Having a hard time deciding between nav or QC port

Here is my dilemma. I live in Atlanta where there is a decent public charging interface and will likely continue to grow. There are not a TON of QC ports but there are some (a few major shopping centers and the dealerships).

This will be a commuter car (35 miles r/t). Longest single R/T I can think of is to the airport and back which is 60 miles.

The dealership i've chosen has an S with the QC port or an SV with nav but no QC port. The only real reason I want the NAV is it supports bluetooth audio streaming and i listen almost exclusively to audiobook in the car. The S's bluetooth does not support this. The added efficiency charts and tips are an added bonus. I will likely never use the nav since I use Waze on my phone.

So the question is, what makes more sense? Sure there are not a ton of QC ports around but they are there if i need them and im sure the infrastructure will continue to grow over the never several years. I am also guessing that the QC port will add value to the car when i trade it in.

Can the factory nav be added to the S after the fact? That might be a reasonable solution. Thoughts?

alteredshadow said:

Thoughts?

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Does the S support USB input from your phone? Could that be a usable work around?

Sounds like you'll never need/use the QC port (I don't). I use BT/streaming all the time: go for the NAV.

alteredshadow said:

The dealership i've chosen has an S with the QC port or an SV with nav but no QC port. The only real reason I want the NAV is it supports bluetooth audio streaming and i listen almost exclusively to audiobook in the car. The S's bluetooth does not support this. The added efficiency charts and tips are an added bonus. I will likely never use the nav since I use Waze on my phone.

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For me, the decision is simple. If I don't have the nav, I may be able to change my listening habits. However, if I don't have QC, I am stuck and can't change my charging habits. I have only 3.3 kW charging in my 2011 LEAF so the QC port is very useful when I drive about 40 mi and need a charge to drive home. For this I use QC because L2 is too slow. If I had a 6.6 kW charger then perhaps the situation would be different.

How about going to a different dealer and getting the car you really want? Get a LEAF with BOTH. I wouldn't compromise just because the dealer has a lame selection.

Yeah, surely there are dealers selling LEAFs all over the Atlanta area, and it's likely that one of them has an SV with the CHAdeMO port... and besides, you could always ask the dealer to find out what it'd take to truck one in for you.

You can buy bluetooth "dongles" that will work with the aux port, although you won't have back/forward skip-ability. You should also try the USB port to see if it works with your phone (it doesn't on my Note 4).

I say go port. Sure it's just a commuter car now, but in the future you may end up wanting to drive it more... a lot more. I'm a bit biased tho (see sig ).

alteredshadow said:

The only real reason I want the NAV is it supports bluetooth audio streaming and i listen almost exclusively to audiobook in the car. The S's bluetooth does not support this. The added efficiency charts and tips are an added bonus. I will likely never use the nav since I use Waze on my phone.

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you want the BT for the radio and ballgames and whatever. it is what will get the most use. I would go that way.
but only you know whether the QC will be something you will use.

of course, the real answer is to look around for the entire package.

alteredshadow said:

Here is my dilemma. I live in Atlanta where there is a decent public charging interface and will likely continue to grow. There are not a TON of QC ports but there are some (a few major shopping centers and the dealerships).

This will be a commuter car (35 miles r/t). Longest single R/T I can think of is to the airport and back which is 60 miles.

The dealership i've chosen has an S with the QC port or an SV with nav but no QC port. The only real reason I want the NAV is it supports bluetooth audio streaming and i listen almost exclusively to audiobook in the car. The S's bluetooth does not support this. The added efficiency charts and tips are an added bonus. I will likely never use the nav since I use Waze on my phone.

So the question is, what makes more sense? Sure there are not a ton of QC ports around but they are there if i need them and im sure the infrastructure will continue to grow over the never several years. I am also guessing that the QC port will add value to the car when i trade it in.

Can the factory nav be added to the S after the fact? That might be a reasonable solution. Thoughts?

Click to expand...

Don't the LED headlights come with the QC package or has that changed? Do you care either way about headlight?

Easy,,,QC

When I got my Leaf, they tried to sell me the Nav. I looked at the salesguy, The car has a 80 range, I know where I'm going in that kind of range. If not I have Stand Alone GPS (in the ICE Car) , and an App on my phone.

If your job is like in sales, delivery, where you are regularly going to unknown places, then a NAV is is nice. But a Stand Alone GPS is Hugely Cheaper.

The OP should find a car with both.
I have a 2011 and have used DCQC 158 times.
Short range electric vehicles without it are a poor idea in my opinion.

I have a 2009 Altima SL with Bose stereo and it does not stream Bluetooth audio.
Only does phone calls.
Not sure why Nissan was that stupid but not having the streaming is annoying.

But OP is overlooking two other important things.
Will want the 6.0 kW on board charger too.
The DCQC at dealer is broken and have been doing L2 instead.
3.8 kW L2 charging is annoyingly slow.

And in my opinion in an area that gets cold not having the heat pump heater is a mistake.

OP should go find a LEAF that has all four:
DCQC
Bluetooth audio streaming
6.0 kW on board L2 charger
Heat pump heater

I have to agree with other posters who suggest getting a vehicle with both options, as OP seems to have a desire for both. The dealer just wants to move inventory vehicles and has created this dilemma. Either ask them to truck in a vehicle meeting all your wants, or go to another dealer. After purchasing the vehicle, warranty and other service can be done at any dealership.

That said, I own a 2012 SL with both the QC port and the nav. And I need and use neither. I tried the QC port more for the experience when my local dealership installed the QC station. It was everything advertised: fast, impressive, easy, etc. But I don't need it with an L2 in my garage, and the LEAF's very limited and decreasing range.

Several threads exist here that decry the horrors of the nav system's interface, both voice-activated and touch-screen, and the age of the map data it contains. I decided very eary in my ownership that the nav just wasn't worth the difficulty to use it and the ancient version of the data was/is laughable compared to alternatives. My system's data is at least 5 years old according to the info screen, and the $179 update is not worth it to me. I use my iPhone's or iPad's map application and/or my Garmin GPS for nav. Either is far more up-to-date, far easier to use, and have no on-going expenses (lifetime map updates for the Garmin).

Summary: consider the advice of others and get the vehicle you want, not what the dealer has available, unless the "deal" is phenomenal. And even then, you may regret the lack of whichever option you forego for the entire period of your ownership.

Good luck!

I look at it this way.
You are not going to ever really add a QC port to the car if it doesn't have one.
And you will want one. Maybe not need, but want..

Can you add bluetooth to a car stereo that doesn't have it? Yep. They have adapters. Plug into the audio in jack, physically mounted, etc..
Might not give you all the button control, but it might work for you.
They have some higher end add on systems too:
http://www.parrot.com/usa/products/bluetooth-hands-free-car-kits/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
(This is NOT a recommendation! Just a google search result..)

As many have pointed out, the external NAV systems are better and cheaper.

So, if it comes down to price (i.e. You can't get a car with everything), I'd go for the QC.
Also, I have a 2012 with QC, and couldn't live without that, but do agree that the 3.3 charger takes too long to be useful in a lot of situations. Great if you have hours, but less so if you want a charge to get somewhere as soon as feasible..
Luckily, Oregon has a pretty good QC infrastructure..

Full disclosure tho, I do have the Nav system with bluetooth in my 2012 tho... Only use it for the phone.

desiv

For moderate winter climates, the heat pump in SV or SL makes a real difference in the range/comfort trade off. With the 2015, I no longer need to consider whether I have enough range to run the heat and/or defrost. Temperatures have been moderate this spring here in Phoenix, but there has been no noticeable difference in efficiency of the 2015 heat pump in cooling mode compared to the A/C only unit in the 2011 (both are/were very efficient). I used the QC quite a bit with the 2011 because the 3.3 kW charger was slow. Even with the 6 kW charger in the 2015, I use the QC once in a while for extended driving around the city so I go along with the others and recommend you look for an SV with the QC port.

Gerry

Both of my Leafs were the SL model and had QC. My Mercedes B does not have it. The need depends on your use. I think the dealer QC charged my 2013 prior to the sale but I have never needed it.

QC is important to some people. Tony Williams has a QC mod for the RAV4 EV and soon for the B Class since they both use Tesla chargers and they speak the same language. He has sold out of the first two waves so some people need it. For me it is a no sale. L2 fits my needs just fine. If fact I have only charged at work and at home.

If you drive within a 15 mile radius as I do with average trip length 4 miles, you will get a lot more use out of Nav than you will QC. QC is more an emergency op to me. I know where those NRG stations are in Dallas. Here they rarely get any use. I actually wanted to see someone attach that big honking connector onto his or her car before I ever did it to mine. I have not seen it yet after two months. When I check plugshare on the stations, the people using QC at them seem to be mostly Tesla owners.

alteredshadow said:

Here is my dilemma. I live in Atlanta where there is a decent public charging interface and will likely continue to grow. There are not a TON of QC ports but there are some (a few major shopping centers and the dealerships).

Click to expand...

Have you checked out reviews on plugshare.com to find out of those QC that you know of are actually easily accessible and reliable? You may also find there are some you don't know of.