The large majority of the posts here look at this problem from the owner/user perspective and that is as it should be. But Nissan's perspective will ultimately determine what will and will not happen. I worry that they will pull the plug on the LEAF or put it into deep sleep. The reality is that they absolutely will pull the plug if the numbers don't add up for them. They can only cross-finance this endeavor for as long as their cost projections make sense.
One key design decision was to determine the fraction of usable to total battery capacity. Nissan decided to make ~93% user accessible. This gives the LEAF optimal range/cost characteristics and helps broaden the customer base. Since Nissan presumably loses money on current sales, it needs the broadest possible customer base for future cost reductions through increased production numbers. So a large usable fraction makes good business sense. Until the unavoidable technical realities start to materialize.
Lowering usable battery capacity in future models would solve or at least mitigate many of the current issues but would cost Nissan a lot of money and/or projected sales. The question is do their sales and cost projections still work under those circumstances?
One key design decision was to determine the fraction of usable to total battery capacity. Nissan decided to make ~93% user accessible. This gives the LEAF optimal range/cost characteristics and helps broaden the customer base. Since Nissan presumably loses money on current sales, it needs the broadest possible customer base for future cost reductions through increased production numbers. So a large usable fraction makes good business sense. Until the unavoidable technical realities start to materialize.
Lowering usable battery capacity in future models would solve or at least mitigate many of the current issues but would cost Nissan a lot of money and/or projected sales. The question is do their sales and cost projections still work under those circumstances?