2015 Nissan Leaf Problems, Complaints & Recalls
- Compared with other Leaf years
- Far more complaints than other years 3rd of 17 for complaints
- Safety recalls
- 4 recalls: check your VIN
- NHTSA crash rating
- 4 out of 5 stars
Owners have filed 110 complaints with NHTSA about the 2015 Nissan Leaf. That ranks 3rd out of 17 Leaf model years for complaints. The most reported problem area is service brakes (84 complaints, 76%), typically at around 32,307 miles. Complaints mention 8 crashes, 3 injuries. There are 4 safety recalls covering this model year. NHTSA has opened 1 defect investigation involving it.
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- 110owner complaints
- 4safety recalls
- 1NHTSA investigations
- 8complaints mentioning a crash
Complaints are unverified owner reports and are not adjusted for sales volume.
Most common 2015 Nissan Leaf problems
Complaints grouped by the part of the car owners reported, with the median mileage when the problem happened.
| Problem area | Complaints | Share | Median miles | Owners mention most | Typical repair cost |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Service Brakes problems | 84 | 76% | 32,307 | “brakes failed” (18%) | $5,100 |
| Electrical System | 18 | 16% | 31,000 | — | — |
| Unknown or Other | 9 | 8% | 12,000 | — | — |
| Air Bags | 8 | 7% | 11,000 | — | — |
| Vehicle Speed Control | 8 | 7% | 5,031 | — | — |
| Electronic Stability Control (esc) | 3 | 3% | 35,000 | — | — |
| Engine | 3 | 3% | 43,525 | — | — |
| Power Train | 3 | 3% | 59,611 | — | — |
| Fuel/propulsion System | 2 | 2% | 19,565 | — | — |
| Visibility/wiper | 2 | 2% | 5,800 | — | — |
| Wheels | 2 | 2% | 13,700 | — | — |
| Seats | 1 | 1% | — | — | — |
| Service Brakes, Air | 1 | 1% | 55,000 | — | — |
| Service Brakes, Hydraulic | 1 | 1% | 82,000 | — | — |
| Traction Control System | 1 | 1% | 55,000 | — | — |
One complaint can list several problem areas, so shares can add up to more than 100%.
Complaints by year received
2015 Nissan Leaf recalls (4)
Tap a recall to see the problem, the risk and the fix.
Equipment:other:owners/service/other manual; visibility:defroster/defogger/hvac system
Problem: Nissan North America, Inc. (Nissan) is recalling certain 2013-2017 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."
Risk: Reduced defroster performance can limit visibility out of the windshield, increasing the risk of a crash.
Fix: 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 May 26, 2023. Owners may contact Nissan's customer service at 1-800-867-7669. Nissan's number for this recall is R23A1.
Air bags
Problem: Nissan North America, Inc. (Nissan) is recalling certain 2015-2017 LEAF and 2014, 2016 and 2017 Sentra vehicles. Due to a manufacturing error within the air bag inflators, the passenger frontal air bag may not properly deploy in the event of a crash.
Risk: In the event of a crash, if the front passenger air bag doesn't deploy properly, it can increase the risk of injury to passengers.
Fix: Nissan will notify owners, and dealers will replace the front passenger air bag inflator, free of charge. The recall began June 7, 2017. Owners may contact Nissan customer service at 1-800-647-7261.
Air bags:sensor:occupant classification
Problem: Nissan North America, Inc. (Nissan) is recalling certain model year 2016-2017 Nissan Maxima, 2013-2016 Nissan Altima, NV200, LEAF, Sentra, and Pathfinder, 2014-2016 Nissan NV200 Taxi, Infiniti QX60, QX60 Hybrid, and Q50 Hybrid, 2014-2017 Nissan Rogue and Infiniti Q50, 2015-2016 Nissan Murano, Murano Hybrid, and Chevrolet City Express, 2014-2015 Nissan Pathfinder Hybrid, and 2013 Infiniti JX35 vehicles. In these vehicles, the front seat passenger Occupant Classification System (OCS) may incorrectly classify an adult passenger as a child or classify the seat as empty despite it being occupied. As a result, the passenger frontal air bag may be turned off and not deploy in the event of a crash.
Risk: If the passenger frontal air bag does not deploy as intended in the event of a crash, the passenger is at an increased risk of injury.
Fix: Nissan will notify their owners. Chevrolet City Express owners will be notified by General Motors. Dealers will reprogram the Air Bag Control Unit (ACU) and OCS Electronic Control Unit (ECU) in Altima, Maxima, Murano, Rogue, and Sentra vehicles, and replace the OCS ECU in LEAF, NV200, NV200 Taxi, Pathfinder, Infiniti Q50, JX35, and QX60 and Chevrolet City Express vehicles, free of charge. Interim notices were sent to owners on May 31, 2016. Owners will receive a second notice when remedy parts become available. Owners may contact Nissan customer service at 1-800-867-7669, Infiniti customer service at 1-888-833-3216 or Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020.
Service brakes
Problem: Nissan North America, Inc. (Nissan) is recalling certain model year 2013-2015 LEAF vehicles manufactured November 19, 2012, to July 31, 2015. During very cold temperatures, the relay inside the electronic brake booster may freeze, requiring the driver to exert more effort to slow the vehicle down.
Risk: If the brake relay fails, longer distances or additional brake effort would be required to stop the vehicle, increasing the risk of a crash.
Fix: Nissan will notify owners, and dealers will reprogram the Intelligent Brake Control Unit software, free of charge. The recall began on March 28, 2016. Owners may contact Nissan customer service at 1-800-647-7261.
To see whether a specific car still has an open recall, enter its VIN on NHTSA's official recall lookup. You can also decode a VIN here.
NHTSA defect investigations
- Pedestrian alert sounds (DP22005) — opened Jan 27, 2023, closed Aug 7, 2023, led to recall 22V063000.
Recent owner reports
Short excerpts of the latest complaints filed with NHTSA, with personal details removed. Full reports can be searched on NHTSA.gov.
The electrically-driven intelligent brake unit failed on my 2015 Nissan Leaf. The brakes became inoperative: when pressing the brake pedal there is a loud compression/grinding noise and the pedal goes nearly to the floor with little braking force. The failure appeared suddenly after charging the…
The contact owns a 2015 Nissan Leaf. The contact stated that while reversing at an undisclosed speed, the brakes failed to engage while the brake pedal was depressed. The brake and master warning lights were illuminated. The failure had occurred on several occasions; however, the contact stated…
The car was parked in a parking lot, and when we turned it on and pulled out of the space, the brake light, ABS light, and other warning lights came on and the brakes went soft. We pulled back into the space and tried again, thinking it was a fluke and heard a strange noise coming from the car when…
This is the third time my brakes have failed while driving, which seems to have something to do with the 12-volt battery. At least at first, I disconnected my 12-volt battery and reconnected it; this fixed the issue, at least for a while. The other day, I was driving down a road near my house and…
Visor on driver side fall down on face causing blockage. Paint is pealing off of vehicle.
Other Nissan Leaf years
| Year | Complaints | Recalls |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 Leaf | 2 | 2 |
| 2025 Leaf | 7 | 0 |
| 2024 Leaf | 5 | 0 |
| 2023 Leaf | 20 | 3 |
| 2022 Leaf | 96 | 4 |
| 2021 Leaf | 56 | 4 |
| 2020 Leaf | 167 | 6 |
| 2019 Leaf | 259 | 5 |
| 2018 Leaf | 66 | 4 |
| 2017 Leaf | 17 | 2 |
| 2016 Leaf | 36 | 4 |
| 2015 | 110 | 4 |
| 2014 Leaf | 34 | 6 |
| 2013 Leaf | 81 | 5 |
| 2012 Leaf | 57 | 0 |
| 2011 Leaf | 95 | 0 |
| 2010 Leaf | 1 | 0 |
See all Nissan Leaf problems by year, every Nissan model, or the Nissan VIN decoder.
Similar Nissan models
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Frequently asked questions
What are the most common problems with the 2015 Nissan Leaf?
Owners most often report service brakes, electrical system, unknown or other problems. The top one, service brakes, accounts for 84 complaints.
Was there a recall on the 2015 Nissan Leaf?
Yes, 4 safety recalls. Enter your VIN at NHTSA.gov to check whether the repairs were done on your car.
Was the 2015 Nissan Leaf a good year?
Complaint data can't fully answer that, because counts aren't adjusted for sales. Compared with other Leaf model years, the 2015 has far more complaints than most years, and NHTSA rates it 4 out of 5 stars overall in crash tests. Always get a pre-purchase inspection and check the VIN for open recalls.