Leaf ECO button use ? opinions please

Electric Al said:

Hi People

Any Leaf users use the ECO button ? does it do much for the range of the vehicle , any long term benefits ?

Thanks

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The Eco button mainly just remaps the accelerator pedal forcibly turning a heavy right foot into a light right foot.

You can achieve the same result just being gentle with the accelerator pedal. I think it also reduces the maximum power of the heater however I can't say I've noticed much difference there and you could get a similar effect by turning the temperature down 1-2 degrees perhaps more effect.

It completely nerfs the feel of driving the car as it becomes a big heavy unresponsive lump and IMHO it can be a little dangerous if you get caught out needing a squirt of instant acceleration to clear a busy junction. You can get full acceleration in Eco mode if you push the pedal past the "detent" near the bottom but this causes a sudden surge of acceleration that is not easy to control which is not ideal. (The Eco mode bypass detent is intended mainly for motorway overtaking I suspect)

I can see use for the Eco mode as a "snow mode" as it makes the acceleration much more gentle and controllable for the same pedal depression, so if you find yourself in very low traction icy conditions trying to get moving, Eco mode will make it easier to do so.

It's also good if you have a passenger who doesn't like being chucked about as it forces you to drive very smoothly - many passengers don't like being chucked back and forth by the instant acceleration and regenerative braking of an EV, and it's sometimes difficult for the driver to realise how their driving style feels to the passengers.

Drewby80 said:

In the wet it makes the poor grip from the low rolling resistance tyres on a leaf much more manageable.

It has the added charm that you can be lazy and lead footed and the car just accelerates calmly and smoothly without the need for a great deal of finesse on the accelerator.

Without eco mode you only have to be very slightly over eager with your right foot to instantly light up the front tyres on wet roads, eco mode it sorts this.

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Or put some decent tyres on?

Mine used to spin the front wheels away from traffic lights on an even slightly wet road without careful finesse of the accelerator.... and that was with plenty of tread depth. Since I swapped to Michelin CrossClimate+ I can (at least straight ahead) floor it from stationary while the front wheels are standing in a puddle with zero wheel spin or drama. Wet roads just feel like dry roads to drive on the wet grip is so good. And unlike finessing the accelerator pedal gently I can also stop that much better in the wet.

The factory Dunlops are dangerously unsafe in the cold and wet IMO. I have so much more confidence in the car in the cold and wet now with better tyres.

As stated above though if you do suddenly need full power aka “oh sh*t I’ve just realised that that this guy I’ve pulled out in front of is actually doing 60 in a 30 limit” when you kick down it overrides and in the wet you can spin the wheels at circa 30mph it is manageable but you have to be on your toes to keep the front end in check.

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Yes, the Eco kickdown feature is not very safe to use in low traction conditions - it's a bit like kicking down a powerful petrol auto in slippery conditions - if it kicks down one gear you're OK, if it decides (at it's whim) to kick down two gears instead you could be in a world of wheel spin...

Better tyres does help a lot but I choose not to use the Eco mode and just be careful with the accelerator when I need to, unless its super slippery like ice. Eco takes all the life out of the car and makes it unpleasant to drive IMHO.

Drewby80 said:

CrossClimate+ are on my to do list, I want my wear out of these Dunlop’s first though.

Seems daft / wasteful to scrap a perfectly serviceable set of tyres!

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Maybe. But driving in snow and ice on tyres that are not safe in those conditions is not a great idea either. We've had a lot more snow and ice this winter than the last couple and the CrossClimate+ have handled it with aplomb. I'm even able to start moving from stationary uphill on un-gritted roads that are un-walkable and are essentially black ice.

A couple of times now I have driven up a road where we have to stop each morning to offload our son and tried to step out of the car and have been completely unable to stand up on the road that I just drove and parked on without fuss. Quite remarkable for an All Season tyre.

How have you found the difference in economy / ride?

The Dunlop’s do soak up the bumps nicely is it a harsher ride on the CrossClimates?

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Not much difference in economy, maybe a couple of percent. I only saw a drop of 0.1 miles/kWh on my daily commute when they were fitted in September, which is near the margin for error even for a very repeatable commute.

Dry summer grip is just as good as the Dunlops and cold wet grip is fantastically better. You genuinely feel like you're driving on a dry road in the wet. Snow and ice grip seems at least as good as the Vredestein Quatrac 5 on my previous car, perhaps even better on ice than the Quatrac 5 which was more optimised for snow than ice.

Unfortunately there is no denying that the ride is quite a lot harsher than the Dunlops at least in the Tekna size, I can't speak for Acenta wheels where it would probably be not as bad.

I'm going to assume that the cause is the 95W XL speed/load rating - while they have soft winter tread they have very stiff sidewalls. Tekna's normally take 91V tyres.

I dropped the tyre pressure to 34psi and that's helped a bit, also the ride is not nearly as harsh in winter weather and is almost acceptable, while it was pretty bad on a hot summer day going to the beach for example, where you will see a tyre pressure increase of around 4 psi during the journey.

I was initially a bit gutted about the harsher ride but wondered whether I'm just a ride quality snob after years of driving hydraulic Citroen's! In the winter I'm finding it OK but I'm considering getting some Acenta wheels to put some cheap but comfortable riding summer tyres on for the summer and keep the CrossClimate+ on the Tekna wheels as a winter tyre. I haven't made up my mind yet.

But there is no denying that they perform extremely well from a grip perspective, in pretty much all weather conditions.

I think if they ever did a non-XL load rated standard 91V version of the CrossClimate+ it would be the ideal tyre for the Leaf. Unfortunately they don't at the moment.

badmanwimmaculatelips said:

I was out in 4-5 inch snow this morning, and can say that the crossclimate+ are pretty good in snow (nearly as good as a true snow tyre). I've also found them good in both wet and dry. Someone else noted that they make a 'slithering' noise under acceleration - which i've heard as well, though it's when accelerating 'quite hard' (a relative term...). I saw a bit of a range reduction when first fitted. Ride is OK (on the standard wheels, non-Tekna).

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Yes they do make a slithering noise under acceleration even in dry weather but it seems to have reduced significantly now they've worn in a bit and I think all winter tyres make this noise to some degree due to the thin cuts causing the mobile tread blocks to rub against each other under torque - which doesn't happen on a summer tread pattern.

It did bother me a bit at first but it doesn't any more. The ride does still bother me though, and I suspect it's much worse on 215/50/17 Tekna wheels than 205/55/16 Acenta wheels. I sometimes think I would have been better off saving a couple of grand and buying an Acenta rather than a Tekna.

I prefer ride comfort over extreme handling (it's a daily commuter) so would have preferred the Acenta wheels for smoother ride and cheaper tyres, and I may yet buy some Acenta size wheels to put on it...

One of the main reasons I got a Tekna was for the "Leather" seats (we have a messy 4 year old...) and heated seats/steering wheel, but it turns out that the Leather drivers seat is pretty hard and uncomfortable and the cloth Acenta seats probably would have been more comfortable... and because the heater is so much better than the one in my old Ion I don't really even feel like I need the heated seats, after previously deciding heated seats were a must have for my next EV. (Although it is still nice having heated seats)

The birds eye camera view is nice and I do find it useful but it's not a good enough reason alone to buy a Tekna... If you don't mind cloth seats I think the Acenta is probably the sweet spot.