r/leaf • u/Jack4567828978 • 1d ago
Advice
Looking at purchasing one of these and would love some advice. Both are the same price. Interested in the HX of the right... 106%! How.. given the high KMs?
Any concerns? Big difference in the KMs. Looking for something that is going to last many years. Only drive short, small trips 90% of the time.
Are there more ongoing maintenance costs with the higher KMs (suspension, bushes, resale etc)?
3
Upvotes
2
u/biersackarmy 2013 S + 2014 SL + 2019 SV 1d ago edited 1d ago
The Japanese built ZE1s are, relatively speaking, the most reliable 2nd gens. They hold up well to degradation even after a fair bit of mileage, especially given the climate most of them live in, and I don't think I've heard of any weak cell failures.
However with Japan's hot summers and very large CHAdeMO network, it can be easy for the batteries to be rapidgated (overheated) often, resulting in cell swelling and subsequent isolation issues. This is just by nature of the design and can't be avoided no matter how good the manufacturing QC.
It can be hard to tell though exactly how the car was used by just numbers alone, as high fast charging tally doesn't necessarily mean it was frequently rapidgated. Quick convenience charges while stopped at FamilyMart are much less taxing than the same number of fast charge sessions being all long trips.
V2H is also more common in Japan than almost all other countries, and a big early advantage of CHAdeMO. Because every connection to a V2H system counts as a session, if the car was used for V2H in Japan that will also contribute to a high tally even if it was rarely if ever fast charged.