99% battery drain only used 46.9kWh?

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Welcome. I don't have time for a long post now, but I'll add something brief but important: inflate the tires to 38psi at least, and preferably to 40-42psi. The efficiency reading was terrible even for cold weather, and the low tire pressures (I know, it's recommended by Nissan. They are wrong on this.) are largely to blame. The terrain and/or your wife's likely lead foot probably account for the rest. As for the apparent small battery size: Nissan reserves a fairly large buffer for safety, and another fairly large buffer as a range reserve. That "1%" left probably represented another 25 miles of range. Others will add more.

Twigsandleaves said:

That last item is the point that I'm interested in. I know highway miles in the cold are brutal so the efficiency isn't surprising, but if a 62kWh battery with 56kWh usable still has 9.1kWh left after driving the last 10 miles at "1%" how is that 1% actually 1%?

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It's a hidden reserve, read this topic I wrote about it. Near the bottom of the first page is where I post up my data. You can drive quite far on the 0% battery if you are gentle.
https://mynissanleaf.com/viewtopic.php?f=9&t=32148

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This thread convinced me that Nissan really is under-specifying the tire pressure.

https://www.mynissanleaf.com/viewtopic.php?f=31&t=32785

My guess is that what they've actually done is under-size the tires in an effort to reduce the contact patch and hence the rolling friction. But then when you fill those under sized tires enough to wear evenly (40 psi +) they ride too stiff during the test drive. So inflation was set to "only" 36. Which kinda negates the range benefit of smaller tires since they'll deform more than optimal given the weight of the car.

It's just a guess. I'm running 40-41 now and it's a little stiff for my taste.

When my S+ needs new tires I'm strongly considering upsizing from 205/55 R16 to something like 215/55 R16 or possibly even 225/55 R16. The extra air volume may allow me to run lower pressures (36 - 38?) while maintaining even tire wear and improving traction (at the expense of range). I'm kinda surprised 225's would work on a 6.5 inch rim but there are several that work down to 6 inch rims (Pirelli Cinturato P7, Yokohama Avid Ascend GT). And the increased diameter would correct my wildly conservative speedometer. The S+ doesn't have navigation to auto-correct the speedo.

Your tires will wear better at 40-42psi, not worse. Like many manufacturers, Nissan is more concerned with a soft ride than with optimum range. Your tires will be fine.

One slip ahead of me.

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Tire pressures should be set "cold", meaning before you drive more than a mile or so, or after they've sat still for 3 hours or more following a drive.

You can expect about 1 psi change "cold" for every 10 degrees Fahrenheit of change. So if you set them to 40 psi on a 50 degree day, expect them to read about 42 on a 70 degree day, and vice versa. Because we see 30 degree swings in Denver between the high and the low, I run all of my tires about 3 psi higher than the door sticker, or a touch more. Works great.

Max pressures are also stated for "cold". The Leaf's stock tires max out at 44 psi. But you can ignore a reading higher than that if you've been driving and the tires are "warm" in this sense. In fact, you should _not_ lower your tire pressures when "warm" to make them match the door spec. That will leave you definitely under-inflated, which can lead to tire failure. Especially considering Nissan's highly, shall we say, "conservative" recommendations.

We routinely run 40-42 psi cold on our stock Michelins, and I'm a self-described tire nut. Will be upgrading to an XL rated tire with a max pressure of 51 psi, which is how this car should have come from the factory given its weight and tire size spec. (XL in this case means "extra load" as opposed to SL or "standard load" tires. XL tires are rated to carry a given weight per tire for a given tire size at 41psi. SL tires are similarly rated, but at 35psi. XL tires allow a smaller tire to run on a heavier, or higher performing vehicle).

Nissan didn't spec XL tires on their little commuter car because they cost more. If you want both a narrower tire for efficiency and a stronger tire that can handle higher load at higher pressures, XL series tires are one answer. Sports cars often come with them for handling - my GTI was much lighter than the Leaf+, but had very low-profile XL tires on it. XL in this case because the low profile didn't offer enough volume otherwise. It's the volume of air at a given pressure that supports the car.

Hope this helps.

Average Economy - 2.8/kWh

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This is really low economy for a Leaf with a heat pump- at what speed is the driver traveling? I took a 150-mile trip this AM at lower temperatures and used the toaster oven heater occasionally, with studded snow tires (even at 42 PSI they do not roll as well) driving between 60 and 65 on the interstate and got 3.3 m/kWh so I am guessing that your driver had under-inflated tires AND was traveling faster than 65 MPH. Something to consider. Also, LeafSpy told me that I had about 20 miles of range when the dashboard flashing began... and in the past these miles are truly there although my wife hates the concept.

A reliable way to know where you are in the battery reserve is LeafSpy.

Winter driving an EV has its own quirks and it is made harder by not having good instrumentation.

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Back-of-the envelope here: you drove 132 miles using 47 kWh of electricity. If you are paying $.15 per kWh for electricity, that trip cost you about $7 or about 2.2 gallons of gas equivalent. In terms of actual cost (which does NOT equate to environmental damage, but...) you are getting about the equivalent of 60 MPG. Depending on your per kWh costs this will go up or down. And this will go up as you get tires inflated, figure out how to drive economically, and when warmer weather arrives.

Twigsandleaves said:

My Leaf is the SL Plus, aren't the tires wider?

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Yes, the SV and SL tires are wider than the S tires. While mine are 205/55 R16, yours are 215/50 R17. Wider but also lower profile. I don't know which holds more air volume. My guess is they're probably close and hence they both should be running >36psi to support the relatively heavy Leaf, especially with the 62kWh battery.

dmacarthur said:

Back-of-the envelope here: you drove 132 miles using 47 kWh of electricity. If you are paying $.15 per kWh for electricity, that trip cost you about $7 or about 2.2 gallons of gas equivalent. In terms of actual cost (which does NOT equate to environmental damage, but...) you are getting about the equivalent of 60 MPG. Depending on your per kWh costs this will go up or down.

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Don't forget that charging the battery from the wall is not 100% efficient. If we estimate 90% efficiency then you'd need to buy 47/0.9 = 52.2kWh from your electric provider. At that point the gas equivalent drops to only ~54 MPG which is no better than a Prius. And since I prefer to scoff at Prius drivers (kidding ... sort of), I gotta stay well below those costs.

It's pretty reasonable to stay around 4 mi/kWh most of the year, and electricity can be had for <$0.11 per kWh in Dallas. Gas is cheaper too at $3/gal. But I figure I can average somewhere > 95 MPG.

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Twigsandleaves said:

Greetings, I'm asking this one before heading in for my first checkup on our 2021 Leaf SL Plus so I have a little more info and context to discuss when I get to the dealer a week from now.

Here's the scenario in question.

Brand new leaf, we just crossed 7000 miles the other day. The weather on the day was 35F, car was fully charged and cabin preheated with tires at 36psi cold. The wife has a conference 66miles away and takes the highway getting there with the battery reading 48% after that first 66miles (she isn't too thrilled with me sending her off to what looks like getting stranded on the way home, but I've driven it and read enough to know that isn't likely to be the case.) On the way back she gets home with 1% charge after driving the last 10 miles with all the low battery warnings scaring her to death.

When I check the Connect Ev app for the report at the end of the day I see:

Distance traveled - 132.5mi
Average Economy - 2.8/kWh
Electricity Consumption - 46.9kWh

That last item is the point that I'm interested in. I know highway miles in the cold are brutal so the efficiency isn't surprising, but if a 62kWh battery with 56kWh usable still has 9.1kWh left after driving the last 10 miles at "1%" how is that 1% actually 1%?

I've been assuming this was just the manufacturer building in a huge buffer to scare people into charging well ahead of time to avoid getting stranded but it does seem a little excessive.

(I don't own a ODB dongle or Leaf Spy and honestly don't really want to, whatever you all have to offer is plenty.)

Thanks

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I wouldn't put a whole lot of stock into what the Nissan app says. Its likely just power used to drive negating climate control usage but then again... who knows, right?
My Plus when new listed 59.9 kwh on LEAF Spy. Now, LEAF Spy only parrots back what Nissan tells it so the 59.9 is not usable but is a more realistic picture of what your car has to give. Usable is dependent on bottom end cell balance. I have gotten as low as .6 kwh left and still had a bit more but I was at the end of what I was looking for and saw no reason to continue. I generally recommend to people to not use the last 1.5 kwh.

I am actually tracking various discrepancies between LEAF Spy and the dash and there are several. I don't have telematics so I don't have any center screen data but when I did, it did not agree with the dash either which meant 3 different sets of numbers.

But on your contention the dash is not accurate when SOC is low is correct which is why it has been called the GOM or guessometer and the name is quite well deserved. Now, it all depends on how you drive but when the SOC meter on the dash hits ZERO or " _ _ _", you have 10 to 20 miles or range left.

As far as your thoughts on LEAF Spy? Well, that is your thing.

For more on the "Dash verses LEAF Spy" thing.

https://daveinolywa.blogspot.com/2020/06/e-plus-summer-range-test.html

Twigsandleaves said:

When I check the Connect Ev app for the report at the end of the day I see:

Distance traveled - 132.5mi
Average Economy - 2.8/kWh
Electricity Consumption - 46.9kWh

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I wonder how the car counts energy consumption when stationary. I know e.g. that Tesla does not add in the calc consumption that happens while in 'Park.'

Twigsandleaves said:

Electricity Consumption - 46.9kWh

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The only consumption measurement I believe is a utility grade meter in or inline with the EVSE. Doesn't matter the brand.

E-tron adds energy used in park to the consumption. Short trip with long wait gets as low as 1 mile per kWh or 100kWh per 100 miles.

Twigsandleaves said:

frontrangeleaf said:

We routinely run 40-42 psi cold on our stock Michelins, and I'm a self-described tire nut. Will be upgrading to an XL rated tire with a max pressure of 51 psi, which is how this car should have come from the factory given its weight and tire size spec. (XL in this case means "extra load" as opposed to SL or "standard load" tires. XL tires are rated to carry a given weight per tire for a given tire size at 41psi. SL tires are similarly rated, but at 35psi. XL tires allow a smaller tire to run on a heavier, or higher performing vehicle).

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I'm curious, did you ever try out those XL rated tires? If so did you notice any change in your kw/mile #s (or anything else of note?)

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Not yet. Still plenty of tread left on the stock factory tires. I run dedicated snows in the winter, so cut the wear rate in half.