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Is the Nissan Leaf worth it?

Hello. Giving up my G37s for a better commuter car. I drive a lot maybe 50 miles a day give or take. My G gave me about 17mpg. I am looking at buying a used 2012 Nissan Leaf SL with 8 battery lights left. Owner says passed inspection, 43,000 miles, and gets about 60 miles a trip with kWh being about 20 cents for a fast charging Station near me. He wanted $6,000 I got him to agree for $5600. Is it worth it? Switching to electric? 

7 Answers

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  • Anonymous
    7 months ago

    Just saw a youtube video today about the battery life difference between buying a 2012 Nissan Leaf and an 2012 Tesla.  The Tesla has a battery management system that keeps the batteries within the temperature limits to give a long battery cycle life but the Nissan leaf has nothing so the batteries do not last anywhere as long.  Cold weather and hot weather affects the battery performance heaps and I read of a couple who have a Nissan Leaf who said if they run the heater or air conditioning the battery drains very quickly and distance they can drive drops a lot.  Also hot days are bad for the batteries on the Nissan leaf and if your car is parked all day in the heat of the day a lot of battery life can be lost.  The people whose story I read said hills can cut the mileage on a battery charge a lot as well.  They said they didn't run the heater and just rugged up a lot and drove around feeling very cold so they had enough charge to get to their destination.  New batteries for a Nissan leaf could cost you up to $8,000 and how many years before you have to change the battery for a new one.  Also what do you do if it breaks down as few mechanics can repair EVs.  I have heard stories of Tesla owners who have had their car sent hundreds of miles away on trucks for repairs as no one can repair them in their town or cities.

      Also how long can you wait for a full battery charge.  If you are plugging into a household power point some of those electric cars take a couple days to fully charge.  Will an overnight charge be enough for you to travel as far as you want for the day and will it fully charge at home overnight.  Will the Nissan leaf plug fit into the fast chargers starting to be seen in some places?  (yes the plugs are different between the brands),  Will there be a free spot available at a fast charger or will there be a line up of cars waiting to be charged? will there be some rude gas powered car car owner who will park their car in the fast charge spot as you always see able bodied people parking in disabled park spots so I am sure they will park in unoccupied fast charge spots.

      Do your research on battery life in Nissan leafs as they have no equipment to protect the batteries from deteriating as more expensive cars like the Tesla's have that can make them do many more charge cycles than a Nissan Leaf can.

      Also be aware Nissan is in massive financial trouble and could collapse as a company at any time,  I recently read the CEO of Nissan in Japan has fled to Israel as Israel has no extradition treaty with Japan and also heard Nissan went cap in hand recently to its investors for money to stop the company going into liquidation.  If Nissan collapses will you even be able to buy a battery for a Nissan in the next couple years.

      That's the things I have seen as I checked out EVs and personally I don't think there are enough charge points and EV mechanics around yet, and have read of problems people have had getting their EV repaired.  Likely a Nissan Leaf is no where as complicated as a Tesla as they are a much more basic car and they have been the biggest EV seller in the world but at the moment I would prefer a Toyota Prius Hybrid or a small gas powered car such as a Toyota Yaris that gets huge MPG and much less pollutants than your current V8 and has proven reliability and can be repaired locally.  Many European countries will be EV vehicle only sales within 15 years but they are such compact countries with lots of car dealers to repair their cars.

      I hope I have made you think this through carefully and you will make a sensible decision knowing all the facts.

  • 9 months ago

    Not a good buy and the range sucks. You will need to replace the batteries soon. 60 miles? My sister used to have a 2016 Leaf and she would get about 90-100 miles between charges.. and it was new. I would advise against this one, unless the batteries have been replaced. 

  • Erik
    Lv 7
    9 months ago

    Wow, I haven't seen a Leaf on the road in years.  I literally forgot they existed.  Scotty Kilmer says to never buy a used hybrid car, because when stuff starts to go, it is extremely expensive to replace (like in the thousands).  I don't know if it would be the same with a Leaf, but it probably would.  Certainly more than the small amount you would save in gas.

  • Bill
    Lv 6
    9 months ago

    Only if you can charge it at home. 

  • 9 months ago

    I was looking at electric cars myself. i ended up getting the tesla model 3 but I remember liking that car. However, I didn't know the extent to this before switching to an electric car but while this may only be an issue in Teslas, the car will use much more miles of charge then expected. For example, I have the 220 mile range (which only charges fully to about 210) but when I make a 60 mile trip, instead of being at 150 miles by the time I get there, I am more at around 120 or so. Air conditioning, the screen and many other factors use a lot of mileage. So I would be careful about getting a low mileage car because the battery drains much faster than expected. Nonetheless, I love my tesla and it feels good knowing I am using electric power that is MUCH better for the environment so I would still recommend switching to electric. 

  • 9 months ago

    It terms of mileage, it looks like a good deal. The Leaf should pay for itself in about a year and a half.  What ever you can sell your G37 for will just shorten the payback time.  

    The other part of the equation is how well will you enjoy living in the Leaf for 50 miles per day.?

  • 9 months ago

    no...they are lemons 

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