2021 Nissan Leaf e+ 64kWh Review

Here’s a question for you: before the release of the Tesla Model 3, what was the world’s best-selling electric car? The larger Model S? The BMW i3? No, it was the Nissan Leaf. As of September 2021, over 600,000 units of the Leaf have been sold and while this is partly due to its overall appeal, it’s also because it was actually the first mass-market electric vehicle the world had ever seen. It was originally launched in 2010 (2011 in Australia) and the second-generation car seen here launched in 2019. Considering its longevity in the market, is the 2021 Nissan Leaf e+ worth consideration if an electric vehicle is needed to whet your motoring appetite? Let’s find out. 

Price & Equipment: 6/10

While the entry-level Leaf in Australia is priced at just over $53,000 drive away in Australia, the larger batteries in the e+ version tested here mean that it costs more: $64,990 drive away, to be precise. Of course, it’s an EV and they cost a lot to make, but just shy of $65,000 is a lot of money for a hatchback. 

Standard kit on the 2021 Nissan Leaf e+ includes LED lighting with LED daytime running lights, auto lights and wipers, single-zone climate control, a leather-wrapped steering wheel, leather and suede upholstery, heated front and rear seats, an 8.0-inch touchscreen with wired Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, digital radio, inbuilt satellite navigation, a seven-speaker Bose sound system, keyless entry and start, heated and auto-folding mirrors, 17-inch alloy wheels with eco tyres, an auto-dimming rear mirror, drive mode selection, rear privacy glass, front and rear fog lights, chrome door handles, a seven-speaker Bose sound system and adjustable battery regenerative braking. 

Safety kit includes six airbags, auto emergency braking (AEB) with pedestrian detection, lane keep assist with lane departure warning and lane trace assist, adaptive cruise control with stop and go functionality, blind-spot monitoring with rear cross-traffic alert, front and rear parking sensors, a 360-degree camera, auto high beam and traffic sign recognition.

The one solid paint finish for the 2021 Nissan Leaf range is the ‘Arctic White’ our test car was painted in, while premium options for an extra $595 include ‘Magnetic Red’, ‘Vivid Blue’, ‘Pearl Black’, ‘Platinum Silver’, ‘Gun Metallic’ and ‘Ivory Pearl’, which is paired with a black roof ($995), while ‘Vivid Black’, ’Magnetic Red’ and ‘Gun Metallic’ can also be had with the black roof.

There are several competitors to the Leaf e+, including the Kia e-Niro Sport, Hyundai Kona Electric Highlander Extended Range and the expensive Mazda MX-30 E35 Astina. While it costs around $5,000 more, the Kona in particular is far better equipped than the Leaf e+, and it offers 100km more of range. More food for thought: the Tesla Model 3 and incoming Polestar 2 are available for around the same price, but are larger, better equipped and offer more range and better performance.

Performance & Range: 8/10

Under the 2021 Nissan Leaf e+’s body is a 64kWh lithium-ion battery pack, which powers its 160kW/340Nm electric motor that sends power solely to the front wheels – these outputs are 50kW/20Nm more than the entry-level (and $10,000 cheaper) entry-level Leaf. 160kW is hot hatch from not too long ago power and because of that, the Leaf e+ feels peppy. Its claimed 0-100km/h sprint time is just 6.9 seconds, which is quite close to the Ford Fiesta ST and quicker than the Kona Electric’s 7.6 second sprint time. 

The Leaf e+’s 64kWh battery pack can be recharged in as little as 54 minutes using a 100kW DC fast charger – something the lesser Leaf cannot do – while using a 50kW charger increases that to 90 minutes. Using a wall socket – something that many owners will do – will be an overnight affair.

With an official 18kWh/100km efficiency rating, Nissan claims that the Leaf e+ will travel a reasonable 385km on a charge (WLTP), and we found that to be fairly accurate having travelled 370km on a charge in our time with the car. But in summer, the lack of water cooling for the battery packs could lessen that significantly as the car relies on air to cool the battery packs. But again, a Kona Electric offers 484km of range, which is much healthier.

Ride & Handling: 6/10

Driving the 2021 Nissan Leaf e+ is a normal experience that feels just like driving a regular-powered hatchback, though without engine noise, of course. Dynamically, the Leaf seems fine, though spend more time with it on a variety of roads and it becomes obvious that work is needed to tune the suspension, which uses a dated torsion beam rear end and has an unpredictable nature – sometimes it’s totally fine (particularly at higher speeds), but around town, it’s just too crashy. The suspension really struggles with its 1,736kg tare weight.

The Leaf’s driving position also is also odd, as the seat is too high up and the steering wheel doesn’t adjust for reach, which is unacceptable in a $65,000 car. The steering itself is also largely feel-free and the car doesn’t feel particularly nimble thanks to its weight. Hustle the Leaf into corners and you’ll be met with disappointment. Levels of grip aren’t high, nor does the steering inspire confidence.

The brake feel is great though, and Nissan’s ‘e-Pedal’ system – which is a super strong form of regenerative braking – is easy to get used to and you can pretty much drive the car using only one pedal. 

The Leaf’s active safety systems are not that well expertly tuned as well – particularly the awful steering wheel vibration that somehow passes as a lane keeping system. The Nissan’s visibility isn’t great either thanks to the high windows, though its road noise levels are pleasingly low.

Interior & Practicality: 6/10

While this second-generation Leaf was hailed as a new car upon its release in 2019, it used the bones from the previous-generation car. That’s most obvious in the interior, which fees like a mish-mash of new tech (the large centre touchscreen) and old design (the dated materials). Another example of this is that the steering wheel is from the modern era of Nissan design, but the light and wiper stalks have been used for a long time. The materials used inside are reasonable too with a nice mix of soft touch and leather, but you get the impression that they’re just tacked onto the bones of the old car’s interior, which is disappointing for the price asked. 

Centre of the Leaf’s cabin is an 8.0-inch touchscreen that features inbuilt navigation, wired smartphone mirroring through Apple CarPlay and Android Auto and digital radio. The screen isn’t the highest quality, and the system’s usability could be improved with more shortcuts and better graphics, but it’s a totally fine system to use. But compared to the Leaf, the Hyundai Kona and Kia e-Niro’s centre screen (it’s the same unit) is far easier to use, is higher quality and offers more functionality such as live traffic for the navigation.

The practicality of the Leaf’s interior is not great either. The small centre console is the highlight, while the phone tray ahead of the shifter looks like it features wireless charging – it does not. The cup holders are large, but the centre console design is dominated by the transmission selector, which could be significantly smaller in our opinion. Small door bins front and rear don’t help either. A Kia e-Niro or Hyundai Kona’s dashboard is much more practical.

The back seat of the Leaf is comfortable, though thanks to the packaging of the electric motor, you sit quite high up and even six-footers will struggle with headroom. It does feature two map pockets, small door pockets and even a heated bench, but there’s no centre armrest, no vents and no charging ports.

The boot of the Leaf measures in at a pretty reasonable 405-litres and folding the rear seats opens up 1,176L. There are a few tie down points but that’s it in the way of practical touches – the subwoofer for the Bose sound system sits on the boot floor, and gets in the way. Folding the seats also reveals a massive ridge between the seat base and boot floor – that also accentuates the huge boot lip – that would be fixed if the car offered a second level for the boot, which can be fitted through a $630 dealer-installed organiser. There’s also no spare wheel. 

Service & Warranty: 8/10

Like other new Nissan products, the Leaf is covered by a five-year/unlimited km warranty with five years of roadside assistance – its battery is also covered by an eight-year/160,000km warranty. Service intervals fall either once yearly or every 15,000km, whichever comes first and the cost for servicing the Leaf for five years/75,000km is a reasonable $1,413 ($282 per service). 

This compares well to rivals – the Kia e-Niro offers a longer seven-year warranty, but the Nissan’s battery warranty is longer, and it can only travel up to 10,000km between servicing. Its service cost is also more expensive at $1,729 ($345 per service) and that’s only to 50,000km – 25,000km less than the Leaf.

The 2021 Nissan Leaf e+ DiscoverAuto Rating: 7.2/10

The 2021 Nissan Leaf e+ is a solid addition to the electric car market with its more useable range and added performance that make it feel quite sprightly from behind the wheel. It’s also reasonably practical, well equipped and is reasonably cheap to run as well. It’s also a great size, offers a good 385km range and can be charged relatively quickly using higher-output charging stations.

But it’s not perfect – its ride and handling balance needs work, its boot could be more practical, the cabin design and materials are dated and it’s priced at a huge $65,000 drive away. We think there are better EV options available such as the Kona Electric and with more due soon – such as the new Polestar 2 – the Leaf needs improvement or to be priced at the $53,000 drive away level of the entry-level car to remain competitive.