Ohboyohboyohboy. Matt, who is in town for the Autopian/Galpin car show (which you should come to!), is about to take a questionable risk. He’s about to try to drive from my apartment in Studio City to Galpin in Van Nuys — an 11 mile trek. This, to a normal car, would be the easiest task in history. But for a $2000 2011 Nissan Leaf with a severely-degraded battery, it’s going to be a challenge. Matt may end up stranded. Follow along here to find out!
The truth is: As cheap as my new Nissan Leaf was, its utility is really limited. After 12 years of battery degradation, the thing is now only moderately more useful than a golf cart, offering a range of 15 miles on the highway — and that’s a figure I haven’t even tested. It’s just a guess.
Today we find out if the range is at least 11 miles, as Matt is going to go for it: 
Come on, Leaf. You have to be somewhat useful, right? Surely you can handle my morning commute; it’s only 11 miles! You got this!
Stay tuned here for mile-by-mile updates.
[Miles: 0.0]: Ok, before we even get started, let’s just look at our starting point, which isn’t great:
The Leaf is parked behind my YJ; you can see the charging box on the wall, with an extension cord giving me the extra length I need to plug into the Leaf:
Unfortunately, despite the battery being down to about 10 miles of estimated range yesterday, the 24 kWh battery only took another 4.5 kWh of juice from that wall-box:
Estimated range sits at 33 miles (note that the trip computer started at 15.0), which the math-wizzes among you will note, is a larger number than 11. But it’s bullshit. It’s all bullshit. These “guess-o-meters” mean almost nothing, as I started my trip back from the seller with 30 miles, and by the time I got home 13-ish miles away, I was on fumes despite avoiding freeways and driving as frugally as I possibly could.
Matt will not be avoiding highways, so let’s see how this goes.
My god is this a deeply flawed machine.
[Miles: 0.5]: Matt took a wrong turn in my parking garage, which seems impossible, but he did. That’s precious range lost, Matt! Get it together!
He’s now stopping at my favorite breakfast spot that’s perfectly on the way to work (there were other breakfast options, but I told him this was the best one. I don’t need him being tempted to veer off the path).
[Miles: 0.5, Part II]:
Hot damn, Matt got me a cream cheese and Lox bagle!
“This is the softest English muffin I’ve ever had in my life!”
Matt likes breakfast.
[Miles: 1.0]:
Matt seems to like the Leaf. From him:
“This car is Great. I would love to have this in New York because it’s just enough juice to get my kid to school and back in the morning. Maybe I can go to the gym…
I dunno about the gym part, but OK.
“It beeped at me. It was trying to tell me that danger was ahead, but I just ignored it.”
I honestly have no clue about the beep.
Other thoughts from Matt:
“How slow do you think I can go before people get mad at me?
On the highway in LA? Uh, I dunno? 55?
[Miles: 1.0]:
Other thoughts:
“I don’t actually think this car regeneratively brakes.”
I kind of agree. It feels like it’s coasting! But then, what’s that symbol next to the accelerator pedal that seems regenerative-brakey?
Also, Matt is feeling a bit warm:
“I am not running the air conditioning. This is a good LA car because in the morning you don’t need air conditioning. I’m keeping the windows up…it’s a bit warm…What this car needs is a sunroof.”
[Miles: 4.0]:
Matt is a Leaf fan!:
“It drives great! It’s a smooth, comfortable car. Every kid in America, when they turn 15 if they wanna drive, they should get this car. If they feel comfortable in this car, they can get a real car.”
[Miles: 4.5]
Matt told me he’s going 48.
“People are so mad at me. “
[Miles: 5.5]:
“I exited the highway, and people cheered they were so mad at me.”
[Miles: 6.0]:
Matt left the highway, thank god. The car still says he has 20 miles of range, somehow!
“I think what we’ve learned here is that you have a lead foot. I think a man who says ‘Oh man she pulls!’ at every stop light is driving it like a dingus. But a refined gentleman like myself…literally I could drive this everyday.”
[Miles: 6.5]:
“I’m going 30 in a 35. People in Teslas are looking at me with profound pity.”
[Miles: 7.1]
“Did I gain a mile. I’m at 21 miles of remaining range. I might have gained a mile from just being an excellent driver… Shoot, I should just drive this thing to New York.”
[Miles: 7.5]:
“I just passed a Prius Prime. The sad thing is that it probably has more range than this.”
[Miles: 8.0]:
“I still have 10 miles before I’m at work.”
I’m not sure how this is possible. It’s supposed to be an 11 mile trip, Matt!
[Miles: 9.0]:
“I turned around. I saw this rad Volvo sedan and I want to take a closer look.”
Matt, stay focused!
[Miles: 9.0]:
Matt, what the hell?! Stay focused! I’m not calling you a tow truck because you got distracted.
From Matt:
[Miles: 9.0]:
Actually. Hold on, this thing has a 5.3-liter Chevy V8 in it?!
OK, fine. I’ll call you a tow truck if I have to. This was worth the detour:
“300ish ho[rsepower],” Matt tells me.
This thing must rip!
[Miles: 9.0]:
“Robert was pulled over. Car belongs to Robert. He was pulled over because his brake caliper seized…a bolt fell out somewhere. There’s a line on the street where you can see where he dragged the tire all the way around.”
“He’s waiting for a tow truck to go off to his buddy Angel’s house (who helped him build it). He’s going to fix it right now and then drive it to work.”
“The wheels on the car, which are 700 series Volvo Turbo wheels, came from the junkyard… I have a feeling the Yukon motor also came from a junkyard.”
[Miles: 9.4]:
“I have 20 miles left of range!”
Matt is having a realization on this commute:
“Every side street in Los Angeles has a cool car on it as a rule.”
[Miles: 10]:
“Hold on I gotta go meet these guys. Hold on, I’ll call you back” Matt tells me, muttering something about a Beetle and a Genesis.
He then sent me this picture in a Walmart parking lot of not-a-Beetle-or-Genesis:
[Miles: 10.5]:
I asked about the big dent in the fender and if that’s causing any issues:
“I honestly forgot there even was a dent. It’s starting to rust, and it exposes the front tire, but like, who cares. Honestly, just to make it match, you should just do the other fender.”
[Miles: 11]:
Matt is at a Montgomery Ward. How is that even possible? A photo is incoming, apparently.
[Miles: 11]: Sure enough:
[Miles: 11.5]:
Matt’s pushing it:
I’ve gotten bored of driving slowly and being hot, so now I’m going the speed limit and I have the AC on. The miles dropped from 21 (yes, I still had 21!) to 16.
[Miles: 12.0]:
Matt’s picking up Winchell’s Donuts.
[Miles: 12.0]:
OK, so Matt’s 12 miles in. And estimated range is still 15. He did do a little bit of highway driving, but much of it was in the city, which was a huge help.
Honestly, this dirt-cheap Leaf seems legitimately useful!
[Miles: 12.0]:
“This shifter is so smooth! And it feels, like, intuitive.”
[Miles: 12.0]:
“I think you’re a coward…this thing’s got range!”
[Miles: 12.0]:
Matt is at work!
[Miles: 12.5]:
Matt is now on the 405 highway getting me some parts from Advance Auto!
“I’m down to 13 miles due solely to the onramp.”
[Miles: 17]:
Matt went 65 mph for three miles. With AC on! And range is still an estimated 13 miles.
[Miles: 17]:
Holy crap he went 72:
“I’m just going to drive this car all weekend.”
[Miles: 18]:
“OK I’m down to 12 miles.”
Luckily Matt says the AC is cooling off my bagel, which had become rather tepid.
[Miles: 18.5]:
Matt is loving the Leaf, and wondering what my deal is. “It’s fine!”
[Miles: 18.5]:
“Honestly, though. The car vibrates at high speeds. I really hope it’s just your flat-ish tire. Could be bad rotors? Anyway, definitely look into that.”
Good to know. Lord knows I haven’t driven fast enough to notice.
[Miles: 18.5]:
Looks like Advance doesn’t have the GoJo hand-cleaner I like, but that’s fine.
[Miles: 18.5]:
Matt’s on his way to work.
“When you get on the brakes at under 3mph, it bites real fast.”
That I noticed as well. It’s like an on-off switch. It’s a bit strange.
[Miles: 18.5]:
“I’m down to 9 miles. I’m getting on the highway. I’m 2.5 miles away. I’m on the [accelerator] full-tilt!”
“It’s quick!”
[Miles: 19]:
“It says I have 8 miles of range and it’s blinking at me. Have you ever seen it blink?”
Good god.
“I don’t know that I can get up to 70, let’s try.”
“Oh I’m down to 6 miles!”
“OK I’m turning the AC off.”
[Miles: 19.5]:
“Whew. Now it’s back up to 7 miles.”
“The blinking does not make me feel better.”
“I’m only going 55. But when I accelerated up to 70 it went down real fast.”
Also, the trip computer above says 32, so Matt has driven 17 miles. So somewhere I got a bit confused.
Anyway, that’s not very far. But it should get me to work everyday, and then — after a charge — back.
[Miles: 17 (somehow)]:
Matt won’t stop until he sees a turtle. The range estimate is 4 miles. If there were a turtle, surely it would be on by now, right? I mean, four miles?!
[Miles: 20]:
The car still has four miles left. Matt’s at work.
I’m honestly kinda thrilled. I bet I could do 15 miles of pure highway! That’s more than I need!
[Miles: 21.1]: MATT HERE, I AM TAKING OVER THE LIVEBLOG
First, let me thank David for not only hosting me at his place but also for letting me borrow his excellent $2,000 car. This thing is great. I’m extremely tempted to buy the cheapest ass Leaf I can find in New York and then try to figure out where the hell I can charge it.
Also, David was slightly nervous all morning about this so I’m glad I did it. You can’t cure anxiety through thought, only action.
I’ll be honest, I drove around the parking lot for a few minutes trying to get the damn thing to get down to three miles so I could see the turtle. No turtle appeared. After driving another 1.5 miles it turns out I was adding range. I’ve given up. I might try to get back on the highway later. – MH
[Miles: 24.4]: MATT HERE, I AM DROVE IT SOME MORE
I couldn’t help myself. I went to go plug the Leaf in and it felt so sad sitting there. Clearly, in spite of what David said, I needed to drive it some more.
As soon as I was back in the car I felt at home. The A/C was blasting. The motor was humming. Traction control was off for scientific reasons (it does have an open diff, if you were curious). This wasn’t a game, this was a mission. I started driving around the neighborhood in a loop, trying to squeeze the throttle as hard as I could.
How far was I willing to push myself? How far was the car willing to go? The answer: About three miles. It turns out that if you go far enough the car refuses to even give you an estimate and, much like with a gas-powered vehicle, leafs you guessing.
It was at that point that I decided it was probably best to turn into the Galpin employee lot and plug her in. She’d done well and covered nearly 25 miles out of the original 33-mile estimate. I’m pretty sure if I kept it on surface streets it could do the whole 33 miles which, for a car that only cost $2k, is pretty damn good.
She’s plugged in now and my plan is to drive her home!
Questionable Leaf + sketchy abandoned building …Is The Autopian planning to branch out into true crime podcasting?
Is Matt an excitable golden retriever in a man’s body? In this 11-mile “commute”, we’ve so far logged a stop for breakfast, a stop for donuts, two stops to gawk at cool cars, and a stop at a freaking Montgomery Ward!
Is this how normal people commute and I’m the crazy one? Because I feel like I’m wasting too much time if I just stop at Starbucks on my way in.
HI, I’M DUG. SQUIRREL!!!
I’m only in LA for a couple of days, I gotta enjoy it.
Live your best LA life, sir!
You’re thinking of Andrew Collins, who doesn’t (yet!) work for The Autopian.
I’ve heard that in a Leaf you can add another three miles of range by driving in reverse.
I just made that up, but it sound plausible enough for that last mile.
Also, did I mention that if I owned a Nissan Leaf, I would name it “Clee Van Leaf”?
You’re gonna make Picard’s forehead flat with that kind of talk.
How many stops does the usual person make commuting to work, maybe 1?
I occasionally make two, as I might need gas and good. Although, for me, they are right next to each other, so as long as the gas station isn’t busy, I order ahead and then run in to get my food and leave the car at the pump. Before anyone jumps on me, I said as long as the gas station isn’t busy. If there are not many pumps open, I will move my car.
More of a sightseeing trip than a commute. Squirrel!
Matt is definitely taking the scenic route in. Winchell’s is a good choice though.
I didn’t know there were actual Winchell’s left. I thought they had all been sold to independent operators, leaving triangular signs with some other name on them.
It’s often a Pizza Hut delivery/carryout. As a bonus, they can also use the same Hobart dough mixer if it’s included in the fixture sale.
Monkey Wards made it out to CA? Never knew.
Not sure I’d want to sample any merchandise that may be sold out of that location currently….
They were kickin’ it in San Diego when I was growing up in the 1970s. The one Matt passed probably closed with the rest of ’em in 2001.
They were a national brand – older than Sears.
After pausing to check out the V8olvo, I hope Matt stepped inside the adjacent American Ranch & Seafood Market. Looks like a killer Filipino deli. Their homepage shows a grilled tuna collar for $9.50. Hello lunch!
Communal range anxiety commence!
Eleven miles shouldn’t be a problem if this battery has a capacity of 4 kwh. I get 4.9 mi/kwh out of my Leaf (mix of suburban and urban highway driving). I wouldn’t have any problem driving 11 miles on 4 kwh.
If he doesn’t make it (assuming no closed roads or getting lost – those situations really suck in a low range EV), I would assume something is wrong with this car aside from a lousy battery.
It sounds like he turned it into at least an 18 mile trip.
its been 5 minutes since the last update. I think it’s safe to assume that Matt may be lost forever.
At 48, I bet a lot of drivers were happy to leaf him in the rearview.
I would suggest getting a generator and mounting it on a trailer to haul behind the Leaf and just keeping it plugged in. If I’m reading things correctly, you’d need almost 30 amps of 240V power to do that, though. You could do that with a $900 HF generator, but it seems like that would defeat the purpose. 🙂
As long as he adds a big fuel tank to the generator trailer, he should be able to drive almost anywhere!
“I exited the highway, and people cheered they were so mad at me.”
Driving 48 on an LA freeway, I’m mad at you too as I type from the not quite comfort of a dreary cold Midwestern morning. 😀
Thank you, Rain Man. 😀
These dang articles are giving me bad ideas yet again. I’ve been low-key scrounging FB and Craigslist for an uber cheap leaf with the idea of completely gutting the interior, fabricating some aero panels, wheel caps, and slapping on some lowering springs to see just how cheaply and efficiently I can get around town. Do I have even the slightest bit of use for one? Of course not, but it sounds weirdly fun, and I’d be curious to see what a stripped down Leaf would drive like over a stock one.
Maybe just get 2 Changli’s and mount them fore and aft of the leaf and then tied the throttles together?
I’d be worried if it took more than 4.5kw from the charger. At 4miles per kw, that’s about 16 miles with charging losses. That sounds like close to what you can get out of the battery right now.
Fine, steal our thunder. 😉
Should have taken the YJ
THE
LOLZCONTENT THE READERS CRAVE!!1!it might be better to take the 101. more stop and go traffic for that extra regen juice to get the extra mile or 2
Good call!
But does that regen counteract the power lost to repeated acceleration vs the momentum of a slow/steady speed? My rough guess at physics would say no but -shrug emoji-.
You’re right, regen simply minimizes the losses around acceleration. My wife’s Escape PHEV has a braking coach that will tell you that you achieved 100% energy recovery on a deceleration to full stop, so I’m thinking perpetual motion is a thing at Ford.
I always viewed the Maverick’s EV coach (which I assume is similar to its platform mate’s) as telling me how much energy my braking recovered out of the system max potential. It would probably make drivers feel disappointed if they only see X% of energy recovered (let’s say 50% just for visualization), even though that’s the most the constraints of the systems allow.
You forgot the /s
We used to have a 2013 Leaf. For regen, you gotta use “B” mode.
At the time we bought it in 2016, it definitely seemed like a huge lifehack – very well optioned 3-year-old car for under $10k? Yes, please! In the small city where we live the range was never a problem, and we had a regular car for longer trips (plus a house with a garage to for charging). Sold it in 2021 for not much less than we paid for it. I completely agree with some of the comments that this would be an ideal car for high-school kids.
Not sure about newer Bolts, but our 2017 only gets decent regen when shifted into L (or when holding down a silly “extra regen” steering wheel paddle). It’s idiotic, but I guess Chevy was trying to appeal to the expectations of first-time EV drivers who expect to coast freely unless in a lower gear. Should have been done via a user setting like how the big boy EVs do it.
oh man this is the sort of stuff i need in my friday
WOOHOO!!! Where’s the livestream?
Turned off as it would consume too much of the Leaf’s power, like how people turn off the radio to “save gas”. /s
Tell us again about how buying an ICE vehicle makes no sense… LOL
My 233K mile 2007 ICE vehicle is ready to take me as far as I need to go.
Hopefully this is not the future of all EV’s.
It’s not even the current of most EVs. The Leaf was the first real mass market one, and it was not good. The vast majority of EVs since will last much longer. Look at early model S cars, they are still useable, not still getting full range sure, but not down to 11 miles
Most importantly, the Leaf has passive/air/un-cooled batteries, while effectively every other EV since (minus the new Leaf of course because Nissan) has liquid cooled. This alone will represent an order of magnitude better capacity retention, while some newer cars use LFP style cells, which while not as energy dense as Li-Ion, tend to last longer and withstand charge/discharge and heat cycles better
Who ever said buying an ICE vehicle made no sense? All people have said is buying a BEV makes a TON of sense for the majority of Americans.
There’s another article on this site asking the question “Does it make sense to buy a new ICE vehicle in 2023”. The question had been posed because David Tracey has stated buying a new ICE vehicle does not make sense.
This is not even typical of a first-generation Leaf. I get 55 miles of range at 70 mph and close to 90 miles of range on city streets. If you go out of your way to buy the lousiest vehicle possible, you shouldn’t be surprised when the car sucks.
I like David’s EV content, although I think he might be giving people a falsely negative impression of what it is like to drive an EV.
Agreed; I’ve got seven in the work fleet and they’ve been driven carelessly but still have >50 miles which is more than adequate to get 75% of my drivers around town within their districts, but everybody’s gunshy because of a horror story that may never have happened about having to cut short the day in order to make it back “on fumes.” Anybody with a steady foot and a careful eye can do what they need to do and they still drive great! I love these cars and I’ll be sorry to see them go.