Msquared said:
Thanks for the tips, SierraQ! I'll have to try that setup.
SanDust, I won't miss gas stations. We don't have self-serve here in Oregon, so you have to wait for gas station attendants. :roll:
I do live in a really hilly area, so I can see how this could be handy.
One question. I trickle charged the car all night, then drove it shortly this morning. Range was at about 104 with Eco on. Then I plugged her back in for a bit, then unplugged to her out of the way of the Xterra (we are going camping today). When I started her back up, Eco-on range was only 83ish. Why the drop in range?
Short answer: you need to learn to ignore what we call the "Guess-O-Meter" (GOM). It is notoriously inaccurate unless you drive the same route in the same way under the same weather conditions. It is particularly bad in hilly areas.
Long answer: The GOM (Nissan calls it DTE, "Distance to Empty") estimates range based on the previous driving conditions. It can't guess how fast you will be driving in the future or whether or not you will be going up hills. So, when you start the car, the range will be based on how your drove the car toward the end of the previous trip. When you turned your car back on it took a different slice of the data available and came up with a different solution. The actual algorithm used for the GOM isn't known but it could use a LOT of improvement.
My suggestion, given that you live in a hilly area, is that you get a feel for how many fuel bars you use to make various trips and judge your range on that.
"Extra credit":
If you drive only a few bars worth of miles per day, try charging your LEAF so that it stays in the three to eight bar range. You can increase the charge to 80% (or more) when you expect to take a longer trip. For example: my shortest routine trip is 18 miles round trip with 300' of vertical gain outbound and 1000' of vertical gain homebound. It takes me roughly three fuel bars. So, for days when I am going to make that trip I charge enough to add about three fuel bars (roughly 1.5 hours at 240V/16A or 4.5 hours at 120V/12A). The idea behind this charging strategy is that the battery may last longer if kept in the 30% to 70% range.
If that's too much trouble because your LEAF use is unpredictable, just charge to 80%. If you need to make a long trip that will stretch the range, charge to 100% just before you leave. As you may be aware, leaving the LEAF at 100% charge for an extended period of time will reduce battery life. Don't do this. Learn to use the charge timers, setting end-time-only is particularly convenient for those who leave home at about the same time of day; you can adjust how much charge you get by setting the end time at or after you plan to leave.
FWIW, I hope this isn't too much to absorb for a new owner!