Looking for my first EV

[doug2943]

I just joined your group hoping to get an idea about purchasing A EV. My needs are for around town, no trips. I am 69 years old and hope i can get setup. I have found a 2025 Leaf SV for NET 25k..I live in WA state, west side, so the battery will not any issues. I am thinking the cost is fine, so any ideas could help.

 

[danelo]

One thing to consider is how you will charge it. If you don't drive much, 120V charging should be fine. It adds about 5 to 6 miles per hour to the battery. If you drive a lot then you may need to upgrade or add an outlet that will allow the higher amperage 240V charging.

Search the forum. You should be able to find the answer to any question you have.

 

[marshallinwash]

My only concern is the state of Nissan's finances. They did get some extra investment in the last few days. But who knows if it's enough.

The car will work out just fine for your usage if you can charge at home. That seems to be a good price if this is a SV, since only the plus model comes in the SV trim.

 

[Dooglas]

One thing to consider is how you will charge it. If you don't drive much, 120V charging should be fine. It adds about 5 to 6 miles per hour to the battery. If you drive a lot then you may need to upgrade or add an outlet that will allow the higher amperage 240V charging.

I really don't see much reason to avoid level 2 charging (220v) in the US. It is signicantly faster and adds much more flexibility to owning an EV. Every home in the US is already wired for 220v service and a broad range of level 2 EVSEs are readily available including a no frills one provided by Nissan with all recent LEAF models. I have owned 3 LEAFs in the past 10 years. I installed a dedicated 30A outlet in my garage near my electrical box for less than a $100 and connected a Clipper Creek EVSE to the outlet at an out of pocket cost of about $300 which was mostly reimbursed by a rebate from the local electrical utility. That set up has been in use now for my entire 10 years of LEAF ownership and continues to give good service.

 

[marshallinwash]

I really don't see much reason to avoid level 2 charging (220v) in the US. It is signicantly faster and adds much more flexibility to owning an EV. Every home in the US is already wired for 220v service and a broad range of level 2 EVSEs are readily available including a no frills one provided by Nissan with all recent LEAF models. I have owned 3 LEAFs in the past 10 years. I installed a dedicated 30A outlet in my garage near my electrical box for less than a $100 and connected a Clipper Creek EVSE to the outlet at an out of pocket cost of about $300 which was mostly reimbursed by a rebate from the local electrical utility. That set up has been in use now for my entire 10 years of LEAF ownership and continues to give good service.

Well I wouldn't have spent the money on hard-wiring an EVSE without the local utility credit on my bill, the availability of a 30 amp circuit in the garage, and my ability to do minor electrical work safely and legally (permit and inspection).

If the service panel is just a few feet away from where the receptacle is being placed, you don't need to upgrade the service panel, and the local utility is paying for a good chunk of the cost, upgrade to 240 volts if you have some extra money spare for the convenience.

We only drive outside of the city limits once a month, so using a120 volt outlet would have been plenty, but less convenient. Isn't this the use case of this 69 year old?