Intro and a few questions

[cfloater]

Hello,
I just purchased a used 2013 Leaf with 65,000 miles on it. It is missing two battery bars but seems to be alright for what we need it for. So I have a couple of questions.

1. Anyone have any luck getting into the app? Or making it work? I sent in a picture of my registration and everything and never heard anything back.
2. Is getting a charging station installed in the garage worth it?
3. Michigan consumers energy currently has a $500 rebate for installing one, has anyone done this or had any luck getting the rebate?

Thank you

 

[alozzy]

Anyone have any luck getting into the app?

Do you mean the Nissan Connect app? If so, that's only going to work with a 2013 SV or SL. Also, if the TCU hasn't been replaced with the 3G capable unit then you won't get the app to work at all as the original TCU is 2G. FWIW, in my brief time using the app, I found it to be super buggy and not worth the frustration.

Is getting a charging station installed in the garage worth it?

It's more of a nice to have than a necessity, unless you have no free L2 charging options in your neighborhood nor at work. You can get an L2 EVSE for less than $400 and the installation costs of a 240V circuit can vary a lot. Get a quote from a local electrician whose installed many EVSEs.

 

[DougWantsALeaf]

We lived on L1 wall power with our 2013 for 6 years, with generally no issues. As its a 2013, you can set the charge limit to 80%, which means you can just plug it in every night.

Enjoy the car.

 

[PrairieLEAF]

Congrats! The included Level 1 charger adds about 5 miles of range per hour. Whether or not to get Level 2 depends on how much charge/time you need for your driving habits.

A 3 kW L2 adds about 10 mi/hr. A 6 kW L2 adds about 20 mi/hr.

 

[Oilpan4]

Charging faster than level 1 is definitely worth it. But you don't need a charging station to charge faster than level 1.
A lowly 16 amp 240v evse is all you need. It's at least 3 times faster than level 1 but not as fast as full power 6.6kw level 2 charging.
The 16 amp level 2 charger is very cheap compared to a full power 6.6kw evse.
Do you know if your 2013 can charge at 3.8kw or 6.6kw?
If you can only charge at 3.8kw then a lowly 16 amp 240v evse is all you can utilize.