Nissan Leaf
The Nissan Leaf is NZ’s most popular full electric used import, and arguably the cheapest.
Contents
Nissan Leaf (24kWh) USED
- Body Type
- Seats
- Drive
- Hatchback
- 5
- FWD
- 0-100 km/h
- Power
- Home charge
- 11.9 seconds
- 80 kW
- 3.3 kW
- Efficiency
- 142 Wh/km
The Nissan Leaf was first registered in NZ in 2011, with an upgrade to the vehicle in late-2012. From 2016-2017 the 30 kWh battery became available.
Range is highly variable due to the level of battery wear. Don't expect to get more than 125 km range from a 24 kWh Leaf. Generally the older the vehicle, the lower range.
An older Leaf is best used as a city or urban-only car. Leafs do have DC fast-charging capability but its short range make it a poor choice for regional travel.
Nissan Leaf (30kWh) USED
- Body Type
- Seats
- Drive
- Hatchback
- 5
- FWD
- 0-100 km/h
- Power
- Home charge
- 11.9 seconds
- 80 kW
- 3.3 kW
- Efficiency
- 142 Wh/km
In 2016 a 30 kWh battery version of the Leaf replaced the older 24 kWh versions. This provided a slightly longer range. Nissan New Zealand did not sell these vehicles, and all of them are used imports.
Range is entirely dependent on the battery state of health.
Nissan Leaf (40kWh)
- Body Type
- Seats
- Drive
- Hatchback
- 5
- FWD
- 0-100 km/h
- Power
- Home charge
- 7.9 seconds
- 110 kW
- 6.6 kW
- Efficiency
- 137 Wh/km
Nissan Leaf (62kWh) E+
- Body Type
- Seats
- Drive
- Hatchback
- 5
- FWD
- 0-100 km/h
- Power
- Home charge
- 6.9 seconds
- 160 kW
- 6.6 kW
- Efficiency
- 145 Wh/km
Guides
- Comprehensive guide to everything you need to know about a pre-2018 Leaf (external link).
- Learn the economics of buying a used Leaf here (external link).
- Nissan Leaf battery upgrade guide.
Battery State of Health and Range
Over time Leaf batteries lose their ability to hold their charge.
State of Health (SoH) is the most important consideration when buying a Leaf (arguably far more so than km's travelled).
SoH cannot be read on a Nissan Leaf without using some extra kit, however the dashboard does show the number of bars which correlates to SoH and therefore range.
Bars | State of Health | 24 kWh Range | 30 kWh Range | 40 kWh Range |
12 | 85% - 100% | 115-135 km | 142-168 km | 230-270 km |
11 | 78.75% - 85% | 106-114 km | 132-142 km | 213-230 km |
10 | 72.5% - 78.75% | 98-106 km | 122-132 km | |
9 | 66.25% - 72.5% | 90-98 km | 111-122 km | |
8 | 60% - 66.25% | 81-90 km | 100-111 km | |
7 | 53.75% - 60% | 72-81 km | 90-100 km |
Figures are based on 135 km real world range (on a brand new 24 kWh Leaf), and 168 km (on a 30 kWh Leaf).
Range of Leaf by Year
Battery SoH is the best way of estimating range, but there are some correlations to the vehicle's year.
Year | 24 kWh SoH and Range | 30 kWh | 40 kWh |
2011 | 63% - 85 km | - | |
2012 | 70% - 94 km | - | |
2013 | 66% - 89 km | - | |
2014 | 78% - 106 km | - | |
2015 | 80% - 108 km | 82% - 138 km | |
2016 | 83% - 112 km | 80% - 134 km | |
2017 | - | 82% - 138 km | 88% - 238 km |
2018 | - | - | 88% - 238 km |
2019 | - | - | 91% - 246 km |
2011-2013 Leaf's seem to have huge variety in State of Health, making it difficult to assess range.
This data comes from real-world monitoring done by FliptheFleet. It represents the 50th percentile of vehicles (i.e. the mid point).
Trim Levels
Leaf's have three distinct trim levels. The top level tends to have heated seats and steering wheel.
Base | Mid Level | Top Level | |
Japan | S | X | G |
UK | Acenta | N-Connecta | Tekna |
USA | S and S Plus | SV and SV Plus | SL Plus |
Some imports are the Autech sub-variation (ex-Japan only). The Autech Leaf has distinct LED lights in the front bumper, and body trim enhancements giving it a sportier look.
Background
Nissan New Zealand sold new Leaf's from 2012 and 2015 (about 80 were registered), but were undercut by used imports (from Japan or UK).
They stopped selling new vehicles until about 2019 when the next generation (ZE1) was supplied. While there has been modest success as a NZ new vehicle, it is still the primary choice of used import EV.
How many Leaf's sold in NZ by Year and Month
Data shown for all Nissan Leaf variations combined including both NZ New and Used import registrations.
How many Leaf's are there in NZ?
There have been 15,817 Nissan Leaf's registered in NZ to date. This is made up of 3.4% NZ New, and 96.6% Used Import.
How many of each submodel is there?
How many units of each major model variation (NZ new) have been registered to date.
Raw submodel data | Units |
---|---|
LEAF 110KW/EV/FD | 297 |
LEAF 160KW/EV/FD | 150 |
<blank> | 82 |
TECKNA 110KW/EV/CVT | 4 |
Data is from all vehicles entered in the NZ Motor Vehicle Register open data obtained from Waka Kotahi. It is not the size of the current fleet, as some vehicles may subsequently be cancelled or de-registered. Raw submodel names are inconsistent, so for the pie charts the data has been 'fixed' to show more meaningful submodel names.