High Severity Issue
This component has been associated with crashes, fires, or deaths.
This Problem Across All Years
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. The expectation was that they would perform diagnostics on the vehicle but they won’t touch it, nor will they talk to USAA. I had taken the car in when it was recalled for the VCM issues and I don’t believe it was fixed properly. Or the repair wasn’t effective. The car is at Gerber Body Shop in Kona, Hawaii. Please arrange inspection with them. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
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. The expectation was that they would perform diagnostics on the vehicle but they won’t touch it, nor will they talk to USAA. I had taken the car in when it was recalled for the VCM issues and I don’t believe it was fixed properly. Or the repair wasn’t effective. The car is at Gerber Body Shop in Kona, Hawaii. Please arrange inspection with them. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
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?
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?
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.
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.
BACKUP CAMERA PERIODICALLY FAILS TO PRODUCE FEED, RESULTING IN BLACK SCREEN WHEN VEHICLE IS IN REVERSE (THOUGH BACKUP TURN GUIDANCE LINES STILL APPEAR). SLAMMING TRUNK DOOR OR PRESSING ON THE CAMERA MODULE ITSELF SOMETIMES RESOLVES ISSUE BUT CAN ONLY BE DONE FROM OUTSIDE THE VEHICLE AND DOES NOT ALWAYS FIX THE ISSUE. THIS IS SEPARATE FROM THE EXISTING RECALL IN REGARDS TO THE SOFTWARE ISSUE. DEALERSHIP HAS INSPECTED VEHICLE AND NOT FOUND ANY WIRING ISSUES AND NOTED THAT THIS IS NOT RELATED TO THE SOFTWARE ISSUE IN THE EXISTING RECALL. CANNOT RELIABLY REPRODUCE BUT SEEMS TO OCCUR ROUGHLY ONCE A MONTH OR MORE OFTEN. POSSIBLY OCCURS FROM OPENING AND CLOSING TRUNK DOOR THOUGH ISSUE IS NOT NOTICED UNTIL NEXT TIME THE CAR IS OPERATED AND PUT IN REVERSE. TURNING VEHICLE OFF AND THEN BACK ON DOES NOT RESOLVE ISSUE. BACKUP CAMERA TURN GUIDANCE LINES CONTINUE TO APPEAR EVEN IF NO BACKUP CAMERA FEED APPEARS (BLACK SCREEN) WHICH SEEMS TO INDICATE AN ISSUE WITH THE CAMERA MODULE ITSELF RATHER THAN THE DISPLAY MODULE OR SOFTWARE. THIS HAS BEEN AN ISSUE SINCE THE FIRST YEAR OF VEHICLE OWNERSHIP BUT HAVE NOT BEEN ABLE TO FIX/DIAGNOSE AS IT HAS NOT OCCURRED WHILE AT DEALERSHIP OR OTHER REPAIR FACILITY. *TR
BACKUP CAMERA PERIODICALLY FAILS TO PRODUCE FEED, RESULTING IN BLACK SCREEN WHEN VEHICLE IS IN REVERSE (THOUGH BACKUP TURN GUIDANCE LINES STILL APPEAR). SLAMMING TRUNK DOOR OR PRESSING ON THE CAMERA MODULE ITSELF SOMETIMES RESOLVES ISSUE BUT CAN ONLY BE DONE FROM OUTSIDE THE VEHICLE AND DOES NOT ALWAYS FIX THE ISSUE. THIS IS SEPARATE FROM THE EXISTING RECALL IN REGARDS TO THE SOFTWARE ISSUE. DEALERSHIP HAS INSPECTED VEHICLE AND NOT FOUND ANY WIRING ISSUES AND NOTED THAT THIS IS NOT RELATED TO THE SOFTWARE ISSUE IN THE EXISTING RECALL. CANNOT RELIABLY REPRODUCE BUT SEEMS TO OCCUR ROUGHLY ONCE A MONTH OR MORE OFTEN. POSSIBLY OCCURS FROM OPENING AND CLOSING TRUNK DOOR THOUGH ISSUE IS NOT NOTICED UNTIL NEXT TIME THE CAR IS OPERATED AND PUT IN REVERSE. TURNING VEHICLE OFF AND THEN BACK ON DOES NOT RESOLVE ISSUE. BACKUP CAMERA TURN GUIDANCE LINES CONTINUE TO APPEAR EVEN IF NO BACKUP CAMERA FEED APPEARS (BLACK SCREEN) WHICH SEEMS TO INDICATE AN ISSUE WITH THE CAMERA MODULE ITSELF RATHER THAN THE DISPLAY MODULE OR SOFTWARE. THIS HAS BEEN AN ISSUE SINCE THE FIRST YEAR OF VEHICLE OWNERSHIP BUT HAVE NOT BEEN ABLE TO FIX/DIAGNOSE AS IT HAS NOT OCCURRED WHILE AT DEALERSHIP OR OTHER REPAIR FACILITY. *TR
THIS NISSAN LEAF HAS AN EZ-PEDAL FEATURE. WHEN ENABLED, TAKING YOUR FOOT OFF THE ACCELERATOR SLOWS YOU DOWN QUICKLY UNTIL YOU COME TO A FULL STOP. AND THEN THE CAR DOES NOT MOVE. AND THIS NON-MOVEMENT DOES NOT REQUIRE DEPRESSING THE BRAKE. WHILE A CONVENIENCE, THERE IS A DESIGN FLAW. WHEN ENABLED AND THE CAR IS STOPPED (BUT IN DRIVE), THE BRAKE LIGHTS DO NOT COME ONE. IN CONTRAST, WHEN STOPPED USING THE BRAKES, THE BRAKE LIGHTS ARE ILLUMINATED. THIS IS A SAFETY HAZARD! DRIVERS APPROACHING FROM BEHIND DON'T EXPECT A STOPPED CAR TO NOT HAVE BRAKE LIGHTS ON. THEY MAY REALIZE RATHER LATE THAT THE CAR IS STOPPED. IN OTHER WORDS, THE VISUAL CUE OF "BRAKE LIGHTS ON MEANS CAR IS STOPPED OR SLOWING DOWN" IS NOT EVIDENT. WHICH CAN LEAD TO MISTAKES BY DRIVERS WHO ARE NOT PAYING FULL ATTENTION. THIS HAPPENED TO ME RECENTLY. I WAS STOPPED BEHIND A CAR WAITING AT A CROSSWALK. ON A 3 LANE 40MPH STREET, WITH NO LIGHTS OR STOP SIGNS FOR A MILE. A FAST STRETCH WITH NO EXPECTATION OF STOPPING!. I, IN MY LEAF, HAD EZ PEDAL ENABLED. I WORRIED THAT SOMEONE MIGHT HIT ME, SINCE I WAS STOPPED IN A PLACE THAT IS UNUSUAL TO STOP IN. AND 15 SECONDS AFTER STOPPING I WAST REAR ENDED! NO PERSONAL DAMAGE, BUT $1500 IN REPAIR (AND MORE FOR THE CAR THAT HIT ME). SINCE I WAS NOT AT FAULT, I WILL GET FULL INSURANCE. BUT IT IS NOT A GOOD THING! I CHECKED LATER - AND INDEED THE BRAKE LIGHTS DO NOT GO ON WHEN THE CAR IS STOPPED IN EZ-PEDAL MODE. THIS NEEDS TO BE RESOLVED! I IMAGINE THIS IS A SOFTWARE UPDATE. I SUGGEST THAT FOR CARS (LEAF OR OTHER) IN DRIVE, WITH EZ-PEDAL ENABLED: WHEN THE CAR IS FULLY STOPPED THE BRAKE LIGHTS MUST GO ON. AND, WHEN THE CAR IS DECELERATING QUICKLY (WHEN YOU TAKE YOUR FOOT OF THE ACCELERATOR WHILE MOVING), THE BRAKE LIGHTS SHOULD GO ON. THANKS. I COULD OF PUT ON MY EMERGENCY FLASHERS, BUT IT IS NOT EASY TO THINK OF SUCH A TRICK ON THE FLY.*DT*JB *DT*JB
THIS NISSAN LEAF HAS AN EZ-PEDAL FEATURE. WHEN ENABLED, TAKING YOUR FOOT OFF THE ACCELERATOR SLOWS YOU DOWN QUICKLY UNTIL YOU COME TO A FULL STOP. AND THEN THE CAR DOES NOT MOVE. AND THIS NON-MOVEMENT DOES NOT REQUIRE DEPRESSING THE BRAKE. WHILE A CONVENIENCE, THERE IS A DESIGN FLAW. WHEN ENABLED AND THE CAR IS STOPPED (BUT IN DRIVE), THE BRAKE LIGHTS DO NOT COME ONE. IN CONTRAST, WHEN STOPPED USING THE BRAKES, THE BRAKE LIGHTS ARE ILLUMINATED. THIS IS A SAFETY HAZARD! DRIVERS APPROACHING FROM BEHIND DON'T EXPECT A STOPPED CAR TO NOT HAVE BRAKE LIGHTS ON. THEY MAY REALIZE RATHER LATE THAT THE CAR IS STOPPED. IN OTHER WORDS, THE VISUAL CUE OF "BRAKE LIGHTS ON MEANS CAR IS STOPPED OR SLOWING DOWN" IS NOT EVIDENT. WHICH CAN LEAD TO MISTAKES BY DRIVERS WHO ARE NOT PAYING FULL ATTENTION. THIS HAPPENED TO ME RECENTLY. I WAS STOPPED BEHIND A CAR WAITING AT A CROSSWALK. ON A 3 LANE 40MPH STREET, WITH NO LIGHTS OR STOP SIGNS FOR A MILE. A FAST STRETCH WITH NO EXPECTATION OF STOPPING!. I, IN MY LEAF, HAD EZ PEDAL ENABLED. I WORRIED THAT SOMEONE MIGHT HIT ME, SINCE I WAS STOPPED IN A PLACE THAT IS UNUSUAL TO STOP IN. AND 15 SECONDS AFTER STOPPING I WAST REAR ENDED! NO PERSONAL DAMAGE, BUT $1500 IN REPAIR (AND MORE FOR THE CAR THAT HIT ME). SINCE I WAS NOT AT FAULT, I WILL GET FULL INSURANCE. BUT IT IS NOT A GOOD THING! I CHECKED LATER - AND INDEED THE BRAKE LIGHTS DO NOT GO ON WHEN THE CAR IS STOPPED IN EZ-PEDAL MODE. THIS NEEDS TO BE RESOLVED! I IMAGINE THIS IS A SOFTWARE UPDATE. I SUGGEST THAT FOR CARS (LEAF OR OTHER) IN DRIVE, WITH EZ-PEDAL ENABLED: WHEN THE CAR IS FULLY STOPPED THE BRAKE LIGHTS MUST GO ON. AND, WHEN THE CAR IS DECELERATING QUICKLY (WHEN YOU TAKE YOUR FOOT OF THE ACCELERATOR WHILE MOVING), THE BRAKE LIGHTS SHOULD GO ON. THANKS. I COULD OF PUT ON MY EMERGENCY FLASHERS, BUT IT IS NOT EASY TO THINK OF SUCH A TRICK ON THE FLY.*DT*JB *DT*JB
THE VEHICLE'S BLIND SPOT DETECTOR TURNS OFF AT LOW SPEEDS POTENTIALLY PUTTING THE DRIVER AT RISK IF THE DRIVER DEPENDS ON THE BLIND SPOT DETECTOR. THE COLLISION AVOIDANCE SYSTEM IS UNRELIABLE. WHEN THE CAR IN FRONT SWITCHES LANES AND THERE IS A STOPPED CAR IN FRONT THE VEHICLE STARTS TO SLOW DOWN BUT RELEASES THE BREAKS ABOUT 50 FT FROM THE STOPPED CAR AND STARTS WARNING OF IMPENDING COLLISION. AND THE BREAKS ARE NOT APPLIED.
THE VEHICLE'S BLIND SPOT DETECTOR TURNS OFF AT LOW SPEEDS POTENTIALLY PUTTING THE DRIVER AT RISK IF THE DRIVER DEPENDS ON THE BLIND SPOT DETECTOR. THE COLLISION AVOIDANCE SYSTEM IS UNRELIABLE. WHEN THE CAR IN FRONT SWITCHES LANES AND THERE IS A STOPPED CAR IN FRONT THE VEHICLE STARTS TO SLOW DOWN BUT RELEASES THE BREAKS ABOUT 50 FT FROM THE STOPPED CAR AND STARTS WARNING OF IMPENDING COLLISION. AND THE BREAKS ARE NOT APPLIED.
NISSAN LEAF WITH PRO-PILOT ASSIST PACKAGE. INTERMITTENTLY THE SYSTEM WARNING LIGHT FOR AUTOMATIC FORWARD EMERGENCY BRAKING AND/OR LANE KEEP ASSIST WILL FLASH INDICATING SYSTEM UNAVAILABLE. THIS HAS OCCURRED ON MULTIPLE OVASSIONS AND AT VARIOUS LOCATIONS. DEALER HAS BEEN UNABLE TO ISOLATE CAUSE OR EFFECT REPAIR. I ALSO HAD THIS HAPPEN ON A NISSAN SENTRA LOANER CAR THEY PROVIDED SO ISSUE MAY BE WITH SYSTEM AND NOT JUST THE LEAF MODELS
NISSAN LEAF WITH PRO-PILOT ASSIST PACKAGE. INTERMITTENTLY THE SYSTEM WARNING LIGHT FOR AUTOMATIC FORWARD EMERGENCY BRAKING AND/OR LANE KEEP ASSIST WILL FLASH INDICATING SYSTEM UNAVAILABLE. THIS HAS OCCURRED ON MULTIPLE OVASSIONS AND AT VARIOUS LOCATIONS. DEALER HAS BEEN UNABLE TO ISOLATE CAUSE OR EFFECT REPAIR. I ALSO HAD THIS HAPPEN ON A NISSAN SENTRA LOANER CAR THEY PROVIDED SO ISSUE MAY BE WITH SYSTEM AND NOT JUST THE LEAF MODELS