Nissan Leaf - 7 day test drive - a blog of my experience

[autofocus]

Hi there,

OK 7 day test drive all confirmed with the dealership this morning.

Collecting the car at 9:15am on Wednesday morning this week. Have asked dealer for an Ecotricity card as well so that I can test out the car properly using the charging stations rather than relying on overnight charges.

At the moment the week is looking like this :-

Wednesday
Collect car from Stoke on Trent at 9:15am, trip to Manchester city centre for meetings from 12 midday, leaving there around 5pm to head home
Estimated daily mileage - 120 miles

Thursday
Home (Uttoxeter) to Manchester for meeting at 12 midday, then a few other calls in town and then heading back home around 4:30pm
Estimated daily mileage - 145 miles

Friday
Home to office (just near Knutsford) and back again
Estimated daily mileage - 90 miles

Saturday
General homely stuff, food shopping etc
Estimated daily mileage - 15 miles

Sunday
Heading over to Derby for Mothers Day meal and then home again
Estimated daily mileage - 45 miles

Monday
Home to Manchester for a few meetings and then back home around 4pm
Estimated daily mileage - 145 miles

Tuesday
Home to Manchester for exhibition and then back to drop car off at dealership around team time
Estimated daily mileage - 120 miles

Will update this post at various times throughout my test drive as it might help future purchasers.

Getting excited now as not driven an EV before and I am looking forward to how it copes with my day to day routine.

Regards

Tim

Edited by autofocus on Tuesday 10th March 08:00

[autofocus]

Hi there,

Yes of course will be taking plenty of pics

Regards

Tim

[autofocus]

Hi there,

In terms of charging cards, I reckon with Ecotricity for use on the motorway services and the GMEV scheme (for which I don't need a card I can just use pay by phone) I think I will be ok.

http://ev.tfgm.com/

The cable thing concerns me. I assumed that the car will be supplied with the relevant cables, is this not the case ?

Regards

Tim

[autofocus]

johnnyreggae said:

Could you post your mileage estimates as they stand now for the planned journeys above (like the Saturday : 15) - I think it would be interesting to then see with hindsight whether you had to modify and/or achieved

Hi there,

As requested have modified the original post to include estimated daily mileage. I will record actual mileage in each daily post.

Regards

Tim

[autofocus]

Hi there,

Question for anyone who has done a seven day test drive. Does the dealer give you login details for the Carwings iPhone App ?
This seems to be the one Nissan link to from their website and I can use it in Demo mode but not sure if I should sign up in readiness for tomorrow.

First appointment is 46.5 miles from where I am picking the car up and it seems there is a 7kw GMEV point on the street opposite with a 62196 Type 2 connector. Will this work assuming dealer supplys a cable ?

Regards

Tim

[autofocus]

Hi,

Not a misery at all, no point parking up next to a charging point and not being able to use it.

Will suss out the dealer in the morning, hopefully they are so efficient they have Carwings Log on, Ecotricity card, cables etc already for me. Well heres hoping

Regards

Tim

[autofocus]

Hi there,

Full post of today's activity to follow later.

Initial experience so far all ok with a few teething troubles.

Currently on charge whilst I am off to a meeting.

More later

Regards

Tim

[autofocus]

Hi there,

OK will try and keep this concise but there's quite a lot to get through.

Arrived at dealer at 9am, salesman was aware of my appointment having rang me on Sunday to confirm so was expecting me.
Problem number 1, car had been let out yesterday however had been returned without the Ecotricity card I was promised.
I explained this was an issue given what I wanted to do with the car, I told him about the GMEV scheme in Manchester and advised I could perhaps manage without the Ecotricity card but I would need a cable for the rapid chargers in Manchester.
He promptly managed to locate a new one and gave it to me.
We signed all the paperwork, he copied my licence and we went out to the car.
He took around 10 mins explaining the starting procedure, controls and how to charge etc. Very thorough.

Off I went, car was showing 82 miles



Distance to Manchester was showing as 47 miles so I thought I would be ok.

Took it pretty steady initially and probably did no more than 70mph on the M6. Used cruise control a bit and had the heater on a few times.

Arrived in Manchester in plenty of time for my first appointment with a few minutes to spare so just opted for a small car park that I know. Car was showing 32 miles (distance travelled 47.4 miles)



Tried to complete the Chargemycar app registration while walking to my appointment and thought I had managed it (although it was rushed). Finished my appointment, headed back to the car and went off to find a charging point near my second appointment.

Found a charging point that I had walked past many times, 2 bays with one Leaf already plugged in. I jumped in the other one and got plugged in.



I obviously had not completed the registration on Chargemycar properly (I did say it was rushed) as I could not get it to authorise my debit card. I messed with the app for a few minutes and finally got it working. Followed the instructions on the charging point and after a few attempts (mainly due to communication issues with my phone, the app and their server) I was charging. I left the car and headed off to my meeting. Was not sure if I had to pay to park as well, could not see any signs and ask a passing traffic warden and he did not know either

Back from my meeting around 2 1/2 hours later (no parking ticket by the waty), turn the charger off and get back in car. Charge has taken it to 80% and the distance available is showing as 68 miles. Put postcode in for home and warnings start coming up as home is 70 miles away.





OK, what to do now ?

I have another meeting about 2 miles away (across town) and I am not sure if I plug the car in again whether it will charge anymore or not (I thought it would perhaps only ever charge to 80% and then only charge any more with the overnight charger)
I head across town and find a charge point that I knew was there but was not showing on the Chargemycar app. As I pulled up sure enough its turned off. Never mind, back to the app and theres another one less than half a mile away so I opt for this one. Pull up, pay for parking (as there was a sign) and plug in. Head off to meeting.

Come back an 1 1/2 hours later, unplug, turn on and Woo Hoo ! 100 miles range



So I head home knowing I will hit rush hour traffic and its raining and cold so will need wipers and heater. Sat Nav shows 62 miles to home so the previous shown range of 68 miles (before the second charge) might have worked but it would have been very close.



Off I go, keeping an eye on range.

Observations :-
Heater zaps range (to be expected)
Cruise Control zaps range a little bit (not really sure why ?)
A soft right foot is definitely the order of the day and using the 'Eco' button really helps with this as it limits the power
The 'B' Braking setting is very good around town and when going down hill. Switching between 'D' and 'B' seems to stretch the range.

Not a bad journey home (around 1hr 45mins) and I arrived home with 12 miles left, having stayed at around 70mph on M6 where possible (traffic quite heavy) - distance covered 66.2 miles



Took my son out for a ride after something to eat, turned off Eco and really booted it for the first time for a couple of miles. Range dropped to --- which I guess is pretty much zero so headed home.

Car is now parked up outside with charger plugged in through the garage door.

Stats for today

Miles covered = 117.60
Time spent on charge = 4hrs 5mins (2 x 7kw on street Rapid Chargers)

Really to early to make a decision either way but I have to say after Day 1 I am pretty impressed. It has done everything I have asked of it today, yes you have to think a little more and keep an eye on the range but hey thats what brains are for.

Day two should be interesting, Manchester again, but a little trip to Warrington on the way might test the range a bit.

Regards

Tim

Edited by autofocus on Wednesday 11th March 20:51

[autofocus]

juggsy said:

Interesting write up so far, your experiences seem similar to my 7 day test. Annoyingly the charge card Nissan gave me didnt work so I didn't get to try out any public chargers, although they gave me all the relevant cables!

I liked the 'B' mode braking although it freaked my wife out when following me due to the lack of brake lights whilst decelerating quite rapidly.

I signed up for Carwings for my test drive, was a faff to sign up then after numerous attempts of trying to add my credentials to the car I realised telematics had to be (and was not) activated. Was quite keen to try out remote heating etc., so that was a bit disappointing.

Nissan now trying to offer me a deal since my 7 day test drive, £149/month on 3 yr PCP for just under £3k deposit. Tempting...

Hi there,

Dealer pretty much told me that Carwings was loads of trouble, non of their demo's have it as he told me the first time he sold a car with it on it took 2 months to get it changed over etc. Because of this they no longer activate.

Like you say would be good to try it with it all working.

Regards

Tim

[autofocus]

pboyall said:

Loads of tips and tricks

Hi there,

Thanks for this, will try the few tips you have mentioned and see what effect they have tomorrow.

Planning my route tomorrow. Want to use the charger at Warrington Train Station but not sure I want to pay £10 for the priviledge given that its inside the station car park.

Can you just rock up at a Nissan dealer and pinch the charger ? I might try the dealer in Warrington.

Regards

Tim

[autofocus]

Hi there,

Overnight charge completed successfully.

Range showing as 91 miles.

Full report of today later.

Regards

Tim

[autofocus]

Hi there,

OK, Day 2 with a Nissan Leaf.

Left home with 91 miles following an overnight charge. Drove to Warrington mainly on the M6 and arrived after a bit of stop start traffic in Stoke with the range guide showing 36 miles having covered 57.7 miles.



Parked up in a multi storey, had my meeting and then decided that I could make it to Manchester without a charge.

A mix of M62/M602 saw me hit the outskirts of Salford with a low battery warning light (less than 15 miles) before this dropped to 9 miles and then --- by the time I made it to the city centre. Headed for the charge point I used yesterday only to find the same Leaf that was there before and a Tesla Model S.
I am convinced the Leaf owner parks it up and leaves it there all day :-) The Trip from Warrington to Manchester was 20.5 miles but the range dropped from 36 to --- probably due to the bulk of it being motorway. This was perhaps a little to close for comfort.

I headed for another charging point about 1/2 mile away. Parked up at 12:30pm and popped it on charge. Headed off to my meetings and came back around 3:45pm to find the car charged with a range of 85 miles. Had some emails to do so left it on charge for another 30 mins whilst I sat in the car before heading off at 4:15pm with a range of 95 miles



Decided to test the Sat Nav as it was set to fastest route. If I had gone the M6 route the Sat Nav reckoned I would reach home in 1hr 13 mins. Given that the M6 at 5/6pm is never what anyone would call fast I set it to 'Eco' route. This showed that home was 56 miles away but would take 1hr 45mins. In the end it took me over 2hr 15mins due to a break down in Stoke (which I would have it had I gone the M6 route anyway) but suprisingly the range stood up really well mainly, I suspect due to the slow speed. After clearing the breakdown at Stoke the range showed 41 miles remaining with about 18 miles to home so I did test the performance of the Leaf a little knowing I would make it home :-)

56 miles in 135 mins equates to an average speed of less than 25mph, this I have discovered is ideal Leaf driving.

Reached home with 20 miles remaining



Finally for today a quick question to any Leaf owners, just how many trees can you get lit up ? My record is 5, is this the max ?



Leaf is on charge overnight now ready for tomorrow.

Stats for today

Miles covered = 141.50
Time spent on charge = 3hrs 15 mins (2 x 7kw on street Rapid Chargers)

Regards

Tim

Edited by autofocus on Thursday 12th March 21:00

[autofocus]

Olivera said:

Day 1 and 2 both sounded appalling, like having an imminent breakdown always on the horizon. With that kind of range I would always need an internal combustion car as well, so can't yet see the point.

Hi there,

Yes I see your point, never felt the urge to panic though as knowing where the chargers are gives you great comfort. I guess if I was going to different places everyday and did not know the areas then a pure EV at the moment would not work.

Regards

Tim

[autofocus]

cheddar said:

Despite all your your planning, on the two days you've driven it you've had zero miles remaining indicated three times?

Hi there,

Only twice actually as the 36 and 9 relate to the same journey.
The first time was last night when I booted the car to show my son the acceleration and the car went from 12 miles to pretty much zero, I was only a mile or so from home and knew it would be ok.

The second time was today when I left Warrington showing 36, had 9 showing on the edge of Manchester city centre which dropped to zero about half a mile from a charging point. Never gave me a reason to panic.

Regards

Tim

[autofocus]

pboyall said:

Never got more than 1 tree ... guess I must have a heavy foot :-)

BTW, I was told today that the Ecotricity units on the motorways may well accept any kind of RFID card (e.g. Oyster, contactless credit card, works pass)

Worth a shot if you're wanting to use the Knutsford or Keele service chargers (presuming work aren't going to let you trail a three-pin plug out the window :-))

Hi there,

Might try this for a giggle. I rang Ecotricity today and asked them if they could turn chargers on over the phone as I did not have a card due to only have the car for a few days. Apparently they have had a policy change and they cannot do this now.

Regards

Tim

[autofocus]

speedyguy said:

How much do you think an overnight charge costs ?
£1,£3, £5 ???

Hi there,

I have a smart electric meter at home, I reckon a charge cost me approx £2 last night. Will monitor this over the next few days.

Regards

Tim

[autofocus]

Hi there,

OK discovered a flaw in EV cars.

They really really don't like cold weather. 1°C when I left home this morning with the car showing 83 miles after an overnight charge. Made it to the office (44 miles away) with the car showing just 21 miles charge left. That was with the heater only on occassionally and the wipers/radio on pretty much the whole time.

Was planning a trip to Liverpool today but might postpone this now as having no ecotricity card is a bit of an issue.
Have popped the car on charge at the office (normal 3 pin plug) and might just catch up with all my admin today before heading home.

Regards

Tim

[autofocus]

Hi there,

This was the range this morning before leaving home



OK so following on from my previous post I reached the office just outside Knutsford with 21 miles showing.

I did stop at Keele services (northbound) on the way up. The Ecotricity fast charger was out of service, but the AC medium charger was working. Tried the Oyster card trick and it worked (great tip thanks pboyall), charger turned on I connected up and waited 10 mins to make sure all ok. This won't have put any real charge in the car but was just curious to see if it would work, and it did.

Plugged the car in at the office (normal 3 pin plug) around 8:30am and cracked on with my admin.

I had planned a route to Liverpool, was assuming that I could not use Ecotricity cards and this is how I would have done it: -

1) 7am Drive from home to office to pick up some paperwork etc that I need for Liverpool meetings
2) 10am Drive from office to Nissan dealer in Widnes, charge car on fast charger and wait 30 mins
3) Drive to Liverpool for meetings
4) Drive from Liverpool to Nissan dealer in Warrington, charge car on fast charger and wait 30 mins
5) Back to office for rest of days meetings around 3pm.
6) Drive home around 5pm

This would have been 180 miles and I honestly believe that had the dealers both had operating rapid chargers it was certainly do-able.

I could have chanced the Oyster card trick and used the Ikea in Warrington both there and back so would not have had to make diversions to Nissan dealers but was not 100% happy doing this in case it didn't work.

As it happened a guy who I had a meeting with at the office this morning lives in Liverpool and he agreed to take the items over that I needed to send so I did not make the trip.

Instead cleared all my admin, left the car on charge all day. Unplugged it at 5pm and it was showing 72 miles (approx 80% charge).



So I headed home and got home after the most relaxing drive ever with 25 miles left.

I have to say the drive home was memorable. If the trip to Knutsford and back was my daily commute (98 miles in total) and I did not need to go into Manchester three days a week then I would by a Leaf tomorrow. It is pretty much perfect, charge overnight, drive to work, charge during the day and drive home. No risk of running out of charge as I have had 20 miles left at each end. Flawless.

Miles covered = 98
Time spent on charge = 8.5hrs (normal 3 pin charger into Mains at office)

Someone asked about a cost for charge, he is a pic from my Smart meter tonight



This Smart meter is in the kitchen at home so includes the normal electric of a 2 bed detached house for a full day plus the charging of the car.

Heres a grab from tonight whilst its on charge



Again this includes the house usage.

So I plugged the car in tonight at 6:30pm and will probably turn it off around 9:30am tomorrow (its Saturday so a lie in) though the charger will turn off once the car if fully charged at which point the electric useage will drop. I reckon my figure of £2 is about right for an overnight charge.

Easy day tomorrow food shopping etc so perhaps no more than 30 miles but will report back.

Regards

Tim

[autofocus]

Hi there,

Pretty easy day today with nothing to really report.

Headed off food shopping, found myself taking the wife to a supermarket around 15 miles away just so I could give the Leaf a good drive without worrying about the range. Covered 30 miles, never turned the economy mode on and it was good experience a short journey as I knew I could accelerate hard and do 80mph on dual carriageways without having to watch the range.

My wife quite likes the car as well, and as us men all know thats a bonus.

Started the day with 86 miles, parked it up and put it on charge with around 40 miles left.

Tommorow sees a trip over the hills to the Peak District, then back home before over to Derby for a family meal.

Will report back tomorrow

Regards

Tim

[autofocus]

Hi there,

Sunday was a bit of a realisation that at the moment EV technology is just not quite there. Well at least the battery life of a Leaf is just not there.

Started the day with 85 miles, headed over to see mum as its Mothers Day, she lives about 22 miles away but its cross country and very up and down. Got there and back with the range showing 45 miles by the time I reached home.

The afternoon was to be a trip to Derby so my son could treat my wife to a meal for Mothers Day. Derby is 20 miles each way but pretty much all of that is dual carriageway which we all know is not good for the range (well not at 70mph anyway). This meant with no fast charger at home, and no chargers anywhere near the restaurant in Derby that I had to take the wifes Citroen C1. Not the most exciting car to drive but at least I knew I could get there and back without having to really think about it.
45 miles left on the range and a 40 mile round trip was just not feasible.

A failure for the Leaf then :-(

Another trip to Manchester tomorrow via Eccles so 70 miles of motorway driving in the morning before parking up in town on charge all day. Plenty of chargers in the Greater Manchester area so once I get past the M6 leg I should be all ok.

Anyone know if BMW dealers will do an extended test drive on a I3 REX ?

Regards

Tim