what happes when you run out of juice?

What indications do you get? I read that the car shifts into neutral and can't be put back into d. I'm speculating that the car acts exactly like it does when you push the power button without holding the brake down. No drive indicator, 12 v battery light on. Ac or heat not working, like the high voltage is off. Is that how it is? I havent run out yet.

You just about have it right.. The AC keeps working though. It just won't go into D.

Thats just off what I've read on the forums. Its pretty impossible (IMHO) to run out of energy. The car does everything except zapping you in the butt to warn you.

I have run REALLY close before and ended up having to stop in for a very expensive L2 charge at a Walgreens. (75 cents per kWh)

Also from what I've heard the leaf is really easy to push.

what happes when you run out of juice?

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Car stops.
Gets real quiet and dark :roll: :roll:
(sorry)

johnrhansen said:

What indications do you get? I read that the car shifts into neutral and can't be put back into d. I'm speculating that the car acts exactly like it does when you push the power button without holding the brake down. No drive indicator, 12 v battery light on. Ac or heat not working, like the high voltage is off. Is that how it is? I havent run out yet.

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I'm not completely sure I understand your question. Completely dead occurs when you run out of the 2-4 blocks of juice that are left when you hit turtle. Completely dead means that you cannot drive car until you have charged the battery up to VLBW, so if you hit turtle, don't plan on driving the car, even a few blocks, if you shift out of drive or turn the car off. You cannot restart it (drive it) until you have put a significant charge back into the battery.

You have an S, so you don't get the audible warnings that SL and SV owners get, just the dash indications.

Low Battery Warning: GOM Flashes the estimated miles left
Very Low Battery Warning: GOM flashes "---"
There is an additional, near turtle warning that is not frequently mentioned, very helpful: Disappearance of the last fuel bar means you have about 4 miles of slow driving before you hit turtle.
Turtle: you get a dash warning and a green turtle appears on the dash display, and max speed is about 25 m/hr. At turtle you have 2-4 blocks before the car completely stops.

Is this the information you were looking for?

I've been to turtle mode, as far as only 2 power dots! But it always stayed in D and kept going (barely). Hope I never experience what happens next. Yes, I know it pops into N and it won't go anymore. Don't know anything other than that. I'm just assuming the HV contactor trips off, and at that point everything is run by the 12v battery only. But that's an assumption.

johnrhansen said:

I'm just assuming the HV contactor trips off, and at that point everything is run by the 12v battery only. But that's an assumption.

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The HV contactor stays closed from everything that I've read. The A/C keeps working (which runs off the HV pack) so that means it still has HV.

I've read of other Leaf owners who have sat in A/C bliss while waiting on the tow truck.

Edit: It hasn't ever happened to me. I'm just going off what I've read from other leaf owners.

I think stjohnh is correct on the warnings leading to running out of battery.

My wife, a hopeless optimist, figured that there had to be more battery left than indicated and thus ran out of battery 4 miles from home (and 500 feet from an outside 110V outlet ). I rescued her that night and the next day had the car towed home for charging. I found that the car did turn on into accessory mode but would not shift into drive or start climate control. It allowed me to disengage the electronic emergency brake, which was essential for getting the car onto the flatbed truck.

johnrhansen said:

What indications do you get? I read that the car shifts into neutral and can't be put back into d. I'm speculating that the car acts exactly like it does when you push the power button without holding the brake down. No drive indicator, 12 v battery light on. Ac or heat not working, like the high voltage is off. Is that how it is? I havent run out yet.

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It kinda does what your run-of-the-mill gas burner does.
It stops . . . . . until your re-fuel it.

:shock:

You do this or you die.

I'm just knocking on wood that it never happens to me. I signed up for AAA roadside service/towing just in case but have yet to need it. I figure if I can make it the first year without needing it then I'll drop it.

Extra info tidbit: I've made it home before when it shouldn't have technically been possible (according to the car). I had to drive 35 MPH all the way home using every trick in the book to save every single watt. Typically driving normally I use 8 battery bars on my trip home. I was able to make it home on 4. I just hate being that guy creeping along 35mph with the emergency flashers going.

Normally if put a car in N we can push to move it. Does Leaf work same way? it will be helpful in below 500 feet cases.

cgaydos said:

My wife, a hopeless optimist, figured that there had to be more battery left than indicated and thus ran out of battery 4 miles from home (and 500 feet from an outside 110V outlet ). I rescued her that night and the next day had the car towed home for charging. I found that the car did turn on into accessory mode but would not shift into drive or start climate control. It allowed me to disengage the electronic emergency brake, which was essential for getting the car onto the flatbed truck.

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Just asking for some clarity. Turtle is only 2-4 blocks? Are we talking large blocks - like 1/4 mile each or smaller city blocks.

16k miles and I've hit VLBW in my neighborhood twice. VLBW is about 10 miles so I don't really worry. But if I get turtle, should I be immediately knocking on neighbors door and getting my EVSE? Anyway - some clarity on what turtle really means would be helpful.

Plenty of people have gone to turtle and kept driving until the battery contactor opens and the car stops.
Distance in turtle is short but somewhat variable by the posts I have read. Anywhere from instant to half mile IIRC.
Could be 2+ hours of L1 to get the car back in drive.

Put turtle in the search box for a few tales to read.

Turtle distance is hard to judge, because unless the cells are all perfectly balanced, the weakest one will start to drop out, at which point you're done and are forced into Neutral.

When you reach VLBW, your heater will turn off. I would expect the same from the A/C, but from what's been written, apparently not. I guess that's because the A/C draws a lot less.

If you go past Turtle, and the drive is disabled, you will have to charge it back up somewhat before you can drive it again. This means that if you are a two blocks away, and you stop and plug it in somewhere, you can proceed to drive it home on "just enough" charge. If, instead, you go another block and it goes into N by itself, it will require you to put 1-2 kWh (that's 1-2 hours on your neighbor's 120 V) before it will let you put it into D again.

Oh, by the way...

Travis said:

I had to drive 35 MPH all the way home using every trick in the book to save every single watt. [...] I just hate being that guy creeping along 35mph with the emergency flashers going.

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Flashers?? You said you saved every single watt!

smkettner said:

Plenty of people have gone to turtle and kept driving until the battery contactor opens and the car stops.
Distance in turtle is short but somewhat variable by the posts I have read. Anywhere from instant to half mile IIRC.
Could be 2+ hours of L1 to get the car back in drive.

Put turtle in the search box for a few tales to read.

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I've hit turtle 4 times in my S, three times in my wife's SV. The above is correct, but when I am very near turtle, (and obviously worried about getting home) I drive at 30mph or less. If you are on the highway at 70 mph, you will stop nearly instantly after hitting turtle. If you are driving with a very light foot at 15-20 mph, you might make it over 1/2 mile.

Turtle occurs when the lowest cell pair voltage hits 3.00 volts. The high impedance of the battery when at low charge means that the voltage will drop a lot at high loads (70mph or jack rabbit starts) suddenly dropping the lowest cell to 3.00. You can drive farther if you can keep the voltage up by very slow old lady driving. I'm not sure what voltage the car completely stops at, it is difficult to read voltages in this range as they vary so much with the load.

This should pretty much answer your question:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QG1kXfflWnk" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

wow. I am REALLY REALLY glad I found this thread because the dealer was very very wrong about this aspect of the car.

I asked. what happens. he said if you get too low the car will reduce your speed to 28mph and you have about 4 or 5 miles if your careful in turtle mode.

not HALF A MILE. that is a pretty damned big difference (never been to turtle yet lowest is 6 miles on the gom)

I have run out of juice twice. In both cases I got the Low Battery warning, the Very Low battery warning, then Turtle Mode, then it put me in Neutral.

Sure you can push the Leaf in Neutral like other cars.

I wouldnt advise running out of juice.

nerys said:

the dealer was very very wrong about this aspect of the car

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I was told that at turtle the car uses the 12V battery to power the traction motor...
Or that in B mode the braking pads are moved closer to the disc to increase regen...

All that with all knowing attitude :lol:, it was fun listening to the sales guy.

pkulak said:

This should pretty much answer your question:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QG1kXfflWnk" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

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Interesting.
Would be a bit more helpful if he had LEAF Spy data.

Also poor that he propagates the falsehood that 2013 and later LEAFs have significant range improvement. They don't.

And his range numbers are driving around narrow UK country roads at under 35 miles per hour.