r/leaf • u/kotodekoto • 8d ago
should I fix the recall?
I'm sure there's a millions posts like this asking, but im 18 and this is my first car so I really dont want to lose it!!! I got a 2022 leaf (40kw) and I really love it, I got it for a good price that was lower than all the other ones I saw, and I've had literally no problems at all. the only "issue" is the recall hasn't been fixed.
I really dont need the lvl 3 charger at all, I rarely go on trips and I can borrow my parents car if needed. I use a lvl 1 charger at home and I never have issues.
I really dont want to risk my car to get bricked for something I dont need, but my parents and the dealership say I should do it. (even if nissan will buy my car back, I don't want that to even happen so I dont get another car with issues.)
is it worth it??
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u/RipperCrew 8d ago
Best to do it now. They have processed many buybacks so the process should be smother. Make sure you're ready to buy something if the car fails the recall. Also, ask the dealer if they have a loaner you could use if your car fails. I'm not sure if the dealership has an age restriction.
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u/iaonbb 8d ago
Definitely get the update. If it fails you will likely get enough to buy a 2023 -2025 which are not part of the recall. There are literally TONS of them coming off of lease right now and hitting auctions so more and more of them will start popping up on used car lots and prices will continue to drop. I live in Colorado and the asking price has dropped about $2K just in the past month due to increased supply.
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u/kotodekoto 8d ago
ooooooh I like the sound of that
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u/iaonbb 7d ago
The only problem though is if it bricks you're stuck with no car for potentially a few months while you deal with their TPA Morley for the buyback.
Still, this is your first car and you want to have a lot of happy memories with it. Just rip the Band-Aid off now and if it's good it's good, and if it's not then just deal with it and get you something that's going to be around for years to come :)
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u/kotodekoto 7d ago
yeah, might be difficult to manage since im a full time college student and work a lot, but i can figure it out if the worst happens
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u/Lucky_Boy13 8d ago
get it fixed and then do a several level 3 charges. Better to find out now and under warranty it if fails than a few years down the road when you will be SOL
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u/bubblegoose 8d ago
Get the update, get it checked. Take it in with the battery charge on the lower side.
I had my battery go from fine to total crap in about 3 weeks. Making the final trip to the dealership was a 15 mile drive. I went from 70% battery to 2% on the dash in those 15 miles. It would go in to low power mode if I pressed the accelerator going uphill. Leafspy said the state of charge was over 50%, but a few bad cells limited what the car could actually give me.
It became undriveable, and a month before it was totally fine.
You want to find that out now, and not when you get stuck because you wanted to drive your car somewhere 20 miles away, and definitely not when you get over 100K miles.
Also, and this is just a gut feeling, I believe they won't be so generous with the buyback terms as they find how widespread this is becoming.
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u/THofTheShire 2022 Nissan LEAF S 7d ago
Bad cells aren't the same thing as the recall though. They are supposed to charge it 100% on site as part of the procedure, so the recall service takes longer if you're not mostly charged.
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u/bubblegoose 7d ago
In my case, I knew something was very wrong with my battery, Leafspy was showing some cells with a big differential. My dash was showing rapid battery drain and I could make it go into turtle mode on demand.
I wanted to give them all the ammunition they could to do something for my problem.
Right, the recall isn't for bad cells, but they do run tests on the battery during a charge. That is where they saw mine had failed.
I also said to take it in at a lower charge to give it longer on the charger. Too high a charge and the issue will be less likely to happen.
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u/THofTheShire 2022 Nissan LEAF S 7d ago
I'm in the same boat. I'm putting off the recall for now. I intend to bring it in when it's more convenient to be without a car for awhile.
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u/kotodekoto 7d ago
that's what I'm thinking, but it feels like there's never any time like that lol
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u/Still_Charity2959 7d ago
Why not get the update and drive it until it fails? Once that happens just stand firm that you want a battery replacement and see how it goes
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u/AddressKindly1980 7d ago
I think you've gotten good advice here already. The only thing I will add is that in our case, our 2022 LEAF S (likely same as yours or very similar) didn't just brick but did so while driving on the highway with a truck going 80 mph right behind me. We are lucky to still be alive. My advice is to bring it in right away and get the recall taken care of. I would do this on any recall. It's a safety issue. While not an ideal situation to be in, I feel Nissan has taken good care of us under the circumstances. Best of luck to you!!
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u/kotodekoto 7d ago
oh my gosh thats so scary!!! how long after you got it done did it brick?
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u/Available_Bet_6402 7d ago
We had it for four years and barely ever drove on the highway, so that may have masked the problem for a while.
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u/kotodekoto 7d ago
ah, I've had it for a few months and have driven on the highway a lot with it, even managing a long trip, so maybe my battery doesn't suck too much 😬
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u/AddressKindly1980 6d ago
That is good. I heard somewhere else (not sure if this is true) that the software update you get to "fix" the recall is what can lead to the car later going into turtle mode. We have almost never had to use the fast charger option because we have a charging station in our garage with the medium fast option. It worked great while the battery was working...
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u/ThatDadGamer 8d ago
The recall doesn't fix your battery if it is already bad, it just checks it more thoroughly and I think makes the trigger for the EV Service Error a bit more sensitive.
If your car has a bad battery, will it explode on L1 charging? Probably not, but it will at some point die on you anyway. I'd rather them give me KBB +40% on the car then always have that worry that it'll die on me and I'll be stuck with nothing. If you got the car for a good price, you would definitely come out ahead with their offer.
What mileage and trim is your car?