Many buyers, especially first-timers and those eyeing a cheap used Leaf, have no easy way to judge a pack from a test drive alone. Range readouts swing with temperature, and dash bars are vague. Owners who plugged in a LeafSpy-style reader often found the numbers worse than the mileage suggested, while cheap generic dongles sometimes wouldn't connect at all.
Pricier cars raise the stakes. Several Tesla shoppers said dealers never brought up battery health, and one friend's Model Y only got a proper test after purchase, so a written figure before paying is worth asking for. Bolt shoppers focus instead on recall history, and a free VIN lookup shows whether the battery recall is still open.