It was fun to drive. Clean. And ultimately, safe.

[wtmusic]

RIP wtmusic's Nissan Leaf.



My wife was driving home from work last Friday in our Nissan Leaf, barely six months old, when a Lincoln town car darted out from a side street and struck her broadside. It spun the her around and she crashed into an SUV. Both side air bags deployed and my wife was unharmed, but (as I just learned from my insurance company) the Leaf was a total loss.

We've had it for six months and a little over 5,000 miles - it was a great car. Best pickup of any car I've owned. I'd replace it but rumor has it the waiting list is 18 months, so the Ford Focus Electric is a possibility.

:(

[RoccoR5955]

1. Sorry to hear it. There are other fuel efficient alternatives.

Take, for example, my Prius .
I get about 52 mpg, with a 21 mile 1 way trip to work each day. I have had it since March, and put 15k on it. I drove from around Poughkeepsie, NY to the Kennedy Space Center to see the last launch of the shuttle, and only had to fill up twice. I am getting about 550 miles on a tank of gas, or so. The hybrid is the best bet for me, because of its range. The Leaf simply wouldn't do it for me, but I guess if you had a to do mostly short City trips, it would be okay.

I hope that you are all in good health, and you think about other fuel efficient cars.

[CaliforniaPeggy]

2. I'm really sorry to hear this...

We JUST bought one.

I'm not so sure about the waiting list...We didn't wait nearly that long.

I'm glad your wife is OK...

[wtmusic]

3. That's reassuring.

How long did you wait? I'm not sure we can wait, we need another car.

Congrats on your purchase. What color?

[CaliforniaPeggy]

6. We didn't wait long...a couple of months, I think.

We wanted a light color, either white or silver. White came in.

We got a car with all the bells and whistles, and that might have had something to do with how quickly we got it. We needed that sort of car since we were going for the federal/state rebates. Those are only available with the top of the line cars.

[kristopher]

4. Thank goodness your wife is Ok.

If the wait time is too long you might consider offering Nissan USA thanks for building the car that protected her. Provide a testimonial of your experience along with the situation you face as a result and send it to

JON BRANCHEAU
Vice President, Nissan Marketing
Nissan North America Inc.
One Nissan Way
Franklin, TN 37067

CC
Carlos Ghosn - Chairman and Chief Executive Officer
Nissan Motor Co., Ltd.
2, Takara-cho, Kanagawa-ku, Yokohama-shi, Kanagawa 220-8623, Japan

Toshiyuki Shiga
Chief Operating Officer
2, Takara-cho, Kanagawa-ku, Yokohama-shi, Kanagawa 220-8623, Japan

You never know what public input is worth to them.

[OKIsItJustMe]

5. Very shrewd…

Do it in any case.

So often companies only hear complaints. How nice to be thanked on occasion.

[Nihil]

7. Sorry to read that

Very glad that your wife is OK but sorry that the car
is a write-off.

I've been enjoying your updates on the Leaf and it was
kind of you to post this last sad yet positive report
so that other people can appreciate what a good car it is.

Best of luck for a suitable replacement.

:grouphug:

[wtmusic]

8. Thanks for your thoughts Nihil. nt

[txlibdem]

9. I'm happy that your wife is ok

But I'm very sad to see that your Leaf is totaled after only 6 months of driving heaven.

I didn't even read that you had bought one. I'm heading to google as I write this so I can catch up on your thoughts about the Leaf.

Mine was on the waiting list, all I had to do was get the charger and head to the dealer but since I'm disabled and unable to drive (or be a passenger for very long either) I had to cancel my reservation.

:cry:

Please keep us updated and please contact Nissan USA as the other poster suggested.

[wtmusic]

12. Will do txlibdem.

Our plan was to never buy another gasoline-powered car.

Maybe there's still hope.

[txlibdem]

13. That was my plan too, never buy another fossil burner car

There is hope, however. You are right about the Ford Focus EV but the Leaf is MUCH roomier looking. I'd take a test drive of the gas version of the Focus before putting any deposits down.

And who knows... maybe Nissan will boost you higher up in the wait list or do something to help get your Leaf back sooner (all they'd have to do is increase that dealer's allocation by 1 vehicle).

[TheWraith]

10. Have you considered keeping it anyway?

The definition that the insurance company uses to say a car is "totaled" is when the cost to restore it to original condition is more than the car is considered to be worth on the market. NOT that the car is no longer functional. My 1997 Mercury Sable was "totaled" after hitting a deer; the airbags blew, windshield was destroyed, and the front turning signals were out of commission. But the car itself ran great, and after replacing the windshield it continued to serve me for another 6 months or so.

Your insurance company would no doubt refuse to cover it for collision, glass, or comprehensive, but they would probably still cover for liability.

[wtmusic]

11. If so, it would have cost a lot to get it driveable again

The insurance company is ready to write me a check for $35K - for all I know it could cost more than that.

If it were an ICE I would probably consider it.

[TheWraith]

14. In that case, can I have it to play with? :D

Actually if we were closer, I'd seriously consider trying to take it off your hands. Would be a fun project for me.

[kristopher]

15. The owner usually has first option to purchase for scrap value.

If the car isn't parted out, and is instead repaired after being totaled it is retitled under a special class - "reconstructed".
Everything else flows from there.

[TheWraith]

17. Really, in some places you have to buy back your own "totaled" car?

Sheesh.

In my case, after the insurance agent visited the garage it had been towed to and declared "totaled," I just got a ride down there, picked up the car, and drove it home.

[kristopher]

18. Then you'd have had to make prior arrangements with the ins co.

It might just have been a passing comment to the agent, but usually they ask what you want to do with it. If you say you want it, the salvage value is deducted from the settlement.

Two daughters, two totals, and a good friend that just went through the experience of finding out he had purchased a reconstructed car without it being titled properly. I don't know how much variability there is with the laws. There used to be a lot, but I think it has tightened up considerably in the last two decades or so. When I was young I knew a scammer that ran reconstructed cars through Alabama or S. Carolina where the process washed the titles of the label.

[TheWraith]

20. If you want to call it a "prior arrangement..."

They offered me an extra $200 on top of the base payout if I wanted to just leave the car with them and have them scrap it.

[kristopher]

21. Exactly.

It is a routine process.

[Kolesar]

16. I know you were so proud of your new electric car

And I am glad your wife is ok.

[IDemo]

19. Would any of the motor, battery, or control electronics be usable?

It seems with your prior experience there might be at least some of the core components for another project.

That would assume the money, time, motivation and shop space all exist, of course!

[wtmusic]

22. A lot of it will be recycled as Leaf parts.

I would love to take it apart and rebuild, but the insurance company is offering cash, and I need a car!