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TsiorLeaf

Member
Joined
Sep 6, 2022
Messages
13
I have a 2018 Nissan leaf , 37k miles

yesterday I ChargePointed to 140 miles... left work and drove home 25 miles, range at destination 115.
Then did groceries back on interstate , return trip 18 miles, range at point of return 100 miles.

This morning I drove to work and started at 100miles drove 25 miles and at destination I had 35 miles.
Yes a 25 mile trip yielded 65 miles of battery consumption.

For background my car is permanently on eco mode , and I never drive with air con.
When possible I drive cruise control on.

Happy to spend the $30 on a LeafSpy gadget but I need to know if my car which is CPO has a poor SOH what do I do?
From reading forums it says that Nissan doesnt care if it shows that all bars are charging.

Thoughts, suggestions... last week I was stranded with the kids along... it was vert unpleasant.
 
The range estimator (aka "Guess O Meter") works ok for some people, but not for most. You need a better range estimator. The LeafSpy Pro app has one, and the Nav system in the car may still have one, although I'm not sure how to access it now that the blue "Energy" button is gone. At any rate, use the % of charge remaining display, NOT the guess o meter (GOM). The charge display is much more reliable for estimating range.
 
Let's state the question/problem:
OP thinks that the car range is impaired

First things first then, some information:
1. How long has the car been in current owner's hands
2. Has the suspected drop in range occurred recently
3. Is the car being used differently than before

In general, range is determined by:
The car battery
The car -- check tyre pressures
The drive -- describe speeds and highway driving, net elevation changes, A/C usage
The driver -- aggressive driver ?
The weather - temperature and humidity, as much as you know. General location where the car is driven.

Before jumping to 'is my battery bad ?', start with the above.
Next, get LeafSpy and the OBD dongle. It is difficult to answer range questions with GOM information. The car will display how much energy is left in the battery which is much better than the mostly useless GOM, but it is not very granular.
 
As Leftie said above you should go mostly by the battery SOC %, not the remaining range. The remaining range is just a projection based on recent efficiency and can be all over the map.

Keep driving your Leaf (I assume you haven't had it long) and you will soon become comfortable with what its really capable of.
EDIT: I see from the other thread that you've had it for 10K miles - that should be enough.
 
TsiorLeaf said:
I have a 2018 Nissan leaf , 37k miles

yesterday I ChargePointed to 140 miles... left work and drove home 25 miles, range at destination 115.
Then did groceries back on interstate , return trip 18 miles, range at point of return 100 miles.

This morning I drove to work and started at 100miles drove 25 miles and at destination I had 35 miles.
Yes a 25 mile trip yielded 65 miles of battery consumption.

For background my car is permanently on eco mode , and I never drive with air con.
When possible I drive cruise control on.

Happy to spend the $30 on a LeafSpy gadget but I need to know if my car which is CPO has a poor SOH what do I do?
From reading forums it says that Nissan doesnt care if it shows that all bars are charging.

Thoughts, suggestions... last week I was stranded with the kids along... it was vert unpleasant.

1st mistake; trusting the dash.

2nd mistake; thinking cruise control is an efficient way to drive.

3rd mistake; Using only one drive mode.

I would invest in LEAF Spy simply because its cool and costs nearly nothing. At least that is my opinion. Some people would balk at spending the pittance of money (no I am nowhere near upper middle class) while ignoring the $50 dropped on a casual lunch. I do both so...

1. Like a clock, the GOM is accurate....once a charge. I tracked the SOC meter on the dash verses LEAF Spy from 100% to SEVERAL miles past zero. See below.

2. Cruise control pulls out all the stops to maintain constant speed and does so quite urgently. Your best bet is to ease into and ease off the accelerator. You can do a MUCH better job of driving, especially the day to day stuff on routes you know well.

3. The LEAF has several drive modes for a reason. Different driving conditions need different modes for efficiency or convenience. If you are on the freeway with reasonable traffic flow, you want to minimize regen (regen is NOT your friend) so D is the best option and yeah ECO should be on all the time.

https://daveinolywa.blogspot.com/2020/06/e-plus-summer-range-test.html
 
oxothuk said:
As Leftie said above you should go mostly by the battery SOC %, not the remaining range. The remaining range is just a projection based on recent efficiency and can be all over the map.

Keep driving your Leaf (I assume you haven't had it long) and you will soon become comfortable with what its really capable of.
EDIT: I see from the other thread that you've had it for 10K miles - that should be enough.

Bad advice. The SOC meter is no better than the GOM other than it hangs around a bit longer.
 
Bad advice. The SOC meter is no better than the GOM other than it hangs around a bit longer.

That isn't true, as the SOC display is within about 5% of accurate for about 90% of a charge. It is VASTLY better than the GOM for almost everyone.
 
LeftieBiker said:
Bad advice. The SOC meter is no better than the GOM other than it hangs around a bit longer.

That isn't true, as the SOC display is within about 5% of accurate for about 90% of a charge. It is VASTLY better than the GOM for almost everyone.

So "10% +/- 5%" is good for you?

I have to say "vastly better" than very crappy is only crappy to me but yeah, others might see it differently.
 
Leftie,
Is there any evidence to suggest that the bottom buffer shrinks as the battery ages? You would think that might be a clever strategy to reduce the perception of range loss.
 
DougWantsALeaf said:
Leftie,
Is there any evidence to suggest that the bottom buffer shrinks as the battery ages? You would think that might be a clever strategy to reduce the perception of range loss.

No hard evidence of which I'm aware.
 
DougWantsALeaf said:
Leftie,
Is there any evidence to suggest that the bottom buffer shrinks as the battery ages? You would think that might be a clever strategy to reduce the perception of range loss.
It is too soon to tell with my 2019, but 2015 buffer did not change significantly by the time I traded it after 4-1/2 years and 82,000 miles with 8 battery capacity bars left. 2011 did not have % SOC display.
 
LeftieBiker said:
Bad advice. The SOC meter is no better than the GOM other than it hangs around a bit longer.

That isn't true,

Agreed, use the SoC meter, and measure battery capacity once the other non battery variables are considered
 
DougWantsALeaf said:
Leftie,
Is there any evidence to suggest that the bottom buffer shrinks as the battery ages? You would think that might be a clever strategy to reduce the perception of range loss.

Probably not. At least the warnings didn't change so guessing the bottom stays the same which is really how it should be. I haven't had a pack degrade enough and don't recall hearing about anyone mentioning a loss of range at the bottom.

What we really need is one of those 8 bar losers to do some LEAF Spying for us.
 
HI all and thanks for your replies!

So I have an SV and had it for 12 months... the range has gently dropped over the year.

I will get leafspy and the dongle... feel free to suggest which is best!

The car is an SV - the middle of the range and it has the all weather package.

On the freeway I aim for 65mph and there are gentle slopes.

According to the dash... which may be similar to the range I have around 34 psi on all 4.

Always on ECO and always on D.

Currently I am trying to charge .... once to the max and then again once depleted fully.
I was away for a month and my partner who has severe range anxiety charged it daily regardless if driving for a mile or grand tour.
 
TsiorLeaf said:
HI all and thanks for your replies!

So I have an SV and had it for 12 months... the range has gently dropped over the year.

I will get leafspy and the dongle... feel free to suggest which is best!

The car is an SV - the middle of the range and it has the all weather package.

On the freeway I aim for 65mph and there are gentle slopes.

According to the dash... which may be similar to the range I have around 34 psi on all 4.

Always on ECO and always on D.

Currently I am trying to charge .... once to the max and then again once depleted fully.
I was away for a month and my partner who has severe range anxiety charged it daily regardless if driving for a mile or grand tour.

Why are you running your tire pressures so low? The #1 cause of blowouts is low tire pressure.

The integrity of the seal is determined by how much force is applied by the air pressure. The bead leaks ALL the time either slowly or quickly. Hitting a pothole with low pressure can cause rapid deflation which will almost always cause sidewall damage (it does NOT happen the other way around typically)

A recent experience; I went hiking at Mt. Rainier. Access to the trailhead was via a 20 mile washboard gravel road. That experience alone caused me to lose 2-3 PSI on every tire. I should add; I check my pressures EVERY day without fail.
 
Tyre pressure... so 34 is so low? The rec is 36 right? Happy to follow best practice ... what is everyone else running?
 
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