Nissan LEAF - General

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#2406144 24-Jan-2020 16:14

kelly42:
I'm curious: what is roadside assistance like for EVs if you run out of charge? Is there anything the AA can do, or do they just tow you (on a flatbed)?

When I travel long distances where I know I need to charge before I can get home, I take a power cord and my wall plug compatible cable. ( and $20 cash)

If I run short such an expected charger is down, I could ask a shop or motel etc to use their power plug.

In 3 years of driving my leaf I have never needed to use this backup plan.

So not sure how big an issue of needing the AA actually is.

There are far more domestic power points in nz than petrol stations.

Delphinus

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#2406161 24-Jan-2020 16:58

Ge0rge:
kelly42:

I'm curious: what is roadside assistance like for EVs if you run out of charge? Is there anything the AA can do, or do they just tow you (on a flatbed)?

Diesel generator towed behind their diesel ute - you get to decide if you want to stand by your principles to not use fossil fuels, or get a quick charge

;)

https://www.aa.co.nz/cars/ask-an-expert/faults-reliability-service-and-repair/show/9536/

They just tow you home or to the nearest charger. Sorry no diesel generators yet.

duckInferno

89 posts

Master Geek
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#2406171 24-Jan-2020 17:32

huxtable:

Thanks for this detailed response. I think it confirms my line of thinking, which is really not to get too caught up in the SOH number.

That's definitely the right outlook. Many sellers will include a battery guarantee for 6-18 months which should suffice for peace of mind to make sure you're not getting a lemon battery.

SOH matters more if you need a certain range. I commute just shy of 90km/day round trip so I made sure my leaf had over 85% SOH to avoid range anxiety. If I was only doing 20-40km I'd consider a really low (50-60%) SOH just to get a leaf for a steep discount :)

We'll likely just be slow charging it in our garage - it will probably be averaging around 20km per day, (I'veseen conflicting debates about whether to simply charge to 100% every night, or always keep it in 20-80% range, or just charge every ~3rd night...) We do want to make an effort to maintain battery as well as we can over the next few years, although again I don't want to get too obsessive about something that might have negligible impact over time.

Yep lots of misinformation around charging to 100%. It does no harm if you drive it often, it's leaving it at 100% for extended periods of time (ie. a month+) that will degrade the battery.

The 1st gen leaf had an option to charge to 80% but this was later removed, I guess Nissan realised it didn't actually do anything and was just misleading consumers.

tripper1000

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#2408222 28-Jan-2020 14:26

I read that the 80% option was removed because it strongly insinuated that the safe or true driving range was 20% less than advertised which made the already modest specs look much worse.

More pricey EV's such as the Tesla do have a similar option to limit the max charge and recommend only charging to 80% unless the distance of your next journey necessitates the extra 20%

Storage wise, it is fairly universally accepted in the battery industry that lithium batteries are best stored partially charged (ie not 100% charged) - most pro-grade lithium battery chargers (for models etc) have a "Storage Charge" option to charge/discharge to <80% for this purpose.

While there is debate about weather or not charging to 100% is harmful in a Leaf, it is undesirable in other brands and it is clear that charging to 80% is not harmful. Weather or not you put credence in the above, it is a fact that the Leaf's battery system is inferior for more pricey EV's, in terms of cooling/management, and possibly also chemistry. With that in mind, you should plan not to un-necessarily thrash the battery. It does need to be charged to 100% periodically to help with cell balancing and to enable the BMS to track the full capacity, but if you are doing only 20km a day, there is no need to charge to to 100% every night if ever.

SaltyNZ

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#2408233 28-Jan-2020 14:37

tripper1000:

- most pro-grade lithium battery chargers (for models etc) have a "Storage Charge" option to charge/discharge to <80% for this purpose.

So that's why they look so ordinary without their makeup on.

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iambobthefish

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#2408257 28-Jan-2020 15:04

SaltyNZ:

tripper1000:

- most pro-grade lithium battery chargers (for models etc) have a "Storage Charge" option to charge/discharge to <80% for this purpose.

So that's why they look so ordinary without their makeup on.

Yeah, they become too unstable left to their own devices at 100%.

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smac

338 posts

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#2410069 30-Jan-2020 10:46

I've just taken possession of a 2013 Leaf and along with the keys it's come with an extra alarm remote. It's just one button. Does anyone know anything about these? Is it factory? I'd just like to know what it does and doesn't do ie what sensors, does it auto arm etc etc Thanks

(dammit I can't get the image to show....it's plain black, about 25mm x 50mm x 10mm, one button, no writing or symbols)

jimmykl

1 post

Wannabe Geek

#2410216 30-Jan-2020 13:54

Here you go 😀 (I have no idea about the remote, didn't get one like that with our Leaf)

Remote

smac:

I've just taken possession of a 2013 Leaf and along with the keys it's come with an extra alarm remote. It's just one button. Does anyone know anything about these? Is it factory? I'd just like to know what it does and doesn't do ie what sensors, does it auto arm etc etc Thanks

(dammit I can't get the image to show....it's plain black, about 25mm x 50mm x 10mm, one button, no writing or symbols)

smac

338 posts

Ultimate Geek
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#2410224 30-Jan-2020 14:17

Maybe it's me....I can't see any image in my post or yours.

Anywhere the image is here: https://drive.google.com/open?id=1ZvJoPe6uJLwIKXSlvKZfZgn3idIED3XE

duckInferno

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#2410348 30-Jan-2020 18:43

Is it a door opener?

Technofreak

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#2410376 30-Jan-2020 19:59

duckInferno:

Is it a door opener?

I presume the Leaf is second hand. I wondered the same and that it relates to something the previous owner had. Hope they're not looking for it.

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smac

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#2410379 30-Jan-2020 20:11

Well, yeah it's second hand, it's a 2013 car I just bought!

I'm the first NZ owner. I guess it could be a garage door opener, but doesn't look like one I ever saw which made me think alarm. Seems unlikely somebody would sell their car and give away the door opener.

tripper1000

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#2410608 31-Jan-2020 11:05

Why don't you just press the button and see what it does?

It doesn't sound like a factory Nissan thing.

smac

338 posts

Ultimate Geek
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#2410641 31-Jan-2020 11:57

Ha...well I actually did have a play.....and the results were...inconclusive!

Sometimes it makes a little noise when pushed, sometimes not. Maybe it needs a battery. Then at one point it might have set something cause the horn started going off! However I had been working for ages sorting the headunit to English and wondered if I'd got the 12V battery low (it looks old) and I know that can do all sorts of crazy stuff.

Ah well....If I never figure it out it doesn't really matter, but I'm curious!

duckInferno

89 posts

Master Geek
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#2410704 31-Jan-2020 13:06

I'd bring it into an auto electrician, see what they think of it. It sounds like you might have an aftermarket alarm system.

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