What kind of range can I expect from this LEAF?

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Clutch303

Member
Joined
Feb 1, 2018
Messages
7
Location
Colorado
I looked at a 2011 Leaf today with 33483 miles. It appears to have 11 bars but it was hard to count because the charge was at only 17 miles.

When I took it for a test drive the guessometer quickly dropped range and I turned around before I could get to the highway to test it at highway speeds.

Leaf spy shows SOH=75.97 and it was 30' F when I did the test drive.

This is the dealer's ad - https://www.jambomotors.com/2011_Nissan_LEAF_Denver_CO_268699251.veh

Thanks in advance.
 
Worst case: 20 mi in winter, 30 mi spring, 40 mi summer. In CO you should be able to add 10 mi to all of those easy. More miles in city driving (less than 45 mph) than highway.
 
The capacity bars remain the same regardless of charge level. 75% SOH is NOT 11 full bars, though. It might be showing 11 but be just about to drop to 10. Range depends on many factors, but I've seen 40 miles as the overall range for a 10 bar car under real world (non-Winter) driving conditions. Keep in mind that heater use will drop that by about a third to half, and that an '11 probably won't have heated seats and steering wheel.
 
I didn't mean to imply that the state of charge affected the capacity bars, only my ability to accurately read the number of bars.

I asked about the decals and they said there was no reason they left them on.
 
Reddy said:
Worst case: 20 mi in winter, 30 mi spring, 40 mi summer. In CO you should be able to add 10 mi to all of those easy. More miles in city driving (less than 45 mph) than highway.

That's incredibly pessimistic! So much so that I have to provide a counter.
My 4BL Leaf (this car is on it's way to 2BL) didn't even perform that poorly.
 
That's incredibly pessimistic! So much so that I have to provide a counter.
My 4BL Leaf (this car is on it's way to 2BL) didn't even perform that poorly.

You do understand what "worst case" means, right? If we told people that because we get great range per bar then they will too, we wouldn't be helping them.
 
probably 10 bars, not 11. Take EPA estimate minus the 80% BS and you can use 80 miles.

add 5 to the bottom for buffer so 75% of 75 miles is 56 miles. That is your "Summer" range. I would venture driving no faster than 65 mph.

For Winter? who knows? gotta know where you live for that!
 
LeftieBiker said:
That's incredibly pessimistic! So much so that I have to provide a counter.
My 4BL Leaf (this car is on it's way to 2BL) didn't even perform that poorly.

You do understand what "worst case" means, right? If we told people that because we get great range per bar then they will too, we wouldn't be helping them.
Thanks Leftie for helping there. yes, I meant what I wrote. Since the OP has “303” in his name, the linked car is in CO, and the car was tested in freezing temps, I thought it appropriate to cite REAL world WINTER temperatures as the WORST case. You (Leftie) obviously understand because you’re located in NY, but Stanton (located in Plano, TX) obviously doesn’t know what COLD really is. BTW, when I moved from WA to Denton, TX, it took me THREE winters to finally turn on the house heater, so don’t tell me that your “blue northers” are “cold”. So yes, 20 mi range is possible to the uninitiated, especially when cold-soaked over many days/nights at zero.
 
Reddy said:
LeftieBiker said:
That's incredibly pessimistic! So much so that I have to provide a counter.
My 4BL Leaf (this car is on it's way to 2BL) didn't even perform that poorly.

You do understand what "worst case" means, right? If we told people that because we get great range per bar then they will too, we wouldn't be helping them.
Thanks Leftie for helping there. yes, I meant what I wrote. Since the OP has “303” in his name, the linked car is in CO, and the car was tested in freezing temps, I thought it appropriate to cite REAL world WINTER temperatures as the WORST case. You (Leftie) obviously understand because you’re located in NY, but Stanton (located in Plano, TX) obviously doesn’t know what COLD really is. BTW, when I moved from WA to Denton, TX, it took me THREE winters to finally turn on the house heater, so don’t tell me that your “blue northers” are “cold”. So yes, 20 mi range is possible to the uninitiated, especially when cold-soaked over many days/nights at zero.


My Cousin moved from MI to TX FIVE years ago and found out here baseboard heaters were not hooked up a few weeks ago when it dipped into the teens. She lives about 100 miles from Mexico...
 
i think it would be fair to say that the range is best figured on the worst case. Looks like the numbers for the worst are about right. My 2012 will do up to 40 miles during the very coldest and snowy weather with as little heat as I can dare just to keep the front window clear enough to see. Utah Desert winters are not the worst, compared to the NorthEast, but we have some winters were it never gets above freezing, day or night, for weeks on end but snow or slushy snow drag is the big killer of range. this winter 2017/2018 has been warm and rather lacking in snow (so far).

I am no longer in a position to buy another car anytime soon. (health costs with two type 1 diabetics in the family is quite staggering)

if i ever manage to be in the position again... I think I would want a car that can get 100 miles on the worst day with 5 years of battery wear. I'm very lucky right now. My job is only 13 miles away and I do not take many trips other than work and trips in my town.
 
jake14mw said:
Just a quick note, the car is not an SL model like their ad says. SL models have leather seats.

The car appears to have fog lights so it is an SL. If it has heated seats and steering wheel, then it is late production 2011 and has cold weather package (including traction battery heater). Don't buy it if it does not have the cold weather package unless you can park in a garage at night during winter months. Leather seats were not offered until 2013 (have been mandatory on SL since). Heater (and defrost) use really drops range in cold weather because 2011 and 2012 have 5 kW electric coolant heater with pump to circulate warm coolant through heat exchanger in dash (tank and lines under hood are not even insulated). A/C is very effective and has little impact on summer range.
 
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