Leased 2011-2015 Nissan LEAFs are being returned to dealers, so there is a market for selling those used LEAFs. I have a friend who bought a 2011 LEAF with 8,000 miles for $15,000 and a friend who bought a 2012 SL LEAF with 35,000 miles for $11,000 and another who bought a 2015 SV LEAF with 13,000 miles on it for $9,800.
Listed here are some advice items I have given to prospective buyers of used LEAFs:
-
Nissan web page about certified used LEAFs
- Discussion of the differences between the 2011 and 2012 LEAFs
- Specs for the 2011 LEAF
- Interactive brochure for the 2012 LEAF
- Brochure for the 2012 LEAF
- Brochure for the 2013 LEAF
- Brochure for the 2014 LEAF
- Brochure for the 2015 LEAF
- Brochure for the 2016 LEAF
- Brochure for the 2017 LEAF
- Until 2013, there were two versions of the LEAF, the SV and the SL in order of increasing options. (My 2012 was an SL. My 2015 was an SV.) After that there was a much less expensive S model, without many features that the SV and SL have.
- Here is a web page about replacing a LEAF battery.
So, if a few years later you are not satisfied with the reduced battery capacity, you can replace the battery with a better one. The 2015 battery withstands heat better than the earlier batteries. Some earlier batteries lost capacity very fast due to 3-digit temperatures in Phoenix.
- Here is a listing of used LEAFs on eBay.
- The 2011 & 2012 LEAFs do not have a SOC (State Of Charge) meter, which is important to have so that you know how far you can drive before charging. (The 2013-2015 LEAFs have one in the dash display.) The miles-left meter in the LEAF dash display is very inaccurate and confusing. You can get the OBDII scanner for $9 and the free LEAF Spy Lite for Android phones to view LEAF parameters, including SOC (State Of Charge) and instantaneous power. There is a LEAF Spy Pro, also. The scanner attaches to a plug under the steering wheel and communicates by Bluetooth to the Android phone. If you have an iPhone, you could buy a cheap Android phone with minimal phone service for this purpose.
- You should have a dealer show you the % remaining battery capacity before buying.
- http://www.electricvehiclewiki.com/Battery#Battery_Capacity_Behavior :
The twelve smaller segments at far right of the battery gauge represents the battery's current maximum capacity. As the battery's capacity degrades, these bars disappear one by one. This table shows the battery capacity range represented by each bar:
Bar Number |
Capacity (%) |
12 |
85-100 |
11 |
78.75-85 |
10 |
72.5-78.75 |
9 |
66.25-72.5 |
8 |
60-66.25 |
7 |
53.75-60 |
6 |
47.5-53.75 |
5 |
41.25-47.5 |
4 |
35-41.25 |
3 |
28.75-35 |
2 |
22.5-28.75 |
1 |
16.25-22.5 |
0 |
0-16.25 |
- Consumer Reports' recommendations about buying a used LEAF.
- I and Consumer Reports recommend that you not buy a new LEAF, instead lease it because of the facts that the traction battery loses capacity with time and EV technology is changing rapidly. For example, when my 2015 2-year lease expires in 2017 I expect to be able to lease a LEAF or other EV that has about double the range of my 2015.
- http://www.greencarreports.com/news/1081547_2013-nissan-leaf-longer-range-faster-charging-leather-seats-and-more-all-the-upgrades
- http://ecomento.com/2015/03/19/buyers-guide-used-nissan-leaf/
- https://cleantechnica.com/2015/03/25/99-99-nissan-leaf-batteries-still-operation/
L. David Roper, http://www.roperld.com/personal/roperldavid.htm
26 March, 2018