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Comment by bradlys | Hacker News Reader

https://sfbay.craigslist.org/search/cta?query=nissan+leaf&so...

I don't know. Seems like there's a lot available for under $8,000. It can't be that all of them are garbage, can it?

Wow, that’s astonishingly cheap. What’s wrong with these? How is the range? Can they drive at highway speeds?

Yes, the original leaf has 110hp, does 0-60 in 9.9 and tops out at 93mph. It is similar in performance to other entry-level cars in the US, like a Yaris, Fit, etc.

They are cheap because they are similar in performance to other entry level economy cars, and the warranty for the battery is up. If the battery fails you’re in the ballpark of 6 or 7 thousand dollar repair.

Dunno about the Leaf but at least with the Prius the battery is composed of individual cells that fit on a rail, so a lot of failures can be corrected by testing cell voltages and figuring out which one has failed and only replacing that one single one, which is usually substantially cheaper than a full rebuild.

From what I've read, it's harder to fix the Li-ion packs, and in an electric car that relies entirely on the pack, degradation affects the driving experience more than a hybrid where you'd see it manifest itself as an MPG decrease.

The combination of information and parts available to fix Toyota NiMH packs is a big factor in why I own a vehicle with one :)

In practice you just trade in your old pack for a new one and let a professional deal with refurbishing or upcycling it into a wall battery.

Are you really going to trust the battery on a 7-10 year old model?

When buying a Leaf, you can install LeafSpy on your phone and bring a Bluetooth ODB dongle and check the battery pack health.

If you are less technical, you can count some bars on the dashboard. It's less precise but it gives an idea.

I wouldn't mind buying a 7-10 years old Leaf, the battery is not new but it is good enough for short distances.

I trust one every time I get in our Leaf.

But your comments in this thread indicate that you'll just find another objection to keep that narrative supported. Fact is, you actually can buy a Leaf that doesn't have "major problems" for < $8K.

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