Nissan Leaf Review

• Typical used price (UK): £8,000–£15,000 (2018–2022 40kWh cars; the longer-range 62kWh e+ costs more)
• This car: £9,199 (LP72OFA, HPL Motors Preston)
• Insurance group: 24P
• Range (WLTP): 168 miles (40kWh battery, 39kWh usable)
• CO₂: 0 g/km
• Best for: Home-charging commuters and town drivers wanting an affordable, easy EV

Is It a Good Choice?

For anyone wanting to go electric without spending a fortune, the Nissan Leaf is one of the smartest used buys around. It was one of the first mainstream electric cars, so it's a proven, well-sorted design, and it's genuinely easy to live with: quiet, comfortable, refined and cheap to run. As a commuter or second car, it makes a huge amount of sense.

This example is the 40kWh Acenta, the mainstream version, and it's very well equipped, with Apple CarPlay, sat nav, adaptive cruise control, a reversing camera and Nissan's clever e-Pedal one-pedal driving. With just 17,447 miles, one owner and a battery health guaranteed above 90%, it's a reassuring, low-mileage example. At £9,199 it's excellent value for a modern electric car, and ideal if you can charge at home.

Pricing & Running Costs

The current Leaf has been on sale since 2018, so there's a good used choice, and EVs of this age represent strong value now that early depreciation has passed. Prices depend on battery size, age and mileage.

Typical UK Used Price Ranges:

• Early 40kWh cars (2018–2019): roughly £8,000–£11,000
• Later 40kWh cars (2020–2022): roughly £9,000–£15,000
• Longer-range 62kWh e+ models: typically several thousand pounds more
• This car (2022, very low mileage, one owner): £9,199

Running Costs

• Charged at home on a cheap overnight tariff, the Leaf costs a fraction of a petrol car to run
• Insurance group 24P — mid-range, typical for an EV of this size
• With far fewer moving parts and no oil changes, EV maintenance is minimal
• EVs now pay VED road tax (see Range, Charging & Tax below)
• As a pure EV, it's exempt from ULEZ and Clean Air Zone charges

Performance & Driving Experience

Like all electric cars, the Leaf feels brisk and effortless around town thanks to its instant response. It produces 148bhp and covers 0–62mph in a nippy 7.9 seconds, delivering smooth, quiet acceleration that makes light work of city driving and joining faster roads. There's no gearbox to think about, just seamless, silent progress.

On the road it's comfortable, refined and genuinely relaxing, with light steering and good visibility that make it easy to drive and park. A highlight is the e-Pedal, which lets you drive using just the accelerator in most situations, slowing the car and topping up the battery as you lift off. It's not designed to be sporty, but as a calm, easy-going everyday car it's very likeable.

Key Performance Figures:

• Power: 148 bhp (150 ps)
• Battery: 40 kWh (39 kWh usable)
• Drive: Front-wheel drive, single-speed automatic
• 0–62 mph: 7.9 seconds
• Range (WLTP): 168 miles

Interior & Technology

The Leaf's cabin is comfortable, spacious and easy to get on with, and this Acenta is generously equipped. It has an 8-inch touchscreen with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, sat nav, DAB radio and Bluetooth, along with automatic climate control, adaptive cruise control and a reversing camera. There's a real wealth of safety and driver-assistance kit too, including blind-spot warning and rear cross-traffic alert.

Being an established design, the interior is more conventional than some newer EVs, without the huge screens and minimalist styling of the latest models, and a few of the plastics are hard rather than plush. But it's well built, logically laid out and very easy to use, which counts for a lot in daily driving.

Space & Practicality

The Leaf is a practical five-seat hatchback with decent room front and rear, comfortable enough for a small family or for carrying adults in the back. The boot is a useful size at around 435 litres, though there's a fairly high load lip and the floor isn't completely flat, partly because the charging cables live back there. For a commuter or second car it's plenty practical; as a bit more of a load-lugger for a big family it has its limits.

Dimensions:

• Length: 4,490 mm
• Width: 1,788 mm
• Height: 1,530 mm
• Boot: ~435 litres
• Seats: 5
• Doors: 5

Range, Charging & Tax

As an EV, the Leaf is cheap to fuel and clean to run, but it's worth being clear on its range and charging so you buy with your eyes open.

• Official range (WLTP): 168 miles for this 40kWh version
• Real-world range: expect roughly 120–140 miles in mixed use, dropping in cold weather or at sustained motorway speeds. It's well-suited to commuting and local driving, while the longer-range 62kWh e+ is the one to seek out if you regularly cover big distances
• Home charging: a 6.6kW on-board charger gives a full charge in around 7 hours on a home wallbox (ideal for overnight top-ups) and the car comes with a Type 2 cable
• Rapid charging: here's the key thing to know. The Leaf uses the older CHAdeMO rapid-charging connector rather than the now-more-common CCS standard, at up to 50kW (roughly a 40–60 minute top-up). CHAdeMO chargers still exist but the network isn't growing, so the Leaf makes most sense for buyers who can charge at home, with public rapid charging as an occasional backup rather than a daily necessity
• CO₂ and tax: 0 g/km at the tailpipe. Since April 2025, electric cars are no longer exempt from road tax (VED), so the Leaf now pays a low first-year rate and then the standard annual rate — check the current DVLA figure
• Clean Air Zones: as a pure EV, it's exempt from ULEZ and Clean Air Zone charges

Safety & Reliability

Safety is a strong point. The Leaf was awarded the maximum five stars by Euro NCAP, with high scores for occupant protection, and this Acenta comes with a genuinely generous suite of active safety kit, including intelligent emergency braking with pedestrian recognition, blind-spot warning, lane-departure warning and rear cross-traffic alert. The rating dates from 2018 and has since expired as standards have tightened, so it's best compared with cars of a similar age.

NCAP Ratings (Euro NCAP, 2018):

• Overall: 5 Stars
• Adult occupant: 93%
• Child occupant: 86%
• Vulnerable road users: 71%
• Note: autonomous emergency braking with pedestrian recognition is standard; rating dates from 2018 and has expired

On reliability, the Leaf has a strong record. Electric cars have far fewer moving parts than petrol or diesel models, and the Leaf's drivetrain is well proven after years on sale. The main things to understand are battery-related: the Leaf uses an air-cooled battery, which can temporarily slow rapid-charging speeds on long journeys with repeated fast charges, though this is much less of an issue in the UK's mild climate and for home-charging owners. Reassuringly, this car's battery health is guaranteed above 90%, it's covered by Nissan's 8-year/100,000-mile battery warranty (which runs well into the future on a 2022 car), and its low mileage bodes well. As with any used car, it's worth confirming service history, that any outstanding recalls (such as the reversing-camera campaign on cars of this age) have been completed, and HPL adds its 128-point check and a warranty of its own.

Alternatives

• Renault Zoe — a similar affordable EV with a comparable range, though safety scores vary by year.
• Hyundai Kona Electric — longer range and a liquid-cooled battery, but usually pricier.
• Kia Niro EV — roomier and longer-legged, with Kia's strong warranty.
• MG ZS EV — a practical, keenly priced electric SUV alternative.
• Peugeot e-208 — a stylish small EV with CCS charging, if you want something newer.
• Vauxhall Corsa Electric — another compact EV hatch, with modern CCS rapid charging.

Verdict

The Nissan Leaf is one of the most sensible and affordable ways to run an electric car, and this low-mileage, one-owner Acenta is a lot of car for £9,199. It's refined, well-equipped, cheap to run and reassuringly backed by a strong battery health guarantee and Nissan's long battery warranty. The things to weigh up are its real-world range of around 120–140 miles and its CHAdeMO rapid charging, both of which make it best suited to home-charging drivers rather than frequent long-distance travellers. But for a commuter or second car, it's a genuinely smart, easy and economical used EV.