My list of things I'd like to see changed on the Gen 2 LEAF

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mwalsh

Well-known member
Leaf Supporting Member
Joined
Apr 22, 2010
Messages
9,781
Location
Garden Grove, CA
Another (and simpler) way to select ECO instead of (or in addition to) toggling the shifter. Maybe even one mounted to the steering wheel.

Another design for those fender mounted turn signal lamps. One that looks more integrated into the body than the current version, which looks like it was stuck to the fender as an afterthought.

More to follow.
 
Why an easier way to change to eco? I bet I know your answer but I'm curious.
 
Read and use Track Number tags on USB stick audio files.

Don't use shiny black plastic inside car, as scratches will show too easily. More of a matte finish would wear better.

Offer a darker fabric color choice for the interior.

Offer 6.6kW charging, even if it is an option.

Offer some additional colors for the exterior, especially a nice shade of Green

Do away with the "Tree display" on the dash and replace it with some more useful telemetry.


I'm sure I'll think of more....I love the car, so these are just meant as constructive suggestions...
 
Randy said:
Read and use Track Number tags on USB stick audio files.

Don't use shiny black plastic inside car, as scratches will show too easily. More of a matte finish would wear better.

Offer a darker fabric color choice for the interior.

Offer 6.6kW charging, even if it is an option.

Offer some additional colors for the exterior, especially a nice shade of Green

Do away with the "Tree display" on the dash and replace it with some more useful telemetry.


I'm sure I'll think of more....I love the car, so these are just meant as constructive suggestions...


+1 except the green. The fabric looks to be a nightmare, family car? I hope the kids wear cloves and booties.
 
x2 on having Eco mode as a selectable default

And I want Carwings to have free wifi connectivity
I would pay for the leather seats... maybe seat covers will be in order.
 
My suggestion is to have separate thread for each enhancement suggestion (atleast for a related group of them). Ofcourse, one can read the title and figure out what suggestion it is.

The reason is, otherwise these threads get long and offtopic very soon.
 
1. Move the charge lid open switch AWAY from the front "engine" lid open switch (preferably higher and easier to reach... heck, we're doing it every freaking day !)
2. Provide capability to set more than one charge time in a day
3. Provide slower charge rate at my option.
4. Leather seat option
5. A 5' 1" person needs to sit on a pillow (sheese. not safe). Add a power seat option (that the customer will pay for) and do it right (please). They do not use much energy as they are not in constant use.
6. Provide a way to delete a route (or I just can't figure it out it's so non-intuitive)
7. Install a REAL sun visor that can actually block the sun from the drivers window
8. Do away with the mouse-like shifter and use what everyone is used to using (see new Ford EV for example).

Malcolm :geek:
 
  • Leather interior.
  • 6.6kW charger
  • Less bulbous/eco/koi styling.
  • One fewer placebo solar panel.
  • Tighter or programmable steering feel.
  • HID headlights (unless the LED ones are equivalent)
  • In-handle optical sensors for automatic "no touch" unlock (See: Prius)
  • Geek Screen with state-of-charge and numbers galore
  • Motor seats, driver memory, heated mirrors & seats, dual-zone climate, upgraded soundsystem, ah hell, an Infiniti badge!
 
GroundLoop said:
  • Leather interior.
  • 6.6kW charger
  • Less bulbous/eco/koi styling.
  • One fewer placebo solar panel.
  • Tighter or programmable steering feel.
  • HID headlights (unless the LED ones are equivalent)
  • In-handle optical sensors for automatic "no touch" unlock (See: Prius)
  • Geek Screen with state-of-charge and numbers galore
  • Motor seats, driver memory, heated mirrors & seats, dual-zone climate, upgraded soundsystem, ah hell, an Infiniti badge!

+1 on everything, except for the solar panel. I like the solar panel because I once accidentally left the parking lights on and ran down the battery on my dad's Honda when I was a PA (my car was in the shop) and it involved me running (literally) across Hollywood trying to buy jumper cables so I could go pick up paycheques for the crew the day before a long weekend. It sucked and that placebo solar panel would have totally saved my butt that day.
 
1. Put as many features of carwings into wifi and bluetooth as possible. If a phone pairs with the car for voice calling, it should be able to pair with the car for data transmission, perhaps using bluetooth 3.0 or simple wifi hotspot.
2. Offer an option for a 32kw battery pack (at considerable expense). There are many cars that offer a high-performance engine option at considerable expense, and this would be a natural choice to alleviate range anxiety.
3. Use a software package that supports installed apps.
4. Support a third-party API to download performance data (at least through OBD2 extensions).
5. offer an option for Shai Agassi's exchangable battery packs (www.betterplace.com).

In case they decide to strengthen their lobbying/policy work:
1. Form an industry group with Ford & Mitsubishi to support better home installations of chargers.
2. Lobby Congress to promote cheap charging at off-peak hours. The PG&E E9A rate plan is a travesty.
 
leafme said:
2. Provide capability to set more than one charge time in a day
How about:

"Start charging immediately if plugged in during timer-set charging window"

Based on discussions here, if the car isn't plugged in before the "start" time you need to manually override the timer to start charging. Nonsense!

Also based on discussions here, I'll add:

1. Digital SOC meter

2. Eliminate/Toggle "engine brake" regen on Eco mode. You should coast freely when your foot is off the pedals to optimize use of the vehicle's momentum. Light pressure on the brake should regen.

3. Configurable max charge (Instead of just 80% or 100%)

4. Thermal management for battery pack, even if only an option

=Smidge=
 
Smidge204 said:
How about:

"Start charging immediately if plugged in during timer-set charging window"

2. Eliminate/Toggle "engine brake" regen on Eco mode. You should coast freely when your foot is off the pedals to optimize use of the vehicle's momentum. Light pressure on the brake should regen.

+1 on these ideas!

Also I think they need to improve the audio system. It seems that the LEAF can not sort my USB music at all. It only wants to show me the music by the exact folder name the files are in. This gets hard to find the music you want to listen to. If the LEAF could sort using the data in the MP3 tags that would be great!

-Peter
 
Smidge204 said:
Based on discussions here, if the car isn't plugged in before the "start" time you need to manually override the timer to start charging. Nonsense!


I'm not entirely convinced yet that this is the case. I am holding out a slight hope that IF you have an end time on the timer (which is not mandatory), and you plug in during the window between the start and stop, it will start, and it only fails to start if you don't have an end time on the timer (which I would assert is the correct behavior, since in that case it has no idea whether your delayed plug-in might result in a charge duration that throws you into a different, expensive TOU tier). I'll test this soon unless someone already has demonstrated that the presence or lack of an end-time on the timer has no effect.
 
Smidge204 said:
1. Digital SOC meter

2. Eliminate/Toggle "engine brake" regen on Eco mode. You should coast freely when your foot is off the pedals to optimize use of the vehicle's momentum. Light pressure on the brake should regen.
...
=Smidge=

Re: (1). Earlier, I didn't get all the fuss over the high precision SOC meter but after driving a bit more and seeing the wildly varying Distance readings whenever hit a long steady incline I can see how an SOC would give me a better feel for how my driving is affecting the remaining kWh.
Re: (2). I have to admit I like driving in Eco mode because I like the single pedal regen. Feels a bit more like driving a stick. I've learned to overcome the sluggish pedal and now it seems plenty responsive as well. I guess the best solution is to make the regen settable as mentioned earlier.
 
planet4ever said:
Smidge204 said:
2. Eliminate/Toggle "engine brake" regen on Eco mode.
Personally I'd put that the other way around: Eliminate/Toggle the anti-lead-foot feature and the throttled climate control on ECO mode. Why anyone would really want either of those two features is beyond me.

Agreed! I want MAXIMUM regen, with total control and authority. The brake pedal should be for friction braking only. One-foot driving would be the norm.

And yeah, they should separate the ECO-savings stuff (climate, reduced accel, whatever) from the Strong Regen feature.
 
I'd like the soft accelerator function separated from the enhanced regen function in Eco mode. There are times I'd like to use enhanced regen but not soft accelerator.

And, of course, I'd like a user selectable steering feedback and feel function like on the Volt.

I'd also like a 110 volt cabin outlet like in the prototype.

The interior changes that have been mentioned by others already go without saying. If I can't get leather I'd at least like nice faux vinylette...

Ditch the worthless PV and give me something more useful in exchange.

I'd like a more sporting suspension and/or tire option.


mwalsh said:
Another (and simpler) way to select ECO instead of (or in addition to) toggling the shifter. Maybe even one mounted to the steering wheel.
 
All things being equal, I'd ditch the solar panel in return for just increased roof rigidity, less chance of leakage, fewer wiring concerns, and not having to explain to people that

"Yeah, well, really it doesn't do much. No, seriously, it does not charge the car. OK, yeah, but not in a way that lets you go further. Oh nevermind."
 
GroundLoop said:
All things being equal, I'd ditch the solar panel in return for just increased roof rigidity, less chance of leakage, fewer wiring concerns, and not having to explain to people that

"Yeah, well, really it doesn't do much. No, seriously, it does not charge the car. OK, yeah, but not in a way that lets you go further. Oh nevermind."
Oh no. You not like shiny things ? :lol:
 
The thing I'd like to see on all cars - an actual full to empty scale for the windshield washer fluid.

Every car that I've been in just has a warning light when the fluid level gets low. Well, when you are out driving in the snow and the slush and the cars ahead of you and passing you keep spraying crud on your windshield - it gets down right dangerous if you run out of fluid and can't clear the window - and if you can't see, you can't pull over somewhere safely. Knowing the fluid level at all times would be a great safety feature.
 
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