If I buy a Leaf, will it strand me?

I am considering buying a new 2015 Leaf SV
I live on the north side of Atlanta, Georgia.
I drive 32 miles to work in the morning on a road where the speed limit is 45 MPH. I pass 61 traffic lights, so there is a lot of stop and go driving.
I take lunch a noon, maybe drive 5 miles.
Then back 32 miles to home.
There are no charging stations near my work.
So that is 69 miles miles 5 days per week.
I will charge at home each night.
Is that much driving too much for a Leaf?

Klumsr said:

I am considering buying a new 2015 Leaf SV
I live on the north side of Atlanta, Georgia.
I drive 32 miles to work in the morning on a road where the speed limit is 45 MPH. I pass 61 traffic lights, so there is a lot of stop and go driving.
I take lunch a noon, maybe drive 5 miles.
Then back 32 miles to home.
There are no charging stations near my work.
So that is 69 miles miles 5 days per week.
I will charge at home each night.
Is that much driving too much for a Leaf?

Click to expand...

Seems reasonable.

There's not even a standard outlet at your work you can just plug into? If you are there for 8 hours a day, that boost can really help even from an L1 station.

69miles without factoring in weather and HVAC usage is pushing it but a new Leaf can do it no problems. A 3+ year old Leaf, well it will be interesting. But by then hopefully you will be able to charge on both sides.

Nope .. you will be fine.. if you are very disciplined in charging on time.

However I highly recommend you to install 220V at home and upgrade your trickle charger (L1) which come with the Leaf to a 220V L2 charger. You will do fine with AC and music blaring too. I have been using the car for 2 months and my round trip is exactly half of yours and we have been charging every alternate day and its doing well. In fact now the fully charged range is coming up as 94 miles in the meter and i have been told that people have done over 100 miles on a charge. The stop and go will not affect your range too much if you are smart about it and not braking at the last minute but rather easing off the acc before you hit the lights. Also you can drive on Eco mode if you are not on the freeway. I drive all the streets on Eco mode and when I do have to hit the Freeway I get off Eco mode which is a small button on the steering. Try it out and i am sure you will be converted. For first 3 years if you get stranded Nissan will tow you for Free and charge you up. I would say GO FOR IT!! You will not regret it..

The conditions are likely reasonable. Much of the time it's a matter of how much forethought and effort you are willing to make to get any EV to work. Would recommend visiting plugshare.com to look for a few "Plan B" charging stops near your work and along your route just in case an unexpected event happens. You might also approach the dealer with the approach I took, ask to test drive the car on your route to get a feel for the power consumption. Yes, I got a blank stare over wanting to take a 73 mile test drive on their brand new car but it was necessary if I was going to buy their car.

There are a bunch of L2 around, Have you signed up for Plug Share? Are there other EV'S at your work? Talk to your facilities management people, they may put in a L2 charger. (If I recall there are Tax Credits for them to do it.)

PM me, I'm on NorthSide of ATL also.

Klumsr said:

I am considering buying a new 2015 Leaf SV
I live on the north side of Atlanta, Georgia.
I drive 32 miles to work in the morning on a road where the speed limit is 45 MPH. I pass 61 traffic lights, so there is a lot of stop and go driving.
I take lunch a noon, maybe drive 5 miles.
Then back 32 miles to home.
There are no charging stations near my work.
So that is 69 miles miles 5 days per week.
I will charge at home each night.
Is that much driving too much for a Leaf?

Click to expand...

you should be ok at first but you are right on the edge, and after a few years you may not be able to make it r/t.
at those speeds and that kind of driving you should get well over 80 miles of range

However I highly recommend you to install 220V at home and upgrade your trickle charger (L1) which come with the Leaf to a 220V L2 charger.

Click to expand...

In this case it makes more sense to leave the portable L-1 EVSE (which is not a "charger" but a 'smart charging cable') alone. Carry it along with you, because it's usually much easier to find a 120 volt outlet in a pinch than a 240 volt RV or dryer outlet. If you do upgrade it via "EVSE upgrade", make sure to get the 120 volt adapter plug. BTW, L-1 charging adds 5% charge per hour, so it does add up over a few hours.

maini said:

However I highly recommend you to install 220V ..

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There seem to be many models to choose from. Can you recommend one?
Thanks!!

The $495 Clipper Creek unit has a 3 year warranty and a bulletproof reputation. They also have a 16amp $395 unit, but unless money is tight you want at least 20 amps, for faster charging. Your car can charge at 27 amps, so a 30 amp unit is the most you need.

If I buy a Leaf, will it strand me?

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It pretty much depends on your driving style and how your battery degrades over time. If you're willing to do what you must to make it work, you'll probably be fine for quite a while.

Klumsr said:

I am considering buying a new 2015 Leaf SV
I live on the north side of Atlanta, Georgia.
I drive 32 miles to work in the morning on a road where the speed limit is 45 MPH. I pass 61 traffic lights, so there is a lot of stop and go driving.
I take lunch a noon, maybe drive 5 miles.
Then back 32 miles to home.
There are no charging stations near my work.
So that is 69 miles miles 5 days per week.
I will charge at home each night.
Is that much driving too much for a Leaf?

Click to expand...

How much time does the commute take? While lower speed is great, 61 traffic lights sounds like it might create a lot of 'idle' time, which means you will be running the A/C more than the average driver. I think you will be ok tho, and definitely check plugshare.com to see how many charging stations are near you. Since Atlanta is a top market for the LEAF, I would think you have access to charging stations if needed.

If you give me more details about your commute, my answer can be more precise.

My commute is 24 miles each way, from Acworth to Alpharetta via US-92. Lots of traffic lights, posted speed limit is 45 MPH, not a high-speed highway.

Last week I had an extended commute; 35 miles each way, with the A/C on. Battery was at 65% when I arrived, 30% when I got home at the end of the day.

My Leaf is only 7 months old; after some time range will decrease as battery ages. At that point, you should look for some form of workplace charging.

If I need more range (trip to the airport, for example), I just stop by a quick charger and top off for 20-30 minutes.

Some other days, I just take the ICE car to work instead.

YMMV.

Klumsr said:

maini said:

However I highly recommend you to install 220V ..

Click to expand...

There seem to be many models to choose from. Can you recommend one?
Thanks!!

Click to expand...

You can either do this... http://www.mynissanleaf.com/viewtopic.php?f=26&t=16948" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
I have done it and i get a L2 charging at about 12Amps charging rate for $25

Or you can upgrade your EVSE by evseupgrade.com for $290 and then you get a 20-24A charging.

I have found the $25 hack works just fine for me and I am not spending the $290. IT charges the car overnight from 11pm to 7am when the rates are lowest for me.