Did the weather do this?

[Nekota]

With a heat pump, 5kW output would probably consume only 1.5kW input.

Wow! That sounds like a fantastic way to increase the total amount of energy in the universe. If everyone had one of those, no one would ever have to burn gasoline, or natural gas, or coal again.

Ray

A heat pump is just an air conditioner with a reverse -- so instead of cooling the air inside and pushing the heat outside, it heats the air inside by cooling the air outside. No energy is created or lost but it does require work hence the word "pump". The effectiveness of the heat pump diminishes as the outside 'air heat source' temperature drops so some additional heat source is needed when temperatures drop into the low 20's and below.

 

[abasile]

Can you guys in the colder areas see how much ECO mode affects cold weather heater energy use?

Based on what I've read on this forum, I had the impression that ECO mode only affects the AC and not the heat. However, ECO mode does appear to limit the power used by the heater.

This evening we went out to dinner in Big Bear Lake. On the way home, with the outside temperature in the low 40s, my wife wanted to be warmed up. To get the car nice and toasty, I set the temperature to 87 F (later lowered it, after the following "test"). Driving in ECO mode as is my habit, the heater's energy use settled in at about 3.0 kW, according to the Energy Info screen. I decided to shift into 'D' to see what effect this might have. Sure enough, the heater power went up to about 3.5 kW. When I shifted back into ECO, the heater went back to 3.0 kW. I repeated this, and confirmed that the heater power was lower in ECO mode.

Yesterday morning, as I noted in this thread, I observed the heater power at about 5 kW after the car had been parked overnight in low 30s temperatures, with the thermostat set to 60 F. However, that particular test was conducted with the car in 'P', sitting in our driveway.

 

[kmp647]

That's good news!

Have you used the pre heat when plugged in?

How has that worked on a cold morning?

I plan on parking outside plugged into L2 most winter nights here in Va

Hoping that pre heating (CC) timer gets the job done

I have read in the manual that even plugged into L2 the battery may be tapped in addition to the juice from L2 on cold morning warm up, reducing range.

Another observation : Nissan should have an Eco setting for climate only!

Improvement they should add , might take a software change only, maybe.
Then you get same pedal response but lower cc consumption

Hybrid toyota has this feature

 

[jkirkebo]

A heat pump is just an air conditioner with a reverse -- so instead of cooling the air inside and pushing the heat outside, it heats the air inside by cooling the air outside. No energy is created or lost but it does require work hence the word "pump". The effectiveness of the heat pump diminishes as the outside 'air heat source' temperature drops so some additional heat source is needed when temperatures drop into the low 20's and below.

Newer types of heat pumps works well in 0F weather and even below (down to -25C). The resistive heating element should obviously be retained as a backup since the output is somewhat lower with lower outside temps.

 

[abasile]

Have you used the pre heat when plugged in? How has that worked on a cold morning?

While I haven't used the preheat feature much, it does seem to work decently. I anticipate it will be particularly useful on the mornings when it is necessary to clear snow and ice from the car.

I have read in the manual that even plugged into L2 the battery may be tapped in addition to the juice from L2 on cold morning warm up, reducing range.

Yes, this makes sense. When the heater is drawing 5 kW, that's more than the 3.3 kW charger can provide. However, I suspect that if you allow the car enough time to preheat, the heater draw will drop, allowing energy to be put back into the pack via L2. Also, this issue should go away with the 2013 LEAF, with its 6.6 kW charger.

 

[DaveEV]

Can you guys in the colder areas see how much ECO mode affects cold weather heater energy use?

Based on what I've read on this forum, I had the impression that ECO mode only affects the AC and not the heat. However, ECO mode does appear to limit the power used by the heater.

It certainly does - with ambient temps in the 50s around here, ECO mode limits heater draw to about 1 kW - going into D quickly brings it up to 2.5-3 kW when asking for 68-70* cabin temps.

 

[garygid]

Currently, 60ºF is the lowest CC Temperature setting. A firmware change to make one more "temp-down" set a "no-heater" mode would seem to be a fairly easy firmware "fix" (enhancement).