Will an '11 handle an 80 mile roundtrip commute in Austin tx

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madnessssss

Member
Joined
Jan 18, 2015
Messages
9
Summer temps can get to around 100 for a few weeks......winters can gets to 35-45. Im thinking this would not be a smart car to buy in this climate, but i love the idea of getting a $12k car and saving $130 a month on gas compared to my ICE car ($2 a gallon now, 22mpg). Over 5 years thats about $8k in gas savings, making the cost of the car essentially $4k over 5 years. But its not worth it if I'm gonna regularly be stranded on the side of the road in the cold winter days on my way home from work.

BTW my commute is to work and i intend to instal a 240 at work so i can charge there. Im just worried about making the 40 mile trip each way on a cold day with a car that has or will have some battery degradation due to the hot summers.
 
LeftieBiker said:
Even if you found an '11 with no bar loss, and could make the trip with little or no A/C, the battery would degrade fast enough to make you regret it.
thanks. Is there enough of an improvement in later models for this to work for me? Or is it marginal? I think I'm gonna look into the Chevy Volt.
 
Buy a new 2015 instead of the 2011.

Then install one of these at work and at home and you will be fine.
http://www.clippercreek.com/store/product/charging-station-lcs-20-level-2/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
 
KJD said:
Buy a new 2015 instead of the 2011.

Then install one of these at work and at home and you will be fine.
http://www.clippercreek.com/store/product/charging-station-lcs-20-level-2/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
these things are over-priced new. Even with the tax rebates, you are paying an extra $10k for the car (vs a similar quality ICE car) to save $8k in gas over 5 years. Not worth it at all. Theres value in used because these cars simply aren't popular and the value drops like crazy. Can get a low mile 2011 from carmax for $11,800. Theres value there if you have a shorter commute to work.
 
madnessssss said:
KJD said:
Buy a new 2015 instead of the 2011.
Then install one of these at work and at home and you will be fine.
http://www.clippercreek.com/store/product/charging-station-lcs-20-level-2/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
these things are over-priced new. Even with the tax rebates, you are paying an extra $10k for the car to save $8k in gas over 5 years. Not worth it at all. Theres value in used because these cars simply aren't popular and the value drops like crazy. Can get a low mile 2011 from carmax for $11,800. Theres value here, but occasional $150 towing fees can ruin that given my 40 mile commute.
How much is it worth to breathe clean air?
 
KJD said:
madnessssss said:
KJD said:
Buy a new 2015 instead of the 2011.
Then install one of these at work and at home and you will be fine.
http://www.clippercreek.com/store/product/charging-station-lcs-20-level-2/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
these things are over-priced new. Even with the tax rebates, you are paying an extra $10k for the car to save $8k in gas over 5 years. Not worth it at all. Theres value in used because these cars simply aren't popular and the value drops like crazy. Can get a low mile 2011 from carmax for $11,800. Theres value here, but occasional $150 towing fees can ruin that given my 40 mile commute.
How much is it worth to breathe clean air?
buying one for each of the millions of other drivers in my city would be an even less advisable investment.
 
madnessssss said:
LeftieBiker said:
Even if you found an '11 with no bar loss, and could make the trip with little or no A/C, the battery would degrade fast enough to make you regret it.
thanks. Is there enough of an improvement in later models for this to work for me? Or is it marginal? I think I'm gonna look into the Chevy Volt.

That should work much better for you.
 
madnessssss said:
Summer temps can get to around 100 for a few weeks......winters can gets to 35-45. Im thinking this would not be a smart car to buy in this climate, but i love the idea of getting a $12k car and saving $130 a month on gas compared to my ICE car ($2 a gallon now, 22mpg). Over 5 years thats about $8k in gas savings, making the cost of the car essentially $4k over 5 years. But its not worth it if I'm gonna regularly be stranded on the side of the road in the cold winter days on my way home from work.

BTW my commute is to work and i intend to instal a 240 at work so i can charge there. Im just worried about making the 40 mile trip each way on a cold day with a car that has or will have some battery degradation due to the hot summers.

If you have a 240v charger at work, I don't see any reason why it would not work. You'll want a 240v charger installed at home though if you want to top it off so you can enjoy AC/Heat all the time between work and home and have enough left for side trips, etc. with some margin of safety in case of detours, accidents, etc.

I would start with this, do a google maps plot from home to work, then choose the "bicycle" option because it will show an elevation map. That will give you an idea if your trip to work is climbing a mountain or a fairly smooth path. If the elevation between the two is easy (say only a few hundred feet difference), then find a 2011 with low mileage and make sure it has no voided battery warranty from the previous owner and drive that thing until the battery falls out. :D
 
knightmb said:
madnessssss said:
Summer temps can get to around 100 for a few weeks......winters can gets to 35-45. Im thinking this would not be a smart car to buy in this climate, but i love the idea of getting a $12k car and saving $130 a month on gas compared to my ICE car ($2 a gallon now, 22mpg). Over 5 years thats about $8k in gas savings, making the cost of the car essentially $4k over 5 years. But its not worth it if I'm gonna regularly be stranded on the side of the road in the cold winter days on my way home from work.

BTW my commute is to work and i intend to instal a 240 at work so i can charge there. Im just worried about making the 40 mile trip each way on a cold day with a car that has or will have some battery degradation due to the hot summers.

If you have a 240v charger at work, I don't see any reason why it would not work. You'll want a 240v charger installed at home though if you want to top it off so you can enjoy AC/Heat all the time between work and home and have enough left for side trips, etc. with some margin of safety in case of detours, accidents, etc.

I would start with this, do a google maps plot from home to work, then choose the "bicycle" option because it will show an elevation map. That will give you an idea if your trip to work is climbing a mountain or a fairly smooth path. If the elevation between the two is easy (say only a few hundred feet difference), then find a 2011 with low mileage and make sure it has no voided battery warranty from the previous owner and drive that thing until the battery falls out. :D
I guess i wasnt clear, but I meant to say i will install a 240 both at home and at work. So what I'm just trying to be clear on is whether or not the car can make it 40 miles reliably in 35-45 degree weather up to 100k miles (i would probably buy one with about 20-30k miles).

Thanks for the tip about the elevation, ill look into that.
 
40 miles each way will not be a problem.

madnessssss said:
knightmb said:
madnessssss said:
Summer temps can get to around 100 for a few weeks......winters can gets to 35-45. Im thinking this would not be a smart car to buy in this climate, but i love the idea of getting a $12k car and saving $130 a month on gas compared to my ICE car ($2 a gallon now, 22mpg). Over 5 years thats about $8k in gas savings, making the cost of the car essentially $4k over 5 years. But its not worth it if I'm gonna regularly be stranded on the side of the road in the cold winter days on my way home from work.

BTW my commute is to work and i intend to instal a 240 at work so i can charge there. Im just worried about making the 40 mile trip each way on a cold day with a car that has or will have some battery degradation due to the hot summers.

If you have a 240v charger at work, I don't see any reason why it would not work. You'll want a 240v charger installed at home though if you want to top it off so you can enjoy AC/Heat all the time between work and home and have enough left for side trips, etc. with some margin of safety in case of detours, accidents, etc.

I would start with this, do a google maps plot from home to work, then choose the "bicycle" option because it will show an elevation map. That will give you an idea if your trip to work is climbing a mountain or a fairly smooth path. If the elevation between the two is easy (say only a few hundred feet difference), then find a 2011 with low mileage and make sure it has no voided battery warranty from the previous owner and drive that thing until the battery falls out. :D
I guess i wasnt clear, but I meant to say i will install a 240 both at home and at work. So what I'm just trying to be clear on is whether or not the car can make it 40 miles reliably in 35-45 degree weather up to 100k miles (i would probably buy one with about 20-30k miles).

Thanks for the tip about the elevation, ill look into that.
 
I do 35-40 miles each day with 70 mph driving in the car pool lane. And I could do 60 miles if needed with my 11 bar 2011 LEAF. So with L2 at your work you will be charged to full again in about 3 to 4 hours.
 
sweet.....maybe i will do it then. Ill miss the performance and handling of my G37, but even with these new low gas prices, i think it would be beneficial to eliminate gas expense pretty much altogether, and also put some extra cash in my pocket selling the G37.

One thing I'm excited about is I imagine the music listening experience is probably pretty awesome in such a quiet car. Is installing an aftermarket sound system pretty much the same process as any other car? Not sure if ill find a Leaf with a sound upgrade package or if it'll even be worth the extra cost vs picking my own.
 
madnessssss said:
So what I'm just trying to be clear on is whether or not the car can make it 40 miles reliably in 35-45 degree weather up to 100k miles (i would probably buy one with about 20-30k miles).
No.
Not for another 70,000 miles in Austin, TX on a 2011 LEAF that has been there since new and has 20,000 to 30,000 miles on it.

I have driven a 2011 LEAF SL for 43 months that has the energy hog heater.
With three years of capacity degradation and in cold 25F to 35F weather my LEAF is a 30 to 35 mile range vehicle.

Of course it depends on your expectations.
You are getting a lot of thumbs up from people that live where it doesn't get that cold.
Or live in an ideal climate where battery degradation is much less.
Or that have heated seats and steering wheel and tolerate driving without cabin heat.
Only a few very late production 2011 LEAF s have heated seats.

But you also need to recognize that miles is not the only thing to look at.
You need the equipment to get the battery data.
And if a dealer reset the history it takes several cycles to see the real data.
And months for the # of capacity bars to be accurate.

Overall your hopes for 100,000 miles of 40 mile range in cold weather in Austin, TX is unrealistic :shock:

There are numerous posts from people unhappy with the winter range that do not have the heat pump heater.
This one from a person in CT that bought a 2012.
http://www.mynissanleaf.com/viewtopic.php?f=31&t=15516&hilit=+distance#p347802" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
Was another from Georgia that badly regrets buying an S, but I couldn't find the link.

Also recent post from Montana questioning their 13 mile winter range :shock:
http://www.mynissanleaf.com/viewtopic.php?f=6&t=18873&hilit=+montana#p406217" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
 
TimLee said:
madnessssss said:
So what I'm just trying to be clear on is whether or not the car can make it 40 miles reliably in 35-45 degree weather up to 100k miles (i would probably buy one with about 20-30k miles).
No.
Not for another 70,000 miles in Austin, TX on a 2011 LEAF that has been there since new and has 20,000 to 30,000 miles on it.

I have driven a 2011 LEAF SL for 43 months that has the energy hog heater.
With three years of capacity degradation and in cold 25F to 35F weather my LEAF is a 30 to 35 mile range vehicle.

Of course it depends on your expectations.
You are getting a lot of thumbs up from people that live where it doesn't get that cold.
Or live in an ideal climate where battery degradation is much less.
Or that have heated seats and steering wheel and tolerate driving without cabin heat.
Only a few very late production 2011 LEAF s have heated seats.

But you also need to recognize that miles is not the only thing to look at.
You need the equipment to get the battery data.
And if a dealer reset the history it takes several cycles to see the real data.
And months for the # of capacity bars to be accurate.

Overall your hopes for 100,000 miles of 40 mile range in cold weather in Austin, TX is unrealistic :shock:

There are numerous posts from people unhappy with the winter range that do not have the heat pump heater.
This one from a person in CT that bought a 2012.
http://www.mynissanleaf.com/viewtopic.php?f=31&t=15516&hilit=+distance#p347802" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
Was another from Georgia that badly regrets buying an S, but I couldn't find the link.

Also recent post from Montana questioning their 13 mile winter range :shock:
http://www.mynissanleaf.com/viewtopic.php?f=6&t=18873&hilit=+montana#p406217" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
thanks for the info. I see some 2012s with the heated seats available for not much more. Do you think the heated seats make enough of a difference to accomplish what I need?
 
madnessssss said:
Do you think the heated seats make enough of a difference to accomplish what I need?
Possibly.
Many people that have them on the LEAF really like them.
I do not have them on my 2011 LEAF, but do have them on my 2009 Altima.
But it is an ICE, lots of readily available heat so I don't use them very much.

It is a very personal choice.
 
TimLee said:
Overall your hopes for 100,000 miles of 40 mile range in cold weather in Austin, TX is unrealistic :shock:

There are numerous posts from people unhappy with the winter range that do not have the heat pump heater.
This one from a person in CT that bought a 2012.
http://www.mynissanleaf.com/viewtopic.php?f=31&t=15516&hilit=+distance#p347802" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
Was another from Georgia that badly regrets buying an S, but I couldn't find the link.

Also recent post from Montana questioning their 13 mile winter range :shock:
http://www.mynissanleaf.com/viewtopic.php?f=6&t=18873&hilit=+montana#p406217" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
To be fair, the Montana driver was using studded snow tires in a very hilly town, very cold driving. The Connecticut driver was going through -28F weather. I know it sometimes gets cold in the south during winter, but his location in TX would tell me there should be plenty of charge locations in case of emergency. I don't expect TX to be cold 365 days a year; so he could still use it as a spring, summer, fall vehicle if he is concerned about range. Still plenty of gas savings using it 4/5 of the year and only using the ICE when the weather is of concern to range.
 
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