Should I do it? '14 SL w/36K for $11.5K?

Been thinking of getting an EV for quite some time now... only have a 30 mile daily commute five days a week. Do a lot of quick runs to the store too which is about a mile from my house. The wife and I have a '12 Mazda 3 and its paid for and we only spend about $120 a month in fuel. Unfortunately I can't afford to buy any even relatively cheap car without a loan so I figured an EV will give me back some of the money going into the loan.

I've already done all the math and it is a lot cheaper to run a Leaf, assuming I don't have to try and buy a new battery pack before the end of my planned six-year loan. In the eight years I calculated running costs of our Mazda 3 with 66K miles the cost of a Leaf with an $8500 battery is still cheaper. Though after researching i'm worried Nissan won't have any or they will cost some even more ridiculous amount. I certainly don't want to be buying a battery before my damn loan is even paid off.

The Leaf i'm looking at is a 2014 SL from looks like Freemont Callifornia. Doesn't look like it gets much above 80 degrees F there very often so I'm hoping its got a decent battery. I haven't gone to look at the car yet but the dealership I'm working with found this for me and bought it. I've only got a few crappy pictures but it looks like it has 11 or 12 capacity bars. I'm going to see it this weekend and will probably plug in a code reader to run Leaf Spy on it.

Unfortunately it doesn't come with any sort of warranty so that is a big worry for me. There is a '16 Leaf S for sale locally that is Nissan Certified and would still have at minimum four years warranty left but I really want the features in the SL.

So i'm torn... not even sure it is worth the journey considering i'll be on a loan. Maybe if I could buy it outright that would be a different store. Either way though as it stands i'll have to do loan so even if I get a $5000 Honda Accord or some other decent gas mileage car i'll still be paying way more for gas and maintenance than electricity and a battery. But I don't feel good about getting a car knowing i'll likely have to dump the thing in less than 8 years. And since it really seems like Nissan doesn't give a flying rats bum about doing the right thing, why should I do it? Other than enjoying the pleasantries of driving an EV.

Can you post a link to a listing? We may be able to find out more about the car than you'd think.


And as an alternative, one of our regulars here is selling a '13 SV with Premium Package (no quick charge) that has a solid 11 bars and is a bit more than half the price of that SL. He has had, AFAIK, no trouble with the car - he bought a Bolt. I think the mileage is about the same.

IAMTHESTIG said:

The Leaf i'm looking at is a 2014 SL from looks like Freemont Callifornia. Doesn't look like it gets much above 80 degrees F there very often so I'm hoping its got a decent battery.

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It was close to 94 degrees in Fremont last time I was there (around September). There's no way that car is worth over $8k.

Even if it's worth $8k - you could take a $10 Uber ride to the grocery store and back 799 times and you'll still come out on top (not to mention lost interest). This is ignoring electricity costs, tires, insurance, maintenance, new batteries, the list goes on.

Second Leftie,or find one from a private seller with a replacement pack, for less than 11.5 K. Where in CA. are you?

I think the OP is in terrible financial shape and should be working to increase income. It makes NO sense to buy an EV, take out a loan, and hope that the gasoline savings will save some money so he is able to pay the loan.

Keep the ICE and find some additional income. The price of gas for the ICE is a small, weekly cost compared to your possible complicated pickle that you can get into...

The tone of these replies is bringing me down!

I love owning and driving a used LEAF, and completely relate with your EV excitement, but agree with your concern about financing one.

You might consider other used EVs with active battery cooling. I was crushing on the Fiat 500e and Chevy Spark EV when I was shopping. They have pretty good used availability here in Colorado, even though they weren't available here, new. They are supposed to be incredibly fun to drive, and the 500e is pure eye-candy from any angle!

I went with a 30 kWh LEAF for practical reasons: I live rurally and wanted the extra range, the LEAF with quick-charge has better charging versatility (500e has no QC and Spark EV has 3.3 kW level 2), and you can rotate the tires on the LEAF and fit a spare tire on the trunk floor with the back seats up. I am very happy with my choice, but my heart pangs just a bit when I see a 500e or Spark EV.

OP: No, I say keep looking, you can find a much better deal. I bought my 2014 S two years ago for $7500 from a private party in LA. Still love it, and I also love that I can sell it for more than that right now!

Wow thanks for all the responses I wasn't expecting this much! So I didn't really give much background here but basically my wife and I both work at the same place with the same hours, so we travel together most of the time. Occasionally though we need to each drive our own vehicle because of offsite meetings, or various errands. I own a '91 F150 which I take when I need to but we also now have a baby, and a car seat in a single cab '91 F150 with manual transmission doesn't work. So we have to get another car.

I've tossed around the idea of a $3-5K basic commuter car but after factoring in occasional gas and maintenance for it I found it would be cheaper for us to get a Leaf and daily drive that and use the Mazda as a secondary vehicle. Plus i'm a techie geek, I love to drive, and I really like the advantages of an EV. We only take the back roads to/from work which are 35-50 mph speed zones.

On days where we are both going on the errand we'll just take the Mazda to avoid extreme planning and range anxiety. We'll also just take the Mazda on snowy days, or days when it is really hot. Our summers usually stay in the 90's for a couple months and even get over a 100 sometimes. The Leaf wouldn't be driven on these days unless we had to take our own vehicles.

Alright onto some direct responses.

@LeftieBiker
No unfortunately the car was at a dealer auction that my dealer picked up. I had asked them to find me one so they did as requested and we're gonna test drive and charge it this weekend. I'll find out if I need to install a 240V L2 or not because i'm going to test our daily routine.

@coleafrado
Uber is not practical for my situation... thanks for the thought though.

@ dcdisc
We live in southern Idaho, my dealer bought the Leaf and is having it shipped here. If we don't like it and don't buy it they will just find someone else to buy it.

@ powersurge
Not that my financial situation is anyone's business but I appreciate your looking out for me. I agree this isn't ideal but I have no other debts except our house.

@ PrairieLEAF
thanks for the ideas... I've been researching EV's for several months now and considering my family size, finances, etc. The Leaf is a good fit. Though I did originally want to get a Mercedes B250e my dealer was selling, it was a decent deal and the B250e has a TESLA drivetrain and batteries, of course with active heating and cooling. I quite liked it and it was a larger crossover size vehicle but unfortunately my wife hates the car with a passion and refuses to get it, even though it fits out lifestyle better and has better chances of avoiding battery issues. AND it still has 3.5 years of battery warranty left, I called the Merc dealer and had them check the VIN. A real shame my wife doesn't like it because that would have been ideal.

@ erco
Thanks for the advice. I don't know what the actual price will be my dealer will ask but I will take into account current market values - assuming we even like it.

Honestly unless it has less than 11 bars, is in not great condition, or something in Leaf Spy app scares me we'll heavily consider buying it and hopefully for a good price. If we can't work out a good deal then it wasn't meant to be and we'll move on.

Thanks everyone for the ideas and thoughts, I hope for more... We'll see what happens.

To the OP: This 12 bar 2015 SV would be a better deal:

https://www.autotrader.com/cars-for-sale/vehicledetails.xhtml?listingId=531319176

I used the original sales sticker trick on that one, it was first sold at Nissan of the Eastside, in Bellevue, WA and includes the LED + charge package. A PNW LEAF is ideal, as the moderate climate is much easier on the battery pack.

You haven't mentioned exactly where you are located, but if you can get a car shipped to you for a reasonable fee then it might be worth it. I highly doubt you'll find a 2015 LEAF SV in California that still has 12 bars at that price.

The OP has a Mazda3... A great car. A good gas miileage, low operating cost car. "Financially", the best thing is to drive the hell out of it until either the engine or transmission craps out.

What I hear here is what I seem see so often in "soon to be a buyer" posts.. There are a ton of them. Those people present a lifestyle situation (car driving needs) and propose their need for a Leaf.

However, either the use need or the model of car may not be a good match for them. They however, are driven to continue the purchase of the Leaf. Why? I think some people are "hot" or "excited" by the idea of having an electric car. They have an idealized sense of either owning the new technology, getting a piece of the high social status, $$ savings, or just coolness factor of the EV, and continue with their quest...

Well, you are your own boss. You do not need my or other's opinion. Good luck, and welcome to the EV community.,..

@ alozzy
Thanks, that is a better deal. Certainly gives me some ammo.

@ powersurge
I take it you didn't read any of my previous response... Basically we have to buy another vehicle anyways so our thought is to buy the Leaf to make our daily driver and the Mazda will become our secondary vehicle when we need it. Currently, we really only need the secondary vehicle 2-3 times a month. This will also cut down on the little maintenance I've had to do on the Mazda since it is indeed a solid car and gets great gas mileage.


So I guess what I should of asked, and what i'm really wondering is... is a Leaf really going to last up to 100K miles on one battery? Our daily round trip is right about 30 miles city and highway driving. I've seen some posts from people around 100K miles and if it will still go say even 40 miles we should be fine eight years from now. We only drive about 8,000 miles a year and I'll take care of the battery the best I can and avoid taking it on hot days in the summer. I've learned that heat is the number one enemy which is pretty much how it goes in all electronics.

I'm hoping this Leaf we're going to look at this weekend has all 12 bars but if it doesn't I think I can get $2K off their initial estimated price of $11.5K easily. We shall see soon. Again i've already done all the math and this is cheaper way to go for our daily driver, even if we have to buy a new battery at $8500. As long as we don't have to replace it less than six years from now.

Good Luck with your adventure. Yes, I think the Leaf will go to 100K. I have a 15 Leaf that I bought new with 65K miles and 12 bars.

30 Miles round trip is no problem for a Leaf. I drive about 50 miles round trip every day and come home between 40-50% battery. So over time, you could continue the trip as the car ages.

The key to the range is to keep the heat at about 68 degrees at fan level 1, and air recirculation. otherwise the battery level drops fast.

good luck

IAMTHESTIG said:

Honestly unless it has less than 11 bars,

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Know how to check that the battery is not a recent reset.

An SL should meet your limited daily range needs for a long time if the battery is in good condition now. Since the S does not have a heat pump, it would have less range when using heat or defrost so I think the SL is a better choice if the negotiated price is commensurate with condition of battery and car The 2014 has a 5-year, 60,000-mile capacity warranty (which is either expired or will expire soon) and an 8-year, 100,000-mile defect warranty on the battery. The defect warranty will not cover gradual capacity loss, but should cover complete failure of cells and electronics within the battery case. I think your use case is ideal for an electric car.

My 2015 had several weak cells which were limiting range, but not yet bad enough to be considered defects when I traded. Even with gradual capacity loss due to temperature and mileage combined with range reduction from several weak cells, it would still go 40 miles on a charge with normal air conditioning use. I chose to trade it in because I wanted the larger motor and battery (twice the horsepower and more than twice the capacity) along with the longer battery capacity warranty now included.

IAMTHESTIG said:

So I guess what I should of asked, and what i'm really wondering is... is a Leaf really going to last up to 100K miles on one battery?

Click to expand...

.
Review the thread in this forum that has a survey of odometer readings when capacity bars dropped.

Thanks for the responses and advice.

I did see its possible to reset battery stats... I plan to check the car with Leaf Spy, but are there any things that don't get reset that you can see? I guess if it looks too good to be true for 36K miles in central Cali it probably is.

LeafSpy will not expose a reset

A fresh BMS reset will fool LeafSpy. As the BMS relearns the actual capacity, though, then discrepancies will appear. A novice would be hard pressed to see them. If you look at the car, take a reading and post screenshots of the results here.

Not to harp on Cwerdna's car, but that is a known quantity, with a solid 11 capacity bars and a known history.

Ok finally got the car for an overnight test drive... here is the good stuff. You guys are the experts, tell me how it looks because I don't understand any of it. Thanks.

It looks like a good pack with a solid 11 capacity bars. About 84% capacity remains. We can't be 100% sure that it wasn't reset a while ago - that requires a range or charge capacity test.