When applying brakes, at a point in the pedal travel the vehicle deceleration goes from too little to vastly too much. This makes the vehicle challenging to drive in traffic without colliding into the vehicle in front and not stopping so quickly as to cause the trailing vehicle to collide. The dealer has confirmed the behavior. There is a TSB to supposedly address the problem, and a receipt is attached of that TSB software update being applied. However, this has not changed the behavior. This is at least partially a software issue, since the vehicle blends physical brakes with EV regenerative braking.

- Austin, TX, USA

The contact owns a 2011 Nissan Leaf. The contact stated that the Telematics Control Unit, which locates the nearest charging station, was inoperable and could not be upgraded. Additionally, the 12 Volt battery would not charge, and the doors would not unlock to open. The windows would not roll up, and the gear shifter would not shift out of park into neutral. The vehicle was towed to the dealer. However, the vehicle was not diagnosed nor repaired and remained at the dealer. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 40,000. The VIN was unavailable.

- Seattle, WA, USA

I recently purchased a 2011 Nissan Leaf vehicle from a private party. I quickly noticed that my battery capacity was at 5 bars and the vehicle has 73300 miles. I also noticed the ev system warning light was on. I took the car to my local Nissan dealer and let them know that I was going to need a new battery but wanted to know the history of the vehicles battery because I believe that the degradation of the vehicles battery would fall into the severe category and because the vehicle was in between owners at the time no one took it in for a battery replacement. Currently in 2020 the 2011 vehicle is at 5 bars meaning that if the battery only lost one bar in the last year the battery would have to have lost more than 50% capacity within the timeframe that it would have been covered under the 8 yr/100,000miles extended warranty. They would not provide me with any vehicle battery information although the representative of the dealer did confirm that the warranty would have been in effect last year. They then quoted me $6600 for a battery replacement. After researching I found a letter from Nissan which states that the vehicle warranty would be effective for 2011 models with implementation starting sometime in spring of 2013. Nissan so far is not willing to repair the battery or assist in the repair although the warranty would have covered this issue. The vehicle has come close to turning off while I've been on the road. I am afraid of my cars battery dying while I'm on the road. It's my only vehicle.

- San Bernardino, CA, USA

The range meter on the right side of the dash shows incorrect range. I understood when people would say it depends on how you drive, but no matter how I drive there is no possible way for me to get the range the car says I have. If it shows 55 miles I can be sure to get between 20 and 35 miles before being stranded. I contacted Nissan for a warranty or service concern and they claimed it not to be a manufacturer defect.

- Racine, WI, USA

Starting on 12/03/2018, this 2011 Nissan Leaf began releasing smoke and a noxious burning-plastic smell into the cabin during 240V and 125V electric vehicle charging when the vehicle is stationary and the ignition is off. The smoke originates from the on-board charger (part 296A0-3na8A) located behind the rear passenger side seat, which is right behind where the child seat usually goes. Despite this, the vehicle continues to charge from electrical sources and drive normally. An inspection by stevens creek Nissan (4855 stevens creek blvd, santa clara, ca 95051) on 12/12/2018 found the same burning smell and reported that a "fuse in the on-board charger (is) fusing". they offered no further expertise about the cause except to recommend a replacement of the on-board charger. On the same day, Nissan North America was contacted and asked to address the issue and replied that they refused to address the problem on 01/11/2019. The attached images include the technician's report from Nissan stevens creek and photographs of what appears to be thermal damage and combustible soot buildup within the on-board charger, which not only chemically corrodes electronics, but also causes overheating and presents a fire hazard.

- Saratoga, CA, USA

I believe the battery was rigged into running low right after the warranty ran out

- Richmond, VA, USA

The contact owns a 2011 Nissan Leaf. The contact stated that the vehicle experienced a loss of power without warning. The contact stated that the vehicle had been charged the entire night. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer stated that due to the vehicle being involved in a class action lawsuit, they would not repair the vehicle. The failure mileage was approximately 36,769.

- Talladega, AL, USA

Vehicles electric windows malfunction. Window will not open or close on the drivers side, but the others will. Many Leaf owners are having the same issues. Please look into this.

- Bonney Lake, WA, USA

This is not related to anything specific that happened to my vehicle, but it is related to consumer safety and protection. Nissan settled a class-action lawsuit and amended their battery replacement/repair warranty shortly after they introduced the Leaf to the us. Very soon after this amended warranty went into effect Nissan sent a letter to all Leaf owners and asked us to bring our car in for a "software upgrade" that would give us a better range display. I suspect that this "upgrade" actually keeps the capacity (range) display above the threshold that would otherwise obligate Nissan to repair/replace the battery. Is your Agency the appropriate on to bring this suspicion/complaint to and request an investigation or should I contact someone else. I do not have evidence, but it is more than a hunch. Before this alleged ""fix" my car had lost 2 bars of display, after, only 1, yet it has been driven and recharged much more extensively than before the "fix". also, Nissan has been unwilling to share data on the Leaf or its battery, and insists that they are the only company who can diagnose the battery, and therefore, the only company who can decide if the warranty should be honored in any case. This is troubling. I would appreciate it if any resources could be devoted to looking into this software "fix" - though I understand budget and personnel constraints may inhibit this without evidence beyond my circumstantial experience and my gut feeling. Still, it bears contacting you to ask, as we have seen how other major auto makers are willing to bend rules and laws in order to pad the bottom line. Thank you!!

- Redmond, WA, USA

2011 Nissan Leaf, have taken it multiple dealers and done the update(s) required by Nissan, which actually made matters worse, regen is not working like had prior to the P3227 update. The biggest issue with the Nissan Leaf is the battery capacity and advertised claims. Currently charging 100% and getting less than 60 miles range. The warranty apparently after two class actions is 5 years 60,000 miles whichever comes first. All anyone at Nissan or the dealers can say is to wait until we drop the 9th bar. But from what the customer service rep told me, I needed to drop below 70%, which according to my calculations I have. But Nissan does Nissan math, each bar is weighted and the software update made adjustments that are mysterious to most. Nissan misrepresented the Leaf and with the poor battery chemistry failed to deliver as promised, and now these cars are practically being given away. Nissan does not cool the batteries properly and there could be a danger that they are not disclosing. This needs to be investigated further by NHTSA/dot

- Pasadena, CA, USA

Vehicle has digital display that indicates how many miles of travel remain in the battery. Meter reads at least twice as high as miles actually delivered. Could cause unaware drive to run out of charge and stop in traffic lanes thus potentially causing an accident of bodily harm to occupants of vehicle.

- Manassas, VA, USA

Vehicle's main traction battery lost 15% of its usable capacity after only 1 year and 3631 miles of vehicle use. This rapid loss in battery capacity is contrary to Nissan's advertised service life of 70%to 80% capacity after 100,000 miles. Defective battery could potentially fail while the vehicle is operated at highway speeds and cause loss of steering and or brakes.

- Manassas, VA, USA

Two months ago I was braking moderately when the car shuttered, there was a bump and the car began coasting. I saw that it had popped into N (neutral) even though I didn't touch the gear shift. I tried to put it back into D (drive) but it wouldn't respond. I pushed the car to the side of the road and tried several times to shut it down. Finally, it responded, then restarted and drove normally. After that, there would be intermittent shuttering and bumping while braking. The recharging lights will pulse and I can feel the regenerative feature grab and then release. One morning recently, along with these symptoms the range plummeted quickly, by about 1 mile per second. After driving only 20 miles I had 17 miles of indicated range. Then, yesterday, the first problem reappeared: The car went into neutral and briefly wouldn't respond. The car is now at the dealer.

- Long Beach, CA, USA

Battery capacity has dropped 1 bar. Nissan case number [xxx]. information redacted pursuant to the Freedom Of Information Act (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6).

- Redwood City, CA, USA

The intelligent key system allowed the vehicle to be driven off without the key present (it was in the pocket of a person standing outside the car). The driver and passengers then went on a 15 mile trip, wherein the vehicle was parked (safely). After awhile the vehicle was re-entered, but the driver could not start the car because the key was not present. 2 young children were left waiting in the hot sun, but were not injured. Eventually another person retrieved the keys and brought them to the disabled car and driver using a second vehicle. It was very inconvenient and stressful for all parties involved and luckily no one was injured. Note: Later on, after testing the vehicle in a controlled situation, the warning system did not indicate that the key was not present as the owner's manual states it should.

- Seattle, WA, USA

The contact owns a 2011 Nissan Leaf. The contact stated that the electrical and battery system failed numerous times and the electrical system discharged numerous times at low speed of 35 mph. The vehicle was taken to the dealer several times for the failure. The dealer advised that they could not repair the vehicle. The manufacturer advised that nothing was wrong with the vehicle and that it was performing according to the electrical specifications. The failure mileage 6,130 was and the current mileage was 6,900.

- Tucson , AZ, USA

The contact owns a 2011 Nissan Leaf. The contact stated that while driving 60 mph, the battery and rapid range capacity bars disappeared, making it difficult to decipher how much further the vehicle could accelerate. The vehicle was taken to a dealer for diagnosis but the dealer stated that they were not allowed to diagnose, repair or admit that there was an issue due to company policy. The manufacturer was notified and denied any assistance to the contact. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was 14,232 and the current mileages were 17,025.

- Phoenix, AZ, USA

I am filing a complaint about the main battery in my 2011 Nissan Leaf. According to Nissan, I should have expected about a 20% battery capacity loss after five years of ownership. I have had the car for 14.5 months. As of 8/29/2012, the battery has lost 3 bars of capacity (approximately 27.5% capacity loss). This rate of capacity loss is far beyond what Nissan expected and possibly modeled/engineered. Please help insure there will not be any safety issues with the battery as the capacity deteriorates.

- Gilbert, AZ, USA

I have run into what I believe is a small design flaw. Scenario: 1) Leaf is parked in condo parking garage with gentle uphill slope on parking space. 2) startup sound is turned off. 2) forget the Leaf is still plugged in to av L2 evse. 3) put foot on brake, push start button. 4) shift into reverse, not looking at dash screen to see warning that Leaf won't start. 5) press down on parking brake lever to disengage parking brake. 6) press accelerator. Result: The Leaf doesn't start since it is still plugged in to evse. The Leaf shifts out of park into neutral after step #4. once parking brake is off and foot is on accelerator, there is nothing to keep the Leaf from rolling back. If it rolls far enough it will damage either the L2 connector to the car or the evse or both. Comment: This is not a hypothetical, it has happened to me 3-4 times in the last year. Fortunately, I quickly realized the Leaf was still connected to the evse and applied the brake so that no damage was done. In my opinion, you should not be able to shift the Leaf out of park or release the parking brake while the Leaf is still plugged in. I would suggest changing the software to avoid potential damage to the Leaf L2 connecter, evse or damage to property in the vicinity.

- Los Angeles, CA, USA

I have run into what I believe is a small design flaw. While user error is clearly involved, a simple software fix could prevent this from happening. Scenario: 1) Leaf is parked in grocery store parking lot on a slight downhill slope. 2) startup sound is turned off. 3) push start button while not pressing on brake pedal adequately - Leaf goes into accessory mode. 4) try to shift into reverse, not looking at dash screen to see that Leaf is in accessory mode. 5) press down on parking brake lever to disengage parking brake. 6) press accelerator. Result: The Leaf is still in accessory mode, but has shifted into neutral after step #4. once parking brake is off and foot is on accelerator, there is nothing to keep the Leaf from rolling forward. This is not hypothetical, it happened to me twice in the last year. One time I hit a shopping cart, but fortunately put the brake on in time and the front license plate holder protected my Leaf from damage. Comment: In my opinion, trying to shift into drive or reverse while the Leaf is in accessory mode should not put the Leaf in neutral--it should still be in park. This simple change would prevent the possibility of this happening. The Leaf can still shift to neutral in accessory mode by moving the shifter to the left and holding it there for 2 seconds.

- Los Angeles, CA, USA