The New Nissan Leaf boasts super-fast public charging times, stating the car could be charged up to 80% capacity in as little as 40 minutes. However, some owners are disputing this claim, stating they have endured waiting times of up to a couple of hours at service stations around the country.
Nissan admits that charging times may not always be as advertised precisely, and charging times can often depend on a number of factors including “External Ambient Temperatures” and “Driving conditions”. Several customers have reported excessive charging times while making longer journeys, which may be as a result of excessive heating to the battery during the journey.
The owners manual does explain that as a safety precaution, the battery may slow charging times when too hot to preserve longevity and safer charging.
Other factors which may affect charging times include the reliability of public chargers themselves, with hundreds of motorists using them on a daily basis it is difficult to account for the maintenance of the unit.
Some customers are, however, unsatisfied with the explanations being offered and have taken the matter to the Advertising Standards Authority, who is now considering a further investigation into Nissan's advertised claims.
With a number of customers unhappy with the increased charging times and decreased actual range mileage, the road ahead may look a little bumpy for the Nissan Leaf, despite it being the darling of the Electric Vehicle world. The New Leaf launched in 2017 and was named Electric Car of the Year 2018, the second generation, which replaced the highly praised Leaf model; first launched to enormous praise in 2010.
It is unlikely that these latest criticisms will have a lasting impact on the rising popularity of the New Leaf, to date Nissan has seen sales of 2,600 units between 2017 and 2018. The Leaf range remains one of the most affordable Electric Vehicles on the market. It provides a realistic family alternative to the super EV’s, such as the BMW i8 and the Tesla models S and X. With the Leaf costing around £22,000, it places itself neatly into the family car bracket. It may not be as fun to drive or as dazzling to look at as the BMW i8, but the i8’s eye-watering £100,000 price tag is a lot less appealing.
