2022 Nissan LEAF Acenta 40kWh from UK and Ireland

Summary:

Useless EV

Faults:

Went into low power mode and won't fully charge.

General Comments:

Get a hybrid if you want an electric car that has the back up of a petrol engine; these fully EV's are useless if you have any issues!

Range is rubbish anyway on full charge when it did work and not as good as claimed (about a quarter charge less than claimed full charge range).

Do the math and you find the running cost are similar to an internal combustion car anyway!

When it was running right, it was pleasant to drive and an OK looking quiet car.

But I have lost all trust in EV's and did not enjoy the experience.

Depreciates like hell, not worth the money.

We are nowhere near there yet in the UK with these things, stick to petrol or diesel!

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? No

Review Date: 20th May, 2026

3rd Jun 2026, 15:14

Definitely wouldn't buy one. I knew someone with the same problem with an EV - a Renault Zoe from 2016 who bought brand new and the range still dropped from a claimed 90 miles per charge (which is still rubbish) to 75 at most. Battery fully charged and driven carefully, dealer said this was still normal.

Never had any experience with Nissan lately, but their 1990's cars are legendary. What a fall from grace, to be fair it's not just rubbish EV's killing the brand recently, I believe the problems started in the early 2000's when they teamed up with a French car manufacturer and started putting their dCi diesel units in their cars, which were not very reliable.

In reply to 3rd Jun 2026, 15:14

19th Jun 2026, 07:52

As it turns out, EV range figures are widely exaggerated by manufacturers, just like they do with miles per gallon figures in internal combustion engine cars.

Also for EV's another problem is even if you do get close to the full range figure through careful driving, using the electrics in winter such as the heater or anything else also pulls more from the battery reducing its range.

4th Jul 2026, 13:08

Thermal management on Leafs is very poor, ie they don't have a proper cooling system on their batteries. If you generally drive slow and carefully, no problems. If you stress it, either high speed driving or you live in an area that's hilly you might get the reduced power warning and the car goes into a limp/safe mode until the battery temperature is down. Do this many times and you'll get a degraded battery. I know there are many happy Leaf customers out there, but you really need to know the limitations of these cars, especially the early ones. Better after circa 2017, but Nissan never designed the Leaf with liquid cooling of the battery. So use this car as a commuter or city car, and you'll be fine.

2015 Nissan LEAF Acenta 24kWh electric from UK and Ireland

Summary:

Still not there, don't believe the hype

Faults:

To be fair it's been pretty reliable, no major issues. For ten years, we have been told the battery is still good with "11/12" health.

General Comments:

A pretty decent and still modern looking car, I will try to talk about the LEAF's positive points first.

Inside is comfy and modern. The car is actually nice to drive and very quiet as expected. Not slow either.

Not bad looking.

But charging points for electric are still few and far between in the UK, and expensive to charge. It also takes far too long. For 2 hours charge that still only gets you about 30 or so miles. And full range (which takes 12 hour charge by the way) is unimpressive at under 200 miles realistically when using electrics, worse in winter.

It has been reliable over the two years however.

Tyres are expensive. The car's running costs when you do the math are in all honesty, taking everything into account, not that different from a traditional internal combustion engine car. And electric cars have batteries which contain lithium, a fossil fuel... oh dear.

It also depreciates like hell, the car is near worthless at ten years old. The electric thing really isn't taking off here. Far better off with petrol or diesels cars, which I am going to sell this car and go back to! I went into the electric car market with an open mind, but sorry, I am just not impressed. This is no fancy Tesla - this is a more realistic type of car they want everyone to drive however, and it is simply not there yet! Even more modern ones I've heard still have much the same issues like my 2015 LEAF.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Don't Know

Review Date: 8th June, 2025

9th Jun 2025, 13:49

Debatable whether lithium is a fossil fuel or not, otherwise fair review.

26th Jul 2025, 09:08

Friend of mine has the same car, the battery barely gets 80 miles now on full charge range. Useless unless you live in the city and do not drive much.

22nd Aug 2025, 15:31

Ya know, range and charging points issues aside, I think most people just do not want electric cars. I know of no one who actually likes cars that would want one even with improvements in range and other things. Sure Tesla's are wonderful, but most people will not be able to afford one, they will buy cars like this Nissan.

In reply to 9th Jun 2025, 13:49

22nd Sep 2025, 10:34

Fossil fuels are hydrocarbons derived from the remains of ancient life. Lithium is a metal with no hydrogen or carbon. The only way it could possibly be categorized alongside fossil fuels is if there's a higher concentration of lithium around fossil fuel deposits. This is aside from the many issues behind lithium mining.