2013 Nissan Leaf reliability

Is it reliable?

The 2013 Nissan Leaf has 81 complaints with NHTSA after 14 years, or 11 per year. That is more complaints per year than most Leaf years here — over the median of the other years, which is 4. NHTSA has 5 recalls on file, including Owner's manual, Occupant classification, and Service brakes.

2012 Nissan Leaf — Photo by Vauxford, resized from the original. Wikimedia Commons CC BY-SA 4.0

Complaints

Per year

Recalls

Years on the road

What owners report

The complaints owners file most often name Service brakes (32 of 81), then Electrical system (18) and Air bags (17). Those filings include 11 that report a crash, 1 that reports a fire, and 4 that report an injury.

Next to 2012 and 2014

The 2012 Leaf has 57 complaints, 8 per year, and the 2014 has 34 complaints, 4 per year. The 2013 has more complaints per year than the 2012. The 2013 has more complaints per year than the 2014.

The complaint rate is complaints filed in this year’s first 3 years on the road, divided by however many of those years have passed. Recalls are a separate count. The numbers are for the US-market 2013 Nissan Leaf. How we count. Data as of 2026-10-16.

Recalls (5)

Recall Owner's manual 2023-04-26 · NHTSA campaign 23V296000

Summary 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."

Remedy 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.

Recall air bags, sensor, occupant classification 2016-04-26 · NHTSA campaign 16V244000

Summary 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.

Remedy 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.

Recall Service brakes 2016-02-29 · NHTSA campaign 16V119000

Summary 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.

Remedy 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.

Recall electrical system, software 2014-03-25 · NHTSA campaign 14V138000

Summary Nissan North America, Inc. (Nissan) is recalling certain model year 2013-2014 Altima, LEAF, Pathfinder, and Sentra, model year 2013 NV200 (aka Taxi) and Infiniti JX35 and model year 2014 Infiniti Q50 and QX60 vehicles. In the affected vehicles, the occupant classification system (OCS) software may incorrectly classify the passenger seat as empty, when it is occupied by an adult.

Remedy Nissan will notify owners, and dealers will update the OCS software, free of charge. The recall began on April 14, 2014. Owners may contact Nissan at 1-800-647-7261.

Recall Air bags 2013-03-01 · NHTSA campaign 13V069000

Summary Nissan is recalling certain model year 2013 Altima, LEAF, Pathfinder, Sentra, and Infiniti JX35 vehicles. Sensors within the passenger Occupant Detection System (ODS) may have been manufactured out of specification. This may cause the system to malfunction and permanently suppress the passenger airbag.

Remedy Nissan will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the ODS sensors and replace them as neccessary, free of charge. The recall began on May 6, 2013. Owners may contact Nissan Customer Service at 1-800-647-7261.

Complaints by component (81 total)

Service brakes

Electrical system

Air bags

Speed control

Fuel and propulsion system

Seat belts

Steering

Visibility and wipers

Wheels

Electronic stability control (ESC)

Powertrain

Engine

Seats

Structure

Suspension

Tires

Adaptive and mobility equipment

Visibility

Show 10 more Show less

Crash-flagged

Fire-flagged

Injury reports

Death reports

Complaints filed per year

Excerpts from recent NHTSA complaint filings

"On 3 occasions the brakes have randomly failed when traveling. In 2 cases, stopping ability was non-existent except for the use of the parking brake. In the other case, stopping was significantly decreased. 13-Jan-2025,…"
Service brakes · filed 2025-01-13
"I put the car in park as I was pulling in without turning it off to grab trash from the curb and take it to the car, but the car keep accelerating. I jumped in and slammed on the bricks but it hit the brick wall to the…"
Speed control, Unknown or other, Service brakes · filed 2024-12-12
"The contact owns a 2013 Nissan Leaf. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, there was a whistling sound coming from the engine compartment. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where…"
Visibility · filed 2024-05-23
"The car suddenly lost power during freeway driving. The brake system appeared compromised. Turning off 12v accessories - which includes safety critical functions such as the defrost blower - was necessary to restore…"
Electrical system · filed 2023-11-30
"The Nissan Leaf has a 6,600 watt charger that is attached to the top of the 26,000 watt electrical motor. A 30 Amp Nissan charging cord connects the 220 volt electrical outlet (dryer) to the Leaf via a Society of…"
Electrical system · filed 2023-09-30

NHTSA crash ratings

Version	Overall	Front	Side	Rollover
2013 Nissan Leaf 5 HB FWD	4 stars	4 stars	4 stars	4 stars

Stars are how this vehicle did in NHTSA crash tests. They are a safety result, separate from the complaint record. Not rated means that test was not run for this version.

Fuel economy

Trim	Engine	Transmission	Drive	City	Hwy	Combined	Annual fuel cost
Leaf	—	Automatic (1-speed)	Front-wheel drive	129	102	115 MPG / 75 mi range	$650

Specs and fitment

1st generation (ZE0), 2012–2017

Body styles Hatchback

Tire size 205/55R16, 215/50R17 (trim dependent)

Known issues for this generation

Recall 17V-253 covers certain 2015-2017 LEAF and certain Sentra vehicles: due to a manufacturing error within the air bag inflators, the passenger frontal air bag may not properly deploy in a crash. Dealers replace the front passenger air bag inflator. The campaign also names Sentra model years, so published totals are shared. Recall 16V-119 covers certain 2013-2015 LEAF vehicles where, during very cold temperatures, the relay inside the electronic brake booster may fail.

Compare

Previous year 2012 Nissan Leaf Next year 2014 Nissan Leaf See every Nissan Leaf model year →

Frequently asked questions

Is the 2013 Nissan Leaf reliable?

What are common problems with a 2013 Nissan Leaf?

Is the 2013 Nissan Leaf more reliable than the years next to it?

The 2012 Leaf has 57 complaints, 8 per year, and the 2014 has 34 complaints, 4 per year. The 2013 has more complaints per year than the 2012. The 2013 has more complaints per year than the 2014.

Has the 2013 Nissan Leaf been recalled?

The 2013 Nissan Leaf has 5 recalls on file with NHTSA. See the recalls table on this page for dates, components, and remedies.

How many complaints have owners filed about the 2013 Nissan Leaf?

Owners have filed 81 complaints about the 2013 Nissan Leaf with NHTSA.

What mpg does a 2013 Nissan Leaf get?

EPA-rated combined fuel economy for the 2013 Nissan Leaf is 115 MPG. See the fuel economy table on this page for city and highway figures by engine and transmission.

Does the Nissan Leaf use engine oil?

Battery-electric versions have no conventional engine oil change; follow the owner's manual for reduction gear and other fluids.

What generation is the 2019 Nissan Leaf?

2nd generation / ZE1 (2018-on).

What tire sizes does a Nissan Leaf use?

Common US sizes include 205/55R16 and 215/50R17 depending on trim.