Nissan Leaf Complaints (2021)

57 consumer complaints on file.

#11714582January 30, 2026
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM, FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM, ENGINE
The high-voltage battery on my 2021 Nissan LEAF is subject to Recall 25V-655/R25C8. The recall notice states that the battery cells can develop excessive lithium deposits, which increase electrical resistance and can cause rapid battery heating during Level 3 fast charging. Nissan instructs owners not to use Level 3 charging at all until a “remedy” is available. I have attempted to have the car fixed at two local dealerships, with both stating that they do not have a fix available. The documented "fix" is a software update that slows or disables Level 3 charging, which does not resolve the issue, and only disables the vehicle's intended use.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11712902January 23, 2026
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: AUTOMATIC EMERGENCY BRAKING, SERVICE BRAKES
Brakes problem: During rain season the moisture can get into the brake system. When backing up, the brakes feel partially seized, and make squeeze sound. The problem is more serious when pulling the parking brake during overnight parking. Somehow the sound is coming out of front brakes. The sound will diminish after break several times during normal breaking. Forward Collision warning system: The system only alerts driver with deeps and lights on dashboard. It doesn’t enables the brake system to slow or stop the car.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11710853January 14, 2026
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
The contact owns a 2021 Nissan Leaf. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle shut off. The contact was able to pull over to the side of the road. The vehicle was towed to the nearest dealer, where it remained for a month. The dealer replaced an unknown battery component. The vehicle was repaired. Additionally, the contact stated that the vehicle was seldom driven for short distances after the incident, due to safety concerns. The contact later received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 25V655000 (Electrical System); however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. Nucar Nissan of Norwood (525 Boston Providence Hwy, Norwood, MA 02062) and Quirk Nissan (600 Southern Artery, Quincy, MA 02169) were contacted and confirmed that the recall remedy was not yet available. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 25,000.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11709534January 7, 2026
FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM
I am submitting this letter as a formal safety complaint concerning NHTSA Recall No. 25V655000, which affects my 2021 Nissan LEAF SV and results in the continued restriction of DC fast charging due to a reported fire risk, without an available or timely remedy. Under this recall, Nissan has restricted the vehicle’s ability to safely utilize DC fast charging. While I understand and support actions taken to mitigate fire risk, the absence of a corrective repair or defined resolution timeline has effectively removed a core operational capability of the vehicle on an indefinite basis. DC fast charging is a fundamental feature of the Nissan LEAF and was a material factor in my decision to purchase the vehicle. Since the recall was implemented, the vehicle cannot be used as designed or marketed for time-constrained travel, despite otherwise being mechanically operable. I was advised that a corrective update or repair would be available and, based on that representation, scheduled a service appointment with an authorized Nissan dealer on December 29, 2025. At that appointment, I was informed that no fix currently exists and that the restriction remains indefinite. No interim remedy, alternative accommodation, or estimated timeline was provided. As it stands, the recall has resulted in a vehicle that cannot safely perform a core function for which it was sold, with no effective remedy in place. Owners are effectively required to accept an indefinite loss of functionality to mitigate a safety risk, raising concerns about defect resolution timelines, adequacy of interim measures, and consumer safety implications. I appreciate NHTSA’s role in ensuring vehicle safety and accountability, and I am submitting this complaint to support appropriate oversight and review.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11708535January 3, 2026
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
I currently have a recall on my Nissan 2021 Leaf SV Plus. There is an issue with the level 3 charging which can result in fire to the vehicle. As a result, I’m unable to rapid charge. Nissan has failed to remedy the issue or offer any attempts to fix this recall. I’m unable to charge my vehicle at this time.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11705179December 15, 2025
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM, ENGINE, UNKNOWN OR OTHER
*High Voltage Battery defect/failure - this is what was believed to be the issue when it was towed to the dealership. What is left of it is available for inspection at the dealership for now, however the insurance may take it to a salvage yard since the fire department finished their investigation. *While at the dealership after they spent the day trying to recreate what happened they parked it and planned to try again the next day, then someone walked by and saw smoke coming from the car and called 911. They called it a thermal runaway and it burned for hours before being moved to a safer, emptier lot where it was covered in thousands of pounds of sand. The night before the mileage range dropped roughly 70%, unaware of the recall in our mail that hadn't been opened we stopped to try to charge so we could get home. Thankfully none of the chargers worked since the recall was for a potential fire if plugged into a level 3 charger. We tried to drive home only to end up on the side of the road in total system failure. Police sent incident management to get us to safety. If we had made it home we are told this could have caught our home on fire and would likely have blown up our house and taken neighbors houses out as well. It could hurt more people or structures while they tried to recreate the problem. I understand the dealership had $20K in damages from the fire on top of which my car is clearly a total loss. Homes & Businesses nearby had to be evacuated. *Yes, what is left of the car has been inspected by the county fire marshall, insurance co. Police were called, but no investigation. When I called consumer affairs at Nissan, I spoke to 3 different people who said there was nothing they could do. *We had one other time 3 weeks earlier that the range dropped significant, we got home plugged it in and it seemed fine. The only warnings said we were low on miles and to stop to charge which would have made things worse, could have killed us if they had worked.
Crash:
No
Fire:
Yes
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11704216December 10, 2025
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM, VISIBILITY/WIPER, EXTERIOR LIGHTING
Vehicle battery drains significantly after being charged, passenger wiper will not work impairing visibility, back up camera blurs and fails, bright lights would not turn on, I was in a huge rain storm unable to see. Inability to use level 3 charger is disallowing me to be able to use vehicle due to amount of time to charge and battery drain has caused me to be broken down requiring a tow twice due to inaccurate mileage readings, leaving me stranded at night without access to phone service, placing me in an unsafe area/situation.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11703285December 5, 2025
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
The contact owns a 2021 Nissan Leaf. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 25V655000 (Electrical System); however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The contact stated that occasionally, while driving at various speeds, the vehicle shifted in Turtle Mode, preventing the vehicle from exceeding 30 MPH. The contact stated that there was a message for the EV Battery failure and to take the vehicle to the dealer for further analysis. The Turtle Mode warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to a local dealer, where it was diagnosed; however, the failure was not identified or replicated. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was possibly notified by the local dealer about the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 40,000.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11700806November 21, 2025
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
The contact owns a 2021 Nissan Leaf. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 25V655000 (Electrical System); however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was not informed of the failure. The contact had not experienced a failure; however, due to the recall, the vehicle was unable to be fully charged using the fast charger.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11699598November 15, 2025
VISIBILITY/WIPER
The dealership without our knowledge or approval did an update on our car last November that makes the heater and more importantly defroster not work when it's colder than about 17F degrees outside. This causes the vehicle to fog up all over including the windshield making it dangerous to drive. After about 10 minutes it finally starts working. We've told them about it numerous times and even saw other Leafs at the dealership for the exact same thing on the first cold day last winter after the update. They haven't yet gotten a fix for it and said it's on purpose. As far as us owners can tell they aren't looking into any sort of fix. They say we should just start the car for 10 minutes without driving but that doesn't work. You can leave it run for 30 minutes and the heat doesn't turn on. It only works after 10 minutes of dangerous driving. Besides we shouldn't have to run a vehicle for 10 minutes before driving. There are numerous examples of emergencies that require immediate driving. Please look into this as every Leaf owner is dealing with the same dangerous conditions in the northern states and I assume Canada.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11698299November 8, 2025
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
Around New Years this year, I was driving downhill, my car went from about 60/70% UNKNOWN to about 12%. This was for about 30 seconds until it went back up. This range drop was both dangerous but also caused emotional distress on my behalf as I worried whether or not I could make it to a charger. At the Nissan Dealer Service Dept, the "technician allegedly wasn't able to verify the issue with the range dropping and then going back up." Now I am unable to fast charge via CHAdeMO as per recall causing not just inconviencne, but also a reduction of the capacity I was under the impression I paid for, the diminished utility of my vehicle, my only vehicle to get around, is restricted. Especially as EVGo is now not allowing Nissan Leafs to charge at their stations. This significantly reduces opportunities to charge.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11697337November 4, 2025
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
I can’t charge the car. I live in a city without a garage. I 100% need level 3 ChadEMO charging to use this car. Please pressure the automaker to fix it or buy back the vehicle as I cannot use the car. This is unacceptable from Nissan. Lemon!
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11696836October 31, 2025
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
The contact owns a 2021 Nissan Leaf. The contact stated that while charging the Lithium battery, the message that the battery had overheated was displayed. While driving on the freeway, the battery rapidly lost charge without warning. The vehicle decelerated to 5 MPH before stalling in the middle of the road. The contact ran across a four-lane highway to safety. The vehicle was later towed to the local dealer. The contact received information about NHTSA Campaign Number: 25V655000 (ELECTRICAL SYSTEM) and was informed that parts were not yet available. The vehicle was charged at the dealer and driven to the residence the following day. The contact indicated that the vehicle had experienced the failure listed in the recall. The failure mileage was 30,000.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11693728October 15, 2025
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
From time to time the BCM (body control module) is stuck in a mode which disables the electric door locking and unlocking as well as the electric window lifters. This state can be fixed by disconnecting and reconnecting the vehicle battery. This issue happened two times recently. It appears to be a SW related issue as other functions of the BCM are still operational. E.g., the electric rear view mirror adjustment was still operational. The risk of this issue is that the door locks will not be unlocked automatically in case of a crash. Also the windows cannot be opened as an alternative escape opening in case the doors are blocked after an accident.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11693725October 15, 2025
VISIBILITY/WIPER
After the dealership has checked the rear view camera after manufacturer recall R23D7, the camera image is sometimes not displayed. Sometimes it helps to open and close the rear tailgate to reactivate the display of the rear view camera. The issue also seems to be dependent on ambient temperature. The manufacturer has failed or is unable to remedy this safety recall permanently. Before the recall was checked by the dealership, the vehicle never had an issue with the rear view mirror image not being displayed. When asking the dealership to fix it they told me that I need to pay for the repair of the wiring harness and it is not covered anymore by the recall.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11689478September 24, 2025
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
Took car to dealership to charge. Got home and an hour later the battery ignited into a fire. Car was engulfed with smoke ,fire in front of our house. After 4 hours with fire dept trying to put out the fire within battery... it still continued to smoke. Hazmat team came out as well. Total loss after having car less than 30 days that I purchased as dealership.
Crash:
No
Fire:
Yes
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11684419September 2, 2025
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
The contact owns a 2021 Nissan Leaf. The vehicle was taken to a charging station, and while driving at 5 MPH, entering the driveway, the battery burst into flames. There were no warning lights illuminated. The contact stated that the failure was similar to NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V700000 (Electrical System). The police department was on the scene. The fire department attempted to extinguish the fire, but the battery continued to ignite. The fire marshal from Minnesota was contacted for assistance to resolve the matter, and the fire department had taken the battery to a gravel pit. The local dealer was not contacted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 60,000.
Crash:
No
Fire:
Yes
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11681411August 18, 2025
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
My 2021 Nissan Leaf battery does not hold charge for more than 80 miles. Its has a chademo charger and my daughter could not get to next charger. The car battery has a system issue. The car main battery cells keep dying. Nissan replaced 4 cells last year and now more cells need replacement. These cars are becoming hazards on road as they loose charge state and its not possible to get to the next charging point even on a 230 mile journey. Nissan is aware of the issue but not willing to help proactively. I have been sold a lemon. I know of atleast 4 other families who have same model year cars and all have faced issue with the battery. I would request you all to please look into the matter and make sure the manufacturer is held accountable for not taking action proactively. They are cheating the consumers.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11641602February 9, 2025
VISIBILITY/WIPER
The rear view camera picture on the display is grey and does not display any video signal at temperatures below about 32 degrees Fahrenheit. Backing up without the rear view camera picture causes a safety hazard.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11595196June 18, 2024
UNKNOWN OR OTHER
The rear backup camera suddenly started showing a black screen on my 2021 Nissan Leaf. The camera that shows the vehicle from above still works.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0

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