Doable or pain in the rear for 2015 model.

[nomatterwhat]

Hi All,

I currently live 39 miles from work each way. We have L1 chargers at work, the sears across the street has L2 chargers (Blink network). I think it's a $1.00 a day. A couple miles up the road is the Nissan dealership with level 3 chargers. The commute is all interstate but I do hit heavy traffic. I could easily avg 65-75 mph or slow down.

I am a divorced dad, I pickup my son 17 miles from my work, this is all backroads and I pass the Nissan dealer I do this every Thur or Fri. The distance from my ex home to mine is 28 miles. So total trip is 45 miles on days I pickup my son.

Here are the questions..

Could I make it to and from work on the days I don't have my son with no charge? This would be a brand new 2015 leaf and 80 miles. If not would L1 charging suffice to give me enough juice to make it. What about days I need to go get my son? Do I each lunch at the Nissan dealer everyday..haha.

Are most of the charging stations at the dealership always full or not busy? The $1 an hour for L2 how long would the charge take?

My work is around 3100 Cumberland Blvd, Smyrna GA 30039 if someone wants to look at plugshare. I live in Villa Rica, GA, ex home is in Powder Springs ga.

I am spending about $125 a week on gas now, considering options. I work in technology so I am willing to make it work but want to be reasonable about expectations.

I would probably do a two year lease at around $300 a month. My current car I am selling is $500 a month plus $500 a month in Gas, I would be making money basically for a little trouble of charging the car.

Greg

 

[dndrich]

It could be done. Just depends on how much hassle factor you are willing to put up with. You won't make the round trip without charging really. So, you would need to charge at work. Now, that would depend on how reliable that wall charging setup is at work. If you plug in the trickle charger that comes with the car, and you charge at work for say 6 hours, you would put in about another 24 miles of range that way, so you would make it. But you would need to do that every time. Might get old. Probably would get old. Charging at the L2 would give you another 25 miles or so per hour, but you are stuck there. The L3 would be faster, but again, not convenient since you have to go there, wait, etc. It takes longer than you think when you factor in the travel, setup, possibly waiting for somebody else charging, or a charger on the fritz.

This car is really perfect for somebody who has say 50 miles a day to go and does not want to hassle charging publicly all the time. Or for somebody with a totally reliable charging solution at their business. My daily driving ranges from about 25 miles to say a max of about 60. The car is perfect for that. I love it.

 

[Deleted member 9549]

The laws of physics say that air friction goes up like the square of the speed. If you travel twice as fast, it take 4x the energy to do it.
When you have a limited range vehicle like the LEAF, speed makes a huge difference. At 70-75 you won't make that round trip, even with a new LEAF. At a much lower speed it might be possible, but uncomfortably so, ie range anxiety.
Your best bet is to try and charge every single day. L1 about 3mph, L2 about 25mph. L3 will get you to 80% within 30 minutes but after that it slows considerably.

 

[nomatterwhat]

The laws of physics say that air friction goes up like the square of the speed. If you travel twice as fast, it take 4x the energy to do it.
When you have a limited range vehicle like the LEAF, speed makes a huge difference. At 70-75 you won't make that round trip, even with a new LEAF. At a much lower speed it might be possible, but uncomfortably so, ie range anxiety.
Your best bet is to try and charge every single day. L1 about 3mph, L2 about 25mph. L3 will get you to 80% within 30 minutes but after that it slows considerably.

Is the quick charge port/L3 the same thing? Looks like on the day I get my son I'd need to do a few hours of L2 charging to get to 80%. That's a 45 mile commute to home. Perhaps on days I don't get my son I could do L1 charging all day at work adding say 20 miles to get home.

 

[kubel]

Don't forget to factor in the likely 15%-25% capacity loss you will likely experience within the length of a 2-3 year lease.

 

[cwerdna]

Is the quick charge port/L3 the same thing?

Yes.

 

[braineo]

Sorry to tell you that your commute is not yet a reliable option for a Leaf. You will need the 150-200 mile model to handle it. When I started commuting in Atlanta with my Leaf, things were great with al1 at work and eventually L2. A few months ago, the L2 was set to $1 an hour, charging or not, which means if you forget to move the car the charge is $9-$10 a day which is more for me than gas. So I learned to live within my daily 50 mile range car. with hypermiling and off the highway I can do 60 miles, but in winter, without able to preheat, it will be painful.

My advice. Wait a year or two and meanwhile get yourself a better mpg vehicle or move closer.

 

[ColumbiaRiverGorge]

Charge L1 while your at work & you'll be fine, even with your battery degrading & winter ttemperatures. I drive 60 miles a day with 50 miles being 65 mph & a 2000' climb. I also have 15-20 mph summer headwinds. I used L1 at work everyday until they installed a QC at a grocery store near my work.

 

[billg]

Hi All,

I am spending about $125 a week on gas now, considering options. I work in technology so I am willing to make it work but want to be reasonable about expectations.

I would probably do a two year lease at around $300 a month. My current car I am selling is $500 a month plus $500 a month in Gas, I would be making money basically for a little trouble of charging the car.

Greg

I think you should consider the Tesla Model S with the 60 kWh battery. With a comfortable 150 mile range, you will have plenty of juice to make all of your commutes without recharging during the day - and maybe still save money over your current costs. The convenience factor has got to be worth something, and the cool factor, while not priceless, is significant.

 

[KJD]

I would probably do a two year lease at around $300 a month. My current car I am selling is $500 a month plus $500 a month in Gas, I would be making money basically for a little trouble of charging the car.

You are very close to a Tesla payment right there. The other option is wait a couple of years for LEAF 2.0

 

[DanCar]

Hi Greg,

Battery degradation might not be a factor with new 2015 battery. I'm still getting 90 mile range on my 2013 leaf, going on 2nd summer. The 2013 and later batteries were improved so those people with earlier cars are overly pessimistic. http://www.mynissanleaf.com/viewtopic.php?f=27&t=17043" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Your trip is doable if you do either of the following:
1. slow down
2. charge at work with L1. You get about 4 miles per hour of charging.
http://www.pluginamerica.org/drivers-seat/understanding-electric-vehicle-charging" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
3. Upgrade your L1 charger: http://www.mynissanleaf.com/viewtopic.php?f=26&t=13300" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
4. Use L2 or L3 charging.

You are going to have a big smile when you are saving $125 a week on gas.

 

[Atlantan]

My brother in law purchased a 2013 Leaf, his commute is just over 80 miles roundtrip. At first, he used to eat breakfast at a Nissan Dealer, then his work allowed L1 charging, this appears to be sufficient for him.

He is now thinking about the Turbocord and a 240 volt outlet for faster charging at home. He still has his beatup Camry, but the Leaf has become his Daily Driver.

Do you have the option to lease a Leaf and have a cheap gas car like an Accord/Camry? Just wanted to share his experience with you.

Keep us posted.

Cheers