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What 107 owners told NHTSA about the 2015 Nissan Leaf Bev

These are the actual owner complaints behind this car’s reliability verdict, filed with the federal government, unedited. They’re unverified reports, not confirmed defects: read them as leads for your pre-purchase inspection, not a diagnosis.

All (107)Crash / fire / injury (8)Brakes (82)Electrical system (16)Airbags (8)Speed control (8)Electronic Stability Control (esc) (3)Engine (3)Transmission & drivetrain (3)Fuel system (2)Visibility & wipers (2)Wheels (2)

82 of 107 complaints match · Brakes · clear filters · page 4 of 4

Nov 15, 2015Brakes

UPON BACKING OUT OF MY GARAGE, I FOUND THAT THE BRAKES DID NOT WORK. I WAS ONLY ABLE TO STOP THE CAR BY APPLYING THE PARKING BRAKE. NOTE THAT I HAD THE CAR SERVICED ON 11/11/2015, AND ONE OF THE SERVICE ITEMS WAS "P5327 - LEAF ELECTRIC BRKE NTB15-089... ...7594 REPROGRAM ELECTRICALLY-DRIVEN INTELLIGENT BRAKE CONTROL UNIT... ...PERFORM CAMPAIGN P5327, ECM PART #46007-3NF9B"

NHTSA ODI 10790507

Oct 19, 2015Speed controlBrakes

LOST POWER AND COAST TO A STOP AND THEN STARTED UP OVER 12 TIMES IN A 2 DAY PERIOD NEW CAR HAD TO TURN ROTORS SHOULD HAVE BEEN REPLACED

NHTSA ODI 10783489

Aug 23, 2015BrakesCrash

AS I TURNED INTO A PARALLEL PARKING SPOT AND APPLIED THE BRAKES, THE BRAKES WENT TO THE FLOOR AND THE CAR NEVER SLOWED. MY CAR HIT THE PARKED CAR IN FRONT OF ME.

NHTSA ODI 10758632

Mar 19, 2015Speed controlWheelsBrakes

WHENEVER WE COME TO A STOP FOR A TRAFFIC LIGHT OR A STOP SIGN, AND THE SPEED OF THE CAR IS < 3 MILES , WE NOTICED THAT WHEN WE APPLY BRAKES, THEY DO NOT GET APPLIED IMMEDIATELY. THERE IS A SUDDEN SURGE IN ACCELERATION BEFORE THE CAR COMES TO A COMPLETE STOP. THIS IS VERY NOTICEABLE ESPECIALLY WHEN WE APPLY BRAKES TO SLOW THE CAR BEFORE A TRAFFIC SIGNAL OR STOP SIGN AND ALSO IN BUMPER TO BUMPER TRAFFIC CONDITIONS. AS A RESULT, WE TEND TO STOP THE CAR ATLEAST COUPLE OF METERS BEFORE THE STOP LINE OR THE CAR IN FRONT TO BUFFER THE ACCELERATION BY THE CAR. THANK YOU *TR

NHTSA ODI 10695491

Feb 26, 2015Brakes

THE BRAKES DID NOT RESPOND AS NORMAL ON A COLD SNOWY DAY. THE TIRES DID NOT SLIDE AND IT WAS NOT A HARD BRAKING SITUATION. MULTIPLE TIMES THROUGHOUT THE DAY, THE BRAKES WERE NOT ENGAGING PROPERLY. THE CONDITION WENT AWAY THE NEXT DAY; A WARMER DAY. IT HAPPENED AGAIN 2 WEEKS LATER AND I CAN NOW RECOGNIZE THE PROBLEM AND BE CAUTIOUS.

NHTSA ODI 10690865

Feb 18, 2015Brakes

BRAKE FAILURE. CAR BARELY STOPPED WHEN BACKING OUT OF GARAGE. SYSTEM DESIGNED TO MAINTAIN BRAKES IN CASE OF ELECTRICAL FAILURE DID NOT FUNCTION. CAR WAS TOWED TO DEALER WHERE PROBLEM WAS DUPLICATED BUT NO CAUSE WAS IDENTIFIED. STILL NOT REPAIRED AS OF 2/18/15 BECAUSE BRAKES STARTED WORKING AGAIN AT DEALER. WHEN FAILURE OCCURRED, TRACTION CONTROL WARNING LIGHT AND ABS LIGHT CAME ON. CAR HAD BEEN TO DEALER THE WEEK BEFORE FOR "GRABBING" EXTREMELY SENSITIVE, BUT TRANSIENT, BRAKE PROBLEM. NO PROBLEM COULD BE IDENTIFIED.

NHTSA ODI 10683997

Jan 23, 2015Transmission & drivetrainSpeed controlBrakes

MY 2015 LEAF S IS 3 WEEKS OLD WITH LESS THAN 700 MILES. I WAS DESCENDING AN 8% GRADE HILL IN B MODE WITH A SHARP BEND AT THE BOTTOM. AS I WENT TO APPLY THE BRAKES, THE PEDAL WENT TO THE FLOOR AND B MODE CUT OUT. THE CAR WAS NOW ROLLING DOWN THE HILL AND ACCELERATING UNDER GRAVITY WITH NO BRAKES AND WITHOUT B MODE SLOWING THE CAR. I WAS EXPECTING TO HIT A BRICK WALL AT THE BOTTOM OF THE HILL WHEN SUDDENLY, AFTER NO MORE THAN TWO SECONDS, THE BRAKES AND B MODE CAME BACK ON AND I SAFELY STOPPED. ON REFLECTION AFTER THE INCIDENT, IT WAS AS IF THE WHOLE COMPUTER/ELECTRONICS MOMENTARILY SHUT DOWN AND THEN REBOOTED. I DIDN'T NOTICE IF THE DASH LIGHTS WENT OFF OR NOT. *TR

NHTSA ODI 10678538

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Working with the data? Download all 107 complaints as CSV · fetched from NHTSA July 24, 2026

How to use these: a complaint is one owner’s report, filed voluntarily and published unverified. Patterns matter more than any single story. If several owners describe the same failure at similar mileage, put that system at the top of your pre-purchase inspection list. Back to the full 2015 Nissan Leaf Bev verdict →