My first commute to/from work in my Leaf

[garygid]

Average speed:

Go one mile at 60 mph, stop for a signal light for one minute, and then go another mile at 30 mph.

Probably it "feels" like 45 mph average to you.

But, you did 2 miles in 4 minutes, just 30 mph AVERAGE.

Add in some extra time for two gentle accelerations and two gentle stops, you might use another full minute, or 2 miles in 5 minutes, so only 24 mph average.

 

[evnow]

But, you did 2 miles in 4 minutes, just 30 mph AVERAGE.

I think the zero mph intervals should be removed (though, debatable, since accessories will be on). But this kind of averaging gives the wrong idea about range vs speed. "Oh you get 100 miles when the avg speed is 30 mph. Who drives at that speed ?".

 

[LEAFer]

"... Who drives at that speed ?".

Answer: "YOU do !"

 

[Smidge204]

"... Who drives at that speed ?".

Answer: "YOU do !"

:lol:
=Smidge=

 

[malloryk]

Nice job, Jimmy! I got a low battery warning last night too. I was really close to home but I was a little freaked too!

 

[wwhitney]

One thing I was doing on the way to work was switching to Neutral and coasting down the hills. I think this is a bad idea because regen will put some power back into the pack, while coasting in Neutral does nothing.

I would think if coasting in neutral will allow you maintain your desired speed without braking, it would be fine. Otherwise you are better off leaving it in D/Eco and using the regen.

Cheers, Wayne

 

[wsbca]

I was told at the dealer that the CC EVSE doesn't 'talk' to your car at all, so I can't use things like the charging timer, etc.

The timers (in the car) work fine with the Clipper Creek - if you have a timer set when you plug the unit in, the car does not start charging (you can override that (temporarily) with the 'cancel charging timer' button, below and to the left of the steering wheel). If you leave it alone with a timer set you'll see cycling leds on the dash, but no charge start. At the appointed time, everything fires up. And when the car gets what it wants from the charge (eg 80% or end time reached), it all shuts down. And, if you then tell the car to fire up climate control (in the morning, while still plugged in), it does so, and gets that juice from the wall. We currently have Timer 1 set to start at 8pm, and it behaves fine with the CC.

In fact I confused it the first night because I plugged in the car (with a timer set), then pushed the start button on the CC, thinking maybe it needed to be "primed" or something. Not so. By pushing that button I put the CC into a state (flashing LED) that rendered it NOT receptive to the car when the timer start time was reached. I had to toggle it (push the button again, to "stop" the CC, then things were fine - the car re-initiated the connection and started charging.

 

[wsbca]

For those of you charging to 100%, what is your available mileage showing?? I'm showing 88 miles again this morning after a 100% charge. I think that's a little low

Leaf uses the mpkwh of the last trip to calculate that.

So far it seems like the "next startup" calculation is not exactly the (entire) mpk from the last drive - it's more like the ending mpk for the last (unknown) amount of driving, which it somehow remembers. That is to say, if you spend a long distance moving very efficiently, then go up a big hill (as we have just before our house), the range will drop rapidly...it's telling you what would happen if you keep up that _recent_ behavior, not the entire behavior of the trip. And that estimated range is the starting point for the next drive (even if you charge in between). Our range after an 80% charge (83% really, 10 bars) is in the low 60's, I think mainly due to the hill at the end of the previous day's commute, not the mpk from the whole commute. Arguing in favor of this mystery algorithm not being the mpk of the entire last drive, but something derived from previous (possibly multiple OR a partial) segments is that you can't get the range to jump dramatically just by stopping, then driving a short distance, then stopping again and starting again. It has some sort of weighted memory.

I might be wrong about this - I guess a test would be to end a drive with a pessimistic range estimate relative to SOC (as happens with our commute), turn off the car, turn it back on and do a short but very efficient trip, turn it off, THEN charge. But I think we've nearly done that - commute followed by local errand on flatter roads, and I don't believe our next-day estimated range was substantially higher than the ending estimate would predict.

Put another way, if before you charge you have a range of "X miles per remaining bar", then charge, you're still going to have X miles per bar, not "last drive's overall mpk times 1.992(a nominal bar's worth of kWh) times bars"...at least I don't think so...

 

[evnow]

Put another way, if before you charge you have a range of "X miles per remaining bar", then charge, you're still going to have X miles per bar, not "last drive's overall mpk times 1.992(a nominal bar's worth of kWh) times bars"...at least I don't think so...

Interesting. What I wrote is what is in the manual. Anyway, I'm downloading the service manuals now - so, may be I'll get some ideas ...

 

[garygid]

The Service Manuals (about 52 files) are a GREAT resource.

 

[Jimmydreams]

Last nights commute:
Left home with 85 (93 with ECO) miles showing. Drove 33.3 miles to work with 42 (47 with ECO) miles remaining. Drove with CC at 62mph ECO on the whole way, no climate control.

Left work, CC set at 62mph, ECO on, with climate control on near the end. Drove into my driveway with 17 miles remaining, 2 bars on the gauge (the 3rd bar dropped off as I was turning onto my street). Avg was 3.8mi/kW (on the car's computer) for the round trip. Avg speed of 50.8 for the entire trip. (I forgot to reset the meters once I arrived at work).

I am keeping a log of every trip and will eventually post this info on my website, and also to compare against what Carwings is showing.

Today, the starting mileage says 91.

 

[jcesare]

....My car arrive at the dealer with 33 miles on it (which is a bit high). I wonder if Nissan was trying to chase a bug in my car somewhere and just gave up?

I thought I read somewhere that Nissan had a zero defect policy on this car and every one was going to be test driven, which might contribute to the delivery delay.

Is anyone tracking the starting odometer readings?

 

[Jimmydreams]

Today's commute was the best one yet!

100% charge overnight gave 88 miles D and 98 miles ECO. I drove 35 miles to work (includes a Starbucks stop). Arrived at work with 43D miles, 48ECO. 4.1mi/kW, 37mph avg speed and 7 bars left.

Trip home: drove another 32 miles (stopped at the Apple store). Arrived home with 30D, 33ECO miles left. 5.4mi/kW (!) and 37.2mph avg speed and 4 bars left.

By FAR the best day yet as far as range goes. The difference was traffic....there was LOTS of it and it kept my speed down. I'm wondering also if the computer and it's ranges aren't slowing 'dialing in' to my driving habits, as opposed to the 33 miles it had before I took delivery. Maybe those were very hard 33 miles and the computer is just now forgetting about them. (shrug)

 

[vant]

Coasting in neutral in ANY car is useless.

Please stop doing it. You waste more gas and you look like foolish to passengers.

 

[planet4ever]

Not a good start, vant. Your first post is basically a rant with no facts backing it up. Although I am skeptical myself about using neutral, I know that there are people on this board who have used it for years and are convinced that it can be a major fuel-saving technique. My skepticism comes from safety concerns. Even I am convinced that it can save fuel.

 

[AndyH]

I've used both neutral and engine off coasting in my VW diesel to increase economy and can absolutely confirm that it works. Most modern ICE computers do stop injecting fuel when a car decelerates in gear, so there's sometimes an overall benefit to coasting in gear if one needs to slow down rather than idling in neutral.

That being said, I wonder if Vant realizes this is an EV site?

 

[evnow]

Coasting in neutral in ANY car is useless.

Please stop doing it. You waste more gas and you look like foolish to passengers.

Hmm ... registered just before posting this. Were you planning to post in some other forum ?

 

[Randy]

My car had 11 miles on it when I purchased it. Some driving may be done in advance, but it can't be much...How much just to get off the ship? From that "goes on forever" video, it looks like a lot...

 

[mwalsh]

Oh gosh. Am I going to earn myself yet more demerits by calling another new user a troll? Come on.....that one's a gimme, surely?

 

[TomT]

In most gasoline ICE cars, turning off the engine to coast IS somewhat dangerous however. With the engine off, you lose vacuum to the brake booster and power steering boost. Both could be problematic if you suddenly need to stop quickly or make an evasive maneuver. If equipped with an automatic transmission, it can also be harmful to that, particularly if done at speed (the engine generally drives the pump which provides lubrication, and pressures can build up in the tranny with the engine off). A diesel is somewhat different since it does not produce vacuum and a separate system is used in such vehicles. Regardless, I think engine off coasting brings to many liabilities for the very slight gain it provides.

I've used both neutral and engine off coasting in my VW diesel to increase economy and can absolutely confirm that it works. Most modern ICE computers do stop injecting fuel when a car decelerates in gear, so there's sometimes an overall benefit to coasting in gear if one needs to slow down rather than idling in neutral.