Potential 2015 Leaf Purchase Quandry

Greetings,

I am about to close the deal on a 2015 SV, 18k miles and a 12 bar battery, it checks all of my boxes with the exception of the lack of Chademo and LED headlights.

This will be my first EV (I have had a couple of hybrids in the past) and my main usage would be my commute to work which is 12 miles round trip, even if I go home for lunch, the max daily weekday mileage wouldn’t exceed 24 miles. I would use the Leaf as much as possible on weekends for errands, etc., range permitting. We still have 2 ICE vehicles for longer road trips.

My question for you all is, how often do you use the high speed Chademo? Also, based on my estimated usage, would you recommend that I pass on this car and find one with that connector? I just don’t want to regret this decides few months down the road.

Thanks for any and all opinions!

Unless you expect to have much greater range needs in the future, you don't need the QC port. The quality of the halogen low beams seems to vary from car to car (I had no issue with mine, others have disliked them), so try them. The high beams will be terrible halogens even with the LED option. You if this won't bother you as long as you own the car, go for it. The 2015 battery is the best of all the 24kwh batteries, and older Leafs with 12 bars are getting harder to find. Verify the battery with LeafSpy. I'll add a link to my buying guide shortly.

https://www.mynissanleaf.com/viewtopic.php?f=27&t=26662

To answer your other question, my first leaf, which I drove for 5 years, also had no QC/LED option. It did have the Premium Package, and that was what mattered to me. My 2018 Leaf has both, and while I used the QC fairly often the first year, I think I've used it only once or twice this year.

If I recall correctly, the SV has the 6.6 kW onboard charger. If so, the Level 2 charge rate is adequate for replenishing charge if a few extra miles are needed. I was actually looking for a CHAdeMO unit with 208/240-volt, single-phase input to have a way to charge my 2011 faster at home. I saw no need after I bought the 2015 with its 6.6 kW charger.

In your case, I am more concerned with the lack of LED headlights if you plan to drive a lot at night. There have been many complaints about the halogen headlights on 2013 and later LEAFs. As LeftieBiker noted, try the lights at night to see if they satisfy your needs.

Yes, all SV and SL Leafs from 2013 on have the faster 6.6kw onboard charger. All Leafs with OEM charging cable charge at the same 1.2kw rate on 120 volts, though. You can charge at up to 16 amps with aftermarket charging cables, but for faster at home charging you want a 208/240 volt charging station. You also get the heat pump-assisted heater with the SV and SL, and that really helps range in milder Winter weather.

Renato said:

My question for you all is, how often do you use the high speed Chademo? Also, based on my estimated usage, would you recommend that I pass on this car and find one with that connector? I just don’t want to regret this decides few months down the road.

Click to expand...

https://mynissanleaf.com/viewtopic.php?p=562830#p562830
https://mynissanleaf.com/viewtopic.php?p=519701#p519701

That said, since I have a '19 Bolt now, since I intend for it to be my only car, I did buy a Bolt w/SAE Combo inlet for DC FCing. I've used it 3 times so far since end of Jan 2019, all on free DC chargers (1 not so fast). I didn't actually really need the juice but at least having the inlet gives me flexibility for longer trips since I no longer have any ICEVs at home. And, it lets me take advantage of free DC charging juice.

EVgo pricing has gotten better than what it was back in July 2015.

I have a 2016 S and not QC
I have never needed it, but when my wife bought a 2017 EV she got the QC because we got rid of our backup ICE car. We have used it a few times, but could have L2 charged if needed. It was nice, and I am glad she got it.

Renato said:

My question for you all is, how often do you use the high speed Chademo? Also, based on my estimated usage, would you recommend that I pass on this car and find one with that connector? I just don’t want to regret this decides few months down the road.

Click to expand...

For 24 miles a day you don't need Chademo. A used 2015 Leaf should handle this commute for a good long time.

This sounds like a great car. I don't have a QC port and have only ever wanted it once. I would not worry about it being missing. We only do L1 (110v) charging at home and its perfectly adequate for us.

The key is you said you'd have a gas car for long trips. If you have that, you don't need QC.

The only downside to no QC port is that you can't do V2H (powering your home from your Leaf--typically if you have a solar system). Its just coming to market and supported by 2013+ w/QC.

The only downside to no QC port is that you can't do V2H (powering your home from your Leaf--typically if you have a Solar system). Its just coming to market and supported by 2013+ w/QC.

Click to expand...

You can still use the Leaf to provide up to ~1500 watts of power through its 12 volt system.

My commute is 9 miles each way and I use my Leaf for errands on the weekends and have ICE cars for longer distance trips. So very similar to your situation.

I have an 2017 S with the charger upgrade so it has the CHAdeMO port as well as the 6.6 kW charger. I've used the CHAdeMO about 4 times since I've had it and that was just to see what it was like. I certainly don't need it but I'm very glad I have the 6.6 kW charger. As others have mentioned, if you can charge at L2 you will never miss not having CHAdeMO. If you only have the 120V Nissan supplied cable plugged into a normal outlet at home to charge, you might be constrained a bit but you could probably make it work. Having a real 240V L2 charger at home or access to public ones (depends on your local conditions) makes keeping the car charged to a desirable level very easy.

In nearly 9 years we've only used QC a couple of dozen times and most of that was for the novelty of it. Personally I wouldn't consider using my LEAF to power my home except in an emergency situation. You only get so many cycles on a Li battery pack and I'd rather save those cycles for transportation. However if you need to be off-grid, then it's not a bad option.

I've used CHAdeMO 7 times in the last 10 months. Two of those times it was really handy, when I was on my way back from out of town and needed to be on time for an appointment. The other times Level 2 could have sufficed.