Nissan Leaf fire or smoke problems

Filed Feb 15, 2026 · Electrical · CA

Received recall notice in September/October 2025 that the lithium battery of my 2022 Nissan Leaf SV Plus could catch on fire if fast charged, creating a serious safety hazard. This prevents use of car on out of town trips, or fast charging in town when needed. This puts myself and others at risk of injury by fire and limits my ability to fully use my car to the extent that I was able when I purchased it from the dealership. I continue to be informed by the dealer that a software repair is being worked on, but no date for repair availability, nor confirmation that a software repair will allow me to take the car out of town for fast charging without slowing or shutting down of the system. No warning lamps have appeared, and the dealer has not examined my car.

Filed Dec 15, 2025 · Electrical, Engine · UT · fire

*High Voltage Battery defect/failure - this is what was believed to be the issue when it was towed to the dealership. What is left of it is available for inspection at the dealership for now, however the insurance may take it to a salvage yard since the fire department finished their investigation. *While at the dealership after they spent the day trying to recreate what happened they parked it and planned to try again the next day, then someone walked by and saw smoke coming from the car and called 911. They called it a thermal runaway and it burned for hours before being moved to a safer, emptier lot where it was covered in thousands of pounds of sand. The night before the mileage range dropped roughly 70%, unaware of the recall in our mail that hadn't been opened we stopped to try to charge so we could get home. Thankfully none of the chargers worked since the recall was for a potential fire if plugged into a level 3 charger. We tried to drive home only to end up on the side of the road in total system failure. Police sent incident management to get us to safety. If we had made it home we are told this could have caught our home on fire and would likely have blown up our house and taken neighbors houses out as well. It could hurt more people or structures while they tried to recreate the problem. I understand the dealership had $20K in damages from the fire on top of which my car is clearly a total loss. Homes & Businesses nearby had to be evacuated. *Yes, what is left of the car has been inspected by the county fire marshall, insurance co. Police were called, but no investigation. When I called consumer affairs at Nissan, I spoke to 3 different people who said there was nothing they could do. *We had one other time 3 weeks earlier that the range dropped significant, we got home plugged it in and it seemed fine. The only warnings said we were low on miles and to stop to charge which would have made things worse, could have killed us if they had worked.

Filed Nov 28, 2025 · Electrical · CA

The contact owns a 2022 Nissan Leaf. The contact received notification of the federal safety agency Campaign Number: 25V655000 (Electrical System); however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The contact stated that the unrepaired recall was dangerous. The dealer was contacted, and the contact was advised not to use the Level 3 quick charging because the vehicle might catch on fire. The manufacturer was not contacted. The contact had not experienced a failure.

Filed Sep 2, 2025 · Electrical · 60,000 miles · MN · fire

The contact owns a 2021 Nissan Leaf. The vehicle was taken to a charging station, and while driving at 5 MPH, entering the driveway, the battery burst into flames. There were no warning lights illuminated. The contact stated that the failure was similar to the federal safety agency Campaign Number: 24V700000 (Electrical System). The police department was on the scene. The fire department attempted to extinguish the fire, but the battery continued to ignite. The fire marshal from Minnesota was contacted for assistance to resolve the matter, and the fire department had taken the battery to a gravel pit. The local dealer was not contacted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 60,000.

Filed Jul 22, 2025 · Electrical, Transmission · AZ

Nissan issued recall R24B2 on my Leaf 9 months ago. The recall warns my car could catch on fire when fast charging, but offers no remedy other than "don't fast charge it". Nissan keeps announcing remedy dates and missing them (October 2024, March 2025, now Q3 2025). I cannot drive my vehicle on a tri longer than one charge without the fast charge capability I was sold and bought - AND I am very concerned about the fire danger - there have been multiple incidents of Leaf's catching fire because of this recall. Nissan dealer and Consumer Affairs will offer no remedy, no buyback and no work-around. Is there any way the federal safety agency can help here?

Filed Dec 4, 2024 · Fuel system · FL

I bought this vehicle in june of 2023 a 2019 nissan leaf from hgreg nissan I recieved notification of some recalls one was fixed the other 2 will be fixed soon. The latest one is the battery that is draining very fast, and it is now a recall with no solution, unable to use a fast charger as the car may catch on fire, I spend an average of 7 hours charging the car in a regular charger weekly. I feel that I am paying for a defective product and the solution keeps on getting delayed. I am considering hiring an attorney to try to find a suitable solution for this situation that it is affecting my daily living as the miles I am getting on a full charge is about 130 miles and there are not enough chargers around giving me tremendous anxiety and stress. I do not have the means to even trade in this car as I am very upside down or even sell it as I am getting a 3rd of what I owe since no one wants to buy this car now.

Filed Aug 13, 2024 · Electrical · GA · fire · 2 injuries

On 7/19/2024 while charging the car at Chargepoint Johns Creek, I heard a "clunk" sound as if something had popped off from beneath the body of the Leaf. At the same time, the charging emergency stopped. Smoke started to come out from under the Leaf. There was a smell as if something was melting, making me feel dizzy and nauseous. I felt a sense of confusion from inhaling the smoke. Since both my son and I were outside the car, we were able to quickly pull away and escape as soon as the smoke started. If we had been inside the car, or if this had happened while driving, we might have been unable to escape in time, lost consciousness from the smoke, and possibly died in the fire. The smoke continued for about 15 minutes, followed by a fire. At the same time, there was a sound of something exploding. The police arrived, followed by the fire truck. It took a long time to extinguish the fire, possibly because the lithium battery caught fire. Please refer to the video. ⚪︎Mental and Physical Condition After the Accident Both my son and I are experiencing symptoms similar to PTSD. When we smell smoke or drive a car, we feel chills, nausea, and dizziness, which negatively affect our daily lives. This incident left burn scur to my son and has started having nightmares and crying at night. Seeing an electric vehicle scares us to the point that our bodies freeze and we can't move. Also, seeing fire or hearing car sounds suddenly makes us tremble, our hearts race, and we have difficulty breathing. We start crying uncontrollably in a panic, and it takes time to calm down. It is difficult to control our emotions. We are experiencing insomnia, likely due to the excitement of our nerves from the accident. We probably need mental treatment such as therapy and physical treatment to alleviate insomnia and tension.

Filed May 23, 2020 · 10,194 miles · FL · fire

On friday 5/22/2020 at 8:59 pm a 2019 nissan leaf was in motion driving at less than 7 miles per hours when the main screen displayed: 'warning: service EV system powered reduced'. Within seconds, the operator stopped the vehicle and took a photo of the screen. Immediately following the operator saw smoke coming from the front of vehicle. The operator quickly exited the vehicle. Very shortly after the vehicle was engulfed in flames. Fire department put the flames out. See attached photos of warning screen, trip report, vehicle on fire, and vehicle after fire was put out. *tr*dt

Filed Jan 22, 2020 · Electrical · 22,000 miles · HI · fire

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. The manufacturer was contacted and a case was opened. An investigation was also started. The failure mileage was approximately 22,000. *ln the consumer stated that though the manufacturer was made aware of the situation, however they are claiming no responsibility over the incident. The manufacture is claiming that the failure due to the defective installation of the original battery.*as *ln

Filed Jan 11, 2019 · Electrical · 99,844 miles · CA

Starting on 12/03/2018, this 2011 nissan leaf began releasing smoke and a noxious burning-plastic smell into the cabin during 240v and 125v electric vehicle charging when the vehicle is stationary and the ignition is off. The smoke originates from the on-board charger (part 296a0-3na8a) located behind the rear passenger side seat, which is right behind where the child seat usually goes. Despite this, the vehicle continues to charge from electrical sources and drive normally. An inspection by stevens creek nissan (4855 stevens creek blvd, santa clara, ca 95051) on 12/12/2018 found the same burning smell and reported that a "fuse in the on-board charger (is) fusing". They offered no further expertise about the cause except to recommend a replacement of the on-board charger. On the same day, nissan north america was contacted and asked to address the issue and replied that they refused to address the problem on 01/11/2019. The attached images include the technician's report from nissan stevens creek and photographs of what appears to be thermal damage and combustible soot buildup within the on-board charger, which not only chemically corrodes electronics, but also causes overheating and presents a fire hazard.