Update on Nissan LEAF Battery Replacement

[sksingh]

Do you have a 2011 or a 2012 Leaf? Thx

2011

 

[Valdemar]

Has anyone purchased a replacement battery pack, what's the final cost with labor & taxes?

Fred

If someone has, she or he is not on this forum. Most of the earlier Leafs still qualify for the capacity warranty, for their owners purchasing a new battery out of pocket would be, well, unwise.

 

[JPWhite]

Most of the earlier Leafs still qualify for the capacity warranty, for their owners purchasing a new battery out of pocket would be, well, unwise.

That depends. I'm at 53,500 2 bars down. If this winter is like last winter I may not be able to make my commute anymore without multiple stops for a QC in each direction. The good news is there are enough QC's to do it, but now temps are moderating degradation will not reach 4 bars by 60,000. I maybe faced with a battery still in warranty that does not meet my needs. I will then weigh the purchase of a new battery against other options.

I had hoped another option would be to buy a 2013 with relatively low miles. The lack of secondhand LEAF's on the auction or dealer lots in NAshville may reduce my options to new battery, new car or drive the Altima for the winter.

 

[johnrhansen]

If a guy could find a good junkyard battery, couldn't you just do it yourself for a lot cheaper?

 

[tivollix]

The BMS would need to be reset ideally.
Also for now, the number of available batteries on the used market is very low and price are not competitive with the Nissan offer.

If a guy could find a good junkyard battery, couldn't you just do it yourself for a lot cheaper?

 

[JPWhite]

If a guy could find a good junkyard battery, couldn't you just do it yourself for a lot cheaper?

That's a good idea. I looked at totaled LEAF's on Copart a few weeks back, there are several for sale each month in Nashville, but they are getting bids for over $6,000 and the seller reserve isn't met yet :!: :?: At those prices it's cheaper to buy the battery without the hassle of finding a friendly mechanic with necessary lifting gear.

http://ww2.copart.com/us/Lot/24928494?searchId=2042379435

The 'repair estimate' is $2,500. Yeah right, the insurance company wrote it off for the sake of $2,500? I see over $10,000 at a glance given repair shop retail prices.

I haven't seen a LEAF in the junkyard yet.

 

[DaveinOlyWA]

Has anyone purchased a replacement battery pack, what's the final cost with labor & taxes?

Fred

If someone has, she or he is not on this forum. Most of the earlier Leafs still qualify for the capacity warranty, for their owners purchasing a new battery out of pocket would be, well, unwise.

that depends on how much you need to drive I think. In my case, I could justify the expense since my annual reimbursement for POV is just about the same as a new battery

 

[Valdemar]

I suppose there are situations where it may make sense, but given most have access to more or less convenient charging away from home it is a more cost effective solution than dropping 6 grand on a new pack that lasts only 3 years.

 

[JPWhite]

dropping 6 grand on a new pack that lasts only 3 years.

The first pack lasts 3 years for some, but who knows how long the Lizard pack will last. It may go 5-10 years like we were initially lead to believe when we bought the vehicle. On the other hand it might not, but I think it reasonable to assume that given Nissan have acknowledged the lizard battery name we gave it as being such, it will last more than the original.

At this point the 6 grand is water under the bridge, other alternatives may cost more than 6 grand.

I think we are seeing Nissan set a reasonable price for the replacement battery. Not cheap by any measure, but competitive compared to many of the alternatives.

BTW at least we have the capacity warranty to help the outliers recover from unreasonable losses. Tesla has no such capacity warranty and Kevin Sharp is at 20% loss after 4 years on his Roadster. Definitely an outlier since the vast majority of Roadsters have much better battery health. He's out on his own as the leading capacity loss for a Roadster. He seems to be mounting a social media campaign in hope of help from Musk et al. Be interesting to see what and how long remedies are introduced for outliers by Tesla. If Tesla don't provide a capacity warranty in reaction to the issues that have begun, we may all better off with the devil we know and wait for the extended range LEAF rather than the Model III.

 

[Valdemar]

I don't disagree that we got a reasonable deal on a replacement pack from Nissan. But it'll be a while until people start buying them. I'm at -25% cap. and certainly don't plan for at least 2 more years, that is if I end up keeping the car longer than that.

 

[keydiver]

given most have access to more or less convenient charging away from home it is a more cost effective solution than dropping 6 grand on a new pack that lasts only 3 years.

...says someone from California. There is virtually NO charging infrastructure in my area. My wife and I were just talking today that it may become necessary next year for me to just pony up the $5500, as the car is becoming more painful to drive. I am having to charge to 100% a lot more often, and we sometimes find it necessary to sit for an hour at the only charging station in Jupiter in order to make it home comfortably. My only other choice right now is to hope that I lose another 11% in 27 months, and after seeing only a 4% loss this summer I think I'm going to be cutting it close.

 

[johnrhansen]

I would think economically, it would make more economic sense to sell the car at a steep discount (less than the cost of a new pack) to someone who could still use the car, and go buy yourself a newer one whose battery is in better condition. Changing out a battery that still has some usability transfers value from you to Nissan.

 

[JeremyW]

Quick update on my warranty replacement battery.

Battery assembly, part no. 295B0-3NF9E
Battery mfg'd 8/14/14 in TN.
Ordered 8/28/14.
Arrived 9/9/14 in So Cal after 7 bus. days.
Installed in one bus. day. Held overnight to fully charge via L2.

After a few days, my stats are:
Odo, 54200 mi.
Gids, max, 297 ... inching up from 291.
AHr, 66.14
Hx, 102.43
SOH, 100

For folks in OC, I recommend Tustin Nissan for battery replacements. Now having completed three replacements, they've got the install nailed down. I hear they have a 4th replacement battery install in the works.

297 GIDs!?!?! Wow I think we have a winner!!! :shock:

 

[JPVLeaf]

After a few days, my stats are:
Odo, 54200 mi.
Gids, max, 297 ... inching up from 291.
AHr, 66.14
Hx, 102.43
SOH, 100

For folks in OC, I recommend Tustin Nissan for battery replacements. Now having completed three replacements, they've got the install nailed down. I hear they have a 4th replacement battery install in the works.

297 GIDs!?!?! Wow I think we have a winner!!! :shock:

Heh heh. Good catch! Typo. You must be the first one to read my post.
Should be "Gids, max, 279 ... inching up from 271."

 

[brettcgb]

Quick update on my warranty replacement battery.

Battery assembly, part no. 295B0-3NF9E
Battery mfg'd 8/14/14 in TN.
Ordered 8/28/14.
Arrived 9/9/14 in So Cal after 7 bus. days.
Installed in one bus. day. Held overnight to fully charge via L2.

After a few days, my stats are:
Odo, 54200 mi.
Gids, max, 297 ... inching up from 291.
AHr, 66.14
Hx, 102.43
SOH, 100

For folks in OC, I recommend Tustin Nissan for battery replacements. Now having completed three replacements, they've got the install nailed down. I hear they have a 4th replacement battery install in the works.

297 GIDs!?!?! Wow I think we have a winner!!! :shock:

Did you happen to capture these stats from your old battery?
http://www.mynissanleaf.com/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=17168&start=500#p385292" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

 

[JPVLeaf]

Did you happen to capture these stats from your old battery?
http://www.mynissanleaf.com/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=17168&start=500#p385292" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Yes.

SOH    Hx      AHr     Mi    L1/2   QC
 66    59.71   43.56   52600  44xx   35   jpvleaf (OC, CA), 4th bar lost, 8/7/14
 100  104.50   66.14   54400  45xx   36   jpvleaf, new batt +8 days, 9/20/14

 

[surfingslovak]

Did you happen to capture these stats from your old battery?
http://www.mynissanleaf.com/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=17168&start=500#p385292" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Yes.

SOH    Hx      AHr     Mi    L1/2   QC
 66    59.71   43.56   52600  44xx   35   jpvleaf (OC, CA), 4th bar lost, 8/7/14
 100  104.50   66.14   54400  45xx   36   jpvleaf, new batt +8 days, 9/20/14

Great to see! It was good to meet you in person at the HB NDEW event on Saturday.

 

[RegGuheert]

Congratulations on the new battery, JPVLeaf!

SOH    Hx      AHr     Mi    L1/2   QC
 66    59.71   43.56   52600  44xx   35   jpvleaf (OC, CA), 4th bar lost, 8/7/14
 100  104.50   66.14   54400  45xx   36   jpvleaf, new batt +8 days, 9/20/14

I'm surprised to see Hx at 59.71% when SOH is 66% and AHr is 43.56. My Hx is already down at 68.98% even though SOH is 84% and AHr is 55.05. Hx was close to SOH before P3227, but not since then. Is it possible that they replaced your battery without first doing the P3227 upgrade? Has anyone else seen Hx of ~60% with four bars gone? I thought 40% was the norm after P3227 at four bars missing...

 

[DaveEV]

SOH    Hx      AHr     Mi    L1/2   QC
 66    59.71   43.56   52600  44xx   35   jpvleaf (OC, CA), 4th bar lost, 8/7/14
 100  104.50   66.14   54400  45xx   36   jpvleaf, new batt +8 days, 9/20/14

Here's a thought that struck me as significant:

23Ah is about a 53% increase in capacity.

 

[brettcgb]

Did you happen to capture these stats from your old battery?
http://www.mynissanleaf.com/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=17168&start=500#p385292" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Yes.

SOH    Hx      AHr     Mi    L1/2   QC
 66    59.71   43.56   52600  44xx   35   jpvleaf (OC, CA), 4th bar lost, 8/7/14
 100  104.50   66.14   54400  45xx   36   jpvleaf, new batt +8 days, 9/20/14

Thanks! I'll revise the original table to include your data.

I'm still waiting for my 4th bar to go....

Brett