Avoid LEAF separation anxiety
iPhone owners have been able to stay in touch with their LEAF from the beginning. Now Android and Blackberry owners will have the same opportunity. Yet another app to download, look at once or twice, and never really use much again.
The mobile app will let LEAF owners start charging their car (if plugged in), check the status, or turn on the climate control system. We have owned our LEAF for over four months now, and have really not used any of these features, except for when we first downloaded the app to see if it worked. In addition, the LEAF will notify you when your charge cycle is complete, and how much range you have remaining. (We are somewhat amused by this last one. The range will pretty much remain whatever it was when you last drove it – unless perhaps you park in sub-freezing temperatures and leave your vehicle for very long periods of time.)
We do give Nissan credit for trying hard with this one, but the telematics system available on the LEAF is currently more for Nissan’s benefit than for the consumer. And just so you know, we do feel that the feedback provided to Nissan by the system will be valuable to development of the technology. No matter how much research goes into development of the system, real-world feedback is extremely beneficial.
For instance, without the CARWINGS system, Nissan wouldn’t have known that the Top Gear episode showing the LEAF running out of juice was staged. Nissan looked at the data of the vehicle provided to the show and saw that the battery had been depleted by over half prior to the commencement of the trip taken on the show in order to purposely run out of juice.
So is the app useful? In the sense that it provides interactivity with the vehicle – potentially. Currently – there is nothing provided by the app that makes it a “need to have” item.
The feature I find the most interesting is remotely turning on the climate control system. It could be very useful in the winter here, where can you warm the car’s interior before entering the car and without lowering your range.
I’m wondering if all those features are available for LEAF owners without a smart phone. Can you do the same things from a Nissan web site?
Gwido – absolutely. As a LEAF owner, you can access the CARWINGS system via your home computer, or your smartphone.
While I don’t really have a need for much of what this system offers, there are certainly others that could make use of features such as the one that you mentioned – pre-heating or pre-cooling the car. There is a significant advantage to doing this – precious battery juice is conserved to do what it’s designed to do – move the car down the road, as you mentioned. But also, wouldn’t it be nice to get into a nice toasty car in the morning instead of one where you’re not comfortable for the first several miles as it gets up to (or down to) a comfortable temperature?
While it sounds as if we are negative on CARWINGS (which we might be, slightly, overall), the system does offer some convenient capabilities that may be used by some. And as long as it’s free for the first three years, you might as well take advantage of it. (No word yet on pricing after that).
Thank you for the information Ernie. Do you know how to download the app on to a Blackberry please?
Hi Bob,
You can find it here: http://appworld.blackberry.com/webstore/content/52616
Yes… thanks Gwido!
Many thanks Gwido!