Should you buy a USED Nissan Leaf? - What goes WRONG?

Comments · 329

• NO

  @nomadchad8243 · 3 years ago

  I just bought a 2023 Leaf, To me its exactly what I want. Ten years of proven reliability , ten years of parts and aftermarket development. Battery can be removed and disassembled into its cells for repair of replacement.  Can bus software modifications to upgrade motor/batteries/inverters when your warranty runs out. I plan on keeping it for 20 years or so .

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• RO

  @robertjohnsontaylor3187 · 2 years ago

  The leaf is the best car I’ve ever owned but that’s to a large extent to my driving needs of local journeys plus occasional 70 mile journeys

  35

• NO

  @nony314 · 3 years ago

  You missed the minor issue with the top of the front struts rusting because the tops act as a trap for water from the windscreen. A quick spray of grease and some after market plastic caps is an easy preventative measure.

  101

• MR

  @MrWilliam.Stewart · 4 years ago

  Ah, the mighty disbelief. Every single one that came in for service I'd ask the owners, how do you like it, have you had any issues? Not a single bad word or problem reported from the owners, even an old 2012 high milage one. They all genuinely liked their disbeliefs.

  89

• TI

  @timpalmer5805 · 3 years ago

  I run the latest 62kw UK Leaf. It is my third Leaf and have no issues with it or any of the 2 previous. It does everything quite well if not the best. Very good buy second hand and range of the 62kw better than 200 miles is plenty for most people.

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• FI

  @fiddlerscove · 1 year ago (edited)

  I own a Leaf 2020 40KW. One of the drawbacks is the CHAdeMO fast charging system. Modern alternative EVs tend to use the CCS2 system, meaning as we go forward, there will be less CHAdeMO chargers at service stations. Fortunately, those clever Chinese have developed a CCS2 to CHADEMO adaptor, which allows Leafs to charge on virtually any fast chargers, including Tesla Superchargers.  They are quite expensive, but well worth not having the stress of finding a CHAdeMO fast charger on a long trip.

  14

• JO

  @JosephWall117 · 3 years ago (edited)

  Randomly had this in my recommended, great channel, great reviews, you got a new sub. I&apos;m not even Australian, but your coverage is so in-depth it doesn&apos;t matter, I can apply all the info to international models. <br><br>I would like to point out, though, that the vast vast majority of Nissan Leaf batteries, even the first gen ones, are still in cars on the road today. I know this because there was a grid power storage company here in the US that thought they&apos;d be successful re-purposing recycled Leaf batteries to reduce grid load at peak hours, but they just haven&apos;t got enough Leaf batteries yet to actually scale the business. They just aren&apos;t dying as fast as predicted, even with insufficient cooling.<br><br>Anyone who&apos;s EV-hesitant should see this and gain a lot of confidence in EVs by thinking &quot;if even the lowest-end, oldest tech air-cooled batteries mostly haven&apos;t failed yet, only lost some range, then my nice new EV that I&apos;ll buy next year with liquid cooling will last 10x as long as that&quot;. That&apos;s the real takeaway here, the fact that even the least-appealing, least advanced EV still has so many pros over any ICE vehicle on the market.

  38

• OP

  @OP-fd4lh · 1 year ago

  I agree with folks here about short drives being the best niche for these. I didn’t grow up wanting an electric vehicle but a pre-owned Nissan Leaf came up very recently and it was right for my budget and I drive in city about 3-5 miles a day with possibly a 15 mile once each two weeks so it is really good for me. But I don&apos;t try to convert people to EVs. In my opinion, &nbsp;you have to think ahead more with an EV. <br> &nbsp;It is also bringing some unforeseen changes to my life though... I drive alot more carefully now😄 not beacuse I dont trust the safety but to be efficient as I can with my charging. It&apos;s a positive change. Also, I have gone deep into Nissan forums, YT channels and interact with people across the world in sharing info. It is a good enjoyable journey with my Nissan Leaf.

  35

• CL

  @Clampett01 · 3 years ago (edited)

  Great overview of the rather unsung hero of the ev world. &nbsp;It’s a bit like your odd uncle who looks a bit goofy, but as it turns is always there for you, being reliable and a great member of the family. &nbsp; Space it’s got, grace is there if you are not too picky. &nbsp;The tech is OK with most of the things fitted to halo cars from other manufacturers. &nbsp;The operating system and graphics are a but sluggish. &nbsp; The USP for Leaf owners is that a whole load of non franchise garages and specialist EV workshops have developed the skills and knowledge to keep the Leaf and its battery in top condition.

  29

• CA

  @Carabear06 · 2 years ago

  I just bought a used 2018 Leaf, it&apos;s the coolest thing I&apos;ve ever owned.

  108

• CA

  @caerphoto · 3 years ago

  Seems like there&apos;s a kind of resurgence of Leaf popularity lately, as used ones become more available and people start to realise it&apos;s actually a pretty good car.<br><br>The main thing I don&apos;t like about mine is the Chademo charge connector – since everything else is moving to CCS, it&apos;s only going to get more difficult to find public rapid chargers in the future, and I&apos;ve already been in a situation where I&apos;ve had to wait for a charger to become available while a bunch of CSS ones next to it were sitting empty.

  22

• FR

  @freetobe3 · 3 years ago

  I&apos;m amazed that a meh but overall decent car in 2018 has better performance than a performance/family/etc driven car of 30 years ago, better build quality, lower maintenance, lots of safety and comfort features, all that for something that can also take your friends or kids in the back and inflation adjusted a bargain of the price.

  7