What you are missing is that the Leaf is drive-by-wire -- pressing the pedal does NOT always activate the physical brakes. For light-to-medium braking, the ele

What you are missing is that the Leaf is drive-by-wire -- pressing the pedal does NOT always activate the physical brakes. For light-to-medium braking, the electric motors can be operated in reverse to decelerate the vehicle. More generally, the wear on the brake pads is roughly related to the amount of energy they soak up. Energy that gets pulled back into the battery by regenerative braking does not go towards wearing the brakes.