More efficient- E pedal or B mode?

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coach81 said:
Which will give the best regen/energy return or efficiency driving with e pedal or in B mode?
Coasting is always more efficient than regen but regen is more efficient than friction brakes, e-pedal is simply the easiest but not the most efficient. I don't have e-pedal but do generally use ECO/B mode as I do a lot of town driving and like letting up on the accelerator pedal and having it slow down, but again if your not coming up to a stop sign, coasting is more efficient.
 
ok so B mode it is.. thanks..

How about "eco" mode? Does it really affect efficiency? What if you don't take off fast normally?
 
.... and S model Leafs, at least my '13, as well as my '12SL lacks the B mode so ECO is the only way for me to get more regen when letting up on the accelerator, so it's ECO mode or nothing. I believe cars with the B mode have even more regen when letting up on the accelerator than my cars in ECO but if push lightly on the brake pedal I can get full regen before the friction brakes kick in.
As I always use ECO I haven't really noticed a difference in HVAC output using ECO, ECO works well enough for me :)
 
I also use Eco by default. I use D only if I want more power, which is rarely. I too find the heat adequate in Eco, if not always generously so. I think I've switched to D once with the 2018, for more heat.
 
I see that this is an older thread, but the topic is worth clarifying.

LeftieBiker said:
e-Pedal uses the friction brakes and B Mode doesn't, so B mode has to be more efficient unless you still have to brake a lot.

Your answer, while technically accurate, is incomplete. Using the maximum regenerative braking mode in anything other than a LEAF will bring you to a stop, as will the LEAF. The difference is that in any ev other than a LEAF (currently), if you are on an incline, your vehicle will roll as the friction brakes are not used. Once stopped in the LEAF with e-Pedal active, your friction brakes are engaged, holding you in place.

So, when else are the friction brakes used?

When your car is fully charged, regenerative braking is not available, in any ev. Consumer feedback uncovered the fact that people didn't like the fact that their vehicle behaved differently when they were expecting regenerative braking to slow them. Many did not (do not) understand that if the battery is fully charged, regeneration is just not available. Nissan developed an algorithm to engage the friction brakes in this situation to mimic regenerative braking behavior. No other ev offers this capability.

These are the two times primarily when friction braking is involved. I say primarily, because the engineers undoubtedly programmed some other scenarios in there. But the vast majority of the time, your slowing is being provided by regenerative braking. Just throw the power meter up in your display to verify for yourself that you will always get more regenerative braking in e-pedal than B-mode. E-pedal is the one ring that rules them all. If you want to maximize your range, and you can successfully reprogram your brain to right foot connection, you will always get more range using e-Pedal than any other mode offered. It takes a small amount of time to accomplish the reprogramming. Once you do, you can set the e-Pedal retention mode so that e-Pedal is always on, instead of always off. This is done through the menu display via the buttons on the left side of the steering wheel. The e-Pedal switch on the center console now turns the system off, instead of turning it on.

Once e-Pedal is on, if you want to coast you can. If you want to slow down for the light that changed, you can. e-Pedal puts you in control of your driving experience. If e-Pedal slows the vehicle quickly, the brake lights illuminate to let the person behind you know that you are slowing. If you slowly release the accelerator, or coast, there is no need for brake lights. This is an amazing system that few have learned to present well. If you are looking to optimize your efficiency, you want to use LEAF's e-Pedal.
 
Your answer, while technically accurate, is incomplete. ;) While I believe that it's possible to get better efficiency with ePedal with a lot of experience, that greater regen, and the difficulty involved in coasting while in that mode (not that B mode is easy), are going to give newbies and moderately experienced drivers alike worse results than B mode. The increased regen actually works against higher efficiency unless used exactly right, because the car will be lurching from hard deceleration to extra acceleration added to compensate for the undesired resultant lower speed. Sure you can coast in ePedal, but it's a job best done by a hypermiler or a computer...
 
coach81 said:
Which will give the best regen/energy return or efficiency driving with e pedal or in B mode?

Both.

They are there for a reason. Each is a tool and like any tool, has a specific function its designed for. In the LEAF, this is no different.

Now a few things to consider;

B Mode is more aggressive on the 2018 than previously so will bring you to a near stop in a relatively short distance.

E Pedal is very aggressive and mimics normal two pedal driving. IOW, it slows the car at a rate that is typical of in town driving.

E Pedal regen rate is 50% higher than B Mode which means it can and does capture more energy than B Mode if the stop is relatively sudden or unexpected.

Braking in E Pedal is insignificant in normal operation. E Pedal creates a consistent driving experience unlike the other two modes which drive much differently at high SOC when regen is limited. This means braking is relied on heavier when SOC is high. IMHO; E Pedal at high SOC is not recommended due to a much higher rate of regen than I feel is good for the pack.

So the correct answer is each tool in the box has its purpose.
 
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