Nissan Leaf Owners Take The Lead In Improving Efficiency
One of most common complaints that traditional “car guys” have about the modern auto industry is that cars have become so complex and computerized that repairs and modifications have become too complex for their mechanical skillset. But, on the other end of the car guy spectrum, EV enthusiasts are taking over the mantle of the homebrew automotive modifications. The New York Times reports that Nissan Leaf owners are taking the lead to fix issues with the first mass-market electric car, creating more reliable state-of-charge indicators and rapid-chargers, tipping the balance of power from the manufacturer back to the savvy, hands-on consumer. And as EV enthusiasts build communities, share their experiments and improve vehicles like the Leaf, automakers like Nissan are listening.
Despite the antipathy between old-school auto enthusiasts and their new-wave EV counterparts, these two groups have more in common than you might realize… which can only be good news for the larger automotive culture.
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Yes Leaf owners represent a new niche in the "tuner" world, with a high amount of grass roots efforts. I believe that a large reason it is happening so quickly is that a lot of the early purchasers are already EV enthusiasts that have built their own EVs already. I know 2 people who own them. For the one family it's their 3rd EV, the others being a converted Fiero and S-10. The other traded in his Civic so it's his only car. He helped with building the Fiero and S-10's range trailer and another S-10. He is already planning on mods to his Leaf.
Anybody can build a fast charger, but lithium ion cells don't like it. That's a matter of battery chemistry and construction, not the inability of Nissan to make such a charger. [Now I know Nissan actually does offer a fast charger, but I'm wondering how they plan to warrant cars against constant usage of it.] IMO, anyone building a fast charger for an EV does so at their own peril (seriously), not to mention endangering the warranty. If I was Nissan, I wouldn't cover repairs on any car showing evidence of geek tweaking. I am an engineer for a business that designs its own lithium ion battery packs and chargers. Nissan has certainly invested many millions into the charging system and "gas gauging" for this car. There may be some improvements to make, but I'd leave it to them. It's ironic to me that the man quoted in the article is using a cord made by Panasonic. Panasonic also produces lithium ion cells and is very cautious about their application by battery pack manufacturers; he should ask Panasonic how they feel about his improvements to Nissan's product using their power cord in an uncertified manner. The NYT article would have you think Nissan's engineers are the hacks and the shadetree engineers are the geniuses. Gimme a break.
Wow, toying around with a $10,000+ battery pack based on rumors and faith that Nissan has "over-engineered" it? Risky business. Fires? Early burnouts? Bad, bad, bad. With a simple gas engine of the days of yore any reasonably educated shade tree mechanic could understand the risks he was taking. And the engines could be fixed easily is readily available parts and techniques. You really want to try to take apart a battery pack yo've damaged? Really?
Major manufacturers are used to building a practical low-risk compromise vehicle, and that is not what hot-rodders or hackers of any sort are interested in. They want boundaries pushed to suit their specific goals. I do like the open source DIY mentality. If you can't open it up and alter it, it's not really yours. People voiding warranties know the risk, and the manufacturer is off the hook. Win, win.