Gen 1 Leaf better than Gen 2?

My car:
2018 Leaf SL
40,000 kms
SOH: 94.13
Daily average commute: 150kms


Wifey's car:
2017 Leaf SV
38,000 kms
SOH: 95
Daily average commute: 130kms

So we both drive the exact same route but I go about 10kms further on the highway one way so approx 20 kms more a day give or take a few kms.
I drive in D mode with e-pedal on all the time and for the last few weeks I stay around a constant 117 kph on the highway.
Wifey drives in D mode (in B mode when she remembers to do it) and Eco on all the time and for the last few weeks drives a constant 110 kph on the highway.
At the end of the day, I am pulling in the driveway with 8-12% SOC and my wife is pulling in the driveway with 18-24% SOC.
Based on LeafSpy, her car is showing a 3% reserve and mine is showing an 8% reserve.
Even adding the 5% difference to my totals puts me at a relative comparison of 13-17% SOC. So same route, same driving conditions, +20 kms a day and approx + 7 kph speed difference. I think even if one of you math guys crunch the numbers it would still conclude that the 2017 Leaf is the superior car.
From my calculations I have been monitoring, I can add 4 kwh extra for the km difference and 2 kwh for the speed difference for a total of 6 kwh. These numbers work out pretty close 30kwh vs 40kwh battery IF I was getting home with same relative SOC but that's not the case.

I don't know exactly how much faith I have in the 2018 and 2019 battery stats. I've been charting mine and they are almost artificial in nature, dropping almost a 0.01% SOH every day - and then every three months a big adjustment. I find that strange, to say the least. I was at 48% this am with a GOM of 81 miles. My point is that I'm not sure anyone really knows yet how the actual battery health is in the 2018. It could be just what the SOH says it is. It could be far worse. Or this number could be a computer generated phantom and we are one software update away from nearly full battery health. I don't think anybody really knows yet.

I test drove several 2015's and I have no doubt the rest of the car in the 2018 is far better. I like the seats a bit better. A bit more interior tech. And the outside design, IMO, is much less fugly. Its actually good looking!

I hear you on the battery I just think its too soon to know. And didn't we get an even better warranty for degradation on the 2018 and 2019?
If Nissan fumbled the ball, again, they will pay the price.

Dan,

Mine too is averaging about a .01 loss per day but I find my numbers to be exactly bang on when comparing LeafSpy stats......
94.13 SOH and 37.5 kwh available at full charge.
But you are right, could be a software update away and hope your right because I am a little worried about the degredation so far.
And I agree with all the points you made about the 2018 model being better, I should have worded it "better areodynamics and battery quality" than the Gen 2.

Yes, exactly, my numbers are almost the same as everyone else's, which I find too artificial in nature. And then every three months like clockwork some big adjustment. I don't do enough road-trips to notice if my REAL range has changed.

I'm just wondering if we are watching anything of real use. Today my HX actually went down a tick. I thought it always went up. Etc

Probably all artificial, I guess we will have to wait and see.
What kind of climate are you in?

To be honest, I hope the battery degredation is linear and I lose 6% per 40,000 kms so if I'm at 18% at 120,000 kms, I will start DCFC the **** out the battery and hope to knock off another 12% in the last 40,000 kms to get it to >30% before 160,000kms and give me a new battery NISSAN!
I joke about it but the sad fact is that based on my commute, in about a year or so, I will probably have to start Fast charging every day anyway.
So let's say $3 a day DCFC x 300 times a year= $900 x 3 more years = $2700 for a new OEM battery.......not bad I guess...lol

sthbeach said:

Probably all artificial, I guess we will have to wait and see.
What kind of climate are you in?

Click to expand...

Very Hot summer

danrjones said:

I test drove several 2015's and I have no doubt the rest of the car in the 2018 is far better. I like the seats a bit better. A bit more interior tech. And the outside design, IMO, is much less fugly. Its actually good looking!

Click to expand...

To each his own. To me Gen2 looks like everything else these days, and overall I find the current vehicle design language boring. I know I'm in the minority but I prefer the Gen1 styling. I like when form follows function and I like designs that stand out because of it.

Nubo said:

danrjones said:

I test drove several 2015's and I have no doubt the rest of the car in the 2018 is far better. I like the seats a bit better. A bit more interior tech. And the outside design, IMO, is much less fugly. Its actually good looking!

Click to expand...

To each his own. To me Gen2 looks like everything else these days, and overall I find the current vehicle design language boring. I know I'm in the minority but I prefer the Gen1 styling. I like when form follows function and I like designs that stand out because of it.

Click to expand...

I prefer the gen 1 styling too! I find myself ogling constantly. The hips don't lie, and it's got a booty like a Cadillac. I'm just sayin'.

I think until we have a few 2018's losing bars, we won't know the truth.

Getting back to the original post: I think it's a combination of the wife driving more gently, and ePedal not being well suited to the route. Try driving in D-Eco as she does, and see if you can mimic her driving style.

I can't speak to the 2017 Leaf (though my sister just bought one), but I get very similar overall efficiency in my 2019 Plus compared to my 2013 SV, in spite of the 500-600 Lbs of extra weight. In the plus I just feel like I have 3x the range.

Freeway might be .1-.2 miles/kWh less. I will have a better test coming in a week as I have a long drive to do, and my tires are now worn in a bit (~3K miles).

LeftieBiker said:

Getting back to the original post: I think it's a combination of the wife driving more gently, and ePedal not being well suited to the route. Try driving in D-Eco as she does, and see if you can mimic her driving style.

Click to expand...

Yes, good suggestion, I am in the process right now of trying a few different styles and combos to see if the numbers get closer.

Wouldn't it be simpler for the two of you to just swap cars for a few days, so you can see directly what difference driving style makes? :roll:

That is even a better solution except I hate to say but i am that guy who hates letting his wife drive his car :?

As I understand it, the e-pedal function has a negative impact on consumption. It is mainly a comfort-function, rather than a tool to improve your range. I know several Gen 2-owners do not use it because of this, except for maybe dense urban traffic with a lot of stop and go.

I cannot see that people are already making predictions of which generation of cars is better.

1) you cannot predict what "degradation" will be--- by measuring a "0.01%" degradation PER DAY??? The car (and battery) will likely last for a decade so measuring even weekly is worthless... You guys are mere babies when it comes to EV ownership, and looking at a number daily is not good for your mental health. You are falling into the same mindset like the climate change nuts that are predicting how many degrees of temperature change will happen in 100 years! impossible.

2) My preference is for the old body style... I LOVE walking up to my car (with the big bug eye headlights} and saying to myself... "I actually have an ELECTRIC CAR.... " even after 5 years of ownership..

I had a 2015 S and now have a 2018 SV. My commute has not changed (90% highway 10% 25mph surface streets). I average 4.2 miles/kWh on the new car and averaged 4.2 miles/kWh on the old car. I actually drive a little faster with the new car because I have more range and don't have to worry about LBW on the way home. I also think the 2018 is better looking, has a nicer interior, and many more gizmos (smart phone integration, blind spot warning, adaptive cruise control) that make it a nicer car in general.

Power surge,

I'm not whining about degredation, I have another active thread about that.....lol
And actually since I have owned the car I have watched it go down perfectly linear on a daily basis in LeafSpy.
On another note about e-pedal, I believe it saves energy in any use. At the end of my daily commute there is a screen that shows Regen saving consumption and it's always between 3-6 kms. I know it's not alot but couple that with more convenient 1 pedal driving and saving brakes.....I love it!

Also, yesterday's commute did prove something about pro pilot and cruise, on my 150km round trip without it on I did save about 5% battery. So as everyone has said, its not the best way to drive for optimal consumption......Confirmed and agree!

Hello South Beach.... Thank you for referring me by my "call sighn" ..

As a 5 year Leaf owner and member of this forum, my most important comment I can make to you is.... Take it easy. Stop worrying, and stop measuring everything!!

You are a new Leaf user, and you appear to be using your daily experiences and measurements as a yardstick to whether you got a "bad car". Do not get hooked into the obsessive use of Leafspy or other measurements of you car or battery's consumption. That is like weighing yourself several times per day and trying to make long term predictions of your health.

If the car uses a little more or less energy on a short term basis, it does not matter - at all. Even if your car was 5% less efficient today, that would be that you need to charge a little more with $0.005 in electricity... You don't measure how much electricity your house uses every day... Well I hope not.. Use the car, enjoy it, and you will be trouble free for hopefully a decade of driving...

One of the benefits of the Leaf that people seem to forget on this forum is that you have NO maintenance or repairs that you normally have on a gas car. With all of the Leaf's limitations, you still can save even $10,000 in car repair bills alone over the life of the car