Who is driving 2013 Leaf? EPA range is 75 miles!!!

[Metalman]

It looks like they are doing better job of protecting the rockers now, definitely needed!

I wonder if that part that looks to be a piece of plastic could be ordered and installed on 2011/2012 Leafs.

That little piece underneath is on my 12. I'm looking at the undercoating that goes up to just below the doors.

 

[Metalman]

One other thing I wanted to mention about our visit yesterday to the Nissan dealership in Lewisville, TX that is slightly off topic....

When we pulled into the dealership, we were hoping to grab a bit of a charge from them while roaming around taking pictures of the new 2013 LEAFS. The chargers were in use, so I asked one of the guys from the dealership (Jon Detter, Internet Sales Consultant, Leaf Sales Specialist) if it was possible to get a bit of a charge for the brief time we'd be there. He said sure, that the cars which were charging were employee cars and that "Customers always come first" with regard to the chargers, and so he happily unplugged one of the cars so we could grab some juice. I thought that was extremely nice since he had no clue who we were, why we were there, and whether or not we were planning to purchase anything from them that day or in the future. Then he proceeded to spend a bunch of time with us showing us all the new features of the 2013, allowing me to take all those pictures and answering any questions we had. So kudos to Jon Detter and the policy of AutoNation Nissan Lewisville for allowing us to charge even though we had not purchased anything from them nor had any plans to do so in the immediate future.

That's absolutely the way it should be if Nissan hopes to sell these cars to "regular" people. This is my big gripe with Nissan right now if you can't tell by my signature.

 

[mnsweeps]

One other thing I wanted to mention about our visit yesterday to the Nissan dealership in Lewisville, TX that is slightly off topic....

When we pulled into the dealership, we were hoping to grab a bit of a charge from them while roaming around taking pictures of the new 2013 LEAFS. The chargers were in use, so I asked one of the guys from the dealership (Jon Detter, Internet Sales Consultant, Leaf Sales Specialist) if it was possible to get a bit of a charge for the brief time we'd be there. He said sure, that the cars which were charging were employee cars and that "Customers always come first" with regard to the chargers, and so he happily unplugged one of the cars so we could grab some juice. I thought that was extremely nice since he had no clue who we were, why we were there, and whether or not we were planning to purchase anything from them that day or in the future. Then he proceeded to spend a bunch of time with us showing us all the new features of the 2013, allowing me to take all those pictures and answering any questions we had. So kudos to Jon Detter and the policy of AutoNation Nissan Lewisville for allowing us to charge even though we had not purchased anything from them nor had any plans to do so in the immediate future.

That's absolutely the way it should be if Nissan hopes to sell these cars to "regular" people. This is my big gripe with Nissan right now if you can't tell by my signature.

They definitely need that kind of customer service to sell the new 2013 Leaf...with a disappointing 75 EPA rating , I am sure many potential buyers have fallen off the radar.

 

[bobsfreeleaf]

Ok folks that's it for the pictures. On the S model, I tried to get pictures of everything that appeared to be DIFFERENT from the SL model 10 feet away. Hope you all enjoy them and please consider purchasing EV License Plate frames from our store at EVPlates.com. Thanks!

Thank you for the pictures. I have not seen those anywhere on the web yet. My S is on its way (VIN 0283) here in San Diego sometime in early March. I am really pleased with the look of the seats not being a solid black. I was a little worried about the black/black combination which is the only choice on the S. The dash color is ok with me, but the center display is pretty ugly. Perhaps it will be less so with the screen on.

The $199 lease deal was too good to pass up on the S, although the elimination of the heater upgrade in the base model is downright punative, since it directly impacts on range. It's like buying 3/4 of a car. Anyway, its San Diego........ My guess is they are losing money on this trim level. A quote on the SV was $70 more a month????

I guess they are making far fewer of the S model by the VIN number I was given. In regard to build quality I hope its not like that old movie where they open the door and the whole car falls apart! Since they have something to prove, maybe they will Q.C. the heck out of the first batch. Wishful thinking I guess. Oh well, am hanging on for the ride.

Thank you for the great information here. Bob

 

[surfingslovak]

IndideEVs has a nice write-up about the 2013 LEAF. They are using Vicki's photos as well. Might be worth reading:

2013 Nissan LEAF Rated at 75 Miles Of Range, Now At Dealerships

 

[Jay]

IndideEVs has a nice write-up about the 2013 LEAF. They are using Vicki's photos as well. Might be worth reading:

2013 Nissan LEAF Rated at 75 Miles Of Range, Now At Dealerships

Just as a random follow to that piece I wrote...and this thread:

Nissan got in contact with me this morning (on a Saturday morning no less), and that although these cars have what look to be official EPA/Monroney stickers that, Nissan is still saying they dont yet have the EPA rating, and "these are projected figures and not official."

Honestly, seeing how it is my understanding that Nissan perfroms the EPA testing, then submits the numbers, and that these stickers appear to have no disclaimers on them, (and they are now selling cars) these are/will be the actual numbers...but perhaps there is still some rubber stamping to be done and/or Nissan wants to do some press/disclaimers on it themselves come next week and we just got ahead of their curve.

I've got a few questions in to them about how the numbers were acquired, the process, etc. Will update the thread if anything comes of that.

/cheeers

 

[surfingslovak]

I've got a few questions in to them about how the numbers were acquired, the process, etc. Will update the thread if anything comes of that.

Thanks, Jay! The new and apparently still not quite official numbers were presumably determined via the 5-cycle EPA test. This level of detail might be of interest to some on this forum, and perhaps it can/will be confirmed in the coming week as well.

 

[adric22]

The dash color is ok with me, but the center display is pretty ugly. Perhaps it will be less so with the screen on.

Yeah - I'm not a big fan of the S-model's center console either. I know they wanted to do away with the NAV to help make the car cheaper, but I'm at a loss as to why they had to make everything look so different, especially the climate controls. Take the Prius, for example. It has the same style with or without NAV.

I guess they are making far fewer of the S model by the VIN number I was given. In regard to build quality I hope its not like that old movie where they open the door and the whole car falls apart!

Well, I wouldn't think there would be any difference in build quality between the S and higher trim levels. But I have also wondered if they would limit the number of S models they are making so that they can attempt to sell people on the higher trim levels when they come in the dealership. Which makes perfect sense, since that is what they do with gasoline cars. Having that entry level price does get people's attention, though.

What will really start to sell Leafs are when all of the dealership salesmen are familiar with the car and show it to every customer that walks onto the lot. Well, I say every customer. I mean when a customer comes in and doesn't know what kind of car they want (which is VERY common) and if they are interested in a fuel efficient car, then show them the Leaf. In the past this has not been done because only the Leaf specialist could sell the car, and thus salesmen have no incentive to lose their commission by showing a customer a Leaf.

 

[edatoakrun]

="Statik"
...Nissan got in contact with me this morning (on a Saturday morning no less), and that although these cars have what look to be official EPA/Monroney stickers that, Nissan is still saying they dont yet have the EPA rating, and "these are projected figures and not official."...

The plot thickens...

 

[cwerdna]

="Statik"
...Nissan got in contact with me this morning (on a Saturday morning no less), and that although these cars have what look to be official EPA/Monroney stickers that, Nissan is still saying they dont yet have the EPA rating, and "these are projected figures and not official."...

The plot thickens...

Indeed. It was already odd that they were cutting things this close but this news makes things even more strange.

 

[DaveinOlyWA]

IndideEVs has a nice write-up about the 2013 LEAF. They are using Vicki's photos as well. Might be worth reading:

2013 Nissan LEAF Rated at 75 Miles Of Range, Now At Dealerships

+1 and to mention although there is only a 2 mile increase per EPA, they also acknowledge a $61 drop in estimated fuel costs from $561 to $500 even. which is the Percentage improvement we are looking for and realistically that is the true bottom line.

now, how that 75 miles shakes out? if it means 70 miles of "comfortable" Winter driving verses the 55-60 we have now ok, then. I accept that as great improvement.

now, would I like more than my estimated 88 miles in Summer? sure but i can wait on it... a little while longer

 

[MrIanB]

Thanks Vicki for your time and taking pictures. The new range is a joke, I would not consider that an improvement and they should get 100 mile range out of sales pitch. I like the parking brake back on the floor as a pedal and the Eco button in the steering wheel.

Ian B

 

[Tofuboi86]

Note the lack of a back-up camera on the 2013 SL.

Yeah, my husband noticed that right off the bat. Out of all the 2013 LEAFs at the dealership, only the S model (with the charger option package) had the backup camera on it. All those sweet looking SL's didn't.

This is really funny, spec on NL website state that rear camera is standard, but apparently is not or production mistake I guess one have to buy "Charger package" to get camera on SL, but 6.6 charger is standard on SL

Actually, if you look on the Nissan site, the higher trims have the new "around view monitor" which uses 4 cameras to give all four angles of view which makes it easier to parallel park and see all around the car. And I believe the rear camera was moved from the door handle so thats why it doesn't look like it has a rear camera.

 

[LEAFfan]

Actually, if you look on the Nissan site, the higher trims have the new "around view monitor" which uses 4 cameras to give all four angles of view which makes it easier to parallel park and see all around the car. And I believe the rear camera was moved from the door handle so thats why it doesn't look like it has a rear camera.

No, these have no AVM, and the rear cam is still in the same place as before. None of those cars have the optional Premium Package.

 

[planet4ever]

Note the lack of a back-up camera on the 2013 SL.

Yeah, my husband noticed that right off the bat. Out of all the 2013 LEAFs at the dealership, only the S model (with the charger option package) had the backup camera on it. All those sweet looking SL's didn't.

This is really funny, spec on NL website state that rear camera is standard, but apparently is not or production mistake I guess one have to buy "Charger package" to get camera on SL, but 6.6 charger is standard on SL

I'm not sure what website you are looking at, but I've been taking this one as gospel. Click the Specs tab for all the details. It clearly shows the RearView Monitor as optional on the S and not available on the SV or SL. The new Around View® Monitor is optional on the SV and SL, and not available on the S. The options table at the bottom shows that the RearView Monitor is (somewhat illogically) part of the Charge Package for the S, which also gives you the 6 kW charger and the quick charge port. The Around View® Monitor is part of the Premium Package on the SV or SL, which also gives you the Bose audio upgrade.

All this has been discussed at length on the RearView Monitor not standard in MY2013 Leaf thread, so is not a last minute change or production mistake, and it should not have come as a surprise.

Ray

 

[EdmondLeaf]

Ray, this is where is listed SV SL Parking Sensors Rear Camera Only. Comparing to competitors is so important to me
http://compare.nissanusa.com/nissan...0,USC30TOC241B0,USC30HOC061C1~submenu=results

 

[Spies]

That little piece underneath is on my 12. I'm looking at the undercoating that goes up to just below the doors.

Looking at the photo it looked to me that there may have been a new plastic piece inside the front of the wheel well where debris currently collects on my 2011. The plastic deflector that drops down from the body in front of the wheel is on my 2011 as well.

 

[mnsweeps]

Thanks Vicki for your time and taking pictures. The new range is a joke, I would not consider that an improvement and they should get 100 mile range out of sales pitch. I like the parking brake back on the floor as a pedal and the Eco button in the steering wheel.

Ian B

+1. Agree. I have already started looking at buying a lightly used 2012 Prius. I am so disappointed with the range if thats true...

 

[evnow]

Thanks Vicki for your time and taking pictures. The new range is a joke, I would not consider that an improvement and they should get 100 mile range out of sales pitch. I like the parking brake back on the floor as a pedal and the Eco button in the steering wheel.

Ian B

+1. Agree. I have already started looking at buying a lightly used 2012 Prius. I am so disappointed with the range if thats true...

Not sure what you guys expected. It is the same battery - so there won't be a miraculous increase in range. In earlier threads a lot of us talked about this.

 

[TomT]

I really don't understand why anyone is surprised by the very small increase in range... The car's weight is very nearly the same, the battery is the same, and the drive-line was already very efficient so there was little additional to ring out there... Only three things are going to significantly increase the range: a major reduction in weight, a larger battery, or a much more aerodynamic profile... The 2013 has none of these things.

+1. Agree. I have already started looking at buying a lightly used 2012 Prius. I am so disappointed with the range if thats true...