Drive more than 40 then LEAF may not be perfert for you

[Mx5racer]

I agree with the 40-mile part of it. I would never recommend a Leaf to anyone who drives more than that on a regular basis. That's not because I don't believe the Leaf can work for a 50 or 60 mile commute, but rather I believe most people would not be happy sacrificing their use of speed, A/C, or heater in order to make certain the trip can be done on a single charge. My daily commute is 12 miles, so no trouble for me. My wife drives a hair over 40 and occasionally she takes my Leaf to work. On a cold winter day she can be retuning home nearing the low-battery warning. So that's not cool. Keep in mind she's the kind of driver that will insist on speeding and running the heater full blast. Of course she's a pretty typical American when it comes to that. If she had to drive 50 miles, I'm not sure she'd make it.

I agree completely, I don't want to tell them that they have to drive in the slow lane every day.
If they want to out to lunch

 

[jimcmorr]

80.4 miles on a single 100% charge this weekend. And this is not flat terrain where I travelled. I got the low battery warning about 4 miles from my house on the way home.

 

[gaswalla]

80.4 miles on a single 100% charge this weekend. And this is not flat terrain where I travelled. I got the low battery warning about 4 miles from my house on the way home.

Congratulations. Please continue to give reports every 6 months - that will be very informative for everyone. Based on Nissan's own data, you will not be able to do that 80 mile trip this time next year.

 

[jimcmorr]

We shall see. I hear reports from other long time LEAF owners experiencing similar range after 10K miles and more. (I have 4800 on mine currently)

I will keep us posted, if I don't have a senior moment and forget.

:?

 

[bernie82]

When we talk about range it would be nice to at least include speed and hills in the discussion. Stating that you got 80 miles to low battery warning is no trick if your average speed was 50 MPH on flat terrain. In my opinion, the proper use of speed is the most essential component of driving a leaf. I took a 50 mile trip last week that had a gradual elevation from 0 to 1200 feet. I kept my speed at 55 MPH and arrived at my destination with two of the 12 bars remaining and no LBW.

 

[jimcmorr]

You are correct, this is good info to have. I think I mentioned that the terrain here is not flat. It is in fact quite hilly but not mountanous. My speed mostly was between 40 and 55. I did Consciously avoid the 65 mile per hour highway that is near here. (GA rt 400) Also I had 5 battery temperature bars at the start and 6 when I returned home.

When we talk about range it would be nice to at least include speed and hills in the discussion. Stating that you got 80 miles to low battery warning is no trick if your average speed was 50 MPH on flat terrain. In my opinion, the proper use of speed is the most essential component of driving a leaf. I took a 50 mile trip last week that had a gradual elevation from 0 to 1200 feet. I kept my speed at 55 MPH and arrived at my destination with two of the 12 bars remaining and no LBW.

 

[GetOffYourGas]

On a cold winter day she can be retuning home nearing the low-battery warning. So that's not cool. Keep in mind she's the kind of driver that will insist on speeding and running the heater full blast. Of course she's a pretty typical American when it comes to that. If she had to drive 50 miles, I'm not sure she'd make it.

And let's be honest - how cold does it really get in Texas? I doubt you even know what negative temperatures (F not C) feel like. I wouldn't be surprised if 40 miles is a stretch under those conditions here.

My commute is about 4.5 miles round-trip, so the Leaf was a no brainer for me. I could lose 80% capacity, and still make it, charging to 80% with the heat blasting. But then I wouldn't be able to use it to take the kids to Karate, grocery shopping, etc.