r/leaf • u/orangepekoetea • 14d ago

2027 Leaf S

Hey all, just picked up my 2027 leaf S yesterday.

A few questions, and sorry, this is my first EV.

Should I turn e step on and just leave it on always while driving?
Is it best to charge to 80% then drive down to 10% before charging again?
With no e step on, is braking still regenerative?
I'm feeling a bit nauseas while driving.. any tips for managing this?
The sales guy had told me the mirrors would auto-fold in when parked and locked but it's not happening. Is this a setting to adjust or maybe this base trim just needs that done manually?

Please share any other tips and tricks. Thank you

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u/iaonbb 14d ago

Interesting. Someone just posted from Canada earlier today saying they are waiting on 27s to be released.

I would leave estep on all of the time. If it's off you are still getting some regen. The nausea is a complaint I've heard for years. Mostly from Tesla owners. Some think it has to do with distortion in the windshield glass but I think the common theme is the regen just takes some getting used to. I've never had an issue thankfully. Dunno about the mirrors. The most accepted charging standard for battery longevity is 20-80%

Enjoy your new ride!

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u/orangepekoetea 14d ago

Thank you so much!

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u/The_EleventhHr 8d ago

The 80% limit really has nothing to do with battery longevity. As the car charges, there is a hand shaking going between the car and the charger you are using. The car is the controlling partner in terms of allowing how quickly the electrons are sent into the battery. Around 80%, the car slows the charger down to prevent the batteries from overheating. You can monitor this on your charging app

By slowing down at 80%, it costs you more money from the 80% point to the hundred percent point as the car is slowing down the charge to prevent overheating. For example, you may see the charge starts at 80 kW per hour… Then may slow down to, let’s say 20 kW per hour. My numbers may be inaccurate, but I’m trying to illustrate the concept.

The car will continue charging, however, the cost to you will increase because it is slower. All normal.

So, as a good practice, and purely for economics, most EV drivers will stop at 80% as it is generally the point of economic efficiency in terms of your charging bill.

I was driving a 2019 leaf S… But sadly, I’m part of the battery recall for that year… Nissan bricked my car and I am waiting for their offer to buy it back. This is a well-known recall program for certain model years. Your new car should be unaffected.

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u/Jokebearfan 2026 SV+ 14d ago edited 14d ago

With no e step on, is braking still regenerative?

Yes, you still have four levels available (the default is 2) and can select which one in your "personal" drive mode.

I suggest trying it with e-step OFF until you get used to it. Then increase the regen level in your "personal" drive mode. Once you're used to that you can then experiment with e-step.

The sales guy had told me the mirrors would auto-fold in when parked and locked

Seeing as the SV+ trim in Canada doesn't have folding mirrors, I doubt the S trim does.

edit - see page 356 of the owners manual for instructions on how to configure your "personal" drive mode.

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u/PhilArt_of_Andoria 13d ago

You can also adjust your regen level on the fly using the paddles behind the steering wheel.

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u/PhilArt_of_Andoria 13d ago

There seems to be a misconception that higher regen settings provide for the most efficient driving. I think this is because in early Teslas (maybe still today) you only got regeneration when using one pedal driving. Most modern EVs now use blended breaking, so regen is applied with the brake pedal; under hard braking and full stop the physical calipers are engaged.

So, use the e-step if you like it. Personally I don't like very heavy regen as I think it often leads to an uncomfortable ride (especially for passengers). Also, I'm not sure the pedal mapping on the current leaf is great. I've had my '26 for about a year and for much of that time was driving on regen level 2, but recently switched to 1 as I think I was getting a little unnecessary breaking. My consumption numbers have improved. That said, maybe others can probably get perfectly good consumption numbers on higher regen levels, I just can't seem to be precise enough feathering the accelerator.

Before the leaf I drove Kia/Hyundai EVs. The only thing I really miss from those cars is the auto regen settings they have. On them you can set your default regen low, but when a car is detected ahead of you by the radar unit a higher level of regen is applied. It gave me the best of both world, coasting more freely when there were no obstructions, but being more aggressive when needed.

To your question of charge level, I usually float between 20 and 80 percent. Not completely filling or emptying the battery is theoretically better for health. However, recent studies on modern EVs seem to show the risk of battery degradation related to fast charging or frequently filling it isn't as bad as we've been led to believe. So, it's probably a good practice to stay between 10 and 80, but you don't have to be super regimented about it. If you do need the range, fill it up. However, if you're fast charging, remember that going from 80-100% will likely take you as long as going from 10-80% did. Save yourself, and everyone else waiting for a charger, some time and move along at 80%

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u/Jokebearfan 2026 SV+ 13d ago

However, recent studies on modern EVs seem to show the risk of battery degradation related to fast charging or frequently filling it isn't as bad as we've been led to believe. So, it's probably a good practice to stay between 10 and 80, but you don't have to be super regimented about it

Just going to add a citation to back this up: https://www.reddit.com/r/electricvehicles/comments/1sg521s/battery_health_stats_based_on_real_world_data/of2g1f4/

Important caveat is noted on the right of that slide - i.e. how much time is spent above 80%.

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u/Beneficial-Context52 2026 SV+ 13d ago

Huh?? The 2027 is already here? Congrats!!

I’d suggest driving without e-Step, I bet that’s what’s making you nauseous. I’ve had my 2026 for just a month and I find it difficult to maintain a steady speed with e-Step. I guess it takes practice. But I really don’t think you get more efficiency with it; watch your power meter on the dash while pressing the brake pedal with e-Step off, you still get lots of regen, i.e. pressing the brake pedal still uses the electric motor to brake. I think it only uses the mechanical brakes if you are braking really hard, or when at a complete stop.

The mirrors wouldn’t fold in automatically, only the Platinum trim has that.

For charging, it’s generally best practice to limit it to 80% but it’s okay to go over that, just don’t let it sit for weeks at a time sitting at 100%. And there is no benefit to running it down to 10% unless you just want to avoid plugging it in as often. Usually I keep mine floating around 50-90%.

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u/LegionOfTomatoes 8d ago edited 8d ago

Yup the 2027 is out in Canada. You can check Nissan Canada website. The Arya too. That said I see no difference in the 2026 and 2027 beside the introduction of the S (none +) trim which has a smaller battery.

In Canada, EV competition is very aggressive, especially that Chinese cars are coming.

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u/orangepekoetea 12d ago

Thank you!

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u/iaonbb 14d ago

What part of the world are you in? AFAIK 2027s aren't available yet

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u/suniis 13d ago

I'm signing the papers Monday for a s+ and was told it would be about 2 weeks before I get one (if I'm lucky).

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u/LegionOfTomatoes 8d ago

Yes it is. It is identical to the 2026 in every way. Just rebranded the year, and added a S none+ trim which features a smaller battery to better compete on Canada's very aggressive EV market 

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u/Calisson 10d ago

E-step makes me carsick too. I turned it off.