The Nissan Leaf is one of the most common used electric cars in the world, and Japan has a large supply of them at low prices. An electric car has almost no running costs if you can charge it at home, but the battery is everything: its condition decides how far the car goes and what it is worth.
Generations and Batteries
| Generation | Years | Battery | Typical range when new |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st (ZE0/AZE0) | 2010–2017 | 24 kWh, later 30 kWh | About 120–200 km |
| 2nd (ZE1) | 2017 onwards | 40 kWh | About 270–320 km |
| 2nd, e+ | 2019 onwards | 62 kWh | About 380–450 km |
Grades are S, X and G, plus the sporty NISMO and special editions.
Battery Health Is the Main Check
- The dashboard shows battery capacity as 12 bars on the right of the gauge. A car with all 12 bars has little wear; each lost bar means noticeably less range.
- Ask for the state of health (SOH) percentage, read with a diagnostic app. We can ask for it before you buy.
- The Leaf's battery is air-cooled, not liquid-cooled, so it wears faster in hot climates and with frequent fast charging. In the Caribbean and East Africa, plan to charge mostly at home and slowly.
Charging
- Home / AC charging: uses the Type 1 (J1772) plug. A home wall box or the portable charger is how most owners charge.
- Fast charging: uses CHAdeMO. Check whether there are CHAdeMO chargers where you live; many newer chargers are CCS only.
- Check your home's electricity supply and the local plug standard for the charging cable.
What to Check
- Battery bars and SOH: see above. This matters more than mileage.
- Charging port and cable: make sure the charging cable is included.
- Warning lights: ask about any EV system warning on the auction sheet.
- Auction sheet: read how to read a Japanese auction sheet.
Duty
Many countries charge lower import duty on electric cars than on petrol cars. Ask your clearing agent; it can make a Leaf much cheaper to land than you expect.
Age Limits: Which Countries Can Take One
Some countries cap the age of an imported car: Jamaica allows up to 5 years, Trinidad & Tobago 4 years, and Kenya and Guyana 8 years. The Bahamas, Barbados, Suriname, the Eastern Caribbean islands such as Saint Lucia and Antigua, Uganda and Tanzania have no strict age limit on our checker. Rules change, so always confirm with your clearing agent before you pay.
A 2018-onwards Leaf can go to Kenya and Guyana; a 2021-onwards one also to Jamaica.
The table at the bottom of this page applies each country's rule to our live stock and shows the cheapest delivered price. For the full list see import age limits by country, and for duty and port fees see how to calculate the total cost.