kensiko said:
Prices of used Leaf dropped since the cars are getting older. 2011 Leafs are interesting for the price, because I plan on getting a Leaf but upgrade in a few years, mainly due to battery improvement (more range).
The only concern I have is if a Leaf 2015 has many important improvements over the 2011. Because I could lease a 2015. I know there is also battery capacity loss over years so that is something I would have to check if I buy a used one. But other than that? I heard about improvement in heating efficiency, but that's all.
Thanks!
Some differences to consider:
• Most (but not all) 2011 LEAFs do not have the "cold weather package", which consists of a battery heater that keeps the battery operational at very cold temperatures (roughly when it gets below zero degrees F), plus steering wheel and seat heaters that reduce the need for the cabin heater.
• The 2015 LEAF will have a heater-off button that allows the CC system to be used without the energy-hog heater coming on. The lack of such a button is a known design defect of the 2011 (and 2012) LEAFs, although it can be fixed with a mod from EVSEupgrade.com.
• The 2015 will come with a 36 month/36k(?) mile bumper-to-bumper warranty, in case something goes wrong. However, the 2011 LEAFs have proven to be pretty reliable, aside from the rapidly declining battery capacity and range.
• The 2015 will come with the "lizard" battery, that is expected to have reduced capacity loss over time, especially in hot weather places.
• A 2015 LEAF will come with, or can be ordered with, a faster 6.0 kW charger that will allow charging to be almost twice as fast at level 2 (240 V) charge stations. The faster charger won't matter much at home — doesn't matter much if it takes 3 hours or five hours when charging overnight — but it is a really big deal when getting opportunity charges from public charge stations while out-and-about.
• The 2015 has a somewhat larger trunk space because the charger that was there in the 2011 has been moved to be under the hood on newer LEAFs.
Whether any of these things is important depends a lot on how far you plan to drive per day and the weather where you live (a 2011 without the cold weather package is not a good choice in places that get really cold in winter, such as Minnesota). It also depends on whether there are any local incentives for the purchase of a new LEAF, in addition to the federal tax credit, if you qualify for that.
If you wish, you can buy the new "lizard" battery for an older LEAF for about $6000, installed, and get many years more service from the car. But unless you can get the 2011 LEAF for a bargain price it likely isn't cost-effective to do that compared to buying/leasing a 2015 LEAF.
All this boils down to "it depends"...