Comparison: Why I Chose a Nissan Leaf Plus over a Tesla Model 3

[LeftieBiker]

In my opinion, 100% charge is not a problem as long as the car does not sit for extended periods at nearly full charge.

I'd say that just about all of us agree on that. The problem is that many Leaf drivers can't manage, for various reasons, 'just in time' charging.

 

[knightmb]

It is interesting that the last 2 posts mention dark window tint. Is that the factory tinted glass or did the dealer add tinting? I really like the factory tinted glass (liked it on my previous Leafs also), but hate add-on tinting because it is too dark and gets scratched over time. Car dealers in Phoenix tend to add tinting as soon as they receive the cars. I have refused to purchase cars I looked at that had add-on tint. I ordered all three LEAFs so was able to give special instructions to not add tinting when they arrived.

On all of the ones I've owned, it was factory tinted. I know exactly what you mean by the after-market tints, seems they always fail for some reason. You'll always see the "air" tint gaps in someone's car, you know they got a bad tint job. :lol:

For some reason, on my 2020, it's darker than my previous 2013 or my wife's 2018. Don't know if maybe it just lightens up over time as the Sun eats through it or Nissan just using some different tint compared to before? :?

 

[GerryAZ]

In my opinion, 100% charge is not a problem as long as the car does not sit for extended periods at nearly full charge.

I'd say that just about all of us agree on that. The problem is that many Leaf drivers can't manage, for various reasons, 'just in time' charging.

I have never worried about sitting for a day without driving after charging. I would try to drive a few miles or run climate control to discharge the battery a little if I knew it was going to be parked more than a day or two at nearly full charge.

 

[hbquikcomjamesl]

Another point in favor of the Leaf:

It's NOT a snob-appeal vehicle. And it doesn't make Elon Musk any richer than he already is. Unlike the Tesla, it's an electric vehicle for the common folk.

 

[sammy]

this is really not a fair comparison price wise

the price is almost $20K more and I dont think it is worth it for model 3..... trunk space is much bigger on leaf than model 3.

And folks find model 3 good looking? seriously? not a tesla hater but just wondering

 

[DougWantsALeaf]

Out of the S3XY lineup, I have always preferred the S, but it is a "bit" pricy for our family/budget.

After having Leafs for our only cars for a couple years until just recently, I do think a 300+ mile EV (2 cycle epa 300 miles, not 5 cycle) would be better for the all purpose vehicle. The 220ish usable summer freeway mile range can work, but still feels a bit comprised for road trips. The charging time isn't even the pain (I need the breaks), it's the mental weight of always thinking of your next charging solution for the trips...even with ample available charging infra. The extra 80ish miles would buy a lot of leeway.

 

[SageBrush]

I do think a 300+ mile EV (2 cycle epa 300 miles, not 5 cycle) would be better for the all purpose vehicle.

300 2-cycle EPA miles is not much more than 200 winter (snow temp) miles** unless the car is outfitted with Tesla like winter mitigation, meaning a decent combination of

Good cabin insulation and low air leakage
Heat pump able to reach a COP of >2.0 in the routine winter temperatures
Heat conservation and re-use related to DC charging
Heated seats

And Pre-conditioning is really, really important.

Standardized testing is still very poor for winter decisions. I think the best help is the database from Bjorn Nyland on YouTube,

**Based on 0 - 100% SoC. In actual driving perhaps 65% is cycled so "300" EPA 2-cycle becomes 130 miles between stops, less with a headwind.

 

[DougWantsALeaf]

With used Model 3s going for at/under 20K, it is tempting for my next car.

 

[marshallinwash]

Another point in favor of the Leaf:

It's NOT a snob-appeal vehicle. And it doesn't make Elon Musk any richer than he already is. Unlike the Tesla, it's an electric vehicle for the common folk.

I don't think there is much snob-appeal any more. I see Tesla model 3s and model Ys constantly.

Up to the end of the year, you could buy a new Model 3 for as little under $30,000 after the tax credit. That's not a bad price for a new car.

 

[rgs]

In the fall of 2022, we replaced our 2020 SV+ with a used Tesla Model 3 RWD Long Range. We have been driving Leafs since 2011 and put over 150,000 miles on them. We currently have a 2014 Leaf S, which we got new and have driven over 85,000 miles. Only one ten minute level 3 charge in over 8 years, so no noticable battery degradation. The only service cost has been tires and a 12 volt battery. It has been a great second car for city driving.

We got the Tesla for one reason: the public charging infrastructure for anything but a Tesla is abysmal. We took our first real road trip in the SV+ in September, 2022. 1,200 miles in EV friendly Oregon and California. We had no problem finding chargers. Finding one that worked without a call to customer service or worked at all was a challenge. After a drive home in 100° plus weather when I was ill and my wife had to do all the driving and where multiple chargers failed to work or died in the middle of a charge, we decided we would need either an ICE car, a PHEV or a Tesla. In over a year, we have never had a problem or a wait at a Tesla Supercharger. We drove the Tesla at 80 mph from Denver to Grand Junction (243 miles) on a single charge. We have had 2 mobile service calls. One was to replace the charging door and install a bar carrier, the other was to replace the 12 volt battery. Both were reasonably priced. The 12 volt battery was replaced after a warning on the screen which said it needed to be replaced and to schedule service. When our Leaf 12 volt battery failed, the car wouldn't start and the dash showed I didn't have my foot on the brake. The dealer's service department wouldn't give me any possible cause over the phone. A local independent shop did. New battery at Costco was $75. I installed it in about ten minutes.

Our Tesla doesn't have even the basic Autopilot. Cruise control is basic, not adaptive. The cruise on the SV+ was nicer and I like the blind spot warning better on the SV+. The RWD Tesla handles much better than the Leaf. Steering is much better. Controls are different, but better integrated. Voice commands work well. There is a learning curve, but once I understood Tesla's design philosophy, it worked fine for me. My wife still prefers the 2014 Leaf.

Public charging for the Leaf is only to get worse unless someone come up with a CCS or NACS adapter. Nissan has given the middle finger to Leaf owners. My next car may not be a Tesla. It won't be a Nissan.

 

[chk]

May I add my 2cts as I have both: Nissan Leaf ZE1 of 2018 (> 100.000km) and the Tesla M3 from 2023 (though luckily not the current updated M3 without signal stick etc) with 10.000 km by now.

The Leaf is much nicer in the city , easier to drive and with a better capacity for transporting luggage etc (yes, it's unfair: this advantage causes much higer energy consumption above 100 km/h), the power pedal has a better response curve (in the "Eco" mode, nonlinear, which enables me to start smoothly, when the M3 jumps from the place [a bit exaggerated]) and as the OP wrote it's easy to feel that the car maker has much more experience how to build a car.

Yet on longer distances, the Leaf is a dead end. No support from Nissan for ChaDeMO converters and no vision of delivering new, left alone larger, batteries. Charging on the road with a Tesla is a much, much better experience. Here in Germany, Nissan is more or less dying, there's no future for a company that does not listen to its customer's needs and fears. And 14-15 kWh/100km driving on the Autobahn with 120-130 km/h [sorry about the local unit system] as compared to > 20 kWh/100km with the Leaf.

This difference shows: my wife prefers the Leaf ("it's a car") by far, and I prefer the M3 (the "smartphone on wheels" - I'm IT affine). But when I'm driving locally, I also prefer the Leaf). The Leaf has its spurious flaws on cruise control, but Tesla's cruise control is much worse. Everything it sees that even "might" be in the way causes anxious reduction of speed. Even bicycles just painted on the road . Whe I want to overtake, the Nissan immediately respects the cruise control speed (known I want to overtake, I guess the signalling), while the Tesla still "sees" to car I want to overtake and stays below the chosen speed.

On the other hand, I like Tesla's openness ("Teslalogger" for example, giving me a lot of information about the car) when Nissan does anything to prohibit access to the car's data. This is not contemporary.

Anyway, no Nissan for me - I don't have trust in the company caring about customers any more. Also, I had to wait nearly 6 months for a spare battery module, incapable of using the car - causing me to buy a Tesla as it was available immediately.

That said, the Leaf had - apart from the battery module problem - no (zero!) necessary problem or repair in the 100.000km!

 

[chk]

Well I promise I need the same amount of time in the Leaf to look for the knobs (often climate control) as I need in the Tesla to control the same either using speech imput or - rarely - using the screen. I do not use the "advanced" features of the Tesla a lot, I just drive it as a car (except when I'm on the passenger seat, grin).
But I also added 6 "S3XY" buttons for the most important features (folding mirrors, opening charge port, opening frunk, pre-heating the battery manually when needed, and the most important climate control's settings like ventilation, internal/external air source, and de-icing), these help a lot for daily use. Try finding such helpers for the Leaf...

 

[chk]

Oh, and I forgot: what is much worse in the Leaf is the climate control. Heats up fast, afterwards becomes colder than selected. And the ventilation is not predictable. Hard to enjoy in the winter and hot summer. In that respect, the M3 is much better - it does what I select.

Might be a bug of our Leaf, though.

 

[DougWantsALeaf]

After owning Leafs for over 10 years (1 2103 gen 1 and 2x e019 Leaf Pluses) and isn't a M3 rwd for rental, a couple casual observations.

1. My Leaf has very similar efficiency in most of my driving situations. Guessing the M3 does better at 80mph.

2. Having the usage graph and energy spend vs. Estimate is hands down best feature of the car (Tesla). Leaf Spy let's you do close approximation, but that's an extra device. For a short while Android auto let your put LS on the car screen, but that has since been disabled.
3. Leaf cargo space for its size is its best feature. 3 kids in car seats and a Costco load - no problem. We even put a 6" banquet table and a pong pong table in the back. Great for parking in the city.

As a long time ev driver starting back when there was really no DC; I find Chademo support better than ever. With my frequent long trips (600+ miles a day) having more options every year. It will eventually go down..but not yet.

Just my 2 cents

 

[Bombastinator2]

Did the same thing but I had an uncommon problem: I don’t fit through the door of a Tesla model 3. I do with a leaf though. Ironically I also do with a Mimi cooper. The MiniEV sucks hard though.

 

[Bombastinator2]

I'd say that just about all of us agree on that. The problem is that many Leaf drivers can't manage, for various reasons, 'just in time' charging.

Like me.

 

[Daklein]

We have my Dad's new 2014 Leaf since 2019, and swapped to a 62kwh battery Jan 2020. We've put about 60k miles on the 62kwh battery in 4 years now, fingers crossed, all good. My brother has an M3 extended range which I've driven on 200+ round trips a couple times. I just did trips with both of them over the holidays, 4 adults in the Leaf 350 mile each way, plus shorter 100+ mile days on one end.

-I whack my 6'2" head getting in/out of the M3. I'd get used to it, the last time I didn't hit my head anymore.
-The HMI of the M3 makes me really really angry. You get used to some of it once you know some shortcuts, but I might invest in a CAN bus manual control knob toy, there's one generally similar to a BMW-style center console knob. It's just unsafe to have to look at the screen and poke through menus to adjust anything while driving, eyes adjusting between the real world ready to kill you and Elon's stupid screen to change the wipers, HVAC, headlights. The morning after having driving the M3, we left before light in cold rainy weather with the Leaf. Adjusting everything easily was an absolute pleasure.
-In the 3yr old, 70000mi M3, I drove my normal relaxed back roads way to deliver my parents home, in winter, 200+ miles home, and it showed 100+ miles remaining when I got back. My brother's normal driving the M3 to the same destination taking some 80mph highways barely makes it back. The Leaf can't quite make that even with careful driving.
-Otherwise, 300+ mile EV with good aero would be really really nice for trips vs. the 200+ mile Leaf.

The 62kwh Leaf is great for 98% of driving and trips are doable, but the extra time and uncertainty of charging stops is a little painful. Roughly 8hrs for what a gas car could do in 5-6hrs without stops. In winter, even driving pretty reasonable slow speeds of 60-65mph, you pretty much need to stop about every 100miles except for the first leg. I did 2 500 mile trips with the 24kwh Leaf battery, and those were really really absurd, 12 hrs to do what a gas car would take 5 hrs.

So range would upstage my relatively petty Elon HMI concerns, and I will be looking for a M3 primarily to make family not hate me on trips. The Leaf is more preferable around home and it's a cute little truckster, I'd feel a little bad abusing a nice M3 in the same ways. I'll look for a pre-abused M3 if something happens to the Leaf, and put the 62kwh battery in something else.

 

[cornbinder89]

Neat "range reducer" on the roof, bet you get some questions.

 

[redLEAF]

Came across this thread somewhat by accident due to the new format of the site sending out nightly updates now -- anyway, can only speak to the earliest LEAF's as bought one of the first in Chicagoland back in Dec '11. Kept it until end of '16 as it simply could no longer safely get me back and forth to work in less than ideal temps, it really hated below 30F temps - hard to believe a car that 'cost' $38,240 new was only worth $5K after 5 years - my out of pocket with the 2 EV rebates and a $9K Mazda 3 trade-in was only $18K so was worth it at the time. From what I remember it had a very soft suspension (no sports car for sure) and still had the 2G phone interface, etc. - a decent 'short' commute car but that was about it. It served its purpose at the time - Nissan dealer experience back then only so-so --- the tech being so new, only 1 Nissan dealer in the NW suburbs offered them -- and only 1 tech to work on them!

Traded the LEAF for a 1 year old VW e-Golf during the 18 month wait for the Model 3 RWD as wanted an EV that could do my work commute - kept the VW for a year - it almost doubled the usable range versus the early LEAF and was much more fun to drive. VW decided to not really make its EV 'stand out' so it looked like pretty much any other Golf - including the controls -- much better interface than the early LEAF but still lacking in some respects. As VW never sold these new in the Midwest, had to check with my local VW dealer (still had a VW Touareg at the time) and they had prepped themselves for EV's and the service experience was day and night better than Nissan with the LEAF.

Traded in the VW e-Golf for my first Tesla - a 2017 RWD - this is still a few years earlier model than the original poster's comparison but those early days with a brand new model make a fair comparison as well as the buying process and service. First off -- from the very first drive what a difference - never once did I get any 'range anxiety' having owned 2 EV's prior helped but long trips were now quite simple and we did a number of long excursions with it. The smart phone Tesla app elegance, as well as regular software updates being pushed out made it that much better. It had some early production issues (went through 3 tail light lenses and 2 charge ports - all replaced under warranty) but service for it was a day and night experience versus other service centers - service loaner was always available if needed but not necessary.

Moved from the RWD to a LR AWD when the RWD was getting close to being out of warranty and then again when the AWD was rear ended (was fixed flawlessly but didn't want to keep it) decided to step up to a Model S for all of the pluses - much more cargo/storage (almost what my old Touareg could carry - which I had sold earlier at the peak of used car demand), better ride, hushed interior noise, adjustable suspension (did you know it will 'detect' poor roads and adjust automatically?), 3 display screens, 400+ mile range, etc., etc. -- new MS and MX owners also get free HomeLink and a year of premium connectivity. When Tesla opted to offer it standard with the 'round' steering wheel and the new 'Ultra Red' color that's when I pulled the trigger -- an added bonus was the 3 years of free Supercharging at the time. Have had that car since mid-June this year and by far its the best EV I've owned - each EV owner has their own needs and this is one I hope to keep long term -- we also have a '19 BMW i3 which is our short range commuter - still has a lot more range than the original LEAF but enough for me to occasionally take it to work without any worries.

It all comes down to what works best for you as well as of course experience with both the brand and local service center - Tesla has worked hard for my business so no reason to not continue with them - they still aren't easy access for some people (some areas of the US are off-limits due to local state laws on the books -- it's interesting that some new Tesla sales/service centers are opting to go to Indian reservations to by-pass these -- pretty creative!).

 

[Bombastinator2]

Neat "range reducer" on the roof, bet you get some questions.

Looks noisy too