2012 Leaf SL vs 2013 leaf SL??

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evboy

Well-known member
Joined
Feb 7, 2013
Messages
95
Location
Las Vegas
I was checking leaf prices again on carmax and wanted your opinion. the 2012 leaf can be bought all day in the 12's and 13's, but the 2013 leafs are selling for 19k to 20k. thats a big difference for 1 year. i remember someone here saying dont buy anything before 2013. is this perception widely known because it seems to be affecting used car prices. why is the 2013 so much better that the 2012 and is it that much better to pay an extra 6 or 7k.
 
evboy said:
I was checking leaf prices again on carmax and wanted your opinion. the 2012 leaf can be bought all day in the 12's and 13's, but the 2013 leafs are selling for 19k to 20k. thats a big difference for 1 year. i remember someone here saying dont buy anything before 2013. is this perception widely known because it seems to be affecting used car prices. why is the 2013 so much better that the 2012 and is it that much better to pay an extra 6 or 7k.
Click to expand...

lots of anecdotal evidence that the 2013 has a bit more range. also there is always a price difference between a car that is 2 years old verses a car that is 50% older at 3 years old
 
DaveinOlyWA said:
evboy said:
I was checking leaf prices again on carmax and wanted your opinion. the 2012 leaf can be bought all day in the 12's and 13's, but the 2013 leafs are selling for 19k to 20k. thats a big difference for 1 year. i remember someone here saying dont buy anything before 2013. is this perception widely known because it seems to be affecting used car prices. why is the 2013 so much better that the 2012 and is it that much better to pay an extra 6 or 7k.
Click to expand...

lots of anecdotal evidence that the 2013 has a bit more range. also there is always a price difference between a car that is 2 years old verses a car that is 50% older at 3 years old
Click to expand...
thats huge depreciation for one year. the difference between the 12 and 11 is only about 1500. makes me wonder what the 14 spark ev that car max has for 17k will be worth in 2017. maybe i should buy the 2012 leaf for 13k and then sell it in 2017 and buy the 2014 spark ev at that time.
 
evboy said:
DaveinOlyWA said:
evboy said:
I was checking leaf prices again on carmax and wanted your opinion. the 2012 leaf can be bought all day in the 12's and 13's, but the 2013 leafs are selling for 19k to 20k. thats a big difference for 1 year. i remember someone here saying dont buy anything before 2013. is this perception widely known because it seems to be affecting used car prices. why is the 2013 so much better that the 2012 and is it that much better to pay an extra 6 or 7k.
Click to expand...

lots of anecdotal evidence that the 2013 has a bit more range. also there is always a price difference between a car that is 2 years old verses a car that is 50% older at 3 years old
Click to expand...
thats huge depreciation for one year. the difference between the 12 and 11 is only about 1500. makes me wonder what the 14 spark ev that car max has for 17k will be worth in 2017. maybe i should buy the 2012 leaf for 13k and then sell it in 2017 and buy the 2014 spark ev at that time.
Click to expand...

its still a car that is 50% older. keep in mind; largest depreciation is the first TWO years. after that, year over year is much smaller. plus its first year of "American made" destined to be a classic ;)
 
you seriously think the 11 leaf will be worth more down the line because its a first year. i dont know if electric cars will be thought of in that way. i could see the 14 spark ev possibly having some high demand down the road since they only made one model year with 400 pounds of torque before changing it completely in 2015. they also didnt sell many 14 spark evs.
 
The 13 was a model refresh year. That's what happens with all cars. Especially if the refresh gets a bunch of new features like the '13 Leaf did (around view monitor).

CarMax also doesn't know what they're doing with the Leaf. They've been trying to sell a '13 near me for 19 grand for over 4 months now.
 
pkulak said:
The 13 was a model refresh year. That's what happens with all cars. Especially if the refresh gets a bunch of new features like the '13 Leaf did (around view monitor).

CarMax also doesn't know what they're doing with the Leaf. They've been trying to sell a '13 near me for 19 grand for over 4 months now.
Click to expand...
for some reason carmax has great prices on 11 and 12 but very high for 2013.
 
pkulak said:
The 13 was a model refresh year. That's what happens with all cars. Especially if the refresh gets a bunch of new features like the '13 Leaf did (around view monitor).
Click to expand...
Yep, as I think I've posted before and others have too, there were a TON of improvements that began w/the '13 Leaf.

See below, for example. I unfortunately don't have time to elaborate more.
http://sfbayleafs.org/news/2013/01/2013-nissan-leaf-product-highlights/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
http://sfbayleafs.org/commentary/2013/09/2013-vs-2011-nissan-leaf-whats-new-whats-gone-whats-changed/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

The price difference is whacked but besides a ton of enhancements, the '13 Leaf will (if all else is equal) have less calendar losses on the battery. And, since I think we've discussed you being in Vegas, be prepared for substantial battery capacity loss due to your hot summers, and likely it'll be worse on the '12 than the '13s. It appears the '13s are holding up better on the capacity loss front. Maybe that's what some of the unspecified chemistry changes were for/partly for?

If you're going to buy, better make sure that the car will still be usable for your needs and charging situation for the duration you plan to keep it.
 
cwerdna said:
pkulak said:
The 13 was a model refresh year. That's what happens with all cars. Especially if the refresh gets a bunch of new features like the '13 Leaf did (around view monitor).
Click to expand...
Yep, as I think I've posted before and others have too, there were a TON of improvements that began w/the '13 Leaf.

See below, for example. I unfortunately don't have time to elaborate more.
http://sfbayleafs.org/news/2013/01/2013-nissan-leaf-product-highlights/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
http://sfbayleafs.org/commentary/2013/09/2013-vs-2011-nissan-leaf-whats-new-whats-gone-whats-changed/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

The price difference is whacked but besides a ton of enhancements, the '13 Leaf will (if all else is equal) have less calendar losses on the battery. And, since I think we've discussed you being in Vegas, be prepared for substantial battery capacity loss due to your hot summers, and likely it'll be worse on the '12 than the '13s. It appears the '13s are holding up better on the capacity loss front. Maybe that's what some of the unspecified chemistry changes were for/partly for?

If you're going to buy, better make sure that the car will still be usable for your needs and charging situation for the duration you plan to keep it.
Click to expand...
im torn between the 14 spark ev for 17k or the 2012 leaf sl for 13xxx. the spark has a tms which should allow my battery to last for the 10 years i plan on keeping the car. it also could be a collectible because of the torque. BUT the leaf has a quick charger and i think the 6.6 charger. the decision would be so much easier if one of the cars came with kate upton.
 
^^^
Spark EV can have optional Combo1 version of SAE Combo inlet, which is currently totally useless in NV as there are 0 such DC FCs there. Spark EV only has a lame 3.3 kW OBC. And, it'll be interesting to see what happens if you need warranty work and maintenance in NV given that the car's not sold in NV.

CHAdeMO inlet (for DC FCing) is optional on Leafs. Only the '13+ Leaf SV and SL along w/S trim w/"charge package" (adds 6 kW OBC and CHAdeMO inlet) have a 6 kW OBC.

Pre-'13 Leafs only have 3.3 kW OBC, along w/'13+ S trims WITHOUT the "charge package".

FWIW, CHAdeMO is near useless in NV, as well as there are close to 0 of those stations in that state.
 
cwerdna said:
^^^
Spark EV can have optional Combo1 version of SAE Combo inlet, which is currently totally useless in NV as there are 0 such DC FCs there. Spark EV only has a lame 3.3 kW OBC. And, it'll be interesting to see what happens if you need warranty work and maintenance in NV given that the car's not sold in NV.

CHAdeMO inlet (for DC FCing) is optional on Leafs. Only the '13+ Leaf SV and SL along w/S trim w/"charge package" (adds 6 kW OBC and CHAdeMO inlet) have a 6 kW OBC.

Pre-'13 Leafs only have 3.3 kW OBC, along w/'13+ S trims WITHOUT the "charge package".

FWIW, CHAdeMO is near useless in NV, as well as there are close to 0 of those stations in that state.
Click to expand...
i called the local chevy dealership and they said they can work on the chevy spark evs as long as they have a volt technician available. that wont be a problem. also, the bolt will be available nationwide in 2 years so as long as the battery isnt a lemon before then, i should only need basic checks.... arent they installing fast chargers this year all over the west coast. bmw and nissan said they planned on building fast chargers.
 
DO NOT buy a 2011-2012 Leaf. The battery and the battery management systems were not good. I bought a 2011 SL used, followed the recommended guidelines for ccharging/driving and the battery degraded to 76% by 40k miles. I ate the depreciation and traded it in for a 2013 SL with 17k. The battery is still 100% with 67.36 Ah and I average 1.1 miles per kilowatt hour more with my newer one without changing my driving habits. The 6.6 kW charger also eliminates most of the need for quick charging or really ever charging above 80%, which extends the life of the battery at an acceptable capacity.
 

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