EV newbie, Nissan newbie, Leaf newbie

Good evening,

Today, my sister signed a 24-month lease on a Leaf SL w/ premium package. She sent me here to be her proxy b/c she "doesn't do" forums. She traded in her 2010 Kia Soul ! after I convinced her an EV was a fun/smart decision for her. Her commute is 15 miles round trip, so why spend money on gas?

I drive a VW Touareg and could definitely use the gas savings she's going to see

Anyway, just wanted to introduce ourselves. I've done lots of research on here as a guest, but I thought I'd sign up so I could use the search function. lol

First order of business is to tint the windows 35% all around, then MAYBE 240v in the garage. We'll see if she needs it. I'm guessing not.

In my opinion, tinting isn't needed for temperature comfort, or even necessarily for range considerations in the LEAF. I had initially planned on doing it, but the AC is actually pretty good and it turned out that it doesn't use that much power. Doing it for style is a personal preference, of course.

I wish her many happy miles of gas-free driving.

Thank you so much!

The tinting is purely cosmetic. I have a complete 35% tint on my Touareg, and she had 20% all around on her Soul.

It's usually the first thing we do to our cars. Relatively inexpensive and makes the car look 10x better IMO.

I would look into getting the 240v EVSE, I got the Bosch Power Max, you can find them on EBay from EV West, they have 3 models that range from around 450.00 - 800.00

At 15 miles round trip for work, this ride would go forever even with the battery degradation. I have a 2011 SL and my daily work commute is 40 miles round trip, with speeds at 65 mph I can get around 55 miles easy. I'm on vacation starting this Monday and will do a mileage run on flat level surface.

Well you came to the right place for answers, look for a LeafDD at a good price, many leaf lease will be ending soon and those LeafDD's will be up for sale, or if you have an Android tablet or phone you can download the program to check battery stats etc.


Fred

The LEAF has been a blast to drive. So quiet that you lose track of your speed. Highway driving over 55 mph eats the battery. No doubt it loves city driving.

We got the windows tinted. 35%. $265.

We did some Level 3 charging in Portland. 26 minutes got us from 25% to 85% rated range. Very cool, very fast, and very free!

Congratulations to your sister for a wise decision, imho. With her commute, the Leaf is a perfect car for her. One problem I can see looming tho': She will not want to let you drive it.

As far as having 240 volt charging at home, while a 15 mile daily commute won't require it, having 240 volt charging at home does make life with the car easier. If you have a QC station nearby, you can mitigate the inconvenience of having only 120 volt charging at home. Also, don't rely on QC for your regular charging routine....too much risk of disappointment due to people already using it, or the station being broken.

Make sure the outlet she uses to charge the car is not used for any other devices (in particular, high-wattage draws like major appliances and heaters) and that it is of good quality with good quality connections. A few people here have posted horror stories of 120 volt outlets overheating due to plugging in their Leafs. You may want to check the temperature of the plug every now and then...it will get warm, but should not get so warm that you can't hold on to it.

So far, no need for 240v. She said she hadn't gone under 50% range until I test drove it this past weekend and got to 25% when we then used the Level 3 charger for the first time.

I know a 240v will be needed someday, but we'll jump off that bridge when we get there.

In terms of heating, are you saying the receptacle will get hot? It's a new house, so I'm assuming all the connections are solid, but certainly not any guarantee.

There is nothing else plugged into the circuit, btw.

If it's a newer house, and the outlet is not used for anything else, you should be OK. But do check for overheating at the plug.

Just to be more clear: the whole circuit the outlet is on, not just the outlet, has to be used for nothing that draws much more than a light bulb or two. You can find the breaker it's on, turn it off (not with the car plugged in), and see what else goes off.

LeftieBiker said:

Just to be more clear: the whole circuit the outlet is on, not just the outlet, has to be used for nothing that draws much more than a light bulb or two. You can find the breaker it's on, turn it off (not with the car plugged in), and see what else goes off.

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LOleaf said:

There is nothing else plugged into the circuit, btw.

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Yes, the whole circuit is unoccupied.

LOleaf said:

LeftieBiker said:

Just to be more clear: the whole circuit the outlet is on, not just the outlet, has to be used for nothing that draws much more than a light bulb or two. You can find the breaker it's on, turn it off (not with the car plugged in), and see what else goes off.

Click to expand...

LOleaf said:

There is nothing else plugged into the circuit, btw.

Click to expand...

Yes, the whole circuit is unoccupied.

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Great. Just make sure that the outlet itself isn't worn. Replace it if it is. Then make sure that the EVSE (charging cable) plug fits snugly into the outlet. I suggest you not repeatedly remove and replace the plug; you can leave it plugged in, as it doesn't draw more than a few watts in Standby mode.