and avoid the ~$10,000 batt replacement cost). Or a Used leaf circa 2014...... there will be a ton of them in dealer lots and likely for cheap (around $15,000).

I chose options 1 and 3.

Nissan says it will be 80% of original range after 5 years (on average and can vary substantially) and then lose another 10% five years later.

Anybody who bought the car needing it to be very close to its original 100% range to make it usable made an error in judgement and should blame only themselves. If they are experiencing a more massive loss of range, then that is unfortunate.

Your insight is rated at 44 MPG highway, not 62 (http://www.fueleconomy.gov/feg/Find.do?action=sbs&id=33159&id=33158" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false.

 

[kubel]

1) Value is certainly there. I paid more just filling up my gas car than my LEAFs lease payment plus electricity. But don't just look at that. Insurance is a major factor, and you may be spending well over $100/mo insuring the LEAF.

2) I considered the Volt before the LEAF. In fact, I was a Volt fanboy. But after 8000 miles on my LEAF driving about 60 miles daily, I can honestly say I've NEVER had range anxiety yet. There were three times that I actually needed to use my gas car. Two of them were when I was only using level 1 charging and couldn't recharge fast enough at 120V to get me the range I needed. Now that I can charge at level 2, it wouldn't be an issue. The third time was going on vacation, out of range of the LEAF. I would consider a Volt if it had the LEAFs all-electric range. Otherwise, I'll just stick with a pure BEV.

3) I commute around 60-miles per day. It makes an excellent commuter and an even better runabout. If you can plug in at work, even to 120V, it seals the deal.

4) I own a 2006 Ford Crown Victoria Police Interceptor, and honestly, the cheap $5000 Crown Vic gets more attention than the $35,000 LEAF. It even gets more comments at work. But the LEAF is a very rare, very unique car. I get a lot more random comments from strangers in the LEAF than in the Crown Vic. I've only seen 2 of them in the wild. Most recent one was today.

5) You'll figure out most of it on your test drive. But it took me almost 4 months to realize the touch screen tilts.

6) Charging is a breeze. It's more convenient than gas.

Finally, let me say this. I love my LEAF. But if you live in a hot weather state, I would recommend you avoid the LEAF until Nissan settles the battery issue. Even if you live in a mild climate, you might want to sit back a little while and watch. Nissan went with a very cheap battery pack, and it suffers in extreme conditions. Too much heat and it experiences permanent capacity loss. Too cold and it experiences temporary capacity loss. Nissan so far does not stand behind its battery, so I have a hard time recommending a LEAF to anyone until they change, or at least offer an optional battery warranty that covers capacity.

 

[cwerdna]

2nd: I am sure range anxiety is beat to death here, but of course I wonder if anyone has really missed the versatility of a petrol/diesel car? Does anyone wish they might have considered a Volt instead?

...
I'd buy a hybrid. My insight is a "different" looking car that also gets 62mpg highway rating. Or a leased Leaf so you can get rid of it (and avoid the ~$10,000 batt replacement cost). Or a Used leaf circa 2014...... there will be a ton of them in dealer lots and likely for cheap (around $15,000).

I chose options 1 and 3.

...
Your insight is rated at 44 MPG highway, not 62 (http://www.fueleconomy.gov/feg/Find.do?action=sbs&id=33159&id=33158" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false.

Theaveng apparently has a Gen 1 Insight (aka the 2-seater mileage king), not the 5-seater Gen 2 that closely resembles a Prius in appearance and is big step backwards in FE. See http://www.mynissanleaf.com/viewtopic.php?p=226112#p226112" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;.

 

[ksnogas2112]

Riding in a LEAF just makes everything else in the same price range seem primitive.

I like that quote. I'm saving it for a best quotes of the year for my blog! :mrgreen:

 

[theaveng]

Your insight is rated at 44 MPG highway, not 62 (http://www.fueleconomy.gov/feg/Find.do?action=sbs&id=33159&id=33158" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false.

No actually it's 61 MPG highway (remember I said a "different looking car" and not the current normal-looking one): http://www.fueleconomy.gov/feg/Find.do?action=sbs&id=15606" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

As for what "Nissan says" about range? They lie. They first said it would be 80% after ten years. Then they changed it to five years. Then they said to those drivers who experienced 80% in only two years: "That's normal." Nissan is about as truthy as Obama and Romney in a debate.

 

[EatsShootsandLeafs]

Oh right, back when Honda knew how to make a hybrid Those first insights did get some very good MPG.

I also recall Nissan saying 80% after 10 years originally but I cannot find any documentation of that now (?).

anyway, 80% after 2 years IS normal if the person is driving a ton of miles, since Nissan has always said it's mile dependent.

 

[theaveng]

True. And a Nissan year is ridiculously short. Around 8000 miles? So they expect the battery to drop to 80% capacity after just 40,000 miles. Might have been nice if they revealed that to customers.

 

[TonyWilliams]

True. And a Nissan year is ridiculously short. Around 8000 miles? So they expect the battery to drop to 80% capacity after just 40,000 miles. Might have been nice if they revealed that to customers.

The Nissan-LEAF-Year(TM) is 7500 miles in Phoenix. Boston gets closer to 8000 miles (although I don't know the actual number).