Nissan Prices LEAF Battery Replacement at $5,499, New Packs More Heat Durable

Definitely great news. So far no degradation on my pack, but it is good to know that it is only $5499 with exchange of the old pack. I wonder if you could just pay the $6499 for a new one and keep the old one since they "value" the old pack at $1K...

 

Now I am feeling a lot better about a used Leaf. Knowing there is a route to upgrade the battery, the rest of the car should pretty well run for an incredibly long time. I also like this bit:

source: Nissan Prices LEAF Battery Replacement at $5,499, New Packs More Heat Durable

The 150 miles becomes a day-trip range to Nashville. I don't need cross country all the time but there is no practical substitute when we need it. These are not ad hoc, we know when we have to go. But being able to get there and stay long enough to recharge and return . . . life is good.

Bob Wilson

 

This is not too much more $$ for batt replacement compared to Toyota quotes approaching $4000 to some Prius owners. Either Toyota is soaking us or Nissan is giving a "subsidized" price?

 

The battery in the Leaf is much larger. This is a good question!

SCH-R530M ?

 

I get the impression the Nissan battery-pack replacement is future-priced, selling it now at a price that will eventually become profitable. After all, how many owners would actually purchase one right away anyway?

Cost is likely higher than price currently reflects, but there's no harm from that. In fact, there won't be any need to price adjust later or deal with any of the online nonsense we routinely see with changes being forgotten, overlooked, or intentionally omitted. Subsidizing a little is just another form of warranty.

Being able to upgrade with replacement is an interesting (and much hoped for) twist. Support of older vehicles from on-going improvement with battery chemistry is great. It adds a new dimension to automotive practices. We may come to expect mid-cycle upgrades at some point. At the moment, that's just thought of as a bonus. Everyone is use to having to wait until the next generation. This will likely raise resell value too.

If nothing else, it's nice knowing with this level of certainly. That unknown was always an opportunity to undermine & mislead in the past. Having such a specific expectation will help prevent some FUD nonsense.

 

keep on truckin' nissan!

 

I was thinking about how many man years the Prius community spent reverse engineering our wonderful cars and how simple is the Leaf. I would need three charts but that would be it.

My hard requirement is to reach Nashville which is 125 miles and a little over 100m higher. I really have to wait for the extended range Leaf but I trust it is coming.

Bob Wilson

 

same here. once a week for lunch with my father, i need a guaranteed 120 miles in any weather, using heat or a/c.

 

Now we wait to find out how much the stealership adds to the bill for installation.

Addendum: Nissan estimates 3 hours of labor

 

Prius pack: $3,000
- 2 mile range
-nimh

Leaf pack: $5,499
- 60 mile range
- Lithium

Leaf pack is a much better deal.

 

I can't help but think of buying the LEAF pack for an off-grid home PV setup. With Federal tax credits, and amortized over 20 years since the battery can be babied and starts off with at more than double the capacity I require, it is ~ $13.75 a month.

Compare that to my local co-op that charges $30 a month just for the grid-tie and then 9 cents a kWh for dirty electricity.

Edison is going to get the last laugh. I bet forward thinking homeowners are going to convert to a DC setup and tell the utilities to take a hike LOL

 

Having owned two PHEV's, I can tell you highway speeds (70+mph) devour battery range. I assume you'd be driving I-65 but maybe you'd take the back roads. Also, a 150mile battery would need an overnight charge at 240v rates to get back home the next day; something most hotels can't provide. Lastly, the 150mile range may not be EPA rated as the original Leaf was touted as a 100 miler.

 

That is about the range I need too, not counting heat.
I figure 85 needed in winter. So EPA of 125 should get me about that in most bad winter days.

 

Perhaps you might share a paragraph about each and the 'lessons learned?'

The reason I ask is I'm fairly confident in my engineering skills and since 2012, there haven't been that many commercial PHEVs. Before, folks had to 'roll their own.' Worse, some of the commercial PHEVs have been not terribly impresive. Your real-world experience could help.

Thanks,
Bob Wilson

 

the thing is, with ev's, everyone's experience is different. i would have to rent one or something to find out if it works for me. we see this everyday with the pip. some get 8 miles, some get 18. you can't go by an epa test or mfg.'s claims. it's the same with gas, but the range is large enough to cover most needs.

 

Agree, im on month 16 on my two year leaf lease. Its been great, but highway speed and uphill are a killer, i mean i can get from home to airport and back with no problem, but it concerning.

On the other hand 99% of my trip are at speeds of 25 to 40, leaf really shines at those speeds.

 

This is very interesting reading. There is much consternation about the overly inflated PIP cost here in UK forums. It has been worked out from the full cost of the PIP at £32k against the £24k of the similarly specced t-spirit standard Prius minus it's battery, that the HV pack for the PIP is £8,000 or $13,600! Obviously that is madness.

And now with Nissan releasing their pack price just proves that Toyota UK are taking the p***.

I do like the idea of the extended range Leaf. Always thought that was a possibility due to the extra room available. If the pack costs $7k, then a 50% increase in size would be just over $10k? Or just an extra $3,500 for an extra 50/60 miles. Definitely worthwhile, but makes the existing PIP look outdated and overpriced.