During last weekend our Leaf became two years old and rolled up 33,000 km. We both still love driving it: quiet, peppy, and reliable as always.  This post is a quick update on how the Leaf’s doing.

As I mentioned in my Battery Life post the drive battery gradually loses its ability to hold a charge.  The battery is now at 90% capacity which means it can hold 90% of the charge that it did when it was new. When the battery is 10-15 years old, it is expected to slide below 70%.  That’s plenty of capacity for our local driving and, for those keeping track, yes, the Leaf still has plenty of charge for the drive to Saint John. Newer EV models now use a water-cooled battery which reduces capacity loss to less than 1% per year.

The only maintenance so far has been the annual battery check ($43), a cabin filter replacement ($40), and winter tires. Thanks to our regenerative braking, the brake pads are well less than half worn. I still expect the brakes to outlast those in our gas car by years.

That’s it for now.