The Used Car Index

2012 Nissan Leaf problems

NHTSA lists 57 complaints for the 2012 Nissan Leaf, 6 of them mention a crash and 0 mention a fire. 3 complaints mention an injury, with 6 injuries and 0 deaths reported.

Data build 2026-10-08.

NHTSA lists this vehicle as NISSAN LEAF.

At a glance

Complaints
57
With crash
6
With fire
0
With injury (complaints)
3
Injuries
6
Deaths
0
Recalls
0
Do not drive recalls
0
Park outside recalls
0
Recall potential units (maximum)
Unavailable
Investigations
3
Open investigations
0
Manufacturer communications
129

Complaints per 100k sold unavailable. No sales source is available for this record.

Where the complaints are

Top systems
SystemComplaintsShare of this vehicle's complaints
SERVICE BRAKES2238.6%
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM1526.3%
AIR BAGS1119.3%
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL47.0%
SEAT BELTS35.3%
VISIBILITY/WIPER35.3%
ELECTRONIC STABILITY CONTROL (ESC)23.5%
ENGINE23.5%
SEATS23.5%
UNKNOWN OR OTHER23.5%
Top subsystems
SystemSubsystemComplaints
ELECTRICAL SYSTEMPROPULSION SYSTEM1
EQUIPMENTOTHER1
LATCHES/LOCKS/LINKAGESHOOD1

One complaint can name several systems, so shares can add to more than 100 percent.

Model-generated complaint tags

These labels are model-generated, not NHTSA data.

Failure modes
LabelCountShare of taggedMean confidence
loss of control1737.0%0.89
electrical electronic1430.4%0.77
restraint or airbag817.4%0.93
visibility or lighting48.7%0.98
structural or corrosion24.3%0.91
noise or comfort12.2%0.70
Severities
LabelCountShare of taggedMean confidence
moderate3065.2%0.78
low919.6%0.74
high715.2%0.93

Model: typesafe/jev-1.13-20260917; schema version: tag-v1. 46 tagged complaints of 57 complaints (80.7%).

Confidence is the model's own probability for the label it chose (0 to 1), not accuracy.

Model-generated labels on tagged complaints only. Model years 2013 and newer are tagged in full; 2012 in part (see tagged_share); earlier model years have no tags. NHTSA's own flags remain separate in the complaints block.

Recalls

See new recalls and investigations this week.

0 recalls.

Investigations

3 investigations; 0 open.

DP22005

Opened: 2023-01-27. Closed: 2023-08-07.

Pedestrian alert sounds

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 ele

Systems: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM.

Linked campaign numbers: 22V063000.

PE19015

Opened: 2019-10-09. Closed: 2020-06-01.

Front Occupant Classification System Mat

Preliminary Evaluation (PE) 19-015 was opened as a result of Defect Petition (DP) 19-002 which alleged that model year (MY) 2011 and 2012 Nissan Leaf were affected by the same defect addressed in an earlier recall, NHTSA Safety Recall 16V-244, but were not included in the scope of that recall.NHTSA 16V-244 involved a defect in the Occupant Classification System, a system intended to suppress deplo

Systems: AIR BAGS.

Linked campaign numbers: None listed.

DP19002

Opened: 2019-08-16. Closed: 2019-10-16.

Front Occupant Classification System Mat

A defect petition (see DP19-002) was received July 23, 2019 alleging that the occupant classification system (OCS) sensor (mat) in model year (MY) 2011 Nissan Leaf vehicles is defective and affects the proper deployment of the passenger front air bag. The petitioner provided a list of potentially related NHTSA reports and noted a Nissan recall involving later MY Leaf vehicles with OCS defect. NHTS

Systems: AIR BAGS.

Linked campaign numbers: None listed.

Manufacturer communications

129 manufacturer communications.

Communications by system
SystemCount
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM47
EQUIPMENT36
WHEELS12
BACK OVER PREVENTION8
STRUCTURE8
AIR BAGS7
POWER TRAIN7
SUSPENSION6

11031704

Date: 2026-04-13. Type: Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions. Systems: STRUCTURE.

CERTIFICATION LABEL AND VIN PLATE REPLACEMENT SERVICE INFORMATION Because of collision damage or other vehicle repair, a replacement a Certification Labela or a VIN Plate/Labela may be needed. HINT: Certification Label = FMVSS (Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards) label. These items may be

11031705

Date: 2026-04-13. Type: Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions. Systems: STRUCTURE.

CERTIFICATION LABEL AND VIN PLATE REPLACEMENT SERVICE INFORMATION Because of collision damage or other vehicle repair, a replacement a Certification Labela or a VIN Plate/Labela may be needed. HINT: Certification Label = FMVSS (Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards) label. These items may be

11009068

Date: 2024-09-19. Type: Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions. Systems: AIR BAGS.

DTC B00A0-00 STORED This bulletin has been amended. See AMENDMENT HISTORY on the last page. Please discard previous versions of this bulletin. IF YOU CONFIRM DTC B00A0-00 (OCCUPANT DETECTION SENSOR UNIT) is stored, AND OCS zero point reset cannot be performed, (continued on the next page)

11004960

Date: 2024-05-21. Type: Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions. Systems: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM.

CAN COMMUNICATION CODES a DIAGNOSTIC TIPS AND GUIDELINES This bulletin has been amended. See AMENDMENT HISTORY on the last page. Please discard previous versions of this bulletin.

11004961

Date: 2024-05-21. Type: Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions. Systems: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM.

CAN COMMUNICATION a NETWORK DIAGNOSTIC FLOW CHART This bulletin has been amended. See AMENDMENT HISTORY on the last page. Please discard previous versions of this bulletin.

11004962

Date: 2024-05-21. Type: Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions. Systems: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM.

VEHICLE KEY NOT DETECTED / AUTHENTICATED, ENGINE WILL NOT START This bulletin has been amended. See AMENDMENT HISTORY on the last page. Please discard previous versions of this bulletin.

11001191

Date: 2024-04-30. Type: Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions. Systems: VISIBILITY/WIPER.

WINDSHIELD CRACKING This bulletin has been amended. See AMENDMENT HISTORY on the last page. Please discard previous versions of this bulletin.

11001194

Date: 2024-04-30. Type: Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions. Systems: VISIBILITY/WIPER.

REMOVING FOREIGN MATERIAL FROM THE WINDOW GLASS This bulletin has been amended. See AMENDMENT HISTORY on the last page. Please discard previous versions of this bulletin.

11001201

Date: 2024-04-30. Type: Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions. Systems: VISIBILITY/WIPER.

WINDOW GLASS WARRANTY INFORMATION This bulletin has been amended. See AMENDMENT HISTORY on the last page. Please discard previous versions of this bulletin.

10243708

Date: 2023-09-21. Type: Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions. Systems: STEERING.

DIAGNOSIS OF VEHICLE PULL (DRIFT) AND/OR STEERING WHEEL OFF-CENTER This bulletin has been amended. See AMENDMENT HISTORY on the last page. Please discard previous versions of this bulletin.

Notes on this record

  • Complaints from the API and bulk file are merged and deduplicated by ODI number; the API alone misses records.
  • System and subsystem counts are numbers of distinct complaints, recalls or communications that name them. One record can name several systems, so shares across systems can add to more than 100 percent; a single share never exceeds 100 percent.
  • Recalls are counted once per campaign, investigations once per action and manufacturer communications once per NHTSA id, even when NHTSA lists several model names for the same record.
  • A sales denominator is a calendar-year proxy, not the population of vehicles still in use. Rates are copied from verified pipeline output.

Other names NHTSA uses

None listed.

Matched NHTSA models

Matched labels and complaints
NHTSA model labelComplaints
LEAF57

Same model, other years

All model years | All Nissan models

Other Nissan models, 2012

Sources

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