Extending range of 24kWh Leaf with LeafBox

[LeftieBiker]

Did I read correctly a few posts back Piro? You have a solution to running 30kwh pack in 2012 model leaf? If so can you provide further details?

IIRC he was talking about using LeafBox with the 30kwh Leaf.

[Korg]

Well, I'm still curious what the max distance-to-turtle i'll get buying this box

I have JDM Nissan Leaf S 2014. AHr=66,4. Good battery is the one reason i don't want trade this car on 30kWt SV with SOH=90%

In fact i had never meet "turtle". Moscow roads are flat. Roads jams at morning and get free at the deep evening. So cruising in ECO at 40-60 kmh from one to the next traffic light and then driving 90-110 kmh on my way home i can get 155 kms till i meet "---". One time i asked my dad drive this car, and he was new with right-side drivewheel car he drove 80 kmh and passed 150 km on 88%.

So what i can expect with this device in summer's 20'C?

[Piro]

About using 30kWh battery in 24kWh Leaf: this is possible, but CAN-CAN converter is needed to translate communications to simulate 24kWh battery in 24kWh car.

About range with LeafBox - this depends on driver. If I assume my wife as "not educated driver" that does not care on coasting etc, difference is 14.8 kWh/100 -> 14.0 kWh/100 - so 6%.
For me with cruising I can easily go over 10% maintaining same speed even with higher speeds, but not at highway.
With highway speeds gain is small.

[eyedrop]

Any word on increasing HP or Torque numbers for better performance? A sort of ludicrous mode? I have entertained the thought of a weight reduction, sticky tires, and better suspension. A HP upgrade would really complete the car, even if its just a mild 10-15hp increase. Im sure the drivetrain could handle it. Heck, let the user control how much power is allowed. What if the buyer doesn't mind trashing a battery and just wants to drag race on a closed course? I think there should simply be a disclaimer stating if you break it, the company is not liable...

[blimpy]

who the EFF spends much time driving in eco ?
trying to accomplish What.. it is an acceleration limiter.. misnamed eco.
I find it most useful in situations where I might over control.. ( too busy)
but in any steady state cruising.. it does nothing. and on undulating hills.. it just puts you behind the curve
for adding power at the best time.

I use eco as a braking/regen control..
in hill climbing it does nothing.. since the amount of power to get up a hill at X speed is mathematical

all eco does is keep lead foots from pumping the gas stupidly.
and increasing regen..

I wish Nissan would give us a nice paddle on the shifter to toggle between D ( coast) eco ( stage 1 regen) and B ( stage 2 regen)
the present system is stupid.. as the eco button is out of reach whenever you turn the wheel... stupid.

[DuncanCunningham]

who the EFF spends much time driving in eco ?

Me. I use it all the time. I like the gentle application of the power. stops me getting the jump on people in front of me. the only things I like about the Normal mode is less regen when i want to coast more and not try control it with the pedal (not lifting off all together) and playtime. Most of my driving is very grown up and stuck in traffic on the freeway and surface streets in town where 'playtime' is limited, well up to 30mph anyway.

[LeftieBiker]

I also use Eco 95% of the time. Normal is fun, but it's more like a "Sport" mode than one for normal driving. I will say that when you mainly use Normal then Eco feels wrong - and vice versa.

[rharter]

I'm on my 2nd 2012 leaf. I drive in eco mode roughly 100% of the time, and I enjoy trying to get my mileage as high as possible.

Last week I test drove a Tesla Model X, just for fun. I was really surprised by there acceleration curve. Basically, they tell you you should never need to use the brake, except in emergencies. So they have extremely aggressive regenerative braking, that's aggressive enough to slow you down to a stop. Just keep your foot on the accelerator, release the pressure, and you'll slow down to a stop.

This intrigued me because they are obviously playing to the strengths of an electric car, instead of trying to mimic a gas car. With a little bit of driver reeducation, and positioning this as a positive, they are able to maximise the mileage.

Is it possible with something like leaf box to try such an aggressive regen on the leaf? If you were to disable creep, and be able to use the regenerative braking for the majority of your stop-and-go traffic, I'm curious how many miles you could regain. Has anybody tried this?

[LeftieBiker]

The problem is that regen is much less efficient than coasting. It gets no more than 40% of the power recovered at most, so using regen as you suggest will lower overall efficiency rather than raising it.

[dm33]

The problem is that regen is much less efficient than coasting. It gets no more than 40% of the power recovered at most, so using regen as you suggest will lower overall efficiency rather than raising it.

Where does this 40% value come from. This sounds extreme or misleading.

Regen should be about 90% efficient recovering the energy that is available to be recovered. Of course you cannot recover energy lost to air drag etc. In the same way that the electric drive is close to 90% efficient to propel the car, regen should be similarly efficient.