In this brave new world of smartphone reliance, everyone has likely spent several weeks of their lives playing time-sucking games that offer nothing in return. Until the point when it was updated, most likely by a user who had never even opened the software, let alone used it.
The game was suddenly turned unplayable and useless after an eight-second download. Even though it had a stylish new appearance, some striking new images, and some upbeat new in-game music, the same basic functionalities had been modified instantly, making it impossible to figure out how to use them.
But what happens to a car if they do that? Volkswagen and Polestar both recently updated their vehicles so that they could travel farther and charge more efficiently.
All of that is quite lovely, but the moment will come when they utterly screw up and either forget to turn on the heated seat button or decide that they must now pay extra to change their wing mirrors. One might receive three free station changes each month before being required to view an advertisement. Their infotainment could switch to the offensive typeface Comic Sans if some design guru declares that it
is suddenly very cool. And everyone will yearn for the times when a car was completed before being sold.
There is, however, an electric vehicle that eluded detection and fills the void between the noxious petrol-filled analog days and the tech-heavy, emotionless digital era of the automobile. While it is not claimed to be a classic, a person would not get in one morning only to discover that it's an entirely different vehicle with all the settings buried in a different location.
The Nissan Leaf was the vehicle that popularized EVs as a practical mass-market substitute for internal combustion engines. Yes, the interior is cheap and plasticky, which no current customer would accept. But, on the other hand, any over-the-air updates would require one to replace the air freshener that is currently mounted to the rearview mirror.
There are many reliable examples available. If someone acquired one, they would be on the cutting edge of figuring out how long electric cars would live before exploding on their own or coming to a shuddering, mysterious end.
But you can take advantage of everything by purchasing an unused 24kWh model with its generous specification levels and paying a person who has just become an expert in such things to install a new battery. Perhaps even a larger one that benefits from the advancements in battery technology since the Leaf was introduced to the public. Although it is not a covert update, it would at least keep the Leaf healthy.
Nissan Leaf
Price: £4,000–10,000
Range: 124 miles (lol)
Engine: 107bhp e-motor
Battery: 24kWh
Top speed: 89mph
0–62mph: 11.5secs
Boot space: 371 liters
Over the air updates since launch: 0
