2018 LEAF S speedometer accuracy issues?

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billexium

Member
Joined
Jun 6, 2019
Messages
10
Location
Mesa, AZ
I tried to do a search for this topic but came up empty. We bought a 2018 LEAF S in June (last new one in the state... or so said the dealer) and we have really enjoyed the car. One weird issue is it seems like the LEAF is not traveling at the speed shown on the speedometer. Here in AZ people drive crazy on the freeways anyways, but even with cruise set at 75 MPH cars are flying by us more than usual. Using GPS based speed apps on the phone while driving shows about 4 MPH less than the car states, obviously not the most accurate measure but still. Even at low speeds it appears to be an issue. We have a radar sign on a street near our home. Also not the most accurate I realize. But in our other vehicles the stated speed is always within 1 MPH of what the car shows. But with cruise set at 35 in the LEAF, the sign shows 32 or even 31 MPH every time.

Just wondering if this is a well known issues or just a weird quirk with our particular LEAF. I need to take it the dealer to check out the software and/or speedometer but it is such a hassle. Our local dealer says they always need the car for at least two hours because they have only one LEAF "expert" and he may be working on other LEAFs.
 
Both of the Leafs I've had, along with all of the Japanese cars, read exactly 2MPH higher than actual speed, at all legal speeds. I actually use this, and set the cruise to 32, 47, etc. If your car is reading 4mph high, there is a problem.
 
Our 2013 read 2 mph high, but the 2019 (SV Plus) so far at the road side construction speedometers has been pretty much right on (exact or +/-1) from what I have seen so far.
 
I've compared the speed displayed with my phone sat nav and is consistently 10% difference (the car shows more than it really does)
But not only Nissan does this, there are other brands that do the same.
 
husoi said:
I've compared the speed displayed with my phone sat nav and is consistently 10% difference (the car shows more than it really does)
But not only Nissan does this, there are other brands that do the same.
Click to expand...

Yeah that is what I think we are experiencing. If I am seeing 3/4 MPH difference at 35 MPH, then it would be more like 7 MPH difference cruising down the freeway at 70. That is quite the discrepancy! And a 10% difference would, over time, make the odometer quite inaccurate as well. At a 10% overstatement that would mean my Nissan bumper to bumper warranty expiring 3,600 miles too early??
 
Yes, I have seen this problem. The speedometer on my 2018 LEAF is off by 6%. It appears this is due to my model having 16" wheels not the 17" wheels. Toyota dealership claims this is how the car is manufactured and can not be corrected. This has been reported under defects and under speedometer accuracy.
 
^^^
Toyota?

The subject of speedometer and odometer accuracy has come up many times before. The article and table I pointed to at http://www.mynissanleaf.com/viewtopic.php?p=440245#p440245 might be insightful as to why.

http://www.mynissanleaf.com/viewtopic.php?p=464196#p464196 may also help.
 
If there is no change in speedometer calibration between S models with 205/55R16 and SV/SL models with 215/50R17, that would explain S models reading 2.4% too high. Not enough for a 4 MPH error at any speed the Leaf is capable of though.

It seems odd that the 205/55R16 was the chosen tire size instead of 205/60R16 or 215/55R16 - either would be within 1% of the diameter of the 215/50R17. I used 205/60R16 for winter tires and they fit just fine.
 
The original poster states several different issues in his description. First, just because people drive fast in Arizona, you should NEVER be driving at 75MPH in a Leaf. Second, GPS speeds DO NOT have to perfectly match your speedometer... All measurements in life are really just general indicators of what you are measuring.

If you are going 75MPH and you say there is a 4 MPH difference, then there is a 5% difference, which is to be expected.

Unless you are doing scientific measurements, there is no reason that your speedometer must be perfectly precise at all possible speeds. Heck, no car has a perfectly calibrated speedometer, odometer, or even thermometer.

We just have to accept that life (and the world) is not perfect....
 
It seems odd that the 205/55R16 was the chosen tire size instead of 205/60R16 or 215/55R16 - either would be within 1% of the diameter of the 215/50R17
Click to expand...

This - buy 215/55 R16 when shopping for replacement tires. With 40psi inflation, expect almost 2% correction to the speedometer.
 
alozzy said:
It seems odd that the 205/55R16 was the chosen tire size instead of 205/60R16 or 215/55R16 - either would be within 1% of the diameter of the 215/50R17
Click to expand...

This - buy 215/55 R16 when shopping for replacement tires. With 40psi inflation, expect almost 2% correction to the speedometer.
Click to expand...

Agreed.. If you absolutely must have a more precise speedometer, then you can go on the tire size website and find a size that will give you the right diameter and circumference.. .

HOWEVER, how do you know that your GPS is giving you a perfectly accurate speed? Moral of the story - you cannot expect exact precision in life....
 
powersurge said:
The original poster states several different issues in his description. First, just because people drive fast in Arizona, you should NEVER be driving at 75MPH in a Leaf. Second, GPS speeds DO NOT have to perfectly match your speedometer... All measurements in life are really just general indicators of what you are measuring.

If you are going 75MPH and you say there is a 4 MPH difference, then there is a 5% difference, which is to be expected.

Unless you are doing scientific measurements, there is no reason that your speedometer must be perfectly precise at all possible speeds. Heck, no car has a perfectly calibrated speedometer, odometer, or even thermometer.

We just have to accept that life (and the world) is not perfect....
Click to expand...

I am seeing a 3/4 MPH difference with cruise set at 35. So more like a 10% difference. I assume it is off more at 75 MPH but haven't tested it besides using a GPS app which I understand is not exact.

Why should someone NEVER drive 75 in a Leaf? Other than sucking the battery life much quicker than usual, does it actually degrade the battery capacity or something? Some freeways in AZ have a 75 MPH speed limit. It seems downright dangerous to drive significantly under the speed limit. At least in this state.
 
I have 2019 Leaf S leased in April 2018. I recently noticed that the odometer is moving faster than the actual distance by about 3%. With a leased car it is a problem. I have 45000 miles for 3 years and with 3% faster odometer it will give me only 43650 actual miles.
 
billexium said:
I tried to do a search for this topic but came up empty. We bought a 2018 LEAF S in June (last new one in the state... or so said the dealer) and we have really enjoyed the car. One weird issue is it seems like the LEAF is not traveling at the speed shown on the speedometer. Here in AZ people drive crazy on the freeways anyways, but even with cruise set at 75 MPH cars are flying by us more than usual. Using GPS based speed apps on the phone while driving shows about 4 MPH less than the car states, obviously not the most accurate measure but still. Even at low speeds it appears to be an issue. We have a radar sign on a street near our home. Also not the most accurate I realize. But in our other vehicles the stated speed is always within 1 MPH of what the car shows. But with cruise set at 35 in the LEAF, the sign shows 32 or even 31 MPH every time.

Just wondering if this is a well known issues or just a weird quirk with our particular LEAF. I need to take it the dealer to check out the software and/or speedometer but it is such a hassle. Our local dealer says they always need the car for at least two hours because they have only one LEAF "expert" and he may be working on other LEAFs.
Click to expand...
Hello,
I have the same problem with my 2019 leaf.
 

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