Volt has lower maintenance than LEAF

[EVDRIVER]

"A Volt will cost the driver $40,629 during the first five years of ownership, or almost $1,500 less than the $42,089 it will cost to own a Leaf. Kelley Blue Book calculated the costs by factoring in expected depreciation, fuel costs, financing, insurance, regulatory fees and repair costs. The Volt's lower maintenance and insurance costs will more than offset higher fuel costs and what's likely to be higher depreciation costs stemming from the Volt's pricetag, which is about $5,000 higher than the Leaf's."


http://green.autoblog.com/2012/02/09/chevy-volt-is-cheaper-to-own-than-nissan-leaf-says-kelley-blu/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;


I'm sure adding the ICE and it's related components is the key to lower maintenance. :lol: :lol: Although the difference is slight it should be in the other direction.

 

[smkettner]

"So said Kelley Blue Book in its first-ever Total Cost of Ownership study."

First-ever? And to test these new skills they pick two brand new models with no track record :lol: :roll:

I would like to see the list of expenses

 

[palmermd]

This is just another popularity contest based on who spends the mosts on advertisements with the publisher. Just like Car and Driver, Motortrend, and others have a car of the year and it is all just a political game. Nothing to see here...move along.

 

[LEAFfan]

This is just another popularity contest based on who spends the mosts on advertisements with the publisher. Just like Car and Driver, Motortrend, and others have a car of the year and it is all just a political game. Nothing to see here...move along.

+1!

 

[TickTock]

Mostly dominated by speculation of battery replacement costs I bet. Be interesting to see in five years how close this is. Based on how everything else is blown way out of proportion (Volt fires, range anxiety, etc) my guess is so is this.

 

[jackal]

Mostly dominated by speculation of battery replacement costs I bet. Be interesting to see in five years how close this is. Based on how everything else is blown way out of proportion (Volt fires, range anxiety, etc) my guess is so is this.

The study is for 5 year total cost of ownership. The bats are warranted for 8 years... at least I know now not to trust Kelly's!

 

[Nekota]

It's all the flat tires and turtle tows.

 

[smkettner]

Probably got the data from CR

 

[mikee322]

I concur ,Kelly Blue book needs to show their math..

 

[GaslessInSeattle]

Probably got the data from CR

You mean CW's, LOL, :lol:

 

[lukati]

Apparently Edmunds comes to a very different conclusion. It ranks the LEAF as the "Lowest True Cost to Own" sedan for February 2012 in the price segment over $20K (and only ~3.8K more expensive than the cheapest car under $20K). The Volt is not even close according to their analysis (+~6.3K for the 2012).

http://www.edmunds.com/car-reviews/lowest-cost-to-own.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

 

[coqui]

The Volt is an electric car that's 3/4 ICE and it is cheaper ownership costs? :lol: NOT

 

[JeffN]

" The Volt's lower maintenance and insurance costs will more than offset higher fuel costs and what's likely to be higher depreciation costs stemming from the Volt's pricetag, which is about $5,000 higher than the Leaf's."......

I'm sure adding the ICE and it's related components is the key to lower maintenance. :lol: :lol: Although the difference is slight it should be in the other direction.

Not necessarily. These calculations are probably based on routine recommended service schedules. Replacing the brake fluid every 2 years in the LEAF is 2-3 times more expensive than replacing the oil & oil filter every 2 years in the Volt.

Nissan says to change brake fluid routinely in the LEAF and at least some of their other cars. Chevrolet says to change it when brake repairs are done for Volt and their other cars. Similar story with other brands. Lexus says change it. Toyota says don't bother. I guess that makes Nissan a luxury brand? My 2004 Prius has over 130,000 miles on it without needing any brake service. I'm sure the same will be true for the LEAF and Volt with their even stronger regenerative braking.

In any case, the gas engine in the Volt will only be used part of the time and then mostly during highway miles which are easier on the engine (fewer spin ups, constant temps, shorter time of usage per mile travelled). The Volt engine is also started up under low load at higher rpm (like Prius engine) so it doesn't get abused by cold starts with a slower conventional starter motor followed by instant driving loads). For these reasons, the Volt engine will probably require no actual repairs during the typical lifetime of a car.

I agree that KBB needs to show their math because their overall numbers do seem odd.

 

[fooljoe]

I don't know where they found the numbers, but commenters on that autoblog page have posted the breakdown of KBB's cost estimate. The primary reason for the Volt's lower total cost is insurance. Somehow they figure the Leaf's insurance to be almost twice as much ($4405 v $8640), despite the Volt being a more expensive car. Go figure. The maintenance figure is also higher for the Leaf, laughably, but only $74 more.

 

[harryjpowell]

Does anyone pay that much for car insurance? I know mine for two cars (1 leaf one ICE) is under 1100/year...

 

[Herm]

I bet the Mitsubishi iMiev would beat both cars.

 

[evnow]

Cost of Ownership......Volt.....Leaf

Depreciation......$29,598....$27,040
Repairs.................$2,034.....$1,680
Maintenance........$1,602.....$1,676
State Fees..........-$3,900....-$4,257
Insurance.............$4,405.....$8,640
Financing.............$4,006.....$3,611
Fuel.......................$2,884.....$2,735
5 Year Total.......$40,629....$41,125

It is all due to insurance. Apparently Progressive charges a lot on Leaf insurance (they aren't all that progressive, are they ?).

I'll ask my insurance to give me a quote on Volt - but I'm sure it would be more than Leaf given the price difference.

 

[smkettner]

Cost of Ownership......Volt.....Leaf

Depreciation......$29,598....$27,040
Repairs.................$2,034.....$1,680
Maintenance........$1,602.....$1,676
State Fees..........-$3,900....-$4,257
Insurance.............$4,405.....$8,640
Financing.............$4,006.....$3,611
Fuel.......................$2,884.....$2,735
5 Year Total.......$40,629....$41,125

Depreciation.... would not be my guess. Looks high for both. I paid $25,325 OTD how does it depreciate $27,040??
Repairs. All the extra on Volt only costs $354.
Maintenance is equal, I don't see how.
State fees. What is this credit? Seems high for Leaf and way high for Volt.
Insurance. Leaf is almost double, are you kidding me?
Finance could be right.
Fuel. Looks like it assumes NEVER filling with gas in the Volt.

KBB has about lost it.

 

[IBELEAF]

It is all due to insurance. Apparently Progressive charges a lot on Leaf insurance (they aren't all that progressive, are they ?).

Someone has to pay for their tv commercials :lol:

These estimates are all over inflated and personally I am estimating 10k less for the 5 year period.

 

[walterbays]

It is all due to insurance. Apparently Progressive charges a lot on Leaf insurance

Maybe Progressive read this thread: http://www.mynissanleaf.com/viewtopic.php?f=30&t=6996

Or maybe GM doesn't charge $1,000 for a headlight on Volt, and all of our insurance bills will be going up unless Nissan gets a parts supply chain working more efficiently.