Last night the temperature dropped to single digits for a span. This prompted several outside activities to prepare for the cold.
I covered the strawberries with leaf mulch and doubled up the row covers. Water hoses were disconnected and covers placed over the spigot.
Buckets and other vessel’s normally filled with water were turned over and their contents spilled out on the lawn.
We had snow the previous week, so much of the preparation was already partially completed.
My LEAF in the air.
The last chore for further cold weather is getting my tires refilled. The cold pressure has reduced the psi in my back tires by nearly 6 points.
The back tires are the new pair I got from the dealership. The mechanic said they didn’t see any signs of leaks and the drop in pressure was just the cold weather.
My next appointment will be in March for tire rotation. Shouldn’t cost more than $25. Then I’ll be set to drive for a good long while.
I am getting ready to fly out tomorrow morning for a trip to visit my father in Washington state. I will be flying out from RDU in the wee hours of the morning and touching down around second breakfast (10AM).
I’ll be flying on Delta Airlines. I booked the flight on my American Express Delta Blue. Unfortunately, I forgot to use my accrued miles for the booking. I tried asking a phone rep if they could apply a credit using my points, but they wouldn’t allow it. I’ll just have to keep saving my miles for now.
It’s about a 6 hour flight, so I will be needing to grab a bite to eat before I ship out. I am thinking I’ll swing by the Starbucks in the terminal for something to nosh on before boarding. The last time I flew, they gave us crackers and liquor. I probably can’t count on similar amenities.
I’ll just be packing my phone, watch, and their chargers for electronics. I had planned on bringing my DSLR, but my mother needs it for recording, so I’ll stick to the phone for my photography.
That should actually be easier for uploading, I won’t need to fumble around with memory cards. I can only imagine losing a MicroSD card in-between the seats mid-flight. It might be something like that one time I lost an SD card down the A/C vent in my Nissan LEAF.
I expect to be away for about a week, so I won’t be playing games much. Sadly I think the first Landmark contesting period for the second season of Rome will be while I am airborne.
I have paused all of my eBay shops and this afternoon I swung by the post to ship the out the last few parcels. I am looking forward to finishing out this 4th quarters sales on a high note and beating last years totals.
I was pleasantly surprised today while checking in for my Nissan LEAF appointment at the local dealership.
In the customer waiting area, on the counter were these wonderful bagels from a local shop my mother frequents, Jeff’s Bagel Run.
Jeff’s Bagel Run
Just the other day my mother and I had lox and cream cheese on some Asiago bagels she had picked up from the shop. The lox and fixings came in a packaged set with sliced red onions, tomato, cucumbers, and of course the cream cheese.
I was a bit sad actually, because I had lunch just before driving to the dealership, so I didn’t have any room for a bagel. So, I grabbed an espresso from the coffee machine instead.
Long Espresso, 4oz Strong Brew
I am getting my front wiper blades replaced today. The left wiper blade has been loose for several months. When it’s sunny out I forget it needs fixing. Then when it rains I procrastinate or insist its not that bad.
There is this one spot just above my view out the windshield where the pine straw always gets stuck and the wiper just flops over it and all the water nearby. It’s kind of infuriating when I am driving.
But, somehow, when I get home and step out of the car, I forget all of my driving worries. They don’t seem to exist until I step back in the car. Maybe it’s my personality or something to do with being a pedestrian for so many years. I just worry about the car much.
Other than the appointment, I have a small parcel to drop off at the Post Office. A pair of IZOD Saltwater Stretch shorts I posted yesterday, received an offer and I accepted right away.
I also wanted to swing by the Goodwill, but I may need to reorganize the order of events. I actually started watching a new drama, “My Youth” and was running late for the appointment, so I skipped the Post Office.
I had planned on dropping it off on the way back, but I don’t know how long I might be at the dealership and the post closes at 4:30. It is 2:30 right now. I suppose I could find a local post or just back track to a different Goodwill location after delivering the parcel.
I’ll have to think about it.
Yesterday, I went to the Treasure Hunt shop looking for a second wifi repeater, but I didn’t have any luck. I got distracted and was wandering around the shop with a pile of food in one arm and poking around the bins.
I decided to put most of the food back, thankfully. I did purchase 12 dollars of goods though.
I got two new frigidaire 80 lb wall mounts, a Goodyear v-belt, and a jar of sofrito bullion.
An Irish start-up firm in Co Kildare (Range Therapy) has begun offering battery swaps for the Nissan LEAF Mk1 model.
This service is currently priced at 7k Euros (7,212.10 USD), with discounts available if you decide to trade in your old battery.
Nissan LEAF Mk1
Daly brought her old 24kWh Mk1 Leaf to Range Therapy, and shortly afterwards drove back out again with a new 70kWh battery, giving the Leaf a potential range of up to 475km on one charge – something that the 160km ranged original could never have even thought about.
Once removed, the older batteries can be repurposed as an energy storage vessel similar to the power walls found in commercial and residential structures.
For US-based consumers, there are options available for replacing older batteries in LEAF vehicles. Models from the 2010s through to 2018s can be upgraded to the extended range 62kw Plus size batteries.
Leo & Sons Auto Repair of Massachusetts is an auto shop that can perform the battery replacement service. The LEAF Facebook group provides a list of shops that can perform the replacement service.
Your options for LEAF battery replacements typically come down to going to a Nissan dealership or working with a battery replacement specialist.
Typically, the 62kw battery packs run for $8k-16k depending on availability.
If you are having difficulty finding an available battery pack, try auto scrap shops. Often when a car is involved in an accident the insurer will write off the vehicle as a total loss when the damage is often only cosmetic.
I went in to my local Nissan dealership to get two tires replaced.
Local dealership
On a previous visit the staff had noted a nail in the front tire near the sidewall. This had caused a slow leak and set off the sensors in the car.
Unfortunately, the nail was quite likely already present when I purchased the vehicle. I recall having the same message appear on the dashboard and inflating the tires soon after.
My visit to the dealership took much longer than I expected, although, I had not been given an estimate on how long it would actually take to swap my back tires to the front and install the two new tires on the back.
I arrived early, at 1:30 pm, by about an hour and did not leave until sometime after 4 pm.
During the wait a women sitting next to me recounted a harrowing experience with this particular Nissan Dealership.
I was quite unsettled after hearing her story. I don’t know If I will go back there. I have other options as there are many mechanics available in my area.
I do like the idea of getting my work done at an official location. I also enjoy using the My Nissan Rewards program.
I have a copy here of my message to the dealership:
Hello Katie,
Cole was not on duty when I brought my vehicle in for my service appointment. Although, he did handle the checkout process after the work had been completed.
A different employee assisted me, I do not recall his name. I had not been given an estimate on the amount of time it would take to complete the tire replacement. I arrived at 1:30 pm and left around 4:25 pm.
For a portion of the wait, I sat at the large windows and viewed my vehicle being lifted, lowered, moved, and relifted repeatedly. I observed the employee working on my car taking multiple breaks during the operation.
I also had a chance to speak with other customers while at the facility and heard from them some rather unsettling reports of misconduct by your staff and sales people.
Your facility is conveniently located near my home and I do like the idea of receiving services from Nissan.
However, I am now concerned whether I can trust your staff to be ethical in their work.
I will likely need to discuss this matter with other people to get a better understanding of the experience.
Afterwards, I can make a clear and informed decision.
Sincerely,
Daniel K. Arthur
I was responding to a text message and ended up being more verbose than is typical of texting as a medium of communication. But I do think I got out what I needed to say.
I plan on asking around on Facebook and Reddit to get an idea of other people’s experiences at this particular dealership.
Whether I go back in the future depends on the answers I receive.
I have just received word that the delivery truck has left the dealership and is on the way to drop off my new (used) 2021 Nissan Leaf SV Plus.
I have the cashiers check all signed and ready to go, my insurance is active, and I’ve spent the morning watching YouTube videos about the car functions.
I’ll update this post when the car arrives.
My new car has arrived. I cannot wait to get out on the road and start driving.
My next goal is to get some income going so I can pay the insurance.
What ended up happening was I found a somewhat local dealership that had a Nissan LEAF SV Plus available and it only had 17k miles on it. For $15,998 I felt it was a good deal. After the regular fees, I was quoted $17,422.19 and a separate charge for delivery of $149 (75mi).
Last week, we went to the dealership to take the car for a test drive. It was a long trip and it was my mother’s birthday, so we stopped at the H-Mart in Cary to procure some choice pastries and on the way home we swung by the Red Robin for her free birthday burger and the Starbucks for her free birthday coffee. Plenty of sweet freebies including a cake from the Publix grocery store.
The car took some getting used to but I found the drive very smooth. The only issue was a loud buzzing sound, however, I found it to be a bug stuck in my dreadlocks. Some weird cross between a moth and a carpenter bee I’d say. It managed to free itself while I was pulled to the side of the road searching Google for “buzzing sounds” and the Nissan Leaf.
Cutting ahead now to the present, I have scheduled delivery and I am expecting a cashier’s check ($10k) in the mail for my down payment. I will be financing the remainder of the balance ($7422). I’ve got another check for $4,000 coming soon and then I can probably put the rest on my US Bank Altitude card which has a 0% promotion running.
The next hurdle was getting a “binder” from the insurance company. I initially spoke to the insurer for the house and my relatives’ vehicles but was told I was too old to be on their policy without being a joint owner.
I was directed to start my own policy, however, the quote was $533 per month which was too much given my small income. I tried Progressive, but their website was down, I called the General and was quoted $1,538 per month.
Finally, I used a generic website which led to a phone call with an insurance agent from Direct Auto Insurance. This ended up being the ticket. I received a quote of $224 per month, which is still a bit much, but better than the others.
The binder was handled smoothly and I should have the details sent over to the credit union that will handle the financing and the lien. I’ll have a few more calls to make tomorrow with the dealership and possibly the insurance agent, but otherwise, I think I am pretty much set.
At some point down the road, I want to get a custom license plate with my name on it. That’ll cost $33 with fees. I also want a DashCam, I have been looking at the Vantrue Element 1 for $71 on Amazon. I may make a post about that later.
I got some helpful input from my relatives on which cars they had good opinions of. After reviewing my options I have finally settled on the 2020 Chevy Bolt EV.
The Bolt gets 259 miles of range with a 66kWh battery. It has all the technology I am looking for with Android Auto, a nice console screen, a backup camera, and safety features.
2020 Chevy Bolt EV
I found a nice dealership in Virginia that will be able to deliver the vehicle to me for $300. There are processing fees of $699 plus the cost of the vehicle itself, which is $16,000. The EV Tax credit will help a bit next year.
I have $11.5k in the bank and I have a one-year, 0% Balance Transfer offer on my US Bank Altitude GO card. I can probably get another 4-5k from that card without pushing the minimum payments too high.
My limit is 9k for that card and the BT fee would be about $199 for a $4,000 transfer. I am also getting 3k from my father as an early graduation gift.
So that should be about $18.5k available to cover the cost of the purchase plus registration fees. I will also need to get the car added to the household insurance policy. I was added to the policy earlier this year as a requirement to take the NC driving test.
I had dithered some time on getting a Kia Niro PHEV which has excellent mileage. The main problem I ran into with the Niro’s was that most were priced at 20k+ and often had 60-100k miles on them. I didn’t want to get something that was nearing the end of its life (or midlife).
2019 Kia Niro PHEV
I will be losing the larger trunk space that the Niro (19.4 ft³) has to offer if I go with the Bolt (16.9 ft³), but I think that is an acceptable trade-off if I can get a vehicle with 20-30k miles on it instead.
Another car I was looking at was the Nissan LEAF. The dealership only had the SV model (40kWh) available and I really wanted a Plus model which has a larger 62kWh battery. The trunk in the LEAF is much bigger (23.6 ft), this is despite having the wheel wells constricting the space.
2019 Nissan LEAF (SV)
So for now I am just getting my funds together to make the purchase. If a LEAF Plus shows up before I make the call, then I may switch to that vehicle instead. Otherwise, I expect to be driving sometime in May.
Thanks for reading, I appreciate your taking the time to be here. If you have any questions or comments for me, be sure to leave them below, and have a great day!
Fat Wallet Refugee 