Buying a 2012 Leaf SL with a new battery question

Hello everyone!


There is a really nice 2012 Leaf SL with only 20k miles going for $9,500 on ebay. It had a brand new battery put in under warranty on 10/2014. There's paperwork that shows the battery is still at full capacity right now. This sounds like a good deal and the seller seems very reputable. My concern though is on a full charge the GOM is only displaying 54 miles of range in the photo. I understand it's based off prior driving history among other things. The other thing that seems very odd is the energy economy on the dash is only showing 0.3 miles/kwh. Is this even possible? Also seems weird that the battery was replaced with such low miles.

My question is do you think there's something causing such low miles/kwh which in turn is causing only a predicted range of 54 miles? I'm very interested in the car but I would hate to buy it and it not deliver good driving range because of some other unknown problem.

Anybody have any insight on this? Thoughts?

Thanks!

You can get terrible efficiency numbers by leaving the car parked with the climate control on for a long time. That may also account for the low range estimate. Still, that's quite a few questions. Is the documentation a Leaf Spy readout, or something else? because I'm not sure anything else would show actual capacity...

drive the car 20 miles and you will know . buy leaf spy if you are in the market for a used leaf....

No it's paperwork from Nissan when they did their capacity check. It says battery is at full capacity. I would love to test drive it for 20 miles and use leaf spy on it but it's an out-of-state car dealer selling on ebay. I asked the seller about the battery and range and he got an attitude about it! Came back saying I should be happy it has a new battery and not be questioning it. I was blown away by his response! That's definitely NOT the way you sell cars! He also said Nissan wanted to put a new battery in it since it is a Nissan corporate car. I find this hard to believe Nissan doesn't just replace these batteries to be generous!

I would double check that battery paperwork- it may be a standard battery inspection printout, which tells absolutely nothing about the actual health of the battery.

kubel said:

I would double check that battery paperwork- it may be a standard battery inspection printout, which tells absolutely nothing about the actual health of the battery.

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Yep. Leaf Spy is the way to go.

Wish I could use leaf spy on it but it's in another state. Oh well I might just pass on it, not worth the gamble.

Would you like to link to the auction? I don't think anyone here will jump on the car, given the Seller's attitude.

Sure no problem here it is:


http://www.ebay.com/itm/151968216469?_trksid=p2055119.m1438.l2649&ssPageName=STRK:MEBIDX:IT


Car looks really clean, lots of photos too!

Thanks!

I only quickly glanced at the pics and listing, but it's unclear which battery was replaced on 10/3/14. For all we know, it was just the 12 volt.

Looking at that listing I see no sign whatsoever that the battery pack was replaced. It obviously got a new 12 volt battery, and the "100% full capacity" is derived from the useless annual battery report. All that means is that 12 bars are still showing. It's amazing that the Seller actually posted the question and his terrible answer about the "battery." The car probably isn't a terrible buy, but don't expect a new pack!

I tried asking the seller a question, but aborted. In asking, it basically seems to send the seller an email w/these conditions:

Note: The seller may include your question in their item description. Your user ID won't appear. We'll send your message to jmacimportandexport's Messages inbox and email address. All messages sent through the forwarding system are received by eBay and forwarded to the recipient. eBay reserves the right to delay or withhold messages in case of reasonable suspicion of a fraudulent activity or a violation of the eBay User Agreement. By clicking Send, you are giving your express consent to share your contact information with the seller and authorizing the seller to contact you regarding this vehicle or similar vehicles.

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Yeah, at this point, I wouldn't count on it having received a new HV battery pack and given the scant info, (in my book) is thus somewhat overpriced.

The "battery replaced" accompanies "body electrical system checked". This implies the 12V battery was replaced, not the high voltage traction battery. Also, the battery report performed was the standard annual battery test.

$9500 isn't a terrible price since it's still cheaper than buying out a lease with the $5000 discount. My goal would be around $8000 since these go at auction for around $7000.

The fact that it was a "Nissan Corporate vehicle" makes it more interesting, but while that evokes images of high-powered executives using it gently to and from the airport, it could also have been used by office interns to make fast food runs, with a little street racing thrown in. If it's really immaculate and rust-free it's worth considering - except that that Seller gives me the creeps.

Well since it's just the 12V battery that was replaced it's probably not worth it, especially with the cost of having it shipped.

With the difference in price between the 2012 SLs and 2013 SVs being fairly small, I'd look for a '13. (I'd only buy one with Premium Package, but others disagree.) This particular SL seems to have a pack with less (maybe very little less) than one bar lost, but I'd still bet on a '13 built after March of 2013 to have longer pack life.

LeftieBiker said:

With the difference in price between the 2012 SLs and 2013 SVs being fairly small, I'd look for a '13. (I'd only buy one with Premium Package, but others disagree.) This particular SL seems to have a pack with less (maybe very little less) than one bar lost, but I'd still bet on a '13 built after March of 2013 to have longer pack life.

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How is your pack holding up so far on your '13 SV? Plus I'd get the heat pump too which would help since I live in Minnesota. I'll look into pricing on the '13s.

I posted the stats in the Leaf Spy topic. I don't have them handy, but my SOH was 89% (Hx 89.3) when measured. I've lost a few miles of range since the car was new, but not a lot. If I'm careful and next Summer isn't broiling hot I think I can hold onto 12 bars until the lease extension ends in 2017. I probably lost most of that capacity the first few weeks I had the car - it was HOT.

Considering that the car has spent most of its life in MN, and only has 20,000 miles, there is no way it has qualified for a new HV pack. The VIN is newer than my 2012, which now has >40,000 miles in Florida heat, and has just now finally qualified for a new pack. And, as you mentioned, the 54 miles on the GOM looks suspicious. It could be another case of a reset BMS.

keydiver said:

Considering that the car has spent most of its life in MN, and only has 20,000 miles, there is no way it has qualified for a new HV pack. The VIN is newer than my 2012, which now has >40,000 miles in Florida heat, and has just now finally qualified for a new pack. And, as you mentioned, the 54 miles on the GOM looks suspicious. It could be another case of a reset BMS.

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I'm pretty sure it was the 12V battery that was replaced as others in this thread have discovered. Would replacing the 12V battery reset the BMS? Also if the BMS was reset wouldn't it reset to the default 82 miles of estimated range like when the car was new?