Nissan LEAF - General

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545 posts

Ultimate Geek

#3084415 3-Jun-2023 15:14

Doesn't sound very trustworthy to be honest. No website, no details, a @live.com email address to order.

I'd be interested in the EV Enhanced pack as it has cooling, and you can refurbish your old batteries.

Batman

Mad Scientist
29760 posts

Uber Geek

Trusted

Lifetime subscriber

#3084439 3-Jun-2023 16:35

boland:

Doesn't sound very trustworthy to be honest. No website, no details, a @live.com email address to order.

I'd be interested in the EV Enhanced pack as it has cooling, and you can refurbish your old batteries.

whether the battery pack will arrive is the least of my concerns

i would be most concerned about if and when my kids will turn into human BBQ

geoffwnz

1587 posts

Uber Geek

ID Verified

#3090182 15-Jun-2023 08:37

In a move that surprised more than a few people, I now have a Leaf as my commuter "hack".

I justify it since my other two vehicles are a race car and the tow ute and between them, they burn enough fuel that I can maintain my "petrolhead" status while driving a full electric any other time. :-)

Picked up a 2016 Leaf G with 10 bars and 68k on the clock. Pretty happy with it after a couple of weeks of doing the running around that the 96 Corolla it replaces used to do. Heated steering wheel was nice this week with the icy mornings. Heated seats have some use but I'm a boy that runs hot so they are of less use to my butt than for others.

I'll be getting the head unit translated at some point soon as I don't read Japanese. Spent a solid hour fighting with it to get the BT connection to my phone, so that at least is working. Google Lens translate mode helped a lot for that.

20 years (96 Corolla to 2016 Leaf) has seen quite the change in car tech moving from no-tech to all-of-the-tech in this case.

MotorDrive Rallying

boland

545 posts

Ultimate Geek

#3090199 15-Jun-2023 09:21

geoffwnz:

In a move that surprised more than a few people, I now have a Leaf as my commuter "hack".

I justify it since my other two vehicles are a race car and the tow ute and between them, they burn enough fuel that I can maintain my "petrolhead" status while driving a full electric any other time. :-)

Picked up a 2016 Leaf G with 10 bars and 68k on the clock. Pretty happy with it after a couple of weeks of doing the running around that the 96 Corolla it replaces used to do. Heated steering wheel was nice this week with the icy mornings. Heated seats have some use but I'm a boy that runs hot so they are of less use to my butt than for others.

I'll be getting the head unit translated at some point soon as I don't read Japanese. Spent a solid hour fighting with it to get the BT connection to my phone, so that at least is working. Google Lens translate mode helped a lot for that.

20 years (96 Corolla to 2016 Leaf) has seen quite the change in car tech moving from no-tech to all-of-the-tech in this case.

Welcome to the club! We love our Leaf, and is saving a lot on petrol. I also really like that it's so silent. We also use it for emergency power during power cuts.

GV27

5896 posts

Uber Geek

#3090246 15-Jun-2023 11:18

Partner is pivoting to Leaf being her car and I'm driving a company car.

It's working out great, but we now need to divest ourselves of two cars. Will save us close to $2K in insurance alone on top of the fuel savings for running the Leaf.

Canuckabroad

177 posts

Master Geek

#3090716 16-Jun-2023 13:02

geoffwnz:

Welcome to the club! We love our Leaf, and is saving a lot on petrol. I also really like that it's so silent. We also use it for emergency power during power cuts.

What are you using to pull power from the traction battery during emergencies? I know they are used for this in Japan, but I didn't know that there were commercial solutions here in NZ based on a CHAdeMO connector.

boland

545 posts

Ultimate Geek

#3090726 16-Jun-2023 13:29

Canuckabroad:
geoffwnz:

Welcome to the club! We love our Leaf, and is saving a lot on petrol. I also really like that it's so silent. We also use it for emergency power during power cuts.

What are you using to pull power from the traction battery during emergencies? I know they are used for this in Japan, but I didn't know that there were commercial solutions here in NZ based on a CHAdeMO connector.

I connect a 12v to 220v to the 12v battery, and put the car in Drive. Putting it in drive will keep the 12v topped up from the traction battery.

As long as you don't exceed 1200watt you're fine.
A bit annoying to connect as it involves unscrewing the bolts. So, I've ordered some anderson plugs to connect permanently to the 12v battery to make connecting easier.

All bought on Aliexpress. Inverter was about NZ$ 150, the Anderson plugs about 70 incl shipping and gst.

Works fine for emergency power, it's a bit cumbersome as it involves running extension cords from the car to the fridge and freezer etc. But it works!

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Canuckabroad

177 posts

Master Geek

#3090749 16-Jun-2023 14:40

geoffwnz:

I connect a 12v to 220v to the 12v battery, and put the car in Drive. Putting it in drive will keep the 12v topped up from the traction battery.

As long as you don't exceed 1200watt you're fine.
A bit annoying to connect as it involves unscrewing the bolts. So, I've ordered some anderson plugs to connect permanently to the 12v battery to make connecting easier.

All bought on Aliexpress. Inverter was about NZ$ 150, the Anderson plugs about 70 incl shipping and gst.

Works fine for emergency power, it's a bit cumbersome as it involves running extension cords from the car to the fridge and freezer etc. But it works!

I think I've heard of others doing something similar. Quite functional for emergencies, but certainly not as convenient as the ideal solution which would be to plug in directly to the traction battery the way they can in Japan. I've heard it said we don't have any 230V systems that are certified here in NZ, and that there are issues trying to ensure there can't be any power energising the grid in the event of an outage, requirement for 3 phase power, etc etc. Hopefully someday we have good and easy options for V2L and V2H.

boland

545 posts

Ultimate Geek

#3090753 16-Jun-2023 14:51

Canuckabroad:

geoffwnz:

I connect a 12v to 220v to the 12v battery, and put the car in Drive. Putting it in drive will keep the 12v topped up from the traction battery.

As long as you don't exceed 1200watt you're fine.
A bit annoying to connect as it involves unscrewing the bolts. So, I've ordered some anderson plugs to connect permanently to the 12v battery to make connecting easier.

All bought on Aliexpress. Inverter was about NZ$ 150, the Anderson plugs about 70 incl shipping and gst.

Works fine for emergency power, it's a bit cumbersome as it involves running extension cords from the car to the fridge and freezer etc. But it works!

I think I've heard of others doing something similar. Quite functional for emergencies, but certainly not as convenient as the ideal solution which would be to plug in directly to the traction battery the way they can in Japan. I've heard it said we don't have any 230V systems that are certified here in NZ, and that there are issues trying to ensure there can't be any power energising the grid in the event of an outage, requirement for 3 phase power, etc etc. Hopefully someday we have good and easy options for V2L and V2H.

Yeah it's for emergency only.

Even if a direct connection to the battery is available, are you sure you want to put more strain on your battery? It will degrade faster.
I think it's better to invest in a home storage battery solution. Getting more and more options.

Canuckabroad

177 posts

Master Geek

#3090757 16-Jun-2023 15:03

My intention is to use my EV until the battery hits the point where it's no longer usable and then I'll repurpose it as home storage. As I understand it a considerable portion of our Japan import Leafs have already seen this use in Japan. When someone does a LeafSpy report and finds their 3 year old car has 2000 quick charges, it's generally because the Leaf records every such access as a fast charge (even if it was actually a fast-load not a charge).

HarmLessSolutions

969 posts

Ultimate Geek

Subscriber

#3090774 16-Jun-2023 16:06

boland:
Canuckabroad:

I think I've heard of others doing something similar. Quite functional for emergencies, but certainly not as convenient as the ideal solution which would be to plug in directly to the traction battery the way they can in Japan. I've heard it said we don't have any 230V systems that are certified here in NZ, and that there are issues trying to ensure there can't be any power energising the grid in the event of an outage, requirement for 3 phase power, etc etc. Hopefully someday we have good and easy options for V2L and V2H.

Yeah it's for emergency only.

Even if a direct connection to the battery is available, are you sure you want to put more strain on your battery? It will degrade faster.
I think it's better to invest in a home storage battery solution. Getting more and more options.

Apparently bidirectional functionality (using CHAdeMO) was mandated in Japan following the Fukushima incident as a fallback strategy in the case of future such events. The degradation is causes to the battery is under debate from what I've seen with the slow rate of charge and discharge being claimed to actually be of benefit to battery life.

The introduction of V2G/V2H into NZ is going to take a while as the lines companies and genretailers get their systems up to speed in dealing with the new inputs into their infrastructure but it has the potential to serve as a huge opportunity to aid in buffering grid peak demands as explained in the video above. The idea of using an EV as an income earning asset also appeals and this obviously must be factored against any potential battery degradation impact.

For now the only EV on the market in NZ with bidirectional capability to a degree that V2G/V2H can be considered is the Nissan Leaf (and Outlander PHEV) due to CHAdeMO connectability. All other EVs are limited to V2L which is a significantly lesser ability. V2G functionality is definitely gaining interest internationally though with Polestar for one recently mentioned in this article.

Also worth considering that even a mid life Leaf has battery capacity similar to that of static home batteries such as the Powerwall and older Leafs with 50-60% SoH can be had at a fraction of the price of a home battery. Just factor in the (one off) price of a Bi-di capable EVSE, prices of which are high but tracking down, and ensure your home has the ability to be isolated from the grid to enable 'blackout back-up' use (which home batteries require also) and you're good to go - once our infrastructure services catch up with V2G technology.

https://www.harmlesssolutions.co.nz/

tripper1000

1617 posts

Uber Geek

#3090805 16-Jun-2023 16:32

boland:
I connect a 12v to 220v to the 12v battery, and put the car in Drive. Putting it in drive will keep the 12v topped up from the traction battery.

Just wanted to clarify for safety. DO NOT PUT THE CAR IN DRIVE GEAR or any gear other than Park. It isn't safe and it isn't necessary. (No car should ever be in drive gear when the drivers seat is vacant).

As long as the car is in ready mode (ready to drive with the car and arrow symbol showing) it will charge the 12 volt battery from the traction battery.

I have happily run a 1000 watt load via an inverter from the Leaf. Leaf Spy shows the current going into the 12v battery if you are curious to confirm when the car is/is not charging the 12v battery.

lmnop

22 posts

Geek

#3091828 19-Jun-2023 00:48

tripper1000:

Just wanted to clarify for safety. DO NOT PUT THE CAR IN DRIVE GEAR or any gear other than Park. It isn't safe and it isn't necessary. (No car should ever be in drive gear when the drivers seat is vacant).

As long as the car is in ready mode (ready to drive with the car and arrow symbol showing) it will charge the 12 volt battery from the traction battery.

I have happily run a 1000 watt load via an inverter from the Leaf. Leaf Spy shows the current going into the 12v battery if you are curious to confirm when the car is/is not charging the 12v battery.

Correct. The 12v battery is used to boot the computer, get the hydraulics up to pressure and engage the traction battery relays. Once the traction battery is fully online, a high current dc-dc convertor takes over the 12v provision, and tops up the 12v battery and the battery is just along for the ride.

Connect up a decent 240V (not 220v!) inverter and you have days of power available. The general understanding is that the DC-DC 12V can supply 130 Amps.

boland

545 posts

Ultimate Geek

#3091845 19-Jun-2023 08:27

tripper1000:

boland:
I connect a 12v to 220v to the 12v battery, and put the car in Drive. Putting it in drive will keep the 12v topped up from the traction battery.

Just wanted to clarify for safety. DO NOT PUT THE CAR IN DRIVE GEAR or any gear other than Park. It isn't safe and it isn't necessary. (No car should ever be in drive gear when the drivers seat is vacant).

As long as the car is in ready mode (ready to drive with the car and arrow symbol showing) it will charge the 12 volt battery from the traction battery.

I have happily run a 1000 watt load via an inverter from the Leaf. Leaf Spy shows the current going into the 12v battery if you are curious to confirm when the car is/is not charging the 12v battery.

Sorry, I meant ready mode indeed, not drive. The key thing is that the arrow symbol is showing, you should of course leave it in Park.

everettpsycho

614 posts

Ultimate Geek

#3092203 19-Jun-2023 19:50

Out of interest has anyone used the anz green home loan top up to purchase a vehicle? We've got our pair of 2017 30kWh leafs and I'm very tempted to sell the pair of them and put that money and the rebate against our flexible mortgage portion and pick up a pair of 40kWh using the 1% finance option the green loan top up offers.

Crunching numbers I think as long as we only spend up to 7k more on the 40kWh cars than we sell the 30kWh for we'd end up breaking even on the finances over the three years we'd have the 1% for and effectively get a cheap upgrade by transferring to lower interest debt. Of course this will start to add weekly payments to our mortgage we'd have to be able to afford and then clear the debt off when it goes to flexible rate in 3 years.

Think I'm more after validation, sanity checking and if it's worth the upgrade as we've only had the cars for 18 and 12 months. The resale is the key to it working though and the resale values being listed are all over the place for very similar cars with similar mileage and battery healths.

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