Canadian Shop Upgrades 2015 LEAF & Triples Range To More Than 200 Miles

Hope springs eternal... now if the price could just get a little closer to my budget.

https://cleantechnica.com/2019/12/17/canadian-shop-upgrades-2015-leaf-triples-range-to-more-than-200-miles/

Looks like anyone who wants to upgrade to a larger battery no longer has to do module swapping! A HUGE leap forward!

The most likely use for this (if possible) is swapping in a 40kwh pack, as those should be available in much greater numbers from wrecks, at a lower price. I think that most Gen 1 and 1.5 Leaf drivers would happily settle for 150 miles of range.

it's only going to get lower priced the longer you wait. Lion Batteries will drop in price around 10% a year for the next few years.
the question then becomes can people wait long enough for the price to become better? or will a perfectly good motor and shell be sent to a landfill before their time?

At this point, the prime consideration is the price for a replacement battery from a salvage yard. Installation seems simple enough and $1000 for the converter module. Since they actually installed a 60 KWH pack and had it running, that kind of blows up Nissan's "You can't do it" response. Makes me wonder if Fenix has crammed 60 KWH into their battery as well. Time will tell.

Since they actually installed a 60 KWH pack and had it running, that kind of blows up Nissan's "You can't do it" response.

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That was Toyota's excuse for years for not making a PHEV Prius. Then more and more people started doing it themselves, and when the argument became too stupid to keep using in light of that, they came out with the Prius PHEV.

This is great news. I knew all along it would happen. I believe Nissan will eventually be forced to do battery upgrades for the older LEAFS. Once Fenix has its product established, I foresee consumers buying New LEAFS, removing the existing packs, selling them, and then putting the Fenix Power Battery System in. Just like buying a new car, removing the 12v battery and installing an Optima battery.

I think that is what was holding everyone back is a straight forward, turn key solution to upgrade. It's fun to watch others go car hacking and report the pitfalls, but a simple install xyz and go, even if highly technical puts it within reach of us that don't have time to tinker with a custom solution that only works on our own vehicle. Getting the battery to talk to the car, mounting issues resolved, finished and working example to go by makes this much more appealing to try. :mrgreen:

A few weeks short of 9 years for the aftermarket to finally start providing what was needed from day one. Definitely a very good thing. But demand will buoy prices so hopefully it won't be too much but even a $10K cost to upgrade to "just" 40 kwh is a far better TCO than a new car.

More on this soon!

right now it is a good move, but in 3 or 4 years people are predicting battery prices will decrease from $170/kwh to $100/kwh or about 50 to 60% lower.with battery depreciation that is at least $1000/year in losses due to depreciation.

So basically the longer you can wait the better. And who knows in 4 years one can probably pick up a used 2018 leaf for around $16K which might be a better move if it still has a good battery.

Even if you assume $100/kWhr, by the time you throw in the $1K for the set up, and another $1k (or more) for labor, you're look at over $8K to replace/upgrade the battery on an 8-10 year old car. That's a tough ask.

webb14leafs said:

Even if you assume $100/kWhr, by the time you throw in the $1K for the set up, and another $1k (or more) for labor, you're look at over $8K to replace/upgrade the battery on an 8-10 year old car. That's a tough ask.

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For 60kWh? I'd bet there would be a line of 24kWh LEAFs.

WetEV said:

webb14leafs said:

Even if you assume $100/kWhr, by the time you throw in the $1K for the set up, and another $1k (or more) for labor, you're look at over $8K to replace/upgrade the battery on an 8-10 year old car. That's a tough ask.

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For 60kWh? I'd bet there would be a line of 24kWh LEAFs.

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You might be right, but I'm not sure. It will be several years before my '14 Leaf needs a new battery to meet my needs, and by then I'm not sure I would spend around $5K to restore such an old car. Some people will, some won't.

aluminumwelder said:

right now it is a good move, but in 3 or 4 years people are predicting battery prices will decrease from $170/kwh to $100/kwh or about 50 to 60% lower.with battery depreciation that is at least $1000/year in losses due to depreciation.

So basically the longer you can wait the better. And who knows in 4 years one can probably pick up a used 2018 leaf for around $16K which might be a better move if it still has a good battery.

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In 3 or 4 years? Not happening. The "cost to manufacture" might be that low even sooner but demand dictates price, not manufacturing costs. The cell shortage we are hampered with today will last at least another decade if not longer.

That magic "box" may be $1000 (asking price), but that is their price to get rich with it... I could see that the box would be $3-400.

If it is a straight swap and a plug in box, I cannot see installation to me more than $500-$600 eventually.

I can imagine that in a few years, a 60 KWH battery from a wreck could be maybe... $3,000?.... If YOU get it at the junk yard.

So, we may be talking $4-5,000 to get a 60 kwh battery replacement... I would do it....

DaveinOlyWA said:

In 3 or 4 years? Not happening. The "cost to manufacture" might be that low even sooner but demand dictates price, not manufacturing costs. The cell shortage we are hampered with today will last at least another decade if not longer.

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no one has successfully predicted EV trends 10 years out. I guarantee you will not be the first.

aluminumwelder said:

DaveinOlyWA said:

In 3 or 4 years? Not happening. The "cost to manufacture" might be that low even sooner but demand dictates price, not manufacturing costs. The cell shortage we are hampered with today will last at least another decade if not longer.

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no one has successfully predicted EV trends 10 years out. I guarantee you will not be the first.

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Ah so I am relegated to 2nd place behind you?

lol nice try, but I never predicted a 10 year situation, only you did. I suggested 3 or 4 years, which if you remember elementary school math is not the same as 10 years.

I think I would more likely consider spending $1000 for the black box and then doing an extender battery install in the trunk, similar to what muxsan does. I average about 6.7 km/kWh in summer and about 5.9 km/kWh in winter, so I think adding a 12 kWh - 15 kWh extender pack would be enough to extend the useful life of my LEAF for several more years, based on my range needs.

I'm hoping that someone will develop a modular design for extender packs, using standard 18650 cells that you drop in, thereby making it relatively easy to DIY assemble an extender pack . For example, using LG M26 cells (cheap, likely $2.50 ea if purchased in quantity) with 4 cell groups of 26x5 for instance, one could populate an extender pack for likely less than $1500.

So, if the black box costs $1000, a modular but empty extender pack costs another $1500, and the 18650 cells cost about $1500, I would go for that.