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shellabee

Member
Joined
Aug 20, 2012
Messages
9
Location
San Dimas, CA
Hey everyone! My name is Shellee and I live in SoCal. I purchased a pre-owned Leaf last Wednesday and have fallen completely in love! It's a 2011 SL with the QC port in Blue Ocean. The previous owner was having to drive too far for work and moved over to a hybrid. It is a year old, has about 8,000 miles on it and still looks brand new! I got it for a great price and absolutely LOVE all the extras. I only live a mile or so from my office, so it is the perfect car to keep me emissons free and saving on gas.

Favorites so far: It auto syncs with my iPhone when I get in and I can play my iTunes wirelessly. Also, set up the XM radio and am totally loving that. Of course, the back up camera is amazing. Haven't got to use the Carwings yet, because the Nissan website isn't recognizing my VIN, so I have to call and get that sorted out.

My only complaint at this point is how long it takes to charge. I am going to get the 240v home charger eventually, just have to save a little. There are a couple stations close to home, so I have just dropped it off there for a few if needed. I don't have any quick charge stations near my home, but I've heard those aren't good to use often anyway?

Do any of you pros have advice on keeping my energy up or any other secrets to the gas-free life? I read about a bunch of rebates from the state and federal governments, will a pre-owned still qualify for those rebates? I ordered my vanity plate last night, SPK4TRS. I'm a big Dr Seuss fan and I think it totally applies in this situation.

Thanks in advance for your comments and I am really excited to be here and hear from you all!
 
Welcome to the gas-free life!
It's certainly worth while to get the 240V station at home, and to save energy there are tons of threads on this list to check out, but in general just keep your speed down and coast to a stop whenever possible (no speeding up to red lights!)
 
You can check out http://www.evseupgrade.com" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; to upgrade your Nissan EVSE so it can work either with 120V or 240V, then look into installing a 240V outlet in your garage. This way you don't have to buy another 240V EVSE.
 
Welcome to Team EV :mrgreen:

Hope everything works out for you the way you want. EVSE upgrade is great but if you decide to go with a different device be sure to avoid the one from GE.

I really like the Schneider/Square D that I have.
 
shellabee said:
I read about a bunch of rebates from the state and federal governments, will a pre-owned still qualify for those rebates?
Click to expand...
Both the California rebate and the federal tax credit are for new vehicles only. Sorry. There was a federal tax credit for EVSE purchase and installation, but it has expired.

Use the top left button in the group of four to the left of your steering wheel to change the display in the bottom center of the dash to show Energy Economy. (Nissan uses the geeky term "Dot matrix liquid crystal display" to describe this part of the dash, in case you haven't found it in your Owner's Manual.) Reset the m/kWh every day, or every time you charge, and let it teach you how to drive efficiently.

Ray
 
shellabee said:
Hey everyone! My name is Shellee and I live in SoCal. I purchased a pre-owned Leaf last Wednesday and have fallen completely in love! It's a 2011 SL with the QC port in Blue Ocean.
Click to expand...

Since I haven't spoken to anyone yet who has bought a pre-owned Leaf, I'm curious to know what you paid for it, and if you financed it what your payments are, and how many months. I'm often quoting the lease prices of Leafs and Volts to potential EV drivers, but I'm often asked about buying a used one. I tell people I'm not sure because there aren't many used ones available at this point.
 
With your 2-mile work commute you should have plenty of juice left for side trips every day, even at 120v :) I hope you take a lot of these to make the XM radio worth it!

On the maintenance front, don't forget to change your coolant in 14 years (don't remember if it was 10 or 15 years - getting old...) - I'd put that on my calendar now, so you don't forget...
 
Congratulations!!!

THe used market has finally begun, and that is exciting!

Only charge to 80%. Set the timer to do this and you will have plenty of energy to get where you need to go. No reason for you to go to 100% unless you are plannng a long drive day.

You might want to join people that are getting together for National Plug in Day.

See Plug in America for details.
 
Hi shellabee! When I started driving mine, I thought about what it would be like to sell it (I eventually leased) to someone. When you sell your old ICE car, you just sign over the title, exchange money, and away they go, off to the gas station. Now, you're also going to have to educate a prospective buyer about charging, at least for the next 10-20 years, until an evse in the garage is as common as a garage door opener :)

I have two pieces of advice:

1) http://www.plugshare.com" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;, explore, use and enjoy

2) If your commute is so short, look into nearby level 2 locations that have free charging (many do). You might be able to charge it somewhere within walking distance for free. Also, your employer might have 120V outlets accessible, which you could take advantage of during the day. Since you have a short commute, you'll probably just have to top off every few days, which you may as well do at work, if possible.

It's exciting to see new people discover ev's. That's ultimately what it's going to take to make them a mass market success.
 
Welcome.

Consider a (30 mile one-way) trip to join our SoCal LEAF Gathering this coming
Saturday at the Hometown Buffet on 17th street, just two blocks East of I5,
in Santa Ana. Typically, I am there from 8 to 11 AM.

Come down 57 to I-5, then a bit further south to the 17th Street exit.
Charge to 100% overnight, drive gently under 65, maybe Cruise Control
at 62 mph, and you should make the round trip easily.

You might enjoy our LEAF family, and have a chance to get many of
your questions answered.
 
Speaking of maintenance on a used LEAF ... it would be wise for all used-LEAF buyers to ensure the annual battery check has been done (to keep the battery warranty (as little as it may mean) in force ). Naturally, you should try to get the service paperwork from the seller and/or find out where the car had its service done.
 
garygid said:
Welcome.

Consider a (30 mile one-way) trip to join our SoCal LEAF Gathering this coming
Saturday at the Hometown Buffet on 17th street, just two blocks East of I5,
in Santa Ana. Typically, I am there from 8 to 11 AM.

Come down 57 to I-5, then a bit further south to the 17th Street exit.
Charge to 100% overnight, drive gently under 65, maybe Cruise Control
at 62 mph, and you should make the round trip easily.

You might enjoy our LEAF family, and have a chance to get many of
your questions answered.
Click to expand...

I will definitely be there! It's nice to be a part of a group that is so enthusisastic about something! Is there something set up that will show me who you are?? Is everyone there from 8-11 or does everyone just kind of drop in as their schedule permits?
 
LEAFer said:
Speaking of maintenance on a used LEAF ... it would be wise for all used-LEAF buyers to ensure the annual battery check has been done (to keep the battery warranty (as little as it may mean) in force ). Naturally, you should try to get the service paperwork from the seller and/or find out where the car had its service done.
Click to expand...

Unfortunately, the dealership I bought it from didn't have any of that info, but I should be able to schedule this battery check myself at my local dealership, right? What about oil changes and stuff? Can I go anywhere or is Nissan the best option? How often do you get maintenance?
 
No oil to change... Routine service is pretty much tire rotation, the yearly battery check, and the cabin air filter replacement every 12,000 miles or so (which you can do yourself)... There is not much else to do for quite some time.

shellabee said:
Unfortunately, the dealership I bought it from didn't have any of that info, but I should be able to schedule this battery check myself at my local dealership, right? What about oil changes and stuff? Can I go anywhere or is Nissan the best option? How often do you get maintenance?
Click to expand...
 
TomT said:
No oil to change... Routine service is pretty much tire rotation, the yearly battery check, and the cabin air filter replacement every 12,000 miles or so (which you can do yourself)... There is not much else to do for quite some time.

Well, that's awesome! So, how do I go about switching out the cabin filter? Where is it located and where can I purchase it? I should probabky just check it now, since the previous owner had it less than a year, it probably has not had it's annual maintenance.
Click to expand...
 
shellabee said:
Well, that's awesome! So, how do I go about switching out the cabin filter? Where is it located and where can I purchase it? I should probabky just check it now, since the previous owner had it less than a year, it probably has not had it's annual maintenance.
Click to expand...
Gary wrote up a nice DIY guide on the SF BayLEAFs website: LEAF Cabin Air Filter Replacement
1


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shellabee said:
I will definitely be there! It's nice to be a part of a group that is so enthusisastic about something! Is there something set up that will show me who you are??
Click to expand...

Just look for the Leaf hats, very distinctive!

Leaf_Hat_Girl.sized.jpg
 

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