Leaf and heat

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LDB415

Well-known member
Joined
Jun 8, 2019
Messages
53
Location
Houston suburb
A couple of heat related questions. I live in a south suburb of Houston, a very minor benefit as being closer to the coast gets maybe 2-4 degrees of relief from the heat. So questions so far are:

I have to park outside. I do get good shade from a large oak about 1/4 of the day. High temps are in the 90's for 3 months or so. How badly does that level affect the Leaf?

Humidity is usually in the 5x-6x% range? Does humidity have any effect?

Am I correct there is an app that would allow turning on the A/C a couple of minutes before going out to the car to take the edge off the heat inside? Does it work on a timer so if you don't get out there it isn't on forever and drain the battery?
 
Do You HAVE a Leaf at this point, or are you car tire kicking?

I would not recommend you having an EV in southern texas . Too much sun and heat.. Stay with a gas car
 
LDB415 said:
A couple of heat related questions. I live in a south suburb of Houston, a very minor benefit as being closer to the coast gets maybe 2-4 degrees of relief from the heat. So questions so far are:

I have to park outside. I do get good shade from a large oak about 1/4 of the day. High temps are in the 90's for 3 months or so. How badly does that level affect the Leaf?
Higher temperature makes chemical reactions work faster, and the reactions that degrade a battery run faster at higher temperatures. Solar heating will increase this somewhat. I don't have any exact answer as to how long a 2019 LEAF battery will last in Houston, and I'd say that no one really does.

http://www.mynissanleaf.com/viewtopic.php?f=17&t=27677#p547071

LDB415 said:
Humidity is usually in the 5x-6x% range? Does humidity have any effect?
Not on the LEAF. There might be an issue with actively cooled batteries at very high dew points due to condensation causing issues including battery fires, but that's not proven.

LDB415 said:
Am I correct there is an app that would allow turning on the A/C a couple of minutes before going out to the car to take the edge off the heat inside? Does it work on a timer so if you don't get out there it isn't on forever and drain the battery?

Yes, and yes.
 
I would only consider EVs with battery thermal regulation in Houston. The LEAF would be a non-starter
 
At this point I'm researching. I learned about a $3500 rebate in addition to the $7500 tax credit. $11,000 made it sound very tempting. After further research I've learned the $7500 isn't automatically $7500 and would be more likely to be $5k or so, still much nicer than a poke in the nose but not as good as $7500. Combined with the heat issues it sounds like I'm not a great candidate for the Leaf. I should probably just keep driving my Accord hybrid.
 
You could lease a Leaf for 2 or three years. Don't buy one.

There might be an issue with actively cooled batteries at very high dew points due to condensation causing issues including battery fires, but that's not proven.

Not only is it "not proven" but WetEV just then came up with the possibility, sans evidence.
 
I will agree with other posters here: a non-temperature-controlled battery is not a good idea in hot climates. If the LEAF really, really floats your boat, take @LeftieBiker’s advice and lease it so battery degradation becomes the manufacturer’s problem and not yours.
 
SalisburySam said:
I will agree with other posters here: a non-temperature-controlled battery is not a good idea in hot climates. If the LEAF really, really floats your boat, take @LeftieBiker’s advice and lease it so battery degradation becomes the manufacturer’s problem and not yours.

Or save money and own the car as long as the warranty will replace the battery. Still is the is manufacturer’s problem and not yours.
 
I think it depends on what you plan to do with it. Other than Phoenix, I'm in a VERY hot area. 110F in July and August many days, with 114F not unusual. But I'm not worried about it because I don't fast charge, and if needed, can even trickle charge on hot nights. There is a 10 year degradation warranty. And I am only putting about 600 miles per month on it, about 20 per day. But most of all, I plan to sell it / trade it in within a couple years so degradation shouldn't really be an issue.

So I think the heat is a question also on how you plan to use it and how long you plan to keep it.

Don't get me wrong, I want it to last, and I'm trying to take good care of it. I charge it only between about 3-5am when its cool, etc, and I plan to report the numbers here. But for the cost to me - about 15.5k - it was an easy decision over a used 2015 for 10k. It hands down beats my truck for the 13mpg I was getting driving short trips around town every day.

YMMV!
 
WetEV said:
SalisburySam said:
I will agree with other posters here: a non-temperature-controlled battery is not a good idea in hot climates. If the LEAF really, really floats your boat, take @LeftieBiker’s advice and lease it so battery degradation becomes the manufacturer’s problem and not yours.

Or save money and own the car as long as the warranty will replace the battery. Still is the is manufacturer’s problem and not yours.
Did you forget about depreciation ? No way to foist that on the manufacturer.
 
SageBrush said:
WetEV said:
SalisburySam said:
I will agree with other posters here: a non-temperature-controlled battery is not a good idea in hot climates. If the LEAF really, really floats your boat, take @LeftieBiker’s advice and lease it so battery degradation becomes the manufacturer’s problem and not yours.

Or save money and own the car as long as the warranty will replace the battery. Still is the is manufacturer’s problem and not yours.
Did you forget about depreciation ? No way to foist that on the manufacturer.

No, after 8 years assume zero value. Probably wrong, but assume that.

Still cheaper than leasing. Here, let us do it for 5 years.

https://www.nissanusa.com/pe-nissan/lease-finance-payment-calculator/leaf/s-40-kwh

Set trade in and down payment to zero.

I see $495 to buy for 60 months, and $532 to lease for 60 months. Not counting the federal tax credit of $7500.

So lease would cost $31920, and a purchase would cost $22200. Assuming you have enough income to get the full tax credit, of course. Assuming that the car is worthless even with 3 years of battery warranty left. Fees for leasing are probably higher as well.
 
It depends on your priorities and preferences. If people did everything by the best way the numbers played out, we'd live in an unrecognizable society. I'll keep leasing until I get a car I want to buy.
 
WetEV said:
SageBrush said:
WetEV said:
Or save money and own the car as long as the warranty will replace the battery. Still is the is manufacturer’s problem and not yours.
Did you forget about depreciation ? No way to foist that on the manufacturer.

No, after 8 years assume zero value. Probably wrong, but assume that.

Still cheaper than leasing. Here, let us do it for 5 years.

https://www.nissanusa.com/pe-nissan/lease-finance-payment-calculator/leaf/s-40-kwh

Set trade in and down payment to zero.

I see $495 to buy for 60 months, and $532 to lease for 60 months. Not counting the federal tax credit of $7500.

So lease would cost $31920, and a purchase would cost $22200. Assuming you have enough income to get the full tax credit, of course. Assuming that the car is worthless even with 3 years of battery warranty left. Fees for leasing are probably higher as well.
My arithmetic comes out different but it is besides the point in a car that loses so much range over a few years.
 
WetEV said:
SageBrush said:
My arithmetic comes out different but it is besides the point in a car that loses so much range over a few years.

Still trying to drive up your Tesla stock, I see.

Most of us have agendas of some sort, and the two of you are both known quantities, so how about less of repeating the same observations? You promote the Leaf more or less as-is, Sagebrush doesn't and promotes Tesla. Enough said.
 
For any place with high summer temps, leasing makes more sense. Nissan has a proven track record of battery degradation in the south and southwest. Not withstanding the possibility that Nissan has fixed their battery issues, EV development is proceeding at such a rapid pace that any EV 3 years from now will be a vast improvement over today's model. Obsolescence will get you even if the battery holds up. Nissan Leafs have a low resale value for a reason. Easier to take the hit up front and let Nissan worry about the battery.
 
It really just depends on your need / life style and price.

I nabbed a new 2018 for 15500 after credits and rebates. A three year lease probably would have cost me the same? So if I sell it for anything I come out ahead.

My brother has two teslas, an s and a 3. They are very nice. But my wife and i like the hatchback design. And it cost me a lot less. Even a standard model 3 with white paint and autopilot and the smaller fed tax credit would have been much more $$$. Since I was just looking for a in town vehicle to stop putting miles on my truck at 13 mpg, this worked great for now.

For others it probably is a lousy deal.
 
I’m on my 3rd Leaf since 2015 IN SOUTH FLORIDA. That should tell you something about how much I like these cars, even in hot climates.

My 2015 battery was at 87% after 3 years when I traded it in. (4.4% loss per year)
My 2018 was at 95% after 13 months when I traded it in. It started at 99%. (3.9% loss per year)
My current 2019 Leaf PLUS is too new to judge degradation.

So I expect about 4-5% per year degradation.

My 225 mile Leaf plus should still have about 175 miles of range after 5 years. That’s more than enough for 95% of my daily needs.



.
 
danrjones said:
It really just depends on your need / life style and price.

I nabbed a new 2018 for 15500 after credits and rebates. A three year lease probably would have cost me the same? So if I sell it for anything I come out ahead.

My brother has two teslas, an s and a 3. They are very nice. But my wife and i like the hatchback design. And it cost me a lot less. Even a standard model 3 with white paint and autopilot and the smaller fed tax credit would have been much more $$$. Since I was just looking for a in town vehicle to stop putting miles on my truck at 13 mpg, this worked great for now.

For others it probably is a lousy deal.
Under $16k for the 40 kWh LEAF is an outstanding deal and value. Good for you !

I share your preference for hatchbacks and had to swallow my past declarations to buy the Model 3 but I have to say that it does quite well for me. This week I picked up an 8 foot long packet of wood and a 4' x 8' foot board (cut into 3) from the store.
 
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