2018 Nissan Leaf

Routine

Owners filed 68 complaints about this vehicle with federal regulators, most often about the brakes. It has been recalled 4 times.

Not among the Nissan Leaf years to avoid. Which Nissan Leaf years to avoid →

Most common 2018 Nissan Leaf problems

17 of the 68 complaints (25%) are about the brakes.

ComponentReportsCrashesFiresInjuries
Service Brakes · brakes17
501
Vehicle Speed Control · throttle and acceleration9
300
Electrical System9
000
Fuel/Propulsion System · fuel and propulsion system6
000
Structure › Body · body and frame4
000
Air Bags · airbags4
100
Unknown or Other3
000
Visibility/Wiper · wipers2
000
Steering2
002
Power Train · transmission2
010

4 safety recalls

Part 573 reports
Back Over Prevention › Sensing System › Camera24V071000
Filed Feb 2, 202457,914 vehiclesNissan North America, Inc.

Defect. Nissan North America, Inc. (Nissan) is recalling certain 2018-2022 LEAF vehicles. Damage to the camera harness can cause distortion or loss of the rearview camera display image. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard number 111, "Rear Visibility."

Risk. A rearview camera that does not properly display an image can reduce the driver's rear view, increasing the risk of a crash.

Remedy. Dealers will inspect the rearview camera and harness for damage and replace them as necessary. If no damage is found, the dealer will apply protective tape and reroute the rearview camera harness. Repairs will be performed free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed August 9, 2024. Owners may contact Nissan customer service at 1-800-867-7669. Nissan's number for this recall is R23D7.

Vehicle Speed Control23V494000
Filed Jul 17, 202366,159 vehiclesNissan North America, Inc.

Defect. Nissan North America, Inc. (Nissan) is recalling certain 2018-2023 LEAF vehicles. The vehicle may accelerate unintentionally if the driving mode is changed ("D" to "B"; e-Pedal "On"; or "ECO" mode) after disengaging the cruise control.

Risk. Unintentional acceleration can increase the risk of a crash.

Remedy. Dealers will reprogram the vehicle control module (VCM), free of charge. Owner notification letters are expected to be mailed August 30, 2023. Owners may contact Nissan's customer service at 1-800-867-7669. Nissan's number for this recall is R23A6.

Equipment › Other › Owners/Service/Other Manual23V048000
Filed Feb 2, 202364,732 vehiclesNissan North America, Inc.

Defect. Nissan North America, Inc. (Nissan) is recalling certain 2018-2023 LEAF vehicles. The Owner's Manual instructions for defroster operation are incorrect, and may result in reduced defroster performance under specific conditions. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard number 103, "Windshield Defrosting and Defogging Systems."

Risk. Reduced defroster performance can limit visibility out of the windshield, increasing the risk of a crash.

Remedy. Nissan will mail an addendum with updated instructions on how to operate the defroster, free of charge. Owner notification letters are expected to be mailed April 1, 2023. Owners may contact Nissan's customer service at 1-800-867-7669. Nissan's number for this recall is R22C5.

Back Over Prevention › Sensing System › Camera19V654000
Filed Sep 12, 20191,228,830 vehiclesNissan North America, Inc.

Defect. Nissan North America, Inc. (Nissan) is recalling certain 2018-2019 Nissan Altima, Armada, Frontier, Kicks, Leaf, Maxima, Murano, NV, NV200, Pathfinder, Rogue, Rogue Sport, Sentra, Titan, Titan Diesel, Versa Note and Versa Sedan vehicles, as well as Infiniti Q50, Q60, QX30 and QX80 vehicles. Additionally included are 2019 Nissan GT-R and Taxi and Infiniti QX50, QX60, Q70, Q70L vehicles. The back-up camera and display settings can be adjusted such that the rear view image is no longer visible and the system will retain that setting the next time the vehicle is placed in reverse. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 111, "Rear Visibility."

Risk. The lack of an image in the back-up camera display increases the risk of a crash.

Remedy. Nissan will notify owners in phases, having dealers update the back-up camera settings software, free of charge. The recall began November 11, 2019 and all affected VINs should be activated. Owners may contact Nissan customer service at 1-800-867-7669 or INFINITI customer service at 1-800-662-6200.

All 4 campaigns on file, newest first.

What owners reported

Newest filings
Electrical System
Filed Oct 28, 2026PA

My High Voltage battery failed on my car at ~50k miles in 2022. Nissan replaced the battery under warranty. It has failed again now at 110k miles and is way worse than the previous failure. The car will abruptly shut down under load on hills or high speeds on the highway and I will get a P33ED battery fault code. Nissan customer service told me they would offer assistance and after 2 months of waiting on them to find the part number for the battery, they now informed me they won't help. After doing some research, there is a recall out for 2019-2022 Nissan leafs with possible fire related issues because of the batteries and the P33ED code that i am getting is directly related to this recall. I believe I have a recalled battery in my vehicle but Nissan won't offer any assistance because my VIN isn't necessarily recalled. I feel unsafe to charge or operate this car, especially under any type of speed or load and Nissan is offering no assistance in repairing the vehicle or even verifying the battery manufacturer date.

Engine
Filed Oct 14, 2026PA

I purchased this EV in 2021 with ~30k miles on it. On cold days ~20 degrees, the battery would drop rapidly under a load (going uphill, high speeds, etc) It would continue to drop until you were not under load anymore. The dealer said nothing was wrong until I had my family in the vehicle and it totally shut down on the highway going 70 mph and i lost all brakes, steering, etc. They finally took me seriously and put a new battery in at ~55k miles in 2022. I continued to have similar issues in the winter on really cold days, but not nearly as bad so i lived with it. At about 100k miles, it started doing a very similar issue, but way worse, and at any temperature. It got so bad i couldn't drive without the battery always being fully charged. Took it to the first dealer who said nothing is wrong with it even though i had videos of it happening. I then called nissan corporate and opened up a case and asked them directly "before i take it to another dealer for a second opinion, is this something that you can offer financial assistance with" and that lady said "yes, we can offer assistance for sure". I took it to another dealer who did some tests and confirmed it needed a battery. Shortly after that, the car now shuts down under even a slight load. A small backroad hill will shut it down and I get an error code P33ED now. This code is related to a battery recall on 2019- 2022 models that can cause a battery fire! After almost 2 months of nissan saying they didn't have the part avai

Service Brakes
Filed Aug 3, 2026OH

Vehicle brakes went out on the driver during normal operation.

Service Brakes
Filed Jul 31, 2026OH

Vehicle was being driven like normal with no warning lights or icons. vehicle was bring driven at 35 miles an hour when suddenly the ABS fault message appeared on the dash, the dash started beeping and brakes became very hard to press.

Electrical System
Filed Jul 16, 2026TN

This is the second high-voltage traction battery failure on this vehicle. The original HV battery failed and was replaced by Nissan under warranty at an authorized dealer on XXX, at approximately 59,000 miles. The Nissan-manufactured replacement pack has now failed after approximately 16 months in service. On XXX, at ~74000 miles, the vehicle was diagnosed at Johnson City Nissan ([XXX]) with an internal short circuit within the high-voltage battery pack The error codes were P31E7-00 0B and P0AA6-1A 0B. Dealer service personnel identified the condition as an internal short in the pack. Due to the fire risk associated with an internal short in a lithium-ion traction battery, I declined to take possession of the vehicle, which remains at the dealership. An internal short can lead to thermal runaway without warning, whether the vehicle is being driven, charging, or parked. The failure of a factory replacement battery pack in 16 months, following the failure of the original pack, indicates a potential manufacturing or design defect in Nissan's service replacement HV battery packs for this platform. I am reporting this so NHTSA can evaluate whether other Leaf replacement packs exhibit similar internal short failures. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

Fuel/Propulsion System
Filed Jul 11, 2026MD

Car was fast charged on July 9th. 2026. After fast charging from 13% to 80%, and driving for a few miles, the overheating warning came on and car was forced to stop on the side of a busy highway until the engine cooled off. While there is an active recall for a similar problem (24V700), my car is not included and we were not notified.

Visibility/Wiper
Filed May 31, 2026CO

Fail component: mechanical linkage (transmission rod) between the motor and the wiper arms. The ball pops out of the socket resulting in the wipers not working despite motor running. This happened with full speed wipers running. I repaired it, and two weeks later it disconnected again while running wipers at full speed in heavy rain. This left me without windshield wipers in heavy rain on a road with a 55mph speed limit. If I had not been able to quickly exit this would have resulted in significant risk to myself and other motorists. I was able to drive home on slower side roads, but the lack of wipers remained a safety issue. I have not taken in into a dealer or shop to have it reproduced. I will take photos while fixing. No incident or police reports were filed. There were no warning lights or alarms before or after this occurred. It seems this is a known issue that is common to Nissan vehicles including the leaf.

Service Brakes
Filed Jan 21, 2026CA

This vehicle is equipped with a feature known as "e-pedal" also known as one-pedal driving which is quite common on EVs. When this mode is activated, the accelerator pedal acts as a speed command (vs. power) and when the pedal is not depressed, the vehicle applies brakes until it comes to a standstill. Recently, the system has demonstrated a fault condition, where the Vehicle Control Module (VCM) issues a fault warning and disengages the e-pedal mode. This appears to occur randomly after the vehicle has been at a standstill for over one minute (e.g. waiting at a traffic signal) where the driver is using the one-pedal system vs. continuously applying pressure to the brake pedal. The safety issue is that when the system detects a fault and disengages e-pedal, the vehicle starts to move forward, requiring the driver to take immediate action to stop unwanted motion. This can lead to a collision with a vehicle or pedestrian in front of the vehicle. The desired behavior is that when the VCM detects a fault with the e-pedal system, it should engage the Park mode and prevent the vehicle from moving forward. The driver must then depress the brake pedal and affirmatively command the Drive mode before moving. Just disengaging the e-pedal (brake) without prior warning of a fault is a safety hazard.

Vehicle Speed ControlCrash
Filed Jan 8, 2026CA

On 1/6/2026, as I slowed down as I was turning into my parking lot. I had Eco and e-pedal ON for regenerative braking. As I was turning into the parking lot, the car suddenly accelerated, went over the curb, across the street, over another curb before finally stopping after colliding with a structure. I was driving slowly and distinctively recall braking. This sudden unintended acceleration put safety at risk and caused significant property damage. There were no warning signs or messages. The car is in the yard now and will be available for inspection.

Electrical System
Filed Dec 19, 2025CA

I was traveling north on Freeway 57 at approximately 70mph. The dash lit up red with 12v and charging warnings. Power was shut off and car went into Neutral and warned me to pull over. This is an incredibly busy freeway and I was in the far left lane. I barely made it to the shoulder coasting before car started shuttering and jerking and stopped rolling. I could have been killed.

Visibility/Wiper
Filed Dec 19, 2025MI

The front windshield wipers on this car fail in light ice or snow. They've broken every winter I've owned this car (four years). This results in me driving around without front windshield wipers until I can get it fixed, watching the weather forecast and hoping I don't get caught in rain or snow. It happens despite my best efforts not to use the wipers in freezing weather unless absolutely necessary, going so far as to drive in light snow or rain without wipers to avoid breaking them. I've fixed it myself (not easy, especially in winter weather) and paid a mechanic to fix it for me at least three times. Most recently, the mechanic replaced the entire motor and linkage assembly which was extra expensive, but the right wiper broke again this Thanksgiving. (Until this last time, both wipers have always broken together.)

Structure › Body
Filed Dec 3, 2025VT

Vehicle failed inspection due to a rusted out front subframe which seems premature for a 7 year old vehicle with 27,599 miles on it. According to local mechanic, they've seen this issue with many Nissan Leaf models. This is a critical piece of the vehicle hence it failing inspection due to rust. The vehicle has not (yet) been inspected by the local dealership to confirm the issue and there were no warning symptoms prior to it failing inspection.

Air Bags
Filed Jun 9, 2025CA

After four years of owning this vehicle purchased new, the passenger side seatbelt warning light came on the dash. It indicated the seatbelt was not buckled while no one was sitting in the passenger seat. When buckled the light went out. Brought it to the attention of Nissan, Service every year when they would clear the code and it would be good for a month or two, and the light would come back on like before. Last month on May 9, I brought the vehicle in again and asked for a thorough assessment. Nissan service said to make the light go out they would have to replace two passenger side occupancy sensors, totaling $1800 parts and labor. They did not have the parts on hand, I left with the vehicle only to find out that the intermittent seatbelt light that would go out when buckled, stayed on continuous now. Also noticed the illuminated airbag light stating the airbag was off. And that was also on at all times whether someone was in the passenger seat or not. When purchasing the vehicle new we also purchased a gold preferred extended warranty, that I believed would cover these parts. But Nissan, consumer affair said the the warranty will not cover those items. After a month of trying to get Nissan, service and consumer affairs to work with me, still no help. Searching online I found Nissan, has had numerous issues and even some recalls with occupancy sensors in the seats of many vehicles. It seems to be an ongoing issue with Nissan, regarding earlier model vehicles and newer mo

Vehicle Speed ControlCrash
Filed May 15, 2025HI

On [XXX], I was slowly pulling into my driveway, took my foot off the accelerator and turned the steering wheel slightly to the right as the driveway is L shaped. Suddenly, the car sped up towards the garage door. I looked down quickly to see if I’d somehow pressed the accelerator by accident but I had not. I slammed on the brakes as hard as I could but the car kept going and smashed into the garage door and the corner of the garage, causing close to $20k in property damage. The hood and front bumper were badly caved in at the point of impact and pieces of the undercarriage were on the ground. The air smelled like rubber and there were tire marks on the driveway here I had slammed on the brakes. The airbags did not deploy. The Automatic Braking System did not work. There were no warning messages or lamps. The only unusual symptom that I noticed was that on my way home from Kona, when I was pulling up slowly to a traffic light, the car seemed to hesitate a couple of times, which seemed odd but not severe enough for me to be concerned about a wreck. That occurred about a half hour before the incident. I was not physically injured but I have been very shook up and depressed since the incident. If this had happened on the highway, I could have been killed and the car could have killed others on the road. I reported the collision to USAA immediately and, on their advice, I had it towed to Kona Nissan, the dealership where I purchased the vehicle and where I have had it serviced. T

Engine
Filed Mar 11, 2025KY

After hard acceleration then releasing the accelerator pedal, the vehicle does not slow as expected and, at times, will actually continue to accelerate. The vehicle will slow as expected when the brake is applied, but will again gradually accelerate when the brake is released. If slowed to a stop, the vehicle may begin to accelerate once the brake is released. This issue does not occur after normal acceleration. The issue may be related to NHTSA Recall Number 23V-494, which repairs have not been addressed for the subject vehicle, although the issue occurs regardless of the state or change-of-state of the e-pedal switch or cruise control function, both of which are mentioned in that recall. This issue has occurred on multiple occasions in the time that I have owned the car (approx 13 months.) There is no correlation with weather conditions or initial or final speed. The only consistent variable is rate of acceleration.

Electrical System
Filed Feb 24, 202579,545 milesOH

The contact owns a 2018 Nissan Leaf. The contact stated that after his wife had parked in a parking garage, the vehicle was restarted and driven in 17-degree Fahrenheit weather when the vehicle lost motive power. The "Service EV System, No Power" message was displayed. The contact's wife pulled over and had the vehicle towed to the dealer. The contact stated that the battery had previously been replaced. The dealer determined that the failure was caused by a frozen battery. After the battery had thawed, the battery was able to be recharged. No repair was recommended. The contact related the failure to the variable voltage control system and the 12-Volt battery amp-hours (Ah). The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and a case was opened. The failure mileage was approximately 79,545.

Power Train
Filed Feb 14, 2025NJ

Vehicle randomly shuts down when car is underload traveling at highway speed up an incline and with the climate on. Diagnostics are showing multiple cells that are bad in the main battery manufacturer is stating that it is normal wear and it is normal. I’ve only had the car for 300 miles. It was a previously owned car that was supposed to carry an eight year warranty on the drivetrain and battery. They are not honoring the warranty and the vehicle is dangerous to drive and in fact cannot be driven the situation occurred on three occasions where the vehicle just randomly shuts down on the freeway in the middle of the highway. This is a serious concern that will definitely cause injury or death. I attached photos of two occasions when the battery discharged almost immediately, and the one photo shows on the vehicle was completely disabled. I have more supportive photographs and computer printouts from diagnostics if requested..

Unknown or Other
Filed Feb 5, 2025WA

The Power Distribution Module failed in my 2018 Nissan Leaf at 77k miles. It left me stranded with no way of getting home. The Power Distribution Module is supposed to last 10 years 100k miles but Nissan warranty only has is warranted to 60k miles. The dealership said the PDM only lasts around 70k miles however it is $5k to fix which is half of what the car is worth. They are unwilling to do a good faith repair because I didn’t service the car with their dealership even though I only serviced it at Nissan dealerships for the life of the car. This seems like really bad business to put a part in the car that the dealership knows will go bad at 70k miles but only warranty it up to 60k miles when it is a major electrical component to the vehicle and is over the half the value of the vehicle to fix. On top of the PDM there are other codes that the vehicle has that relate to the master brake cylinder but the dealership said they won’t know if there are more issues until I pay the 5 k to fix the PDM then they can assess if I have to pay another 5k to fix the other part. I drove the car very safely and treated it very well for the whole time I’ve had the vehicle. I’ve read of multiple other PDM issues with Nissan leaf and I’m curious how this part is not recalled?

Service BrakesCrash
Filed Jan 13, 2025HI

Car was descending towards Kailua on the [XXX] on Oahu, HI. Dash lit up with warnings and acceleration and brake pedals stopped working. Brake pedal went to the floor with erratic pulsing sensation and very little brake power. Driver drove car into jersey wall to slow and stop vehicle. Battery state was 60% and battery was replaced under warranty about 1 year ago. While waiting for tow, powered on vehicle and symptoms remained as far as I could check. Brakes had no power and had to use ebrake to keep vehicle from rolling. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

Air Bags
Filed Jan 13, 2025IL

I did not have an incident(accident), I noticed issues with my car, that seem to be prevalent with other Nissan Vehicles. This report is mostly proactive. I took the vehicle to the dealer for inspection and repair however was unable to come to a conclusion due to multiple inspection charges done by dealer but no fixes. Issue 1. Airbag Fault Warning Light on the dash. Turns on when I start the car, and stays. I took car to dealer and they have done a computer reset to reset the light (based on an internal Nissan bulletin on how to repair that issue, with mention in the repair notes that a lot of vehicles have that issue.) The reset didnt work and the light is back, now the dealer is saying that a whole sensor needs replacing as its prone to failure. Initial repair mentioned "code B00A0 stored for occupant detection system, but will not relearn." Zero Point Relearn will not complete. Referred to NTB19-071D... Ran the 75H Reset, code clears." Secondary repair: 'B00A0 Returned. Performed database search and found similar cases. Nissan recommends OSC and sensor replacement. Performed Bulletin again and error code is now 24H, not 75H. Zero point will not relearn. Started a case with Nissan and was advised to replace ...[OCS]... and strain sensors..." Issue 2: Loud clanking or grinding noise when turning vehicle left or right until wheel stops. Went to get this repaired and was told that dealer found bulletin 12-055J and will "need to replace axle nuts and apply Molykote." Paid for

Electrical System
Filed Dec 19, 2024IA

I was traveling home from work at approximately 60MPH (speed limit) and I experienced a rapid drop in the state of charge from ~60% to ~25% in 15-20 seconds. I slowed the vehicle to 55MPH and it recovered most of the state of charge. When accelerating to 60MPH a few miles later I experience the same behavior and was forced to maintain 55MPH. I was forced to turn off the electric cabin heater, heated seats, and heated steering wheel as well. I have been able to recreate the issue if the battery is: cold (outside temperature less than 15F and the vehicle has been outside for 8+ hours), less than 60% charged, and put under high load (going up a steep grade/60MPH+) the vehicle will register a battery discharge rate of ~5%/second and continue until the vehicle puts itself into turtle mode, the load is reduced, or I assume, shut off. Battery discharge is "phantom" where the vehicle, when under less load (i.e. slower/slowing), will return to a higher charge, and when no load (i.e. stopped), will return to close to the original charge. Depending on how long the high load is maintained it can drastically reduce the real state of charge on the battery. The Nissan dealership identified it as at least one bad battery module, but no fault codes were registered by the vehicle outside of experiencing turtle mode. This issue forces the driver to slow down to reduce load on the vehicle and abrupt speed changes may be required to keep the vehicle operational. This can put the driver into a dan

Service BrakesCrash
Filed Dec 13, 2024HI

The incident occurred at a stop sign where I was waiting behind one other vehicle. The vehicle ahead of me accelerated from the stop sign to turn into traffic, but abruptly slammed on their brakes. I had began accelerating up to the stop sign and was unable to stop before impacting the car in front of me. As soon as I saw the vehicle was braking, I immediately slammed on the brake pedal. Braking did not immediately occur. My wife said she was afraid that I had slammed the gas pedal because she could hear my foot hit the brake pedal and neither of us felt any braking. The Nissan Leaf was in Eco Mode and ePedal at the time of the incident. I believe that the transition from regenerative braking to mechanical braking delayed the stopping of my vehicle. We were lucky that this happened in a very low consequence situation, but if this happened with a pedestrian or at a higher speed where emergency braking is required, this delay in braking could be dire. In addition, this vehicle is equipped with automatic emergency braking. I have heard this feature go off before in this specific car when a car is braking faster than I am. In this case, the alarm and assisted braking did not go off, despite a car stopping within extremely close proximity.

Electrical System › 12v/24v/48v Battery
Filed Dec 12, 202453,000 milesIA

The contact owns a 2018 Nissan Leaf. The contact stated while driving 55 MPH, there was a rapid battery discharge. There was no warning lights illuminated. The local dealer was contacted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was contacted and opened a case. The failure mileage was approximately 53,000.

Equipment › Electrical
Filed Oct 9, 2024CA

Enel X Way recently announced that they were terminating operations in North America. With that in mind my Juicebox level 2 charger now becomes a dumb charger with no app functionality to turn down the amps produced by the charger. The Juicebox model I have is a plug-in version rated at 32 amps max. My service panel/circuit breaker is only rated to 30 amps. With a constant 32 amps on a 30 amp circuit breaker there is a potential to start a fire at the plug socket end and/or the breaker end, at the very least the breaker might trip every time I charge. For fear of that happening, I'm reluctant to even use it. I'm filing an issue/complaint here because in recent days there have been others who have complained about Enel X Way shutting down and causing problems similar to mine according to an article I read at [XXX] INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

Service Brakes
Filed Jul 22, 2024CA

Twice now - both times on the South Bound Richmond Bridge, the Automatic Emergency Braking lights came on and slammed on my brakes for me, as if I was about to crash when I was going 65 mils per hour, no one in front or behind me and no traffic, accident or reason. I almost lost control of the vehicle and would have caused an accident had anyone been closer to me.

Vehicle Speed Control
Filed Jul 17, 2024100 milesWA

The contact owns a 2018 Nissan Leaf. The contact stated while driving on several occasions at various speeds with the cruise control activated, the brake pedal was depressed; however, the vehicle lunged forward. The contact related the failure to NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V494000 (Vehicle Speed Control). The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 100.

Power TrainFire
Filed Apr 30, 2024NC

Our 2018 Nissan Leaf experienced an error message when we tried to start it saying "Warning Service EV System No Power". Mileage: 29,862. It would go into neutral, but not into drive. We called GEICO to have it towed to dealership Leith Nissan on [XXX]. On [XXX], John Day from Leith Nissan called to request permission to install a new 12V battery. I approved the cost of replacing the battery. They said that they were able to drive the car after the 12V battery was replaced. But then they plugged it into the charger, and got an error message "EV System No Power", and they couldn't drive it anymore. Sometime after that there was a thermal event that caused the Power Distribution Module to explode and for soot to pour out of it. These incidents are described by the technician Ryan in these videos [XXX] Nissan indicated that the electric power train is no longer under warranty. Our Q:When did you receive the car? ([XXX] repair order opened [XXX]) When did you first start working on the car? [XXX] When did the thermal event occur? (unsure of occurrence date) When did you replace the 12 volt battery? [XXX] when were you told to replace the high voltage battery? [XXX] when did you replace the high voltage battery? [XXX] Is the replacement high voltage battery a new battery or a used battery? (new battery) Has the replacement high voltage battery been maintained at a charge or is it at 0% charge? And what charge is it at now? (SOC unknown at this time) when were you told the pdm need

Vehicle Speed Control
Filed Mar 29, 2024AZ

I was driving at 65 MPH on the freeway and the car was acting/driving normally. Without any warning at all, many lights appeared on the dashboard at the same time that the car placed itself into neutral and lost all power to drive. My speed was reduced so quickly without any notice and I had no pull out lane near me, so I was forced to move across 5 lanes of traffic in rush hour speeds of 60-85 MPH traffic in order to get to safety in a pull out lane while my car was quickly losing speed at 30 MPH and below. I tried to put the car back into drive but it was impossible and the dashboard read "EV maintenance needed". Of note, my entire battery was replaced less than 6 months prior and the Nissan Peoria (AZ) dealership reported no other issues with the vehicle. Upon inspection, the dealership reported the traction motor inverter needs replacement, and again there were no indications this was failing.

Seat Belts
Filed Mar 28, 2024CA

Front passenger seat occupancy sensor has failed resulting in an illuminated seat belt warning even when the front passenger seat is unoccupied. Workaround is either to clip the seatbelt in all the time or put a black piece of tape over the warning light. Either workaround degrades safety as the intended operation of the warning light is bypassed.

Fuel/Propulsion System
Filed Feb 22, 2024WI

When I was drivimg on the highway, the battery rapidly plummeted from 50% to 5%. The car urged me to pull over. After pulling over, the battery rose back up to 50%. If I had not pulled over, the car would have entered "turtle mode," which limits the motor's power and can reduce the car's top speed to below 20mph. These low speeds are especially dangerous on interstate highways and could pose a crash risk.

Service BrakesCrash
Filed Dec 7, 2023WA

I was pulling slowly into a parking spot. The vehicle accelerated all of a sudden on its own very fast. I slammed on the brakes and the vehicle did not stop. It ran us on a sidewalk and crashed into a pole. Luckily no one hurt. Progressive is calling the car a total loss, but they have done nothing The car is still at a parking lot near the crash. Nissan is also doing nothing. I feel that I deserve better treatment. I have a good driving record and my rates are going to go up. I have not been offered a replacement car. The car is very dangerous and I would never drive another Nissan

Fuel/Propulsion System
Filed Nov 16, 2023AZ

Vehicle would rapidly suffer from a high energy drain when driving at freeway speeds. Range was reduces from 150 miles EPA, to 80-100 miles. Nissan at first said it was due to the high temperature in Arizona. A few weeks later a "Service EV System" lamp came on, and car would not start the next day after charging overnight. Car stated it was at %80 state of charge at the time. Car was towed to a Nissan service center, and Nissan service determined that some battery modules had bloated battery cells due to overheating after a week of troubleshooting. High voltage battery was replaced under warranty 3 weeks later.

Vehicle Speed ControlCrash
Filed Oct 6, 202312,300 milesCA

The contact owns a 2018 Nissan Leaf. The contact stated that while parking the vehicle at low speeds, the vehicle suddenly accelerated on its own. As a result, the vehicle jumped the wheel stop, coming to a complete stop after colliding with a tree. The air bags did not deploy. A police report was filed, and no injuries were reported. No warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, who did not provide a specific diagnosis but advised the contact that a BCM reprogramming was required. The vehicle was repaired. After investigating the failure, the contact related it to NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V494000 (Vehicle Speed Control), but the VIN was not included. The manufacturer was notified of the failure, and a case was opened. The failure mileage was 12,300.

Fuel/Propulsion System
Filed Sep 8, 2023FL

Hello NHTSA: I purchased a 2018 Nissan Leaf from Carvana on December 29, 2022. Within a short period of time the car experienced seat belt and air bag warning lights. The car was repaired under factory warranty by HGreg Nissan in Cutler Bay Florida but continued to display warning lights. The satellite communications system was not able to be repaired. This failure deactivated certain convenience and safety features. On March 16, 2023 a warning message and display indicated there was a high voltage battery malfunction and the car needed to be repaired by the dealer, On March 20, 2023 the car was taken to the dealer. The dealer informed me that the car was unsafe to drive and would not, nor did they ever, return the car to me [with the exception of a one-week test drive that did not correct the reported issues]. On August 3, 2023 Nissan North America declared in writing that the car was a Lemon under Florida law. Nissan refunded the purchase price of the car. Both Carvana and Nissan North America have refused to fully compensate me for certain incidental expenses including auto insurance [required to kept active until title transfer] and unused monthly prepaid Carvana maintenance costs. These fees were assessed from March 20, 2023 until August of 2023. During a discussion with Nissan North America their agent disclosed that they intended to wholesale this car. My immediate concern is that a Lemon-declared car should be disclosed if it is even allowed to be resold.

Forward Collision Avoidance › Automatic Emergency Braking
Filed Aug 23, 2023CA

The malfunction warning light came on to indicate that the automatic braking system was not working. I brought the car to the dealership, which quoted me $1900 for a new sensor. I have read about accidents and near collisions due to the malfunctioning of this system and am now worried that there might be sudden braking that others have experienced. I would like to get this system fixed, but do not believe consumes should need to pay $2000 to repair a defective system.

Fuel/Propulsion System
Filed Jul 28, 2023CA

On may 12, I was in a long line of cars at a red light , stopped. all of a sudden my car started moving and accelerating toward the car in front of me. When I got over the initial shock, I started stamping on the brake (2-3x) and nothing happened. I clipped the other car as I yanked the car out of line into the turn lane. I turned off the car and shook. Then I handled the insurance stuff with the other guy. I did NOT take my foot off the brake. (I reported this incident to the NTSB, BTW.) I wanted the collision center and Nissan to look at the black box, but the garage didn't and Nissan said that was no black box.

Service BrakesCrash
Filed Jun 2, 2023CA

I was stopped at a light, in a long line of cars, my foot on the brake, a few feet away from the car in front of me, and the same in back. All of a sudden, the car started moving, accelerating, jerking forward. I was shocked, pushed down on the brake, nothing happened. starting pulling the car out of line because I was going to hit the car in front of me. I was pumping the brake, and NOTHING HAPPENED. Clipped the car in front's rear left bumper, wrecked my front right bumper. Finally pulled into the turn lane and finally the brakes caught. It was like someone had taken a gizmo and turned on my car (like the OnStar mess a few years ago.). Nothing like this has ever happened to me, in any car, including this one, until 5/12 at 2:00 pm. It was terrifying.

Steering1 injured
Filed May 11, 2023CA

Plastic/metal from steering wheel become dislodged/detached/warped, caused major laceration to my right ring finger when making left turn 5/6/23 4PM. Went to urgent care as a result, had to get tetanus shot.

Electrical System
Filed Apr 6, 202338,225 milesUT

The contact owns a 2018 Nissan Leaf. The contact stated that while driving approximately 60-65 MPH uphill, the vehicle went into protective safe mode due to a faulty signal, and would no longer exceed 20-25 MPH. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, who informed the contact that it was a known failure that occurred in cold weather. The contact stated that the failure reoccurred several times. The vehicle was not diagnosed nor repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 38,225.

Electrical System
Filed Mar 25, 2023MT

The PTC Heater and A/C compressor failed on my 2018 Nissan Leaf, just as the winter of 2022 was getting started. The vehicle passed prior service inspections, with no mention of issues on either of these components. The failure of the PTC heater and A/C compressor results in a "Service EV System" error message, and indication that the vehicle would not restart after powering off. When this error message appeared, the heating and defrost capabilities of the vehicle were lost. The fans would continue to blow air, but windows would fog up. I could not charge my vehicle in this error state either, so if I hadn't been close to home, I would've been in a potentially dangerous situation because it was cold out. The local Nissan dealership confirmed the error codes of P0AA6-1A (HV battery voltage system isolation) and P31E7 (restart inhibition) were present. They initially fixed this issue after nearly 5 months of the vehicle being in their shop. These codes, paired with the information I've read on the Internet, indicates others have had this issue before, and the normal repair involved replacing the traction battery (400v high-voltage battery), not these two components. The "Service EV System" came back less than 36 hours after paying for the repair. The 12v battery was also at a low voltage, which may have been related to the vehicle sitting for so long for service without being charged.

Service Brakes
Filed Nov 3, 2022CA

Around 45 degree weather, while driving on the freeway, a warning light indicating the AEB had been turned off started flashing on my dashboard without any collision, jerky movements, sudden stops, or changes to settings. At the same time this happened, my electric battery mileage started to fluctuate erratically (73% to 8% to 14% back to 70% and finally to 60%). This is extremely concerning because of the car immediately brakes or if the battery dies on the freeway, it could cause a major collision.

Electrical System
Filed Nov 3, 2022CA

Around 45 degree weather, while driving on the freeway, my electric battery mileage started to fluctuate erratically (73% to 8% to 14% back to 70% and finally to 60%). It gave me low battery warnings two separate times. At the same time this happened, a warning light indicating the AEB had been turned off started flashing on my dashboard without any collision, jerky movements, sudden stops, or changes to settings. This is extremely concerning because of the car immediately brakes or if the battery dies on the freeway, it could cause a major collision.

Unknown or Other
Filed Sep 24, 2022CA

When the vehicle is booting up after pressing the power on button you can try to shift from P to R or D. It is very easy to do this too soon. Instead of staying in P or shifting to the desired gear it shifts to N. You can then shift to R or D without using the brake pedal. Normally you would think this is no big deal. The problem is if you are on a hill and expect to move in reverse you end up rolling forward and vice versa. This happens a lot, because I am impatient. It has not caused an issue for me yet, but I can foresee something happening from a minor collision to something horrible where a child is run over or injured. I brought it to the attention of my local dealer before my warranty expired and they said all of the Leaf vehicles do this. How does Nissan think this is acceptable? How does a dealership not report this after they are made aware of such an issue? This has been the case since I have had the vehicle since late 2018. I keep meaning to report it. I hope this has not caused any injuries.

Air Bags
Filed Jul 22, 2022PA

There is a faulty passenger airbag sensor. I see that this has been an issue in the past for older Nissan models. The dealer has inspected it and confirmed the problem. If there is no passenger in the front seat, the supplemental airbag warning light and the front passenger airbag status light stay on. If there is a passenger, the supplemental airbag warning light will turn off, but the front passenger airbag status light stays on.

Fuel/Propulsion System
Filed Apr 20, 2022WA

While driving on the highway with a full battery charge, the vehicle battery was suddenly depleted, the car entered "turtle mode" (a reduced motor power at low charge feature), and then turned off completely moments later. This is a huge safety issue as it leaves you to coast to a stop without the benefit of power brakes or steering. This is caused by a weak cell in the high voltage battery, an issue Nissan is aware of but has chosen not to address. Currently I have no other option but to continue driving the car as is, with the risk of an accident in a situation like this continually increasing.

Forward Collision Avoidance › Automatic Emergency Braking
Filed Jan 15, 2022CA

AEB system malfunction around 25000 miles. Dealer diagnose as the front radar failed and cause the cruise control not available.

Steering1 injured
Filed Oct 11, 2021CA

Steering wheel paint chipping causes multiple lacerations on finger during turn

Service Brakes
Filed Aug 19, 2021CA

2 incidents have occurred with this vehicle. The first earlier this year (2021) is that upon slowly accelerating to move closer to vehicle that moved up in a turn lane, the automatic emergency brake system engaged, abruptly stopped the vehicle and many lights lit up across the dashboard. The brakes then released and all lights on the dashboard disappeared. I was not close enough to the car ahead or at any rate of speed that should have caused this abrupt brake reaction. The 2nd incident and most dangerous happened on 8/13/21. I was slowly reversing out of a parking spot at a crowded location, when I saw a car behind my vehicle. I went to brake (not hard brake just regular), and the brakes did not work. I continued to slowly roll back towards the car behind me. I tried pressing the brakes repeatedly and it would not stop rolling backwards. I then pulled the emergency brake and the car came to a stop. No lights appeared on the dashboard. I turned the car off and powered it on again and slowly moved forward into the parking space and tried reversing again. The car was driving completely fine just after. I had a short trip home & didn't drive the rest of the evening. I didn't charge the car as there was still 85% left on the battery. The next morning, the car would not start and a message showing "Service EV System No Power" appeared on the dashboard with multiple lights lit. I called a tow truck to take it to the dealer and they found that the 12v battery was completely dead. Ba

Structure › Body
Filed May 6, 2021500 milesCA

I HAD INITIATED A CLAIM SOMETIME LAST YEAR ABOUT THE B PILLAR PLASTIC DOOR TRIM POSSIBLY BEING DAMAGED FROM THE SUN'S REFLECTION. NISSAN USA REFERRED ME TO THE LOCAL DEALERSHIP SINCE THEY CANNOT HELP ME. THEY SAID THAT IT'S NOT A DEFECT AND WE WOULD HAVE TO PAY FOR ANY DAMAGES THAT NEEDED TO BE REPAIRED (ABOUT $1000). I DON'T AGREE WITH THIS AS IT'S NOT AN UNCOMMON ISSUE FOR DOOR TRIMS TO MELT JUST LIKE IF THE HEAT FROM A HEAT GUN WAS APPLIED TO IT. THERE ARE QUITE A FEW PHOTOS ONLINE AND NOT JUST NISSAN. I HAVE NO CONTROL OVER WHERE THE SUN REFLECTS OR THE BUILDINGS THAT REFLECT THE SUN'S RAYS. I DON'T BELIEVE THAT I SHOULD BE HELD LIABLE FOR THIS, THE VEHICLE WAS USED AS INTENDED, AND THERE ARE NO INSTRUCTIONS ON THE MANUAL REGARDING THIS. THE CAR IS MELTING FROM THE SUN.

Service Brakes
Filed Feb 3, 202119,000 milesNC

I WAS DRIVING ALONE AT 4:20PM AT ABOUT 30 MPH, WITH NO OTHER CARS OR PEDESTRIANS AROUND WHEN THE BRAKES SUDDENLY ACTIVATED, AND THE ACCELERATOR WENT TO IDLE. THE BRAKING LASTED ABOUT ONE SECOND AND DID NOT STOP THE CAR COMPLETELY. THIS OCCURRED ON A CITY STREET. THESE EVENTS HAVE BEEN HAPPENING SEVERAL TIMES A MONTH.

Complaints 1-50 of 68, newest first, reproduced as filed.

Across model years

Worst on record: 2019
YearComplaintsRecallsFiresDeathsAssessment
20263200Routine
20257000Routine
20245000Routine
202323300Routine
202296410Routine
202157450Routine
2020167600Routine
2019260520Above average
2018 — this page68410Routine
201717200Routine
201636410Routine
2015110400Routine
201434620Routine
201381510Routine
201257000Routine
201195000Routine
20101000Routine

Compare every Leaf year →

Reading this record

No unusual pattern of severe incidents in the complaint record.

Complaint counts track how many cars were sold and how long they have been on the road as much as they track quality. A common model from 2013 has had a decade to accumulate reports; a rare one from last year has not. The signal worth weighing is in the severity columns, in whether the same component keeps appearing, and in whether the manufacturer eventually opened a recall for it.

Recall repairs are free for as long as the recall stands. Check whether a specific car still has open work at NHTSA's VIN lookup.

Most recent recall on file: Feb 2, 2024. Source: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation.