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KLUNK
KLUNK

2015 Nissan Leaf

The Verdict

72 Solid Pick

The 2015 Nissan Leaf has 107 owner complaints filed with NHTSA. The most reported issues are brakes (80 complaints) and electrical (10 complaints). With a Klunk Score of 72/100, it earns a "Solid Pick" rating. If you're shopping for a Nissan Leaf, consider the 2025 model year which has 93% fewer complaints.

Safe Bet

The 2025 has 93% fewer complaints

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72

Klunk Score: Solid Pick

Fewer complaints than most vehicles. Generally dependable, but check the top problems below.

How is this calculated?

The Klunk Score ranks this vehicle year against all others in our database based on total owner complaints filed with NHTSA. 100 = fewest complaints (top tier), 0 = most complained-about. Scores above 60 are better than average; below 40 means more problems than most.

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Under the Hood

Each number is a complaint. Darker = bigger problem.

YearBodyBrakesElectricalEngineTransmission
20118225573
201211222130
201316312563
2014718711
20159801053
20162158100
2018241210160
20194910129389
202021379358
202112127101
202540210

By Category

Brakes
80
Electrical
10
Body
9
Engine
5
Transmission
3

By Severity

1
49
2
50
4
8

Worst Problems

Complaints

Brakes 2

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 the brakes failed right before I came around a bend. I had to quickly press the e-brake to slow down, or I would have run right off the road. This is definitely a dangerous issue. Please issue a recall for this because I've noticed many other people complaining about the same issue—the same sound, feeling, and symptoms. It appears the brakes are malfunctioning due to a communication error, or a low voltage issue to the brake computer systems?

2mo ago
Body 1

Visor on driver side fall down on face causing blockage. Paint is pealing off of vehicle.

2mo ago
Brakes 2

Was driving the car in a neighborhood setting only going 20 mph, ABS light turned on the dashboard, traction control light or some other light regarding traction came on as well, brakes failed. Had to use parking brake to stop the vehicle.

7mo ago
Brakes 1

While driving normally, yellow brake warning lights came on but I arrived home without incident. Next time I drove, the warning lights were all off, but suddenly the brakes failed almost completely. I pushed the pedal to the floor and heard a grinding/clicking sound, and barely any stopping power. I was only going 25 mph, and was able to stop after 5 seconds of high foot pressure. At the same time, red brake warning light came on. I was able to get the car home very slowly, and strangely I had adequate braking power for the remainder of the short trip (although red and yellow brake warning lights remain on). I am happy to provide the car for inspection. This was extremely dangerous to the nearby pedestrians because I could not have stopped the vehicle had one been crossing in front of me. Had this happened at highway speeds, my passenger and I would have been in great danger, as would have other vehicles.

7mo ago
Brakes 1

My Intelligent Brake Unit failed. I was slowing down at a major intersection to stop. The ABS system activated and the brakes did not respond appropriately. The pedal went soft. Multiple lights on the dashboard lit up. My two year old child was in the vehicle with me, and we are still recovering from this traumatic experience. I considered the car disabled and had it towed to a mechanic. I then brought it to a Nissan dealership who identified that the entire intelligent brake unit needs replacing for $5,500, which is more than half of what I paid for the vehicle.

11mo ago
Electrical 2

My 2015 Nissan Leaf is suffering from advanced battery degradation. The car would only charge to 55 miles per charge. The car also has only 85,000 miles only. Nissan refused to address or fix the issue as the car was past the 7 year warranty (even though the book says 8 year warranty). Battery should still go to 150 miles per charge. Dealership claimed degradation from charging at super chargers. Car has only ever been charge at home as it is only driven 2 - 3,000 miles per year. Car stopped in the middle of the highway. Police had to come move to the side of the road. No one was injured although many could have been.

14mo ago
Brakes 2

I was driving about 30mph and suddenly out of nowhere my brakes went out. They went out for about 1 second and some lights went out - then I slammed on the brakes, skidded to a halt and stopped in the. middle of the road, nearly crashing. We took it to the garage and they ran two codes and told us to take it to the dealer. The dealer quoted us about $8,000 and said it needed to "replace electrically driven brake control unit AND e-harness (engine room harness) (240123nh1d)". This makes the car dangerous to drive due to failures beyond our control or regular maintenance. This is a car failure and should be covered by a recall. It is simply not safe to drive. Looking online, this has happened to other Nissan Leafs of the same year/model as well.

15mo ago
Brakes 2

I was driving my vehicle and the brakes suddenly stopped working. Upon failure, the ABS warning light as well as the braking system warning lights came on. I had to use my emergency brake to stop the vehicle. I had my vehicle towed to Nissan. The Nissan dealership mechanic said it was a Master Cylinder Brake Controller malfunction. It is currently at the dealership and available for inspection. The cost to repair the brake system exceeds the value of the car. This put my safety at risk because I could not safely stop my vehicle. I was minutes away from merging onto the freeway. Had I been traveling at high speeds without any braking system, my life and others would have been at risk.

18mo ago
Brakes 1

Driving normally when the brake light, abs light, and traction control light came on.Brakes were unresponsiveness unless brake pedal was fully depressed causing a the ABS brakes to engage. This caused difficulty stopping and was required to use parking brake to slow down. Restarted vehicle several times but problem persisted. Nissan dealership stated that the intelligent braking system needed to be replaced as that is what their computer stated as all the codes indicated that the module was defective. Codes and diagnostic report attached.

20mo ago
Engine 1

Unintended Acceleration: Vehicle continue to accelerate even after the gas pedal is released or not slow down as expected.

22mo ago
Brakes 1

The intelligent braking system control unit failed. The car is available for inspection, it is at the dealership for repair. I was driving downhill, towards a busy intersection and without any warning, there was no braking when I pushed the brake pedal. It was my two young children and myself in the car, we drove straight through a crosswalk (luckily empty), and towards a very busy intersection (luckily slightly uphill so we were able to stop in time). I cannot imagine what could have happened if losing our brakes would have happened any other time. We could have easily been injured or killed, as well as someone else. The problem has been confirmed by the dealer. The vehicle has been inspected by the local dealer and service center, same one the vehicle was purchased from. No warnings, messages, or other symptoms whatsoever. Afterwards, the ABS warning lights did come on.

23mo ago
Brakes 1

The contact owns a 2015 Nissan Leaf. While in the driveway of the residence, the contact started the vehicle with his foot on the brake pedal; however, the vehicle rolled. The contact depressed the brake pedal to the floor, but the vehicle continued rolling until it struck a rock wall. The failure occurred without warning. There were several unknown warning lights illuminated. There were no injuries sustained. There was no Police report filed. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where the vehicle was diagnosed with an electrical failure, and that the brake booster had failed. The vehicle was not repaired due to a dealer not being in the area where the contact resides. The contact referenced NHTSA Campaign Number: 16V119000 (Service Brakes) as a possible solution however, the VIN was not included in the recall. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 34,000.

28mo ago
Brakes 1

Brakes did not engage when depressing the brake pedal. No warning lights in the dash. Car was used a few hours prior with no issues. No other warnings of the failure occurred before or during my attempt to brake, aside from the lack of braking action. Occurred at a stop sign cross traffic, I turned into oncoming traffic, cutting off the other car but avoiding a collision. I confirmed the brakes did not work at the subsequent stop light, used parking brakes to stop at the side of the road. Minimal braking action seem to be present when I fully depress the brake pedal. Brakes worked normally the next day. Dealer service center states the intelligent brake control unit needs to be replaced for $5000, which is around the current value of the vehicle.

28mo ago
Brakes 1

Brake pedal goes to the floor with no braking power. Grinding sounds, then finally brakes engage, but feels like the emergency brake. Super dangeraous, happened on the freeway. Checked 12v battery, based on what I read on line, battery had and still has strong charge. Next day, brakes work just fine. No problems. Happened again on highway a few days later, again, no braking power until just at the end, cant drive the car at any speed now, battery still fine. No cold weather here (unlike the many other 2015 leaf owners reporting the same issue. All dash warning lamps come on. Again, car drives fine the next day. Nissan denies any recall being needed, despite the hundreds of reports of similar dangerous problems.

32mo ago
Brakes 2

Warning lights, abs light and brake light illuminated out of nowhere. Unable to brake. Used a lot of force to get the car to slow down. Dealership inspected and said module short circuited.

32mo ago
Brakes 2

What component or system failed or malfunctioned, and is it available for inspection upon request? The electronic braking system seems to have randomly failed due to some electrical glitch. Mechanically the braking system works fine but during this incident the ABS system kicked in causing the car to shutter and the brake petal went to the floor with 0 braking power. Was forced to put the car in Park and apply the emergency brake in the middle of the road in traffic to ensure it would stop. Cycled the car on and off multiple times to see if that would help reset the car but the problem persisted. How was your safety or the safety of others put at risk? Putting other drivers on the road at risk if we were not able to stop the car could have caused property damage and personal injury to others on the road and my family who was in the car. Has the problem been reproduced or confirmed by a dealer or independent service center? The problem has been reproduced 3 times but the last time being more severe and power cycling the car didn’t correct the issue like the prior two incidents. Has the vehicle or component been inspected by the manufacturer, police, insurance representatives or others? The vehicle is going to be inspected by myself and possibly the manufacturers dealership depending on my findings. Were there any warning lamps, messages or other symptoms of the problem prior to the failure, and when did they first appear? There was no prior warning all warnings come inline with the brake failure.

34mo ago
Brakes 2

When vehicle is cold, I start driving and the first time I try to brake the brake light comes on, an orange triangle with expalnation mark comes on and the brake pedal pushes to the floor without providing braking power. One time, I was on a hill and the car started rolling backward even though the brake was pushed fully to the floor. I had to turn off the car and turn it back on to reset? the problem. I had to do this twice yesterday. The problem is happening more often over the past 1week.

34mo ago
Brakes 1

The contact owns 2015 Nissan Leaf. The contact stated that upon starting the vehicle, the brake pedal was almost depressed to the floorboard with the T/M (Transmission-Transaxle) warning light illuminated. The contact called the dealer but was unable to speak with a service tech. The contact was then scheduled an appointment. Upon investigation, the contact discovered NHTSA Campaign Number: 16V119000 (Service Brakes) which he linked to the failure. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was 52,000

35mo ago
Brakes 2

I approached a red light at an intersection intending to make a right turn. As I pressed the brakes to stop before the turn, the car did not slow and I was forced to make the turn against the red light. After the turn I was able to stop the car using the parking brake. After coming to a stop I noticed multiple warning lights on the instrument panel had come on which were not on previously.

36mo ago
Electrical 1

Backup camera shows blank black screen intermittently. Shifting into park and back to reverse does not resolve. Several hours later it seems to resolve.

37mo ago

107 total

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