2015 Leaf battery assessment

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remusonline

New member
Joined
Jul 29, 2018
Messages
4
Greetings!

First post here, and about to buy (maybe?) my first Leaf (used, 2015, S Trim). My only concern about this car is the data I've got from the Leafspy application for the battery:

Ahr: 53.88
SOH: 86.76%
Hx: 77.90%

23 QC
1591 L1/L2

Is it a good/okay/bad battery? Can I expect way better batteries on the market? For info, I live in Quebec but this car was imported from South Carolina. Degradation from heat should not be a problem here :)

I probably post at the wrong place, sorry about this!

Thanks!

Remusonline
 
I'd say that is 'OK'. It probably has 12 bars but will soon be 11. Remember to de-rate the capacity in the winter due to the 1) the battery being cold and 2) the heat on an S model is very inefficient. If it still meets your range needs with those caveats then it should be OK. On the bright side, there should be no rust issues on the car unless it was parked on the beach. :mrgreen:

For 2015 Leaf that is probably an average battery SOH. I wouldn't pay a premium price for it, especially since in Quebec you will need heat in the winter and an S has a primitive heating system that is quite inefficient.
 
goldbrick said:
For 2015 Leaf that is probably an average battery SOH. I wouldn't pay a premium price for it, especially since in Quebec you will need heat in the winter and an S has a primitive heating system that is quite inefficient.

Thanks for the input gb! Do you think that the degradation will be slowed down because of Quebec's cold climate?
 
I would worry more that the resistive heater in the S will use of lots of energy in the Quebec winter to keep you warm in the car. What are your driving needs for the car?
 
remusonline said:
Do you think that the degradation will be slowed down because of Quebec's cold climate?

I would guess so although I'm not an expert on battery chemistry by any means. From what I've learned reading the interwebs I would say 'yes' but that opinion is worth what you paid for it. :D
 
Battery degradation will be slow, but the heater drain will mean an effective range of maybe 35 miles in the worst Winter weather. (Of course, the more efficient heatpump in the SV and SL would have similar range with 11 bars in frigid weather, as the heatpump adds little or no range below -5C or so.) You really need to tell us your range needs, and how you feel about driving a cold car with warm seats and steering wheel.
 
Thanks for all these replies.

Thing is, Quebec temperature is very low in winter (usually 3-4 months under -5 celsius in average) so I think heat pump or not, I will end up using a lot of energy to keep warm. I have (free!) L2 charging stations at the office, and I intend installing one at home. I hope the pre heating will keep me warm. My commute is 50 km (to + from), and I will be doing short distances for errands.

S to SV means 1500$-2000$ more for the same year model. Worth it? Would a 2014 SV be a better idea (assuming a similar battery degradation)?

Thanks!

Remusonline

EDIT: Are the heat pump and AC the same unit in the SV? Or two separated components?
 
remusonline said:
EDIT: Are the heat pump and AC the same unit in the SV? Or two separated components?

They run on the same principles but they are separate units.
I live in CO and get by fine with an S but our winters are almost always sunny, even if the weather is cold so defrost is not an issue. If you have a lot of cool, wet weather or need to use defrost a lot then the heat pump would be very useful. I don't mind wearing a jacket in the car when it's cold but when the windshield fogs up there is no option but to run the defrost.

edit to add:
Not true! See below. Sorry about the mis-information.

Also see https://www.nissan-global.com/EN/TECHNOLOGY/OVERVIEW/heat_pump_cabin_heater.html
 
The heat pump provides the A/C as well as the heat - the previous response is incorrect. There is a second HEATING unit for frigid temps and faster heating.
 
LeftieBiker said:
The heat pump provides the A/C as well as the heat - the previous response is incorrect. There is a second HEATING unit for frigid temps and faster heating.

That makes more sense to me; why replicate so similar systems when one can serve both purposes? Actually, this is something that bugs me with the SV/SL models: while using a heat pump is very efficient, it makes a single point of failure for all climate control... I could live with a broken A/C in the car, but I couldn't for heating. Have users in this forum reported issues with their heat pump vs the resistive heating system in the past?

Thanks!
Remusonline
 
Actually, this is something that bugs me with the SV/SL models: while using a heat pump is very efficient, it makes a single point of failure for all climate control... I could live with a broken A/C in the car, but I couldn't for heating. Have users in this forum reported issues with their heat pump vs the resistive heating system in the past?

There have been a few heat pump failures, but it is usually the much simpler resistance heater that fails, oddly enough. It's especially common in the 2013 Leaf. Oh, and before 2013 there is no heat pump: the heat comes from an energy-sucking liquid-transfer system that doesn't even have an off switch. There is a separate A/C unit. The S also lacks a heat pump, but has a much better air-heating unit that is shared with the other models as the secondary heater.
 
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