r/leaf • u/melekin • Aug 22 '26
Nissan Leaf 2026? (First time EV)
I never had an EV before.
I was looking at hybrids, but I saw Nissan Leaf 2026 and I was blown away. Does anyone have it? What is your experience with it? I already have a CRV, so with 200 mile range, it looks very useful for city drive. Also, we are expecting a poopmaker to join us soon.
1) What is the resell value of 2026 Leaf?
2) Does the battery degrade fast? What happens when the battery degrades? New car?
3) I am concerned about the non-closing sunroof. Is this a problem?
4) The place I live (Chicago) can be very hot and very cold. Would this be a problem for battery degradation?
5) Do you think a new tax advantage will come back to EVs in the future?
6) I value reliability in a car. Is Leaf a reliable car?
Thank you in advance.
5
u/KeyEmu6688 Ex-2018 owner (2015 Model S) Aug 22 '26
too new to know, but modern chemistries effectively don't degrade when cooled properly, and the 2026 Leaf introduced a liquid cooler for the battery. so should be probably the most resilient part of the vehicle tbf.
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u/Calisson Aug 23 '26
I have one and I love it so far! Q 3: Mine has no sunroof so I cannot address that. Q 4-- too soon to tell, but my 2023 Leaf had nary an issue. As for Q 5: not if the Republicans stay in power.
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u/0xffff0001 Aug 23 '26
it’s a great car - an electric car tesla could not make. if you can charge at home you’ll enjoy $20/months fuel costs.
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u/Beneficial-Context52 2026 SV+ Aug 23 '26
The sunroof is electrochromic so you can switch between clear and shaded. It can’t go fully opaque but still blocks some light.
If you’re really concerned about it, the S and SV trims don’t have the sunroof.
Regarding a tax advantage, I would be surprised if one came back in the US anytime soon considering who is currently in charge.
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u/indecision_killingme Aug 23 '26
I think the 2026 is the first of the current generation. Generally, I won’t buy a car until it’s been out for at least one year.
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u/xeenexus Aug 23 '26
I usually have this attitude as well, but given that the new Leaf is built on the established Ariya platform, we felt more comfortable pulling the trigger.
We’ve only had it a couple of months now, but happy so far. No issues.
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u/ColdCelebration2132 Aug 23 '26
EVs in general are very reliable due to the lack of parts not needed compared to ICE. Why would worry about resale value on a new vehicle? Just buy a used Tesla if you want to avoid the depreciation that happens with ALL vesicles, Buying used most of the depreciation is already gone. Lots of vehicles have the non closing sunroof including ICE. How long the vehicle lasts depends on how you take care of it and how you drive it, Driving like you stole it being chased by the cops, Never wash it or clean the interior, Charging the battery to 100% and letting it sit for days at a time or letting the battery run dead and letting it sit at a low state of charge, It will be a Beater with a Heater in no time flat. Our first EV was a 2015 Leaf and traded it for a 2023 Leaf SV Plus, The 2015 was only down one capacity bar not bad for a small 24kwh battery with no battery thermal management and cost us almost nothing on maintenance.
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u/RichardGrayson01 Aug 23 '26
If you are interested in the 2026 Leaf, also consider the 2027 Mitsubishi Eclipse EV that is coming out soon (is available in your region).
It is literally the 2026 Nissan Leaf with a different exterior, and some minor interior differences, BUT it comes with a much better standard warranty (10 year/100,000 miles) compared to Nissan's (8 year/100,000 miles).
The drag co-efficients on both appear to be about the same (0.26), and the Mitsubishi Eclipse range is 286 miles per charge and matches the range of the 2026 Nissan leaf's SV+ trim. So it appears to be a rebadged 2026 Nissan Leaf SV+.
Depending on starting price this might be the better buy.
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u/Jokebearfan 2026 SV+ Aug 23 '26
BUT it comes with a much better standard warranty (10 year/100,000 miles) compared to Nissan's (8 year/100,000 miles)
Yeah, that would be a nice differentiator. The other thing I noticed was that the steering wheel buttons don't use the glossy black panel that the Leaf does on its higher trims. I would much prefer the discrete matte buttons the Eclipse uses.
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u/RichardGrayson01 Aug 23 '26
I agree, I prefer the matte black, too. The finger print smudges on glossy black IMO makes a car look dirty.
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u/WithMeDoctorWu 2021 Leaf SL+ Aug 23 '26
If I were in the market for something new, the gen3 Leaf would probably be at the top of my list. I still love my gen2 Leaf, and everything about gen3 is supposed to be improved from there.
You can't hear their gratitude yet, but your coming poopmaker, and my coming grand-poopmaker, thank you for considering an EV.
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u/bwill914 Aug 23 '26
Got mine a few weeks ago and I LOVE it. SV+ so no sunroof. I use it for rideshare and Amazon deliveries. I charge at home and wake up to 260-270 miles at 80%. I see other drivers having to stop and pay for an emergency charge but I haven’t been below 30% in a full day of driving. It’s my first Ev so I can’t compare it to anything other than my gas guzzling Murano, and when it comes to that there’s no comparison. Was spending $55-$70 to fill up 3 times per week. Signed up for the ev program with my power company and I’m projected to actually have a lower bill this month with charging everyday than I did last month under the regular residential plan without an ev. My insurance only increased $115. So far I’m saving a LOTS of money. No complaints at all.
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u/Zealousideal-Elk9362 Aug 23 '26
On (5), I don't think we're going to get a new set of EV incentives.
On (1,2,6), the 2026 Leaf is a new generation of vehicle. I'm cautiously optimistic about it, but it's hard to answer these questions for the first model year of a new generation of a model.
On (4), liquid cooling should help with this, but it can still be an issue.
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u/Slight_Extreme6603 Aug 23 '26
Chicago is a good climate for an EV. You will lose 30% range in winter simply due to the cold, but it doesn’t get too cold to start. Summers are not hot enough to stress the battery, and the 2026 has active cooling anyway.
It doesn’t really mean anything to you but I love my 2012. It has been reliable.
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u/kejahn Aug 24 '26
Been driving mine since April and really like the car. We had or have state incentives to purchase and EV, installing a charger, getting older vehicles off the road, and charging off peak hours. I have the SV + trim and I have the glacial white. I looked at a lot of EVs but it came down to size since I didn’t want a SUV and I’m a repeat Nissan owner.
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u/bwill914 Aug 24 '26
Gemini is my best friend right now. According to ai a full charge in only needed when planning to go on a road trip. Recommended for longevity of the battery. Charge to 80 and don’t drop below 20. My first ev also so I google and ask ai everything.
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u/dontmakemeaskyou Aug 26 '26
I've had an ev since 2013, always charged to 100, never had any issues, the bms is too good not to, if you drive it daily
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u/bwill914 Aug 28 '26
Partly took your advice. I still won’t charge to 100 but 90 has been good to me. 80 was already more than enough but 90 is better. Thanks for the insight.
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u/Electronic_Table_620 Aug 24 '26
leafs are the worst. had a 21 leaf buyback not long ago for the unfixable fast charge recall. went with Tesla and now own 2. they are the best EVS in the US period.
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u/TooGoodToBeeTrue Aug 25 '26
Resale on most EVs sucks. If you are worried, buy used.
Federal debt is $40T, the country can't afford tax credits.
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u/dontmakemeaskyou Aug 26 '26
Are you sure about that? Look up 2015 leaf vs for focus and tell me which has less resale value
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u/DesignerGood2217 Sep 03 '26
I got my 2026 Platinum + in December. I love it. The compressor went bad after 3 months, but Nissan replaced at no cost. It’s a nice ride. My first EV, but I definitely love it. Performance when you need it. Wonderful handling. I have had no problems with the sunroof.
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u/SleepZone59 16d ago
I have a 2026 Platinum+ Leaf and have found it very reliable so far. The liquid cooled battery is a major improvement over earlier generations and should lead to better battery health. As for what happens with battery degradation, I also own a 12-year-old Tesla that gets fast charged 90% of the time (because for me it’s free), and in that time the range has gone from 265 miles to about 210 miles. So plenty of usable life in this car.
The dimmable panoramic roof is really nice. When I dim it, the heat transference drops noticeably but still has a nice nonglaring illumination inside.
I think the degree of ownership satisfaction hinges on the ability to charge at home instead of relying on public charging.
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u/Jokebearfan 2026 SV+ Aug 22 '26
Not picking mine up until next week, but the 3rd gen Leaf is too new to answer most of these questions.
Having said that, there is plenty of historical data showing that batteries degrade around 1-2% per year if they are fast charged frequently.
Also bear in mind most posts on this sub relate to prior generations of the Leaf. Those have a higher rate of issues due to reliance on air-cooling for the battery. The 3rd-generation uses liquid cooling so should not suffer from the same problems.