Note based on feedback: This is a comparison of the early 2017 and late 2018 Leafs. Either one is head and shoulders above any other car we've seen or had (exception: Tesla Model 3, which is -still- out of our price range) and should be seen as a positive for both vehicles. The fact that we're arguing over such relatively small nitpicks speaks volumes about both cars. On with the show:
[Edit Spring'19] Almost 10K miles in, No problems except getting the NCTC ('free' charging) program going. They were handing-off between providers and the PITA process became an extra extra PITA process.
Still slightly more efficient than the 2017 model, which is good because it charges slower at 'fast charging' stations. #1 irritant is the lack of a driver side sun visor extension. Yes, that's not a big list...
We're almost a thousand miles into our 2018 Leaf experience and it's probably time to compare the 2017 Leaf S+FC (last/best of the first generation) and our new 2018 Leaf S + Fast Charge, the first wave of the second generation Leaf. We should note up top here that it's really like the 1.5th generation, since nothing stupendous and gigantic has changed. Maybe the rumored 60KWh 2019 1/2 Leaf will change enough to warrant a real version 2.0 badge.
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| Yes, it's very blue and the wheel covers are not entirely tasteful. |
It's basically the same body, doors, etc. as the 2017. The front two feet of the nose was restyled and the back has the last foot or so re-done so it all looks more current/normal. The 'A' pillar is still gigantically wide so you can't see pedestrians in crosswalks until you've almost hit them*, even in broad daylight. This is something that desperately needed improvement and it didn't happen.
*I'm told this only applies to tall people. For those short enough to have the seat all the way forward, it works fine. You learn to move your head sideways a bit. It's still a BAD design.
There is still no Thermal Management System (TMS) for the battery, so it's still going to degrade in hot climates. Think 10-12 year lifespan instead of 15+ years for a cooler climate. Fortunately we don't have much of that 'hot' problem here.
The larger battery feeds a bit more current to (basically) the same motor and controller, so there's somewhat more power to the wheels during acceleration.
The new ePedal function that integrates all the speed control (including normal braking) into the accelerator pedal is an absolutely great feature. All cars should have this!
Of course there is a major implementation problem: There seems to be no way to keep the ePedal turned on. You have to manually enable it every time you turn on the car. I'm told this is for 'safety' reasons, but it won't feel very safe the third time you coast through a stop sign or almost rear-end someone because ePedal isn't working. "So just turn it on every time." Mmmm, how'bout letting me just leave it turned on? ...ya know, for safety reasons... [EDIT] Turns out the 'on' function is buried 4 layers deep in a menu, but its there. Yay!
The onboard L2 charger went from 6.6KW to 7.2KW which isn't much, although the charging cord (EVSE) that ships with it really is a bunch better/faster, was 1.2KW now 7.2KW. Assuming you have a 240V Dryer outlet to plug it into (we don't).
The car seems to be about 6-8% more efficient at highway speeds, showing 3.6 miles/KWh instead of 3.3 miles/KWh under the same conditions. Adding that to the larger battery: At 72-75 mph we can go 120-125 miles on a charge, assuming minimal elevation changes and headwinds, with a 'reasonable reserve' left over . The 2017 was good for 80-90 miles under similar conditions. The 2018 will go well over 150 miles at 60-62 mph. Maybe 165-ish? We haven't tested that completely.
EDIT 2019: It went just under 180 miles on a late spring day at 45-58MPH on local rural roads. Pretty good! although 75.deg.F no heating or AC, daytime, no lights and little wind at 50MPH average isn't exactly 'normal' conditions. As they say: YMMV.
One thing that really improved is the headlight coverage and 'reach.' We can how actually see pedestrians at the side of the road and decide whether or not to run them over. Previously you couldn't see them until it was too late, leaving the whole thing up to chance.
Fast charging seems to be about as fast as before. It takes a bit longer (no surprise) since the battery is bigger. There are a number of reports (search on 'rapidgate leaf') that the second and third charges on a given trip are much slower. We haven't seen this since no longer trips have been attempted.
NitPicks:
The paint is a little nicer, the wheel covers are considerably uglier, but supposedly more aerodynamic.
Maybe not a whole bunch, but it is somewhat quieter at speed. Road noise from rough surfaced pavement is about the same. Handling seems about the same too. The new contoured not-so-round steering wheel will appeal to some drivers and not others.
The center console was restyled to move the cup holders to where you'll hit taller cups with your arm and it looks a little wider so it makes the interior seem -slightly- smaller. Moving the cup holders does keep them from impeding access to the 12V socket you plug your phone/tablet usb charging adapter into. Of course that wouldn't be an issue of Nissan weren't cheaping-out by not providing one in the armrest like everyone else in the first place.
The console redesign did have the advantage of making the flip-up armrest storage area much smaller, it was so big before you could actually store too much useful stuff in it.
The cockpit display has a number of new options, including showing the current tire pressures, which is rather nice. A number of the display 'pages' are bigger and clearer. They are easier to navigate too, with buttons on the steering wheel rather than the dash.
In the not so nice category is that there used to be a big digital speedometer just below your line-of-sight, above the steering wheel. You could actually read it with your peripheral vision. Now there is a 'normal' old-school gauge type speedo down in the wheel opening, just like with 'normal' cars but still slightly more difficult to read at a glance. This was probably to reduce costs (only one display area instead of two) and to pander to clueless people who dislike change. (ie: digital speedo) Not really an improvement.
Another irritating change that is that they removed the slider from the visor that could be extended to keep the glare from bothering you when the visor was swung to the side. A 'vanity mirror' was included instead. This is a large dis-improvement for people with glasses and low sun angles.
One thing that really improved is the headlight coverage and 'reach.' We can how actually see pedestrians at the side of the road and decide whether or not to run them over. Previously you couldn't see them until it was too late, leaving the whole thing up to chance.
Fast charging seems to be about as fast as before. It takes a bit longer (no surprise) since the battery is bigger. There are a number of reports (search on 'rapidgate leaf') that the second and third charges on a given trip are much slower. We haven't seen this since no longer trips have been attempted.
NitPicks:
The paint is a little nicer, the wheel covers are considerably uglier, but supposedly more aerodynamic.
Maybe not a whole bunch, but it is somewhat quieter at speed. Road noise from rough surfaced pavement is about the same. Handling seems about the same too. The new contoured not-so-round steering wheel will appeal to some drivers and not others.
The center console was restyled to move the cup holders to where you'll hit taller cups with your arm and it looks a little wider so it makes the interior seem -slightly- smaller. Moving the cup holders does keep them from impeding access to the 12V socket you plug your phone/tablet usb charging adapter into. Of course that wouldn't be an issue of Nissan weren't cheaping-out by not providing one in the armrest like everyone else in the first place.
The console redesign did have the advantage of making the flip-up armrest storage area much smaller, it was so big before you could actually store too much useful stuff in it.
In the not so nice category is that there used to be a big digital speedometer just below your line-of-sight, above the steering wheel. You could actually read it with your peripheral vision. Now there is a 'normal' old-school gauge type speedo down in the wheel opening, just like with 'normal' cars but still slightly more difficult to read at a glance. This was probably to reduce costs (only one display area instead of two) and to pander to clueless people who dislike change. (ie: digital speedo) Not really an improvement.
Another irritating change that is that they removed the slider from the visor that could be extended to keep the glare from bothering you when the visor was swung to the side. A 'vanity mirror' was included instead. This is a large dis-improvement for people with glasses and low sun angles.
EDIT 2020: We finally noticed that you can slide the entire visor sideways. Opps.
The heated seats were removed from the 'S' model and now show up only in the SV and SL variants. Since we never used then, even at ten degrees below freezing it wasn't an issue for us. Yer butt makes cloth seats warm up so much faster than leather...
The effect on the Guess-O-Meter (range indicator) of turning on the heater or AC is less than on the previous model. If course given the longer range of the newer one this is to be expected. We'll have to go through a winter to see how the heater efficiency really works. We expect a real-world range of around 100 miles on cold blowy pounding rain days with the heater and defrost full on. That sounds bad but the 2017 would only go about 70 highway miles in those conditions.
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So summing up, it is over-all a nicer vehicle. Ignoring a few irritations most things work better, faster, longer. The additional range comes in Very Handy in our use case (100 mi. round-trip commute).
Q: Would we have paid more ($100/mo.) for this new vehicle if we didn't really need the additional range?
A: Maybe, Although the weird financial quirks associated with leases and rebates played a large part.
The heated seats were removed from the 'S' model and now show up only in the SV and SL variants. Since we never used then, even at ten degrees below freezing it wasn't an issue for us. Yer butt makes cloth seats warm up so much faster than leather...
The effect on the Guess-O-Meter (range indicator) of turning on the heater or AC is less than on the previous model. If course given the longer range of the newer one this is to be expected. We'll have to go through a winter to see how the heater efficiency really works. We expect a real-world range of around 100 miles on cold blowy pounding rain days with the heater and defrost full on. That sounds bad but the 2017 would only go about 70 highway miles in those conditions.
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So summing up, it is over-all a nicer vehicle. Ignoring a few irritations most things work better, faster, longer. The additional range comes in Very Handy in our use case (100 mi. round-trip commute).
Q: Would we have paid more ($100/mo.) for this new vehicle if we didn't really need the additional range?
A: Maybe, Although the weird financial quirks associated with leases and rebates played a large part.
