500e, Spark EV, Leaf. Which one for Delivery Car?

[McRat]

Thinking of buying a used EV cheap for a delivery car that stays in the warehouse so employees can use it for errands or visiting customers.

All can be had for under $7000 cash with low miles (<36,000) due to lease returns.

Some of the medical devices can be 6' long, but are light and narrow.

We normally service up to 68 miles round trip. In the very rare cases that it's further, or the parts require forklift loading, we have shop pickup. But a 68 mile EV would do 99 out of 100 part runs or errands.

If you own a 2013/2014 500e, Spark EV, or Leaf, tell me if there are some things I should look for. What is the charging rate? Do they struggle to meet EPA range? Are 6' x 3" dia tubes hard to carry? Etc?

EDIT - We had 2 delivery trucks and sold 1 of them, with the intention of replacing it with a small cheap EV that fits in the warehouse easier.

 

[Sasmania]

I'm about to buy a Fiat 500e to put on Turo (along side my Tesla) to rent out and have a back up car when the Tesla is rented out...

So, can't add any real life experience yet, but also interested in what others have to say...

I will say the Fiat looks the best of the 3 by far...but I'd guess the Leaf is a bit more reliable / easier to fix.

 

[McRat]

I'm about to buy a Fiat 500e to put on Turo (along side my Tesla) to rent out and have a back up car when the Tesla is rented out...

So, can't add any real life experience yet, but also interested in what others have to say...

I will say the Fiat looks the best of the 3 by far...but I'd guess the Leaf is a bit more reliable / easier to fix.

All I know about the Fiat is that it has the longest range reported in the Car and Driver Shootout:

2014 Chevrolet Spark EV vs. 2013 Fiat 500E, 2014 Ford Focus Electric, 2013 Honda Fit EV, 2013 Nissan Leaf SL, 2013 Smart Fortwo ED Cabriolet - Comparison Tests

The Spark is the top rated of the litter, but for this application, the ability to go 68 miles in all weather is critical.

 

[Sasmania]

Haha. "Longest Range" of the bunch.... and still under 100 will be a bit of an adjustment compared to a Tesla... but hey, as long as it meets your particular needs, why not?

 

[McRat]

Haha. "Longest Range" of the bunch.... and still under 100 will be a bit of an adjustment compared to a Tesla... but hey, as long as it meets your particular needs, why not?

A 17mm socket is not a replacement for a 12mm, even if it's bigger.

Our folklift is short and relatively light. Our machines and trucks have max ratings of 2500lb, and the laboratory is carpeted (anti-static). It was not really cheaper than a 5000lb lift, but it is the right tool. A heavy forklift will tear the carpet apart and lift more than we can put onto a machine.

EVs are much the same. You might not get any advantage out of a 300mi EV when an 80mi works. In fact, the small one might even be a better tool.

 

[Petra]

I had a Leaf for three years before getting my Model S and if the ability to haul cargo around is what you're looking for, then the Leaf certainly fits the bill... However, range and battery degradation are both points against the Leaf. Can a Leaf go 68 miles on a single charge? Yeah, but probably not at typical California highway speeds after a few years.The employees driving it are going to have to learn that the SoC gauge is bottom weighted and that the guess-o-meter is nearly useless, so pushing the range is more stressful than it should be due to poor instrumentation. On the degradation front, keep in mind that the battery health gauge isn't linear--the top bar actually represents a loss of about 15% pack capacity.

Charging time on an L2 240V setup will depend on whether the Leaf in question has the 6kW or 3.3kW onboard charger and not all Leafs came equipped with CHAdeMO DC fast charging capability, so keep an eye on those details when shopping and comparing.

 

[McRat]

Thanks, that's the kind of feedback I'm looking for. I did not know some Leaf's did not have CHAdeMO. We have CHAdeMO everywhere so a degraded battery isn't a killer. The fact some don't have it is important, just in case.

 

[Canuck]

If you decide on a Leaf, get a Amazon.com: Veepeak Mini Bluetooth OBD2 OBDII EOBD Scanner Adapter Automotive Check Engine Light Diagnostic Code Reader for Android Windows: Automotive and Leaf Spy Lite - Android Apps on Google Play to check the health of the battery before buying.

 

[gene]

@McRat, in case you don;t already know, Anaheim Pre Owned Cars has some of the best deals and largest inventory of used Fiats, Leafs and Sparks. Starting around $6500. I bought a Leaf from them and a few friends of mine have bought from them. These guys were knowledgeable of EV's and pleasant. Josh was my salesman.

 

[jerjozwik]

i vote 500e, supper nimble little beast, horribly low resale price and if you remove the back seats you get a crap ton of space.
seat removal
https://flic.kr/p/nL8gkh
20141128_162543
20141201_082758 << 55 gallon drum
https://flic.kr/p/qpXJKm
https://flic.kr/p/pyZC7U
https://flic.kr/p/sqPbQq
https://flic.kr/p/wxi6HJ
https://flic.kr/p/AmkMGm
https://flic.kr/p/FfPt5A
https://flic.kr/p/Jvz5i6

sorry for not direct posting the images, best i can do on mobile.

 

[UCIBtheG]

I have a 2015 Fiat 500e that I picked up in January for $7500. I have a 63 mile round trip commute to work, and lately have been getting home with around 20% charge left over. Half of my commute is in traffic, the other half I set the cruise at 65. Range is definitely affected negatively by a heavy foot, headwinds, ambient temp, and running the heater (A/C and heated seats don't seem to hit range much).

The bigger concern would definitely be the 6' poles. Not sure that would fit with the back seat dropped. If it does, it's probably going to be tilted from the dashboard to the hatch lid. This is not a spacious car.

 

[gene]

In my Leaf, with the front passenger seat leaned back, I have fit 8' 2x4's easily.

 

[miimura]

RAV4 EVs are also readily available on the used market in California for $15k-$20k. They have far more cargo capacity than the other options listed and have a 40kWh battery. CHAdeMO charging is available aftermarket.

 

[number12]

Leaf FTW. Drove for a couple years. Great car till it got totaled. Would buy again and plan to.

 

[EV-lutioin]

i vote 500e, supper nimble little beast, horribly low resale price and if you remove the back seats you get a crap ton of space.
seat removal
DSC_0046
20141128_162543
20141201_082758 << 55 gallon drum
20141214_145048
20141221_135559
20150520_103359
20150627_160015
20150911_070852
20160215_114426
20160312_181407

sorry for not direct posting the images, best i can do on mobile.

And if you remove the passenger seat, you could easily fit long objects.

 

[jerjozwik]

@EV-lutioin , the car has long since returned to fiat.

 

[Xminus6]

RAV4 EVs are also readily available on the used market in California for $15k-$20k. They have far more cargo capacity than the other options listed and have a 40kWh battery. CHAdeMO charging is available aftermarket.

Yes and they have the longest range of any EV outside of Tesla. Ours will go 110 miles on an extended charge.

 

[cwerdna]

Thanks, that's the kind of feedback I'm looking for. I did not know some Leaf's did not have CHAdeMO. We have CHAdeMO everywhere so a degraded battery isn't a killer. The fact some don't have it is important, just in case.

'11 Leaf CHAdeMO available as an option on the SL trim only. N/A on SV trim.
'12 Leaf CHAdeMO only included on SL trim. (2012 Nissan Leaf gets higher price tag, more standard equipment). N/A on SV trim.

'13 to '15: CHAdeMO became optional on new cheap S trim (as part of the charge package which also upgrades OBC to 6.6 kW).
CHAdeMO is optional on SV trim. It's added via the "LED Headlights + Quick Charge Port" package.
CHAdeMO is standard on SL trim.
(I used to a lease a '13 Leaf SV w/premium and QC + LED package. I now own a used '13 Leaf SV w/premium only. No CHADeMO.)

'13 to '15 S w/charge package, SV and SL have 6.6 kW OBC (6.6 kW from the wall at 240 volts. About 5.7 to 6.1 kW at ~208 volts).

'11 and '12 Leaf only have "3.3 kW" OBC (can actually pull ~3.8 kW from the wall at max.)

Cars w/CHAdeMO will command a price premium over ones without.

You can get an idea of the trim levels and what's included via Specs tab of their press kits. Examples below
2012 Nissan LEAF Press Kit
http://nissannews.com/en-US/nissan/usa/presskits/us-2013-nissan-leaf-press-kit

Just Google for (model year) leaf press kit site:nissannews.com.

Fiat 500e CANNOT be DC FCed. SAE Combo aka Combo1 aka J1772 CCS was optional on some (all?) years of Spark EV. Spark EV only has lame 3.3 kW OBC (pulls about 3.1 kW on 208 volt EVSEs.)

The Spark EV and Fiat 500e are quite small inside. Leaf is the best bet in terms of interior room of the ones mentioned in the thread title.

Leaf has no battery cooling other than passive air cooling and not even a fan. Spark EV and Fiat 500e (per many sources such as Fiat and Chrysler unveil 2014 battery-electric 500e - SAE International) have battery cooling.

 

[cwerdna]

Yes and they have the longest range of any EV outside of Tesla. Ours will go 110 miles on an extended charge.

Bolt is EPA rated at 238 miles.

 

[Xminus6]

Sorry. Forgot about the Bolt oddly. It's the longest range of that whole fleet of first generation EVs, of which I didn't consumer the Bolt a member.