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Should I buy this Leaf without a SoH report?

5K views 32 replies 13 participants last post by  donald 
#1 ·
Hi everyone,

I went to pick up a 2017 24kwh Leaf Tekna today from Arnold Clark (not a Nissan dealer so aren’t offering a battery health report), however I started to doubt the car (and my knowledge) when I noticed it said 57 miles at 93% charge.

The display shows 12 bars, and it only has 26k miles; I know the range indicator is very much a guesstimate, but I expected it to be somewhere around 70...?

I’ve asked them to charge it tonight and I’ll pick it up tomorrow all being well.

What’s should I expect the range to say for a healthy car of this age/mileage? Or is there another answer to how I should approach this?

Thanks!

Stu.
 
#2 ·
Probably has been driven relatively hard in the last few miles which is what the GOM reading is based on. The only way to assess the battery is via LEAFSpy and then only when it's significantly discharged.
Where abouts in the country are you or is the car?
 
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#11 ·
The only way to assess the battery is via LEAFSpy and then only when it's significantly discharged.
Don't forget the "significantly discharged" part of my advice. "Bad" cells in the battery will generally charge to a similar voltage as the rest of the battery, but discharge quicker resulting in you reaching a flat battery quicker than you'd like. This can be seen best at below the 10% VLBW (very low battery warning) on the LEAF 24. Do not trust the SoH figure, Hx is more meaningful. If the dealer will not let you measure the car at a low battery level walk run away. To be fair, Arnold Clark know nothing about their stock so will not know if they are selling you a lemon, but rejecting a car is much harder than not buying it unless you are certain it is a good one.
Also check that the SD card is in the head unit and the condition of the strut tops, it isn't unusual for the drivers side to be a swimming pool with associated corrosion of the strut top bearing.
The LEAF 24 is a good car but like all cars there are bad examples. Expect to pay around £7,500 at most from a dealer.
 
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#3 ·
Yes I’ve just heard about it indicating a range based on recent driving habits; apparently resetting the trip will show the range without that influence?

I’m not up to speed with LeafSpy yet, but guessing it’s not something the dealer would be keen on me doing...

The car is in Newcastle upon Tyne.
 
#7 ·
I'm very close to that dealership, and sadly gave away my OBD dongle to a LEAF owner I met at a charger only last week! Otherwise I would have been willing to give it to you, to help with your purchasing decisions.

The fact that it's got 12 bars is promising, and it's one of the very last 24kWh models to be built. Those batteries do tend to degrade slower than the larger variants, and you're probably fine with it - IF you ask yourself this: Worst case scenario, you're about to drop to 11 bars. Would the car still be suitable for your needs, and still priced suitably for such a battery condition?

If you can't get a dongle in time, can you test drive it? A bit of sensible driving should quickly bring the range estimate up after only a few miles if the battery is good. Ideally with eco mode and limited heater use. Alternatively a quick blast down the motorway won't help the GOM but would show if the battery discharges at an expected rate or not.

You're probably fine, especially with a more recent model like this but obviously leafspy would always be preferable for full peace of mind.
 
#8 · (Edited)
A bit of advice-you are buying this at the wrong time of the month. ALWAYS buy a car in the last few days of the month, never at the beginning. The dealerships are always far more willing to negotiate sensibly when the end of month figures are looming large in their thinking. Another point to consider is the outside temperature. I have been frankly amazed at how much difference the outside temperature makes to the actual range of the Leaf.

You are in Newcastle, not particularly noted for it's sunny, warm climate......
At the end of the May the temperature will be considerably higher than during this present cold snap. I have been very surprised how much difference in range I get when the temperature shown by the Leaf display has 5 bars as against 4 bars. In my 30 I can get less than 8-9 miles per 10% of battery charge when it is cold outside - 5-10deg as against well over 11 miles per 10% battery charge when the temperature is over 14deg and there are 5 temperature bars showing.
Hope this helps.
Tony.
EDIT- Dodgy 0 key not 1% !!
 
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#9 · (Edited)
Amazon have the dongles I got one next day for £22


This works fine. I haven't got it to connect with Bluetooth but works fine with WiFi. I would be amazed if Arnold Clarke don't have their own adapter in fairness. It's standard to leafspy these cars before buying.

I you have paid a deposit the dealer will be perfectly fine waiting a few days to complete the transaction.

I don't know what the trend degradation is on 24kwh leafs. It's 2% a year on the 30kwh leaf. At 4 years old I would be expecting it to have SOH of 92% or better. There is a battery degradation thread on this forum which has all the graphs etc on degradation.

That said it's dependent on pricing and your requirements range wise. You can always use it as a negotiating tool if it's a bit lower or worse than trend. Leafspy also tells you number of charges QCs etc and you can see if it has any weak cells. Essential check really before buying.
 
#10 ·
I'm in Durham, not so far from you. You are welcome to borrow my dongle if you need to. I can also give you a tutorial on Leafspy as well.

If you don't decide to go ahead with this purchase have you thought about Classic and Electric Vehicles in Durham? They specialise in used LEAFs and from their descriptions seem very transparent about range SOH etc.
 
#13 ·
Thanks everyone, I’ve arrived this morning and it’s now on 62 miles at 100%, I’ve reset the trip but it didn’t change. They’re being good about it and I’m probably going to take it, get it checked with LeafSpy and return it if I’m not happy with the battery condition.
 
#14 ·
Well I bought it, fully expecting I’d need to check the battery and hoping that I wouldn’t need to return the car.

Started with ‘62’ miles range, drove 14 miles home, got there with ‘68’ miles range 😂

I’ll plug LeafSpy in as soon as I get a dongle to see a better picture, but that has certainly put my mind at ease and I’m absolutely delighted with the car.

144082


Thanks for the guidance everyone, was very useful to help me decide what to do!

Stu.
 
#21 ·
Yes of course-dodgy keyboard, some I really need to hit properly! I have edited it now.
Cheers Tony
 
#27 ·
I personally wouldn’t but a Leaf24.

If range is something that works for you and lack of warranty - maybe you have a few months left for 2017), go for it


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Not sure that is all that helpful as the car has already been purchased and seems in good condition.

Fear of total wipe-out without warranty seems to be misplaced, as there would appear to be very few failures in the grand scheme of things and these cars are likely to give years and years of decent service.

I probably shouldn't get so pissed off but, OP comes here for advice, shows pictures of a nice shiny car which he likes and wants to buy, just for someone to say "urgh, wouldn't buy that mate", it's pretty shitty.

If I followed your advice, then I might have a shiny new 64kw Leaf, for my 7 mile journey to visit my parents. But i'd have that warranty, as it depreciated at a rate greater than the entire cost of an entirely new battery pack fitted by Nissan .... just in case the unthinkable and unlikely happened.
 
#30 ·
Well, however anyone else views it, it does indeed work well for us and is a cracking, useable, comfortable, fun car which is currently costing me less than the data to post this message.

[emoji106]
Welcome to EVs. We drive Leaf over 1500 miles a month for under £ 40. They are cheap as chips


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#33 ·
If you complete the contract remotely you have (at least) 14 days to cancel it with no reason given.

If you do/did not complete remotely, ask them to make an unconditional return within 14 days a condition.

Walk away if they refuse. Why should they?

Figure out the truth of the battery capacity by driving it, this is the only way.
 
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