2016 Nissan Leaf problems
NHTSA has received 50 complaints about the 2016 Nissan Leaf, and 32% of them involve brakes. Next are electrical system (26%) and fuel system (16%).
At a glance
- Complaints
- 50 filed with NHTSA
- Most reported
- Brakes 32% of complaints
- Crashes and fires
- 1 and 2
- Injuries and deaths
- 0 and 0
- Typical mileage
- 17,000 miles 22 complaints with mileage
Source: NHTSA owner complaints
Where the complaints are
Share of this model year's complaints by the part of the car involved. One complaint can name more than one part, so the shares can add up to more than 100%.
When problems show up
View the numbers
| Mileage | Complaints |
|---|---|
| 0k to 20k miles | 11 |
| 20k to 40k miles | 7 |
| 40k to 60k miles | 2 |
| 60k to 80k miles | 0 |
| 80k to 100k miles | 2 |
| 100k to 120k miles | 0 |
| 120k to 140k miles | 0 |
| 140k to 160k miles | 0 |
| 160k to 180k miles | 0 |
| 180k to 200k miles | 0 |
| 200k+ miles | 0 |
What the data shows
Of the 22 complaints that include odometer readings, half describe a problem before roughly 17,000 miles. For brakes specifically, the median reported mileage is about 20,000 miles (11 complaints with mileage).
Safety-related details: 1 complaint mentions a crash; 2 complaints mention a fire.
Looking only at complaints filed within five years of the model year (so older and newer years are comparable), the 2016 ranks 12th most-complained-about out of 13 model years of the Nissan Leaf with enough data (25 complaints in that window). It is also covered by 4 safety recall campaigns.
What owners wrote
A few complaints as filed, shortened and with personal details removed. The first ones are among the most serious reports for this model year; the rest are typical.
Tl* the consumer owned a 2016 nissan leaf. The consumer stated that while asleep at their residence, they were awoken by the police department who informed them that their vehicle was engulfed in flames. No injury was sustained. The fire department was contacted and extinguished the fire. A police report was filed. No medical attention was needed. First insurance was contacted and the vehicle was towed to a salvage yard. No dealer was contacted. The vehicle was deemed a total loss.
My 2016 leaf sl was damaged in a fairly low speed collision during heavy office rush traffic (around 7:30am in the morning). When the car in front of me suddenly stopped, I also braked hard. At that time I heard ABS like sound but the car did not actually stop, it kept on going and hit the car in front of me. I was too stressed out at the moment therefore I did not have time to think.
Traction motor inverter failure on 2016 nissan leaf. When this incident occurred, I was not able to charge or start the car.
I haven't had an accident due to the brakes not working, but I have had similar issues that others are reporting. I've learned to not follow close at all. Mine is only at low speeds that I've noticed the lack of brakes. Seems random, cannot determine a specific speed or conditions that are common. It has happened since the beginning. Only at 13700 miles currently.