Getting clear on how low I am when GoM says 4 miles...

[OlyLeaf]

I have Tony's range chart. I am confused on a few issues. The chart seems to indicate that I should have several miles (about 12) left after all my bars disappear. At this point I should get a low battery warning - and after about 8 miles a very low battery warning.

I got my recently purchased 2011 Leaf down to one bar and GoM to 4 miles. I'm averaging about 3.9 KwHs. Total trip was 56 miles in 50 degree weather.

My confusion is that as soon as my second-to-last bar disappeared I received a low battery warning when the chart seems to indicate that the warning comes on after the last bar disappears? Make sense?

So, about how much range do I have left in this situation? Do I trust (with some variance of course) the chart or the GoM? Is there a different low battery warning than the warning I received that comes on after all my bars disappear - and then an additional very low battery warning as mentioned in the chart?

I was a little too intimidated to run it further just in case the GoM was spot on.

Thanks for your responses in advance.

 

[DaveEV]

It sounds like your '11 LEAF may not have all applicable firmware updates which change the behavior of the bars, but the first low battery warning (LBW) and second low battery warning (VLBW) are the same across all firmwares.

LBW typically comes on with 7-9 miles on the GOM. At about 4.0 mi/kWh you typically have at least 12 miles left.
VLBW typically comes on with 3-4 miles on the GOM. At about 4.0 mi/kWh you typically have at least 4 miles left.

Shortly after VLBW the GOM will change to ---.

 

[cwerdna]

OP, in your signature, it'd probably be helpful to state you have a used '11 Leaf, so that others can know in future posts w/o having to dig.

It'd also be helpful to get some sort of gid meter. Probably best to start off with http://www.mynissanleaf.com/viewtopic.php?f=44&t=14284" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;, an appropriate Bluetooth dongle and a cheapo prepaid Android phone, if you don't already have an Android device. You not having a % SoC display (began on '13 Leafs) and its crappy instrumentation puts you at a disadvantage, esp. if you're running the battery that low.

 

[ColumbiaRiverGorge]

I remember that there is 3.1 k/Wh of useable energy from LBW to turtle & 1.3 k/Wh remaining from VBLW to turtle. You can reset your m per kWh setting on your dash when you get to LBW or VLBW to get a very good idea of how much ffurther you can go.

 

[Nubo]

I have Tony's range chart. I am confused on a few issues. The chart seems to indicate that I should have several miles (about 12) left after all my bars disappear. At this point I should get a low battery warning - and after about 8 miles a very low battery warning. ...

No. With all bars gone you are very low.

Per the chart:
"Fuel bar 1 will remain illuminated with low battery warning...".

I'm averaging about 3.9 KwHs. ...

I'll assume you meant 3.9 Miles/kWh. In which case the chart suggests:

- you will drop from 2 bars to 1 bar with 15 miles remaining
- you will get low battery warning with 12 miles remaining (bar 1 still lit)
- bar 1 will disappear and very low battery warning soon thereafter. About 4 miles remaining.

 

[LEAFguy]

So, about how much range do I have left in this situation?

Hi OlyLeaf - The true answer is that it depends on how you've been driving up to this point, and how you continue to drive. Back in 2011 Edmunds.com wrote an article about how far a LEAF could go. Driving at 35 mph in a controlled environment (a very large flat test track oval) they had 20 miles left when the LBW (low battery warning) came on, eight miles left when VLBW came on, and two miles left when Power Limitation (turtle mode) came on. Most drivers will never achieve these LBW and turtle mode distances due to more real-world driving conditions and speeds. Interestingly, my VLBW almost matched Edmunds as you'll see next.

In 2012 I performed my own real-world test in my 18 month old 2011 LEAF with roughly 10,000 miles on it. Driving aggressively, (up to 55 miles per hour and accelerating hard), after LBW I went 17 miles, after VLB 7.8 miles, and when the turtle came on I only went .6 miles. I've since performed a similar test on my 2013 LEAF with similar results.

You'll notice that I didn't talk about the Driving Range indicator (GOM). Once you get into the LBW area it is pretty much worthless. Prior to that it provides only a loose approximation at best.

My best suggestion to you is that one day you perform your own personal "running on fumes" test. Drive your car with the intent of seeing the turtle come on. Know that when your LBW comes on you can easily go 8-10 miles or more. When VLBW comes on you still have 5-8 miles in the tank, depending on your driving style and the terrain. As you get more nervous stay closer to home and keep in mind that it's okay if you don't see the turtle. Just going through this experience will give you more confidence in what to expect when it happens for real. Perhaps jot your numbers down and throw the note in your car.

I hope that proves helpful for you.

 

[stjohnh]

So, about how much range do I have left in this situation?

You'll notice that I didn't talk about the Driving Range indicator (GOM). Once you get into the LBW area it is pretty much worthless. Prior to that it provides only a loose approximation at best.

My best suggestion to you is that one day you perform your own personal "running on fumes" test. Drive your car with the intent of seeing the turtle come on. Know that when your LBW comes on you can easily go 8-10 miles or more. When VLBW comes on you still have 5-8 miles in the tank, depending on your driving style and the terrain. As you get more nervous stay closer to home and keep in mind that it's okay if you don't see the turtle. Just going through this experience will give you more confidence in what to expect when it happens for real. Perhaps jot your numbers down and throw the note in your car.

I hope that proves helpful for you.

I agree with everything LEAFguy said. I do encourage you to go all the way to turtle, but, as he says, even getting close to turtle will give you more confidence. An additional note, the last fuel bar disappears on my 2013 Leaf at a distance to turtle of 6-7 miles, driving conservatively at 4.0-4.5 mi/kwh. Also, if you are using LeafSpy and checking the lowest cell pair voltages after the last fuel bar disappears, the distance to turtle is:

min volts-distance (this is for my 2013 Leaf, I suspect it is valid for others, but don't know)
3.53-6mi
3.43-4
3.23-2
3.14-1
3.10-1/2

for this to be valid you must drive conservatively, and to check the voltage you must stop the car and wait at least 5 seconds (the voltage drops a lot while the car is moving at low battery voltages). This works for the early 2013 Leafs, don't know about the later 2013s, 2014s, 2011s or 2012s.

 

[mn4az]

We have a 2013 Leaf that didn't quite make it home (1/2 short). Unfortunately, through real world pain, can confirm that you are only going to get about 1/2 mile in turtle mode.

Good news is that the Nissan Emergency Service was quick and easy. It was less than 90 minutes from time I called Nissan to the time my car was back at home charging.

 

[Leaf1]

To the various engineers on this forum-
I recently turtled to the point of coasting to a stop (a few miles short of my home, Freak snow storm, poor planning, etc.).
I was able to get it charged up to full in time for my commute the next morning. Ever since the turtle, I seem to get more range out of the car. I notice a material difference in how many miles I get out of the first few bars in particular.
Now I know an engineer will want a lot more details, but my question is just whether the act of turtling could have any positive effect on capacity.
Has anyone else noticed this?

I charge to 100% each day and commute is 60 mi per day.