Importing a Leaf (NZ)

[madkiwi]

I've decided to get a Leaf, and came very close to purchasing one new, but in the end couldn't justify paying the new price for a Gen-1 car. 

I'm now looking to import one myself instead, as I'm comfortable with the process (imported my last car too), and can get exactly what I want, rather than the very limited pick of what's at the second hand dealers here, at a significant saving, although with a slight risk since I won't know the condition of the battery.

At my budget I'm likely to get a 2011 Gen-1 G-spec (looks very similarly equiped to the Australian model) for around $15-16,000 on-road. I'd like to get a 2012-13 Gen-2 X or G spec, but they're selling at just over my limit, going for around $26,000 on-road, may luck into a higher km car though. I'm avoiding the S spec. 

Plan to install a Clipper Creek 15A EVSE in the garage, and have confirmed with a local auto-electrician (Vantage Auto Christchurch) that they're happy to handle servicing, since the dealer won't touch imports. 

Just wondering if anyone had any advice, with the wealth of ownership knowledge here. Things to look for, or avoid...

[hieronymous]

I did buy a new Gen 1 for the dealer support and for the battery. I wouldn't buy a Gen 2 - the improvements aren't substantial enough. Good luck with your battery condition; I wouldn't import sight unseen unless I had only local driving in mind I.e. low km's, and planned to keep the car a long time.

Keep in mind your GPS, Carwings etc won't work, and nothing will be in English.
Also, unlike ICE cars, low km's doesn't mean a better battery; degradation is mainly about the combination of calendar aging and charging for range, even if the range is unused.

[lesmando24]

Gen 1 use the water circulator for heating the cabin. It can use a lot of energy while getting to temperature. Which I assume you will use in New Zealand much more than in Queensland. So maybe hold off till you can get a gen 2 with heat pump.

[madkiwi]

Mar 31, 2015 17:38:55 GMT 11 hieronymous said:

I did buy a new Gen 1 for the dealer support and for the battery. I wouldn't buy a Gen 2 - the improvements aren't substantial enough. Good luck with your battery condition; I wouldn't import sight unseen unless I had only local driving in mind I.e. low km's, and planned to keep the car a long time.

Keep in mind your GPS, Carwings etc won't work, and nothing will be in English.
Also, unlike ICE cars, low km's doesn't mean a better battery; degradation is mainly about the combination of calendar aging and charging for range, even if the range is unused.

Have the ICE for any longer distances, and most daily commuting is less than 30km, so that should be fine. The battery is the main reason I'd want to buy new - for the warranty. 

Carwings not working in NZ doesn't worry me for an import, but did bug me for a new car. And from what I've read the system isn't the most reliable anyway. I plan to use the OBD sensor/Leaf Spy Pro, so that should cover some features. And I need to improve my Japanese...

You're right about the km. Ironically you can get some really low km cars at auction (seen 171km for a 2011), which may mean the battery isn't in as good condition as a car that been regularly used, and charged properly, with high km. I've noticed 2011 cars are significantly cheaper than 2012, probably partly due to battery age. 

[madkiwi]

Mar 31, 2015 18:28:29 GMT 11 lesmando24 said:

Gen 1 use the water circulator for heating the cabin. It can use a lot of energy while getting to temperature. Which I assume you will use in New Zealand much more than in Queensland. So maybe hold off till you can get a gen 2 with heat pump.

Good point. Must remember to set the heater timer during cold winter mornings, can be icy cold here. Although the cold improves battery condition I've heard.

Will look for one with a seat heater, as I've heard that helps cut the chill. Anyone know if they're easy to retrofit?

[hieronymous]

Also you need to check out if the Japanese EVSE can be used here, or whether you will need to buy a local substitute for charging away from home. I think someone on the forum has posted about this: don't know where exactly.

[quaternary]

Hi madkiwi, welcome to the forum, and your importing idea sounds very exciting.

Yes, I have been led to believe that the Japanese cars' EVSE 'brick' is 3.3kW. If that's the case, then all you need to do is wire it in to a 16 amp circuit and you'll be good to go. And as hieronymous says, get yourself a 10 amp version for those times you need one for charging away from home. Locally, you can get an 8 amp one for around $570 here: www.juicepoint.co.nz/products.php#5, or as you say, Clipper Creek if you want the extra 2 amps.

[Deleted]

Holden 10 amp evse costs $aud350
And the insides are clipper creek
But there is no padlock hole.
Padlock not needed on 2nd generation leaf, Bmw i3 n tesla model s
As these cars lock the charge coupler.

[madkiwi]

Apr 5, 2015 10:23:43 GMT 11 @g4qber said:

Holden 10 amp evse costs $aud350
And the insides are clipper creek
But there is no padlock hole.
Padlock not needed on 2nd generation leaf, Bmw i3 n tesla model s
As these cars lock the charge coupler.

Thanks, if I get a gen-2 I'll have a talk with the local Holden dealer, see what prices here are. I also like quaternary's idea of hard wiring the import EVSE in the garage, as it will need the plug changed anyway. 

[madkiwi]

So I've now got a Leaf through auction in Japan. The car will be picked up Monday to begin processing for export, de-registration, inspection etc. hopefully will get some pics. Will probably ship in the next fortnight, take a few weeks to transport, then another week for local compliance. So realistically six more weeks of waiting ...

Will end up costing about $18,500 NZD on-road which isn't too much of a saving from a dealer, but it's a G-spec that's only done 11,000 km and is in immaculate condition (5A). Only concern is battery condition, which looks like it's at 10 or 11 bars (pics to come will confirm). 

Here's an auction pic:


More to come ...

[Phoebe]

Interesting - good luck!

[empowerrepower]

Hi Madkiwi,
that sounds exciting and well-priced. You even get the zero emissions sticker along the side that costs $490 as an accessory at Nissan Australia (??!) Welcome to the forum, and keep us posted. I've had my Leaf for a month, and other than Carwings still not working for me (in which I seem to have plenty of company) it is going well.

[quaternary]

Looks a lovely car! Get in touch when it arrives, and we'll have to arrange a Christchurch Leaf meet

[kris]

1 or 2 bars down after just 11,000km seems a lot?

[madkiwi]

May 12, 2015 16:49:10 GMT 11 kris said:

1 or 2 bars down after just 11,000km seems a lot?

It's a 2011 model, so I'm guessing it's partly due to age. Also with low kms it can't have been used much, so maybe it was kept at 100% charge for longer periods. 

I'm hoping that some regular use, and good battery practice (80% charging etc), that the battery condition will improve. 

Its due in the country in a week now, and so I hope to have it in the garage by the end of the month. Have installed a Clipper Creek 15A so I have something to use while I work out what to do with the included charger. 

[lesmando24]

Sounds great. I hope you live driving it.

[duncan]

Great to see you can import a Leaf and save $20k compared to us

Interestingly for the Aussies, with the demise of local manufacturing it looks likely the govt will remove manufacturer monopoly on imports of new cars. The current proposal is that "new" cars, younger than 12 months and 15000klm will be eligible.

I've bought 5 cars from Japan over the years and am currently working on a 6th, so I'll be looking forward to enjoying the savings

[reecho]

Proposed import changes will be for cars less than 12 months old and less than 4000kms...

[lesmando24]

I think Australia has hit the end of the 2012 leafs. Friend of mine got a call saying the last ones are going for $34,990.

[Feng]

There must be a product manager at head office who is so relieved with that. I wonder how they're going with their backlog of Patrols and Pulsars?

[empowerrepower]

They're still be advertised at $39 900 on the Nissan website, but the lower price (and a few at the higher prices) at CarSales.com.au. Nissan should make up their mind.

[madkiwi]

It's finally in my hands, and I love it already. Here are a few of my experiences so far.

Took just under two months from purchase at auction to keys in my hands. Just missed a boat, adding a couple of weeks and a delay at the docks added a week. First car I imported was at compliance two days after the ship arrived, this time it was over a week. Couldn't get a reason, which was frustrating.

It passed compliance, except for the tyres. Although it had only done 11,000 km, the rubber was showing visible cracking, so I had to get four new tyres. After a bit of quick research I decided to stick with Ecopia (PZ-X), as they provide better range, if not as good handling. Haven't noticed any issues with them so far. I think the auction agent I used should have picked this up, but they probably would have needed replacing in a year anyway, so it's not the worst.

When I first got in the main screen was showing "No SD card", so none of the screen functions, including Nav, Radio, A/C settings etc would show. I couldn't find anything after a quick root through what was in the glove box, so I was a little worried. Not being able to play music, or set timers would not be good. A quick google search showed replacements cost mega-bucks. Had a better search once home, and it was there, taped to the inside of a CD case. Inserted, rebooted car, and all working. Phew.

Plugged in my OBD with LeafSpy Pro for iPad. Used this dongle, NZD25 inc. postage direct from China. www.banggood.com/ELM327-WiFi-OBD2-Diagnostic-Scanner-Support-IPhone-IPad-Android-p-922993.html

Oddly SoH is showing 82%, which should be 11 bars, but the dash is at ten (72.5-78.75%). Not sure what's happening there, but will monitor what happens after its had a few more charging cycles.

From the documents in the glove box, I can see it's had a yearly service, the previous owners drove it 5000 km the first year, 4000 the second, and only 2000 the last 8 months before selling. I think the low usage may have contributed to the state of the tyres and battery. A higher km Leaf may actually be a better purchase!

With the help of my (Japanese) mum, I've set up the charge and heater timers, so we'll see how that goes over night. And had to do an emergency shop, and found the well in the boot is great for groceries.

tl;dr I finally have the Leaf, and after a few minor issues, it's awesome.

[Duncan_whocantlogin]

Great to hear.

Does it come with Sat Nav, and if so did it include NZ or are you stuck on a dock in Kobe like my Cima is

[madkiwi]

Just checked, and it's charging on timer correctly, which reminded me of another oddity...

The Navi clock is on Japanese time, and can only be offset +/- 59 minutes. That means I had to set the timers at NZ minus three hours. Required a little bit of brain work, but it looks like I got it right.

I turned off the clock display, so it doesn't bug me ... The time by the speedo could be set correctly thankfully.

And yes, I am in Kobe too. 

[gabzimiev]

Can you get a Australian / New Zealand SD card and copy it and try that ? for maps ?

[madkiwi]

The SD card is tied to your car, so has to be specially prepared. I saw quotes of around £850 in the UK to get them replaced. Ouch.

Here's a breakdown of the costs:
Car shipped. $15,200 (Auction, De-reg, Quarantine Inspection, Shipping, Insurance)
Customs. $2,327 (GST on above, plus customs transaction fees)
Compliance. $793 (includes 1 year WoF, 6 months registration)
Tyres. $719 (Ecopia PZ-X x4, and alignment)
EVSE (x2) and electrical work. $1,101 (Clipper Creek 15A EVSE, electrician for 15A socket , re-wiring Japanese EVSE, Jaycar 15-10A adaptor)

Total $20,140.

[EVangelist]

Jun 9, 2015 21:58:45 GMT 11 madkiwi said:

The SD card is tied to your car, so has to be specially prepared. I saw quotes of around £850 in the UK to get them replaced. Ouch.

Yes, the SatNav SD card is encrypted with your car's VIN, so if you take it out or make a copy and put it in another car, it won't work.

Given the cost of replacement, I should get around copying the one that's in there to make a backup, just in case the original SD card fails for some reason (the Leaf manual provides instructions on how to copy the card).  Peace of mind for about 10 bucks.

And this is my 75th post... "full charge"

[madkiwi]

I've done a bit of checking, and the manual states you can't copy the SD (from other reading, they say the encryption uses the SD serial number, so it can't be copied), but given it stays in place, it should be unlikely to fail in-car.

For those in NZ, you may want to have a look at this OBD2 extension cord to reduce wear on the car's port. It's similar to the one quoted from Amazon, NZD$30 including shipping. I've just purchased one, will update how it goes.

www.stahlcar.nz/index.php?route=product/product&product_id=237



Other things ...

After a bit of reading, it sounds like charging to 100% can help balance the battery, and so I'm going to do that for the next few charges (comments also said it may take a few charges to complete). See if that improves any readings.

From the first 100% charge I got 127 km range (D mode) according to the GOM. That's 218 GIDs, 90.3 SOC, so about 77.6% capacity. That puts it as just having lost the second bar (78.5%).

From Leaf Spy I can also see it's not had many charges (69 QC, at most 360 L1/L2), which is an average of a charge once every 4-6 days. I'd say that it's likely to have sat unused at 80-100% charge a lot of the time, which explains a lower state of health. So I'd say if you're importing, or buying an import, and you can't check the state, you're probably better off avoiding a low km model. Counter-intuitive, but this isn't an ICE where km wear down the engine ... That said, because this was low km, the interior and exterior are almost mint. It feels like a new car.

And of course I'm still loving the car. With an 80% charge, managed to do two days without charging, including two work commutes, and running errands both days too. So far the range isn't an issue, and I don't see it being one.

[Feng]

I used to worry about damaging my OBD2 port, now I just leave it plugged in all the time and only take it out when it gets serviced. I know an owner who left it in and the mechanic got annoyed about it.

I read you have to leave the car plugged in for up to four hours after a full charge for it to balance. If the capacity loss wasn't from being kept a high state of charge it could be from heat exposure or age. Was the car kept north or south in Japan? It might have made a difference.

[madkiwi]

The adaptor I have is fairly long, so I'd worry about kicking it and damaging the port.

The car was in Nagoya, that's fairly central. The agent recommended I avoid auction houses to the North (for all car types), I think that it's colder and snowier, and they use salt on the roads, so corrosion is a risk. Auction houses to the South add extra costs with relocation, so are avoided too. From what I've read cold isn't a factor in battery life, but is in performance. It averages mid 20 C in Nagoya in Summer, so wouldn't think that was an issue. The issues in U.S. are with temperatures averaging 35 C.

Does it keep balancing if it's plugged in, but the timer has expired I wonder... The Leaf Spy cell charge page looked flatter before charging, and had a lower variation (18 mV vs 26 mV). May try adjusting the timers again...