On Nov 12, 2015, at 1:50 PM, Lawrence Rhodes via EV <ev@lists.evdl.org> wrote:
> I have seen some very good prices on 2013 Leafs with chademo & 6.6 chargers. > I'm selling the veggie mobile and will need a car and since 12k is affordable > to me I'm thinking of replacing the mess and thrift with almost as thrifty > but much less messy electric. Is there a "best" year of leaf so far? I may well think you're a bit crazy for your mobile solar ideas...but you're absolutely spot-on with this. My parents _still_ can't stop raving about their Leaf. For excellent reason. So long as the range fits your driving habits, there isn't any other passenger vehicle in that price range that can even remotely compare to how good a car the Leaf is. It's got all the modern niceties and fit-and-finish and the rest one could ask for, plus all the advantages of a BEV that the choir here knows so well. And, as you note, used ones are solidly in the affordable econobox price range -- even though they'd be the ultimate luxury car of the '90s. The _best_ year so far for the Leaf has to be 2017, with that big jump in battery capacity. But you can't actually buy those yet. And 2016 is certainly the second-best, and you _can_ buy those...but for full sticker price, not what you're looking for. Before this year, there's been one significant change in battery management / chemistry / whatever to address first-generation problems in hot climates. I _think_ 2013 is the first model year after that change went into production, but don't quote me, especially if you live in an hot climate or you're considering a car coming from such a place. Regardless, your main concern is going to be matching the battery health of the particular car (of whatever model year) with your needs and perception of value. If you're in a mild climate with modest range needs, you may well be just fine with a well-used first-generation Leaf down a few battery bars, even though the same car would be useless for somebody in Phoenix doing a daily 50-mile commute. And...unless you know up front that you actually will need the charger, save yourself some pennies and don't buy it. Really, truly. My parents only got the 110v charger with the car. For a couple weeks, Dad was doing all sorts of Internet searches for cheap chargers or DIY options or the like, just to have something for "just in case"...and then he realized what a waste it would be. If a Leaf is the right car for you, 110v charging is also right for you. You'll start every morning with a full battery...and what more could you possibly need? b& P.S. For bonus points, after your bank account has recovered from spending money on the Leaf...toss a few kW of PV panels on your garage / carport...and, hey-presto, you've got the solar-powered electric vehicle you've dreaming of.... b& -------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... Name: signature.asc Type: application/pgp-signature Size: 801 bytes Desc: Message signed with OpenPGP using GPGMail URL: <http://lists.evdl.org/private.cgi/ev-evdl.org/attachments/20151112/8a400aba/attachment.pgp> _______________________________________________ UNSUBSCRIBE: http://www.evdl.org/help/index.html#usub http://lists.evdl.org/listinfo.cgi/ev-evdl.org Read EVAngel's EV News at http://evdl.org/evln/ Please discuss EV drag racing at NEDRA (http://groups.yahoo.com/group/NEDRA)
