First Leaf Buying Advice

[Pandasaur]

I'm looking at buying my first Leaf, just for commuting (we have a minivan for family trips) and wanted to not spend too much if possible.

I live in the Northeast (so lots of winter driving) but commute less than 10 miles each way, mostly streets. I have an attached garage where I plan to charge it at L1 overnight.
I feel like if I got a 2014, even if the battery health is diminished, I would still have enough range to get me to work and back, assuming I would only need the heater on the way home.
How do I make this decision? I worry about a couple years down the road when the battery degrades even further, and it's out of warranty. Is it safer to spend a little more and get a 2017 with fewer miles, given the diminished winter driving capacity? Or is my required mileage so low it doesn't matter that much?

Thanks!

 

[LeftieBiker]

Have you read my used Leaf buying guide?

https://www.mynissanleaf.com/viewtopic.php?f=27&t=26662&p=538030

Basically, if you have twice as much range as you need in Summer, plus about 15% more to allow for degradation, that should suffice. If you can charge at work then your range needs are pretty modest. Since the 2014 is off warranty now, also consider a 2013 built AFTER March of 2013. That will have a built in charge limiting feature that lets you charge to 80%, to increase battery longevity.

 

[Pandasaur]

I read your guide a few times through and it was very helpful, thank you! I think I was overwhelmed with the charts. I guess my main thing I wondered was exactly how much to budget for degradation over time. I know this depends on which battery pack I'm looking at, and what my local climate is, and how I drive, etc. You mentioned 15% as a ballpark. For a post-April '13 Wolf pack, is that 15% the expected degradation from 2013 through now? Or 15% of the current GIDs from now through the next 5-7 years? Just trying to wrap my head around what to expect over the next 5 years.
Thank you so much for your help!

 

[LeftieBiker]

That would be 5% per year from the time you buy the car (I'm assuming later 2013-2014 Wolf Pack, or 2015-2016 Lizard pack) until 3 years from then, when you either accept possibly marginal range or get a newer EV. Your range needs are so modest, though, that with work charging you should be able to keep an 11 bar Leaf for something approaching 10 years, if you want.

 

[Pandasaur]

That helps a lot, thank you so much! And thanks for being so prompt in replying. I'm excited to join the EV club!

 

[jlv]

I live in the Northeast (so lots of winter driving) but commute less than 10 miles each way, mostly streets. I have an attached garage where I plan to charge it at L1 overnight.
I feel like if I got a 2014, even if the battery health is diminished, I would still have enough range to get me to work and back, assuming I would only need the heater on the way home.

For comparison, I'm in Massachusetts. My 2013 SL was at 13% degraded when I sold it. In the last winter I had it, it would still give me 55 miles of range (as measured by LeafSpyPro; the useless dash display would show 75 or more). That was running heat freely, Driving in snow would take another 10%-20% off of that.

My round trip commute was 22 miles of local roads, but with a speed limit of 55MPH. I figured the car would always meet my needs for that commute (even if I didn't have charging at work).

 

[Pandasaur]

Thank you! That makes me feel a lot better.

 

[jlv]

Just to state the obvious, a LEAF with a heat pump makes a big difference here.

 

[LeftieBiker]

Just to state the obvious, a LEAF with a heat pump makes a big difference here.

Yes indeed, although not in frigid weather. The heat pump found standard on the SV and SL models (until it became optional in 2018) extends mild Winter weather driving range quite a bit. When you are calculating worst case Winter range, though, it only matters in heavy snow with temps above 28F or so, because those drives take longer and the heatpump reduces energy use per minute. In temps below that it provides a little help down to about 16F, then none to speak of below that.