Nissan Engineering Team Visit Dec. 3rd: Recap

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gascant

Well-known member
Joined
Nov 23, 2010
Messages
921
Location
San Jose, CA
Great meeting--thanks to everyone who attended and help make it successful.
Check out the aftermath starting somewhere around Page 27 of this thread.



The SF BayLEAFs are arranging a meeting on December 3rd with members of the LEAF Engineering team from Japan. The purpose is to provide direct feedback to Nissan regarding our experiences with the car. It's also a forum for providing suggestions for improvements in both the LEAF and future Nissan EV's. Some (working prototypes) of these will be demonstrated by MNL forum members (e.g., the modified EVSE that provides full Level 2 charging). The exact time and location are still to be determined. We hope to have an impressive turnout of owners and LEAFs to demonstrate our passion for helping EVs be commercially successful.

MNL Forum members can help, whether you plan to attend (or not) by providing input on the three things you like most about the car and those that need improvement (see below). A small committee will review the suggestions and put together short presentations for Nissan. If you would like to participate in developing the presentations, please indicate same (public or PM). We'll compile the final list and publish here.

gascant:
Likes: Smooth, rapid acceleration; LED headlights; voice recognition system
Suggested improvements: Accurate SOC Meter, Driver's personal storage space, paint/finish
 
TonyWilliams said:
Are they in California then? Or coming specifically for your event?
Thank you for creating the thread! Here is my small contribution to the list.

Like:

- 100% electric
- efficient / economical
- good acceleration

Could improve:

- slow charging is too slow (3.3kW)
- more granular charge timers (70% and 90% in addition to 80% and 100%)
- more convenient method for opening charge door
 
TonyWilliams said:
gascant said:
The SF BayLEAFs are arranging a meeting on December 3rd with members of the LEAF Engineering team from Japan.
Are they in California then? Or coming specifically for your event?
They come over frequently, so we'll be catching them either at the start or end of their December trip. They change planes in San Francisco, so it's a natural stopping point.
 
LEAFfan said:
The OP said to pick 3 each, so what would your top 3 of each be?
Thanks for pointing that out, I should have read gascant's post more carefully. Curious what others will come up with.
 
Likes:

100% electric
Real car
Good performance in D

Needs improvement:

Stupid, dumb, cheap dash clock
3.3kW charger needs to be upgraded to 6.6kW
Needs a third driving mode, like Mitsubishi's B mode, where you get increased regen but no performance degradation.
 
In anticipation of picking up my car this weekend I know I'll want to be part of this. I am even willing to help put the presentation together so jot down my name and PM me details.

One possible suggestion for your "suggestions by others," perhaps people here should provide 3 points for 3 topics:
-Likes
-Improvements to current model
-Improvements to future models

My thought is, I've read a lot of suggestions on this forum for items that Nissan can roll out NOW in software updates, such as: update steering response algorithm for better feel (perhaps a user setting with 2 settings), allow distance guess-o-meter to show SOC % (again, as a possible user setting), 3.3kW to 6.6kW upgrade path for earlier adopters, user setting to default pedestrian noisemaker to off, ect...

I'll be providing my actual feedback after I get my car, of course ;-)
 
Improvements:

1) Improve the steering feel (over-boosted, numb, no on-center)!
2) 7.2Kw (30amp) charger
3) Better Nav/Sound/Display system WITH SOC meter

Like:

1) Operational cost
2) Quietness and smoothness
3) Size (just right for us)

LEAFfan said:
The OP said to pick 3 each, so what would your top 3 of each be?
 
Like:

1) Operational cost
2) Quietness and smoothness
3) Size (just right for us)

Improvements:

1) Provide remote trunk release
2) Re-work/Improve the Navigation system
3) Either get rid of Carwings, or improve its accuracy
 
Likes: -Leaf is smooth, with rapid acceleration
-Quiet
-100% electric
-Super low maintenance
-Excellent rear seat legroom/headroom

Dislikes: -Need a more aggressive regen mode for steep downhill decents
-Need a more modern 12 vt battery (i.e. smaller, lighter, maintenance free)
-Need front seat lumbar control
-Adjust the headrest angle-too far forward
-Need an accurate SOC meter
-Need only one accurate clock in the car

Furture Nissan EV wish: -Bring on the ESFLOW :cool: (for us DINKs-double income, no kids)
 
Likes:
  • Price (the original one)
  • Handling
  • Ability to find nearest charging stations

Improvements:
  • BMS system to support full SAE L2 specification, up to 19.2kW (240V 80Amps) and should provide upgrade to existing LEAFs
  • Telematic to include display of *true* SOC (both in % and raw data), battery cell health in mOhm.
  • User define % of SOC during charging (configurable by user).
 
The responses are coming in at a quick pace and the input is very informative. It would be helpful if you have "Improvements" to suggest that you provide some expanded comment on why. I think something beyond saying component XX is cheap, wimpy, bad, sucks, etc. should be provided. If you have a specific comment/recommendation on how component XX can be improved, please submit them.

I will be working with gascant to compile the information, and later present it to Nissan. This information could serve as the talking points for discussion with the Nissan engineers. In addition,
they are interested in the many upgrades/mods to the LEAF that are reported on the forum. Here is my running list so far:
Antennae (1932highboy )
Bike carrier/trailer hitch (Electric4Me)
EVSE (Ingineer, chris1howell, jwallace3)
EVSE light (Ingineer, kevin672)
Horn (OrientExpress, TomT )
Lights (nader, darkstar)
Seat extender bracket (awiegel)
SOC meter (garygid)
Speakers (Randy)
Suspension (nader)
Tires (Skywagon)
Upholstery (Rake)
Window tinting (Skywagon)

Glenn (MNL forum, LEAF Modifications and Accessories - an index) has started an index on MNL and I have taken some of his leads. If there are others I missed, please let me know by PM or a post on MNL. I am reaching information overload so I may have missed some of the posts with useful information.

Keep you comments coming, and thanks for your response.

Kim
 
Likes:
  • Headroom, especially in the front seats
  • Drives and handles in a familiar manner
  • Low cost to operate (maintenance and kWh)

Improvements:
  • Ability to display the battery's SOC and state of health
  • User selection of desired level of charge
  • A horn that can be heard
 
Likes:
Smoothness of Motor at all speeds.
Interior Room for family.
Low operation/maintenance costs.

Could be Better:
Range (150 would be very nice).
Long charge times (L3 would solve this though).
Steering feel is way to twitchy.
 
Like
1. acceleration/silence
2. steering wheel/driving position
3. all electric

Dislike
1. Nav/charging station mapping not updated automatically
2. interior color/fabric
3. exterior paint quality
 
Wow.
I wish I had the video tape from the market research survey I did a month ago.

Dislikes:
1) Get rid of the "OK" screen. This angers/annoys me every time I start the car. If I ever have a road range incident I'm going to blame it on that screen. See how their lawyers like that. Nissan has been unresponsive to the request of their customers. EVERYONE hates this thing and any company that ignores such a universally desired request from its customers indicates a complete lack of caring. It's the type of attitude that will make me consider another car model/manufacturer if one was available.

2) The "miles remaining" read out. Get this algorithm fixed. I think the engineers got too clever. They are too close to the silicon and can't see the forest because of the trees. The avg. kW/mile readout settles down and stays pretty consistent. Use it instead of whatever they are using (last trip? avg trips?) I get 4.1 kW/mile ever since I started driving. It doesn't change by more than one tenth. Use this number instead; at least it will be consistent. I filmed one trip, a 10 mile ride down to the coastal plane. I had 95 miles when I started and 110 when I got to my destination. This makes the readout worthless and will cause problems when the car is sold to non early adopters. The only thing worse than no data is bad data. In addition to a true SOC, a "taxi meter" mode would be great. Show me how much money I'm consuming when I drive 70 vs. 55. (This should be in all cars, especially ICEs. It would do the most to modify behavior and conserve gas)

3) Range. Give me a true 100 - 120 miles (I'm getting about 80-85). That range would allow me to do 100% of my driving in an EV.

Likes:
1) Low operating cost
2) Acceleration/ Fun to drive
3) Telemetry / Instantaneous feedback about energy consumption.
 
Like:
1. NO tailpipe emissions. #1!
2. Very good acceleration, even in ECO.
3. Low maintenance, fewer toxic fluids to change.

(Oddly, my dashboard clock has remained within 1 minute of the nav system's clock
since I first set it.)

Improvements:
1. Ability to retrofit the QC port!
2. Better SOC meter - perhaps number the bars so I don't have to count them?
3. I am of average size (5-9, 170#) and cannot see the instruments when the
steering wheel is 180º from centered position. Mostly troublesome when I'm
maneuvering into a small spot and can't see the P/R/D/ECO indicator. (The LED
indicators on the center console are too dim for me to see when the sun is out.)
 
Improvements:

1.A Nissan certified battery report/test for buying or selling a used Leaf.. it may require releasing some proprietary battery knowledge but this is essential for the future market of used Leafs.. the report must state only two things: based on USA average driving patterns and the recorded usage of this vehicle this battery is good for an additional XXX miles and XXX months until 80% range degradation, plus vin number with disclaimers and so on.. Dont offer this test for new cars or things could get nasty. This information is probably already available, its just a matter of generating a proper report.

2. optional faster L2 charging, or even a retrofit kit.

3. interior optional upgrades, leather, tinted windows, better carpets etc

4. multiple charging port locations, one in the front, one in the back etc

5. full control of charging and most car functions from a smart phone.
 
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