2021 Nissan Leaf?

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queuetee

Member
Joined
Aug 12, 2020
Messages
22
When is the release date, if there is one?
Will there be any changes for 2021?
I checked my local, Norcal, dealers still have a lot of 2020 in their inventories, I wonder if they will order 2021
 
I recently had a call with Nissan corporate on the 2021 LEAF and they will most likely be hitting the dealers lots in the first quarter of 2021.

There are no major changes to the 2021, but as with all cars year to year there are lots of little changes.

I expect that I will be getting my hands on one to review very soon, and will be publishing my finding then.

There are still 2019 and 20 cars in inventory, and they have some great offers attached to them.
 
Pricing on a 2018 LEAF SV (40 kWh pack) starts at around $15k in NorCal, from what I can see on Autotrader. I'll never understand why people buy new, with those kind of deals to be had on used...
 
DougWantsALeaf said:
Yep. Even here in Illinois with no state program (though we do have the $100 ev annual surcharge), there are lease deals under $200 with interest now now.
Post some adverts or links that show all the details. It is not helpful to post partial information.

E.g.,
Money down,
TT&L
Acquisition costs
Return fees
Lease duration
Financing cost
 
DougWantsALeaf said:
Its was on the NissanUSA site for my zip code. $199/month and $199 down for the 40 Leaf. A 62 SL was $360 month and $360 down.

Confused, as earlier you said:

If you can get a new Leaf Lease for under $100 a month with almost nothing down, why bother with a used one?

Anyways, leasing a LEAF isn't the same as buying one...

A 5 year (60 month) car loan on a $15000 purchase, with $3000 down, would cost $216 per month (assuming 3% rate). At the end of that 5 years, the car would likely still be worth $10000. So, effectively you would be out of pocket about $6000 ($5000 depreciation + $1000 in loan interest on a 3% rate) as you still own the car and could sell it if you chose to. Also, once the payments are gone, your cost of ownership drops to almost nothing thereafter.

You quoted $199 monthly, on a 3 year lease for a 40 kWh new LEAF. Total payments are almost $7200 and you don't own the car - so no depreciation incurred, but no asset value either.

All fine if you can write off the lease payments as a business expense, but otherwise a lease makes no sense to me. A 2018 LEAF is almost identical to a new 2020 LEAF with a 40 kWh pack, so you end up paying a premium for a car that's no better.
 
I should have added one other proviso that's unique to EV purchases...

A lease is a good deal if you can't afford payments for a new EV purchase yet, by leasing, you would save over $200 per month on "fuel" and maintenance cost savings (ie $250 monthly on gas and maintenance, dropping to $50 monthly on electricity to charge an EV).

There a lot of people in that situation and I wish more people realized it and switched to EVs for that one reason. Once they lease their first EV, they'll never go back to an ICE...

Buying a used EV is still a better deal though 😜
 
alozzy said:
I should have added one other proviso that's unique to EV purchases...

A lease is a good deal if you can't afford payments for a new EV purchase yet, by leasing, you would save over $200 per month on "fuel" and maintenance cost savings (ie $250 monthly on gas and maintenance, dropping to $50 monthly on electricity to charge an EV).

There a lot of people in that situation and I wish more people realized it and switched to EVs for that one reason. Once they lease their first EV, they'll never go back to an ICE...

Buying a used EV is still a better deal though 😜

I found that with only federal tax credit factored in buying new is a better deal than buying 1-2 year old used. I’m on my 4th new leaf. I’m a cash buyer so that makes a difference. As a cash buyer I negotiate “Out the Door price” rather than how much a month.

My 18 month old (paid for) 2019 SL Plus was just totaled last month. After negotiating, I purchased a new freshly manufactured 2020 SL Plus replacement for $6,000 more than insurance payout. Then I get a $7,500 tax credit so I’m $1,500 in my pocket ahead.

The SL Plus serves our primary mission perfectly. We routinely travel 120 miles between 2 houses and I arrive with 90 miles of range remaining. The remote cabin is 30 miles from town for grocery runs. @ 2.5 cents/mile to feed it I smile every day.

I would not have purchased a new Leaf had it not been for the tax credit. That’s one of the reasons why I’m not driving a Tesla. No tax credit on a Tesla.
 
Last year (2019), the tax credits and discounts put a 10K divide between the SR+ and Plus SV/SL. This year with the deep discounts on the Leaf, its quickly growing to close to 15K or more. Bolts are as heavily discounted, but lack the tax credit.

Thats a hard gap to look past.
 
alozzy said:
A 5 year (60 month) car loan on a $15000 purchase, with $3000 down, would cost $216 per month (assuming 3% rate). At the end of that 5 years, the car would likely still be worth $10000.
Are you saying 33% depreciation after 5 years ? That would be exceptional. 2/3 depreciation sounds closer to the mark to me.

For one contrary example, I bought my 30 month old LEAF for $8,300. My somewhat WAG is that it sold for ~ $30k when new, and then was eligible for a $7,500 federal tax credit. So even if you figure that the manufacturer took the entire tax credit, depreciation was
1 - 8300/22,500 = 63%

Leasing has a (relatively) good name in the LEAF world because Nissan has historically periodically dumped cars on the US market via lease deals to make sales quotas, and their loss has been a deal for consumers. That aberration (in the sense that manufacturers make product to profit) aside, leases are expected to be more expensive to the consumer than buying new for two basic reasons:

Depreciation is highest in the first 3 years of a car's life, exactly the period when leases run their course. People who take on leases are driving around in new-ish cars, and they pay for the privilege.
Second, insurance costs are higher, due to the higher value of the car. Once people are comfortable with the car value to self-insure then insurance costs drop dramatically. That never happens for people who lease, but it can happen for people who buy used or buy new and keep the car long term.

Once again using my LEAF as an example, we pay ~ $25 a month for good liability insurance but self-insure comp and collision.

Summing up, our LEAF has depreciated ~$2,000 - $3,000 during the 48 months we have owned it from age 2 1/2 years to 6 1/2 years, which works out to ~ $42 - $62 a month. After adding in insurance it has cost us somewhere in the range of $67 - $87 a month (not including O+M.)
 
I think he was comparing a new 2020 Leaf to a used 2018 Leaf that cost $15,000. That's what it sounds like from his last paragraph.
 
alozzy said:
A 2018 LEAF is almost identical to a new 2020 LEAF with a 40 kWh pack, so you end up paying a premium for a car that's no better.
I reread your post and I follow your argument now. I have two comments:

1, your assumption that the 8 y/o LEAF will be worth $10k is far from a given
2, the newer car has 2 - 3 years less battery degradation throughout your ownership period. Particularly where the LEAF is concerned that should not be ignored
 
DougWantsALeaf said:
The 2020 has better safety equipment.

I moved the SV+ tonight while clearing snow, and noticed that when it detects an obstacle behind it while backing up, it does several things: it sounds a ship-horn-like early warning, it starts the pre-autobraking sequence, and it shows you, with a highlighted area on the Around View, where the obstacle is located.
 
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