New Leaf vs Pre-Owned Leaf (lease, vehicle, 2011, mileage)

[Augiec]

As I might have mentioned in another thread, I was rear-ended and my car is probably totaled. I was thinking about a couple of more traditional cars (the Focus ST, Civic Si Sedan, VW GTI). All of the various tax incentives & rebates got me thinking about the Volt & the Leaf. I took a Volt out for a test drive yesterday during lunch, and the Houston summers may be more than the car's A/C could handle because I was kind of sweaty by the time the test drive ended. The salesperson knew nothing about the car, which didn't help, but I can't imagine they'd have made the A/C that hard to use... I'm pretty sure we jacked it all the way.

Anyway, I'm going to try the same with the Leaf today @ lunch, but I'm not sure if it's worth buying one new or pre-owned. There's a dealer that sells a lot of cars online via ebay that has a few 2011 Leafs with relatively few miles (4k-12k I think, can't access Ebay @ work) for $17.9K. Those are the SV models with more features than the base Leaf I'd be looking at if I bought it new.

My question is partially aimed to any Leaf owners, or those more familiar with the cars: are there any major concerns with a lightly used Leaf? I've read about the capacity loss in Arizona, so that's obviously a concern, but it appears to only affect a minority of owners in that state. Anything else?

[mrwibble]

Personally, I wouldn't buy an electric vehicle outright. The tech is still developing and an improvement could make a vehicle next to worthless over night. If I were to get an electric car, I'd lease it. That way, the manufacturer takes a bath when a battery/motor combo with a 500 mile/30 minute charge time, makes an appearance.

[mdand3boys]

I have seen them used on Oahu at dealers, for as little as $15,000 asking price for a 2011 - and it looks like $13,500 would be a reasonable price if you check Edmond's and KBB. Do your homework before paying more.

[Merc63]

The lease on on a Leaf is $199 a month for a new one, while the financing on a used one at $17k is going to be closer to $300 a month. Just a little budgetary tidbit for planning purposes. Like mrwibble, I'd lease this tech rather than tie yourself down to a possibly outdated platform in a few years. The charging for the Leaf, especially the first gen ones, is going to be outdated soon, as fast charging systems become standardized (supposedly based on Tesla's fast charging system). It's why I leased my Volt instead of buying.

[ukrkoz]

You may want check out TopGear review of Leaf. I am not trying to be funny, as entire trip was quite comical, but at some point in it, stranded while charging the car, they go through feasibility of it and name $$s involved into it loud and clear. That is not bad to listen to.

[Merc63]

Originally Posted by ukrkoz

You may want check out TopGear review of Leaf. I am not trying to be funny, as entire trip was quite comical, but at some point in it, stranded while charging the car, they go through feasibility of it and name $$s involved into it loud and clear. That is not bad to listen to.

Top Gear is for laughs and entertainment, not factual news or factual use. It's scripted to get the results they want. There are no factual car reviews on TG.

I know a lot of people with Leafs (Leaves?) as their commuter car. Cheap to operate and so far (so long as youre not in AZ where there were some battery issues) quite reliable. Not the prettiest car out there, but works exactly as it's supposed to.

[Soviet]

We have a 2011 Nissan Leaf in San Antonio, Texas with 40,000+ miles. The car is fantastic & has never gotten us stranded but we have had capacity loss issues since July 23, 2011. (Holy moley! Tomorrow's the anniversary!!)

We started out with 12 capacity bars & it has lost 4 bars. The range has been diminished slightly but it still meets our needs for the time being.

A while back, Nissan got hit with a class-action lawsuit on the battery capacity loss issue & they agreed to replace batteries for customers below a certain mileage. I'm unsure whether the limit is 60,000 miles or 100,000 miles.

I've also heard that they were developing a new battery with a different battery chemistry designed solely for hot weather, such as Arizona & Texas. If I recall correctly, there was never anything official written about it.

I'm a member of the mynissanleaf.com forum & it can be an invaluable resource. I highly recommend you peruse it prior to a decision to purchasing a Leaf.

[Augiec]

Soviet, I was reading about the battery capacity loss. Nissan announced a new warranty for them. You should qualify based on what I've read to get a new battery.

Nissan LEAF® Electric Car Battery

Lithium-ion Battery Gradual Capacity Loss:
In addition to the Lithium-ion Battery Coverage for defects in materials or workmanship (96 months/100,000 miles), the Nissan LEAF® Lithium-ion battery is also warranted against capacity loss below nine bars of capacity as shown on the vehicle’s battery capacity level gauge for a period of 60 months or 60,000 miles, whichever comes first. See your Owner's Manual for tips on maximizing battery life and capacity.

[Soviet]

Yup. We're gonna let it get below 6 bars or something before replacing it. And if the rumors of a "hot battery chemistry" being made for the Southern states are true, I would wait for that replacement.