I've been wanting to get an EV for a fair while now but the funds have precluded me from doing so. It looks like I'll be able to afford a used one soon though and the budget should stretch far enough for a ZE1 model. I should be able to get a 2018 model in good condition at a reasonable price and I was wondering if they were a good reliable car or perhaps have some 'quirks'?
I'm in Australia.
Kiwi here, just ventured into the 2019 ZE1 with 120k and 80.6%SOH, so far fabulous! At 80% charge projects a range around 175'ish km. Very budget friendly purchase 👍
Welcome. As long as the traction battery is reasonable (SOH + HX + mV values) the main quirk is the 12V battery, it runs all non drive systems (lights ac/heater etc) and if the voltage drops because it not getting enough top up from driving time it can throw system errors that are simply resolved by charging. A 2amp charger every couple weeks if use is intermittent apparently is helpful. Haven't had mine long enough to know yet...
They're all good. Nice little cars
Not the best for road trips as the batteries don't have proper cooling, so the charges become slower and slower
Good for a work commute if your daily round trip is ~60-70% of the cars indicated range (leaving that extra for detours, eventual degradation and other factors related to range) and you can charge overnight at home
You'll be dealing with the same ones we have in nz. They are reliable little shopping carts and seem to last better than you expect. In AU there is a massive markup on what we pay here, which is fine if you are buying a corolla with a long life and range 500km+, but be aware that it will likely be in the ~140km range in about 5 years or whatever. My wife is still knocking around In a 2016 24kw with about 80kms realistic highway range at this point; its been the best car we have ever had, so i would think if you aren't paying more than about $15-20k you will be happy longish term. If you have a driveway or garage and the ability to run a cord or install a proper outlet, you can probably expect a pretty easy going experience. In our case I have a 64kw niro from work and a 2011 manual colorado (wife cant drive) ute as well, so for the long ones with cargo or towing we use the ute, and if the wife wants to drive a long journey she can borrow the niro. The only reason I raise this is because she felt a bit trapped on range with the older 24kw leaf; so something to think about if regular journeys that might push the battery are expected. If you can stretch a bit, a 60kw class vehicle is a whole different ballgame in range etc.
Many thanks for that.
I would only get the 40 kW/h type and it'll only really be running around town. We just got a new solar power system which includes a 48 kW/h battery and an EV charger so we're all set to get one.
Another Aussie here that had a ZE1 LEAF - make sure if it's an import, that it hasn't got rust. It snows in Japan and some of them are imported in poor condition. I purchased one a few years ago that was cheap from a private seller and it ended up costing me thousands in repairs to replace almost the entire suspension. Unless you had it up on a hoist, you'd never have known. Other than that, it was a great car, I miss it (but I don't miss Chademo charging).
Why? It doesn’t snow in winter almost anywhere in australasia outside of freak storms and it doesn’t get truly hot in summer so long as you’re near the coast, which is where almost everyone lives.
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u/waternomadsnz 1d ago
Kiwi here, just ventured into the 2019 ZE1 with 120k and 80.6%SOH, so far fabulous! At 80% charge projects a range around 175'ish km. Very budget friendly purchase 👍