Diagnostic hardware needed for used Leaf buyer in Seattle??

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BuckRimfire

New member
Joined
Jan 4, 2017
Messages
3
As a new shopper for a used Leaf, should I be looking to get a device to connect to the Leaf's computer to get the battery SOH, etc, or is that needlessly nerdy?
 
It is a good idea and a very minor investment. You also need some cheap or free software for a smart phone. I use Leaf Spy Pro. I think that there is still a free version, but the pro version is not very expensive, either.

Alternately, if you are near a Leaf owner who already has this, they may be willing to help you.

For best results, add your location to the message title.

Bob
 
Jeez, all the devices listed as supported by Leaf Spy have a lot of one-star reviews on Amazon! I'd better buy two or three in hopes of getting one that works!
 
BuckRimfire said:
Jeez, all the devices listed as supported by Leaf Spy have a lot of one-star reviews on Amazon! I'd better buy two or three in hopes of getting one that works!
Or look through the large LeafSpy thread. I have this OBDII adapter and it works great with my Samsung smart phone, note not for Apple, you need a WiFi adapter to work with Apple and they are a bit more expensive.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00PJPHEBO/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1
It's best to get a recommendation, as you said quite a few seem to have issues for one reason or another.
Note I'd suggest NOT getting Leafspy from Amazon, unless you want to always have the Amazon shopping app on your phone. I downloaded the Amazon App, then the Leafspy program and then deleted the Amazon app as I didn't want it on my phone. Doing so gives me a nag screen every time I launch Leafspy saying I should install the Amazon shopping app :x
Apparently if you get LeafSpy off your phones app store, you don't get any nag screens.
 
OK, I have Leaf Spy Pro on my phone and my LELink ODB2 should arrive today, so I'm all set to go Leaf shopping, possibly this weekend. What battery SOH would you look for as a cutoff?

Or, more complex issue: how would you use SOH to negotiate price with a dealer?
 
BuckMkII said:
OK, I have Leaf Spy Pro on my phone and my LELink ODB2 should arrive today, so I'm all set to go Leaf shopping, possibly this weekend. What battery SOH would you look for as a cutoff?

Or, more complex issue: how would you use SOH to negotiate price with a dealer?

That's a "depends" answer.
If the car is a 3-bar loser with an AHr reading to make it to 4BL (low 40's) and is within the 5 yr/60k mile battery (capacity) warranty period, buy it and get a (free) new battery pack.
Otherwise, I would get the highest Ahr value (not necessarily SOH) you can find; miles don't really matter as much with a Leaf (I'm starting to think they might last forever...if we can keep getting batteries).
 
Luckily for you, the PNW is the perfect climate for Leafs so you should be able to find one with an SOH in the 90% + range, even as high as 95%.

I bought my Leaf at Paramount Motors NW in Seattle:

http://www.paramountmotorsnw.com/inventory.asp?dealerSel=&showOnly=Nissan&sortBy=adprice

They usually have several Leafs in stock and Peter (owner) is well versed with Leaf Spy. Their prices are very competitive, but they don't negotiate.

Other options are Edmonds and Everett Nissan as both those dealerships have a large inventory of Leafs:

http://www.campbellnissanofeverett.com/used-cars/refineChange/1/10/~/VehicleType_~Price1_~Make_Nissan~Model_/Model/Leaf

http://www.campbellnissanofedmonds.com/used-cars/refineChange/1/10/~/VehicleType_~Price1_~Make_Nissan~Model_/Model/Leaf

One of the challenges with PNW Leafs is that they tend to have healthy batteries, but unscrupulous dealers could bring in an out of state Leaf for cheap, reset the BMS counters, then sell it to an unsuspecting buyer. I would encourage you to take it for an extended test drive.

To avoid buying a BMS reset Leaf, arrange for an extended test drive. Reset the trip counter before you start, then drive (ideally, in fairly flat terrain & nice weather) until LeafSpy tells you that the SOC has dropped by 25% (or just monitor the dash % battery display). Multiply the trip counter reading by 4 to get an estimate of total range. If it's not around 80 miles, yet the SOH is over 90%, then be suspicious

See this thread for more details on buying and what to look for (page 4 on has most of the content):

http://www.mynissanleaf.com/viewtopic.php?f=6&t=23775

Also, the "original sticker" trick let's you see the original sales sticker - search on the forums to find that post. A Carfax report should show you the state of origin (buy a WA Leaf only).
 
Nothing yet, just a bike rack :) I also bought one of these:
8663866.jpg


I'm thinking about renting this trailer for camping:

https://www.uhaul.com/Trailers/Sport-Trailer-Rental/ST/

Guessing it will really limit range if I'm going up hillls though ;)
 
alozzy said:
I'm thinking about renting this trailer for camping:

https://www.uhaul.com/Trailers/Sport-Trailer-Rental/ST/

Guessing it will really limit range if I'm going up hillls though ;)
I like the looks of that trailer, but have you actually found any place that rents them :?
I tried looking up my state, nada, then other major US cities but when it brings up trailers it doesn't bring up that small one :x
All I really wanted to do was bring up a price of what it would cost to rent it, but 20 minutes later on U-haul's website and nada :cry:
 
Bummer, I haven't tried yet although I did call UHaul and they said that my local location has them. However, I take that with a grain of salt as UHaul's communication between head office and branch locations is often poor.
 
It would be nice if a person could just bring up the trailer and find a list of the closest places that had them(even if 500 miles away). Unfortunately, Uhaul's site doesn't seem to work that way, they insist on entering in a place to rent it, return it and dates, then it brings up a list of trailers available near the rental location :( to make matters worse they even insist on entering in your tow vehicle! I just entered in a 2000 Ford Crown Vic as I knew that vehicle would be registered as being able to tow just about any trailer. I'm guessing it might be an issue saying it would be a Nissan Leaf......as Leafs aren't really supposed to tow anything, they might not want to rent you a trailer. I suppose one could pick it up with another vehicle that is rated to tow; pickup, SUV, larger car, etc. then once home, stick it on the Leaf, but you'd have to have access to such a vehicle.
I've been eyeing up small trailers for a decade, large motorcycle trailers seem to be the best fit for a very small car. Most are light and made of aluminum with things like a cooler rack that fits over the tongue and a build in roof rack to strap down larger items on the top of the trailer. My dream trailer is this one, unfortunately, the last time I looked it was well over $2k(~$2.5k) but it's really a nice "lifetime" trailer. 39CF, 225# so less than 1/2 the weight of that UHaul trailer and not much less CF.

https://www.alumaklm.com/recreational/motorcycle/mctxl-towable-motorcycle-trailer#standard-equipment

Edit: I was wrong, the above trailer is only 17.5CF and cheaper at $2k, the one I was looking at was $2.5k, 39CF and weighs 340lbs, still lighter than the UHaul.
https://www.alumaklm.com/enclosed-trailers/single-axle/ae46-all-purpose-enclosed-trailer
 
U-Haul requires you to enter the tow vehicle, because they won't rent for towing on certain vehicles (like Ford Explorers). They see it as a liability issue. You can pick it up with another vehicle, and then transfer it to the one you want to tow with, and that puts the responsibility on you for any issues that result from towing.
 
This trailer is interesting:

http://www.bosskibuilt.com/800al1234

Those tires though would have a lot of rolling resistance but, with different tires, rolling resistance could likely be significantly reduced.
 
alozzy said:
Nothing yet, just a bike rack :))
Yep, I figured it was for a bike rack. Leaf owners probably aren't the most likely owners of PWCs, although towing a jetski a few miles from home to a ramp is probably one of the towing jobs a Leaf would be most suited for.

My watersport activity is primarily kayaking, so RT range is usually going to be a problem, although the Leaf might rate better for roof rack capacity than my Subaru! The Impreza model I have only allows one or two bikes due to attachment to flimsy aluminum rain gutters. I guess I can carry one plastic sea kayak, but even that exceeds the nominal weight rating. I threw four boats (over 200 pounds) on my Taurus' roof rack last weekend.
 
baustin said:
they won't rent for towing on certain vehicles (like Ford Explorers).
What's wrong with Explorers? Other than the roll-over risk typical of cheap pick-ups and SUVs...
 
BuckMkII said:
baustin said:
they won't rent for towing on certain vehicles (like Ford Explorers).
What's wrong with Explorers? Other than the roll-over risk typical of cheap pick-ups and SUVs...

The Explorer tows just fine, as long as the driver is careful and uses common sense. Personally, I'm not aware of anyone having problems towing with an Explorer. My nephew and some friends used an Explorer to pull a U-Haul trailer about 500 miles, with no issues.

This is the notice from the U-Haul web site, when you put in an Explorer as the tow vehicle.

U-Haul has chosen not to rent behind this tow vehicle based on our history of excessive costs in defending lawsuits involving Ford Explorer towing combinations. This policy is not related to safety issues. This is an unusual circumstance for U-Haul – we have built our success for over 60 years by saying 'yes' to our customers. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause and are committed to working with our customers to find alternative options to help with their move.
 
alozzy said:
This trailer is interesting:

http://www.bosskibuilt.com/800al1234

Those tires though would have a lot of rolling resistance but, with different tires, rolling resistance could likely be significantly reduced.

You could not use this trailer. It is for an atv. You could not take this on any public road, or at any kind of speed ... Probably no more than 15-20mph....

The Leaf IS NOT MADE for towing anything more than bicycles.....
 
Can you get the LELink dongle out of the Leaf's OBDII port with your fingers? To be sure the device was working, I installed EngineLink on my phone and tested the dongle on my Taurus, which has the connector just hanging out in the breeze under the steering column, but when I also tried it on my Impreza the bezel around the connector prevented me from getting a grip on it, and I had to grab a small long-nose ViseGrip from the tool box to pull it out. Do I need to carry the pliers in my pocket when I go to test-drive Leafs?
 
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