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2020 Nissan Leaf

Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations

More warning signs than most Leaf years

Owner complaints for the 2020 Nissan Leaf are substantially higher than the model-year median of 55.

About this comparison →

How this year compares

Owner complaints by model year

Other model years Selected year
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Counts vary with age, sales and reporting. They are not failure rates.

What owners reported most

All reported categories

Tap a category to read its complaints. One report may name several components.

When problems were reported

Mileage at the reported incident

Limited mileage data: 15 of 164 reports include usable mileage. There isn’t enough coverage to show a useful chart.

NHTSA’s mileage field refers to the reported incident, not necessarily the filing date. This shows report counts, not the likelihood of a failure.

What to inspect

Issues worth paying extra attention to based on owner reports.

  • Electrical System. Review the 120 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
  • Fuel/propulsion System. Review the 34 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
  • Power Train. Review the 13 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →

NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.

1 crash reports0 fire reports0 injury reports

What owners actually said

164 reports
Mileage unknown · Dec 4, 2024
Back Over PreventionElectrical System

The contact owns a 2020 Nissan Leaf. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Numbers: 24V700000 (Electrical System) and 24V071000 (Back Over Prevention) however, the part to do the repair was unavailable. The contact stated that the manufacturer exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The dealer w…

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The contact owns a 2020 Nissan Leaf. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Numbers: 24V700000 (Electrical System) and 24V071000 (Back Over Prevention) however, the part to do the repair was unavailable. The contact stated that the manufacturer exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The dealer was contacted and confirmed that the remedy parts were not available. The manufacturer was not made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure. VIN tool confirms parts not available.

NHTSA ODI #11628907

Mileage unknown · Dec 3, 2024
Electrical System

Recall # R24B2 has a projected correction date of MARCH 2025 -just updated from NOVEMBER 2024!! This is totally unacceptable and the NHTSA needs to push for a quicker resolution.

NHTSA ODI #11628652

Mileage unknown · Nov 29, 2024
Electrical SystemEngineFuel/propulsion System

I have previously had an issue with low resistance of the high voltage battery. This resulted in the car giving a warning code that prevents the restart of the vehicle once it's turned off. This is itself potentially leaves a driver in an unsafe location if they are in an isolated place since you are also unable to charge. I too…

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I have previously had an issue with low resistance of the high voltage battery. This resulted in the car giving a warning code that prevents the restart of the vehicle once it's turned off. This is itself potentially leaves a driver in an unsafe location if they are in an isolated place since you are also unable to charge. I took it to the dealer multiple times and it took them almost a month to determine the vehicle did have an issue, that it needed 8 modules out of around 24 total replaced. These modules were replaced and the vehicle was returned to me. In spite of this the vehicle when under 50% capacity still exhibits erratic range and capacity readouts when under heavy load. The vehicle has been returned to the dealer and is under investigation again because it is unsafe to drive in this condition. There is currently an outstanding recall for high internal resistance when dc charging. This is the same resistance the battery has at all times so to assume it will only be a charging issue and not discharging is disingenuous. Any time a high load, either going into or out of, the battery a high internal resistance will lead to a cascading failure. The only repair is either replacement or the battery or derating the battery. The latter would vastly decrease the capabilities of the vehicle.

NHTSA ODI #11627966

Mileage unknown · Aug 8, 2024
Electrical System

Approximately 20% of the time this vehicle is driven, the backup camera displays BLANK. A short term remedy has been to put the vehicle back in Park, exit the vehicle and apply a firm "smack" near the backup camera located on the rear hatch using a closed fist. This tends to temporarily solve the symptom of a BLANK backup came…

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Approximately 20% of the time this vehicle is driven, the backup camera displays BLANK. A short term remedy has been to put the vehicle back in Park, exit the vehicle and apply a firm "smack" near the backup camera located on the rear hatch using a closed fist. This tends to temporarily solve the symptom of a BLANK backup camera output until inevitably the same thing happens again several days later during a subsequent drive. This is an active recall, this vehicle has been demonstrating this symptom for at least a year if not more, but even though the recall notice was received around February 2024, there is still no solution posted for us to seek repairs at the Nissan dealer.

NHTSA ODI #11607327

Mileage unknown · Jul 28, 2024
Electrical System

Backup camera is not working. I know it’s got an open recall for this issue but it’s taking them so long to replace a cable. Just wanted this on record

NHTSA ODI #11605007

Mileage unknown · Feb 13, 2024
Unknown Or Other

My back up camera is having issue, like becoming dark, multicolored and pink. It is not safe to back up especially when it rains. I purchased this car two months ago (December, 2023) and this problem started a month ago, sometimes it works fine but mostly is not working. I contacted the Nissan dealer I purchsed from but they did…

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My back up camera is having issue, like becoming dark, multicolored and pink. It is not safe to back up especially when it rains. I purchased this car two months ago (December, 2023) and this problem started a month ago, sometimes it works fine but mostly is not working. I contacted the Nissan dealer I purchsed from but they did not confirmed the issue and I know a lot of people (in Facebook group) who has the same issue with their Nissan Leaf even with new 2023 models, mine is 2020. When I called the dealer to inspect they are charging me $130 just to inspect. It's 25,000 miles on this car, this is pretty new car. Thank you!

NHTSA ODI #11571778

Mileage unknown · Dec 20, 2023
Forward Collision AvoidanceVehicle Speed Control

About 3 months ago, I took this car in after receiving a recall notice for unexpected acceleration while on adaptive cruise control even though this was an issue I had never experienced before. But on monday, driving in stop and go traffic in light rain (intermittent wipers on slow setting), all of a sudden the car started acce…

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About 3 months ago, I took this car in after receiving a recall notice for unexpected acceleration while on adaptive cruise control even though this was an issue I had never experienced before. But on monday, driving in stop and go traffic in light rain (intermittent wipers on slow setting), all of a sudden the car started accelerating directly towards the car 20 feet or so in front of us; the brakes had to be manually slammed on to bring the car to stop with now only 2-3 feet or so between the two cars. This was very alarming. When I spoke to the dealership about them needing to fix this safety issue and how I thought it must be related to the recall, they said it could not be given it first happened 3 months later and I would have to pay for an evaluation and if they found anything wrong for the repair. I am reporting this and would like to know if other Nissan Leafs are seeing the same issue post-recall repair. I will say it doesn't happen all the time since I like and use adaptive cruise control regularly. I carefully tried it after this event but with much more distance between me and the car in front and it did slow the car down as it normally does when traffic slowed, but again, I never got as close to the car as this time and it was not raining so who knows. I have reported this to Nissan corporate and was told someone would call me back in the next few days.

NHTSA ODI #11561110

Mileage unknown · Nov 29, 2023
Electrical System

I was driving on Interstate Highway H-3, uphill at 55 mph, when the % charge on the high-voltage battery instantaneously dropped from 18 to 5%. The warning light also came on. I was not using the A/C at the time. Over the next 30 seconds or so, the gauge quickly went from 5...4...3...2....1. By dumb luck, as the gauge hit 1%, I …

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I was driving on Interstate Highway H-3, uphill at 55 mph, when the % charge on the high-voltage battery instantaneously dropped from 18 to 5%. The warning light also came on. I was not using the A/C at the time. Over the next 30 seconds or so, the gauge quickly went from 5...4...3...2....1. By dumb luck, as the gauge hit 1%, I hit peak elevation on the mountain pass, and was able to coast in neutral until the freeway starts going downhill. Normally, an 18% charge would have been more than enough to comfortable complete my trip home from where I was on H-3 at the time. A sudden drop in battery % could lead to a cutoff of the motor, which at high-speed on a highway could cause a serious accident. I have subsequently done a battery health test and found the State of Health rating to be 90%. There don't appear to be any bad cells in the battery that would explain the sudden drop while driving. My hunch is that this problem is related to the firmware update I received at the Nissan dealer to address NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V494000.

NHTSA ODI #11557509

Mileage unknown · Oct 11, 2023
Electrical SystemUnknown Or Other

backup camera was intermittently not working. Dealer tested and found "rear camera image signal test at the avm connector 20-19, and the signal is not normal". Code U111A-00 was found. Camera was replaced under extended warranty with $100 deductible, code was cleared and camera is now working. Vehicle has been in service for 2.…

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backup camera was intermittently not working. Dealer tested and found "rear camera image signal test at the avm connector 20-19, and the signal is not normal". Code U111A-00 was found. Camera was replaced under extended warranty with $100 deductible, code was cleared and camera is now working. Vehicle has been in service for 2.5yrs and has 40k miles. I've seen several Nissan backup Camera recalls, but my vehicle was apparently not included? Submitting in case others are experiencing and a recall might be needed?

NHTSA ODI #11549490

Mileage unknown · Sep 20, 2023
Unknown Or Other

1. Unexpected acceleration, AC power, Computer dash controls, and Computer programming for GPS coordinates for charging stations out of date and or tampered with (status was "out of range" and did not match range number on the odometer. Computer Programming for charge stations is a dynamic feature when it works right. Its a co…

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1. Unexpected acceleration, AC power, Computer dash controls, and Computer programming for GPS coordinates for charging stations out of date and or tampered with (status was "out of range" and did not match range number on the odometer. Computer Programming for charge stations is a dynamic feature when it works right. Its a component of the vehicle to be able to operate and get people to where they need to go, and it was malfunctioning on a recent road trip and gave me bad intel, etc. Again, the intel did not match the instrument panel located under the steering column. 2. This vehicle has been serviced with a software update that was supposed to correct the Issues. It did not work. 3. Nissan put the situation back in my lap and asked me to drive them around (three times now to "replicate")?! I did on the second or third visit, and could not get the unexpected acceleration to replicate during that 45 minute drive. The other issues they have completely dismissed. Please note: These issues have been well documented by your website and EV Insiders (see recalls), and by ME (the consumer and purchaser of that car). 4. The chief network architects for Nissan according to LinkedIn are: Juan Valdez Cybersecurity and network architect, Shane Callahan CISO, and or Arnold Hahamyan Cheif Enterprise Architect (Nissan Americas). Can someone reach out to these guys to see what is chiefly responsible for the flaw in their gateway/software. And why a 2020 Leaf why the programing to find charging station is flawed and or corrupted? 5. Last, since whatever software change occurred and or cyber attack (assuming), Emode is the safest way to drive the car, economy drive has had the problem with unexpected acceleration. Note: Car sped up after taking foot off accelerator and between foot pedal breaking, this occurred coming up to Red lights, parking, car wash, etc. 6. Theres something wrong with the cruise control too, and it does not always work right.

NHTSA ODI #11545658

Official recalls

6

24V700000 · Electrical System:propulsion System:charging:module:software; Electrical System:propulsion System:traction Battery

Sep 19, 2024

Nissan North America, Inc. (Nissan) is recalling certain 2019-2020 LEAF vehicles equipped with a Level 3 quick charging port. The lithium-ion battery may overheat during Level 3 charging.

Consequence & remedy

Consequence: A quick charging battery that overheats increases the risk of a fire.

Remedy: Dealers will update the battery software, free of charge. Owner letters were mailed June 3, 2026. This is a phased recall. Owners may contact Nissan Customer Service at 1-800-867-7669. Nissan's numbers for this recall are R24B2, P4A38, and P5A22.

Additional source detail variants (2)

Electrical System:propulsion System:charging:module:software

Nissan North America, Inc. (Nissan) is recalling certain 2019-2020 LEAF vehicles equipped with a Level 3 quick charging port. The lithium-ion battery may overheat during Level 3 charging.

Consequence: A quick charging battery that overheats increases the risk of a fire.

Remedy: Dealers will update the battery software, free of charge. Owner letters were mailed June 3, 2026. This is a phased recall. Owners may contact Nissan Customer Service at 1-800-867-7669. Nissan's numbers for this recall are R24B2, P4A38, and P5A22.

Electrical System:propulsion System:traction Battery

Nissan North America, Inc. (Nissan) is recalling certain 2019-2020 LEAF vehicles equipped with a Level 3 quick charging port. The lithium-ion battery may overheat during Level 3 charging.

Consequence: A quick charging battery that overheats increases the risk of a fire.

Remedy: Dealers will update the battery software, free of charge. Owner letters were mailed June 3, 2026. This is a phased recall. Owners may contact Nissan Customer Service at 1-800-867-7669. Nissan's numbers for this recall are R24B2, P4A38, and P5A22.

24V071000 · Back Over Prevention: Sensing System: Camera

Feb 2, 2024

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."

Consequence & remedy

Consequence: 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.

23V494000 · Vehicle Speed Control

Jul 17, 2023

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.

Consequence & remedy

Consequence: 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.

23V048000 · Equipment:other:owners/service/other Manual ; Visibility:defroster/defogger/hvac System

Feb 2, 2023

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."

Consequence & remedy

Consequence: 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.

Additional source detail variants (2)

Equipment:other:owners/service/other Manual

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."

Consequence: 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.

Visibility:defroster/defogger/hvac System

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."

Consequence: 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.

20V570000 · Visibility:glass, Side/rear

Sep 22, 2020

Nissan North America, Inc. (Nissan) is recalling certain 2020 Altima, Maxima and Leaf vehicles. The rear window glass may not remain properly secured to the vehicle.

Consequence & remedy

Consequence: Rear window glass that separates from the vehicle can increase the risk of a crash.

Remedy: Nissan will notify owners, and dealers will replace the back window glass, free of charge. The recall began November 4, 2020. Owners may contact Nissan customer service at 1-800-867-7669. Nissan's number for this recall is PC752.

20V412000 · Back Over Prevention: Sensing System: Camera

Jul 17, 2020

Nissan North America, Inc. (Nissan) is recalling certain 2020 LEAF electric vehicles. Under certain circumstances, the images for the back-up camera can disappear while in reverse. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 111, "Rear Visibility."

Consequence & remedy

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

Remedy: Nissan will notify owners, and dealers will update the back-up camera software, free of charge. This recall began August 31, 2020. Owners may contact Nissan customer service at 1-800-867-7669.

Model-level recall history does not show whether a particular VIN is affected or has received a repair. Check a VIN with NHTSA ↗

NHTSA investigations

1

DP22005 · Pedestrian Alert Sounds

Opened Jan 27, 2023 · Closed Aug 7, 2023

Status: closed (inferred from source dates) · Electrical System:propulsion System

NHTSA received a petition on or about July 18, 2022, requesting that Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) 141 be applied to all electric and hybrid vehicles operating in the United States. The petition can be reviewed at NHTSA.gov under ODI Number 11486072. FMVSS 141 establishes performance requirements for pedestrian alert sounds for motor vehicles. The standard applies to hybrid and electric vehicles that have a gross vehicle weight rating of 4,536 KG or less or are defined as low-speed vehicles. The standard became fully applicable to all such vehicles manufactured on or after March 1, 2021.On January 27, 2023, NHTSA opened Defect Petition (DP) 22-005 to evaluate the subject matter described in the petition. On June 24, 2023 and as supplemented on June 25, 2023, the petitioner notified NHTSA he was withdrawing his petition. The petitioner indicated that, based on his review of data, there is no justification for asserting potential benefits that could be derived from actions sought by my petition. Based on the petitioner's withdrawal, DP22-005 is closed. Closure of this DP does not represent a determination by NHTSA regarding the subject matter of the petition.