Some new Nissan Leaf UK buyers unhappy

Some United Kingdom owners of the new Nissan Leaf say they were given misleading information about the car before buying it.

They say charging can take three times longer than claimed on Nissan’s website.

Others are unhappy that the range on a single charge is not as good as the 378km they were promised, BBC News

reports.

Nissan admits charging times can vary, but denies there’s a problem or that any customers were misled.

The Advertising Standards Authority is considering whether to launch an investigation.

Up to 2600 new Leafs were sold in the UK. It was What Car? magazine’s 2018 Electric Car of the Year.

But UK Leaf drivers attempting longer journeys say they have spent up to two-and-a-half hours at motorway stations recharging, the BBC says.

Last year, Nissan told prospective buyers that using rapid chargers should take 40 minutes “in moderate driving conditions” for an 80% charge. They subsequently changed that to between 40 and 60 minutes.

There seems no problem with the first two charges on any given day – one at home, and then the first rapid charge en route.

It is only when drivers come to charge for the third time – or the second rapid charge – that some say they face long waits. Potentially, that could affect travel over 400km.

John Weatherley drove 482km and waited for a total of two-and-a-half hours when he stopped to charge for a second time.

“If Nissan at the start had said what the car is capable of, without exaggerating the fact on their website, I’d have been fine with it,” he told the BBC.

“They said they could charge in 40 to 60 minutes, so I believed them. But it’s not true.”

Weatherley complained to Nissan and was told rapid charging was only intended for use once in a journey – which many buyers may be unaware of.

Nissan told the BBC charging can take longer than advertised, depending on conditions.

“External ambient temperature, the type of driving you’ve been doing beforehand, and the heat you put into the battery if you’ve been doing successive charges can impact the timing,” Nissan Europe EV director Gareth Dunsmore says.

He says the battery automatically slows a charge to preserve its longevity and to act as a safety mechanism when it gets too hot.

“We make this clear in the owner’s manual.”

The charger may be to blame in some cases, Dunsmore says.

Tony Pitcairn spent 90 minutes at a motorway services site on a 466km drive and was also disappointed with the new Leaf’s range.

His marketing brochure claims the car can do 378km on a single charge, but after buying the car he found the range was 249km.

What Car? journalists testing the new Leaf found a “real-world” range of 173.8km.

Nissan says the original 378km claim is correct under an official measurement called the New European Driving Cycle (NEDC).

However, as carmakers have moved to a different measure – known as the Worldwide Harmonised Light Vehicle Test Procedure (WLTP) – the range is now officially 270km.

Dunsmore advises any upset customers to get in touch.

Meanwhile, the BBC says some UK customers have cancelled their orders.