2014 Nissan Leaf reliability

Is it reliable?

Owners have filed 34 complaints with NHTSA about the 2014 Nissan Leaf over 13 years — 4 per year. The other Leaf years sit at about the same rate: their median is 4 complaints per year. NHTSA has 6 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 (18 of 34), then Electrical system (6) and Air bags (4). Those filings include 3 that report a crash, 2 that report a fire, and 2 that report an injury.

Next to 2013 and 2015

The 2013 Leaf has 81 complaints, 11 per year, and the 2015 has 110 complaints, 11 per year. The 2014 has fewer complaints per year than the 2013. The 2014 has fewer complaints per year than the 2015.

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 2014 Nissan Leaf. How we count. Data as of 2026-10-16.

Recalls (6)

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 hybrid propulsion, inverter 2014-05-16 · NHTSA campaign 14V263000

Summary Nissan North America, Inc. (Nissan) is recalling certain model year 2014 Nissan LEAF vehicles manufactured April 15, 2014, through April 24, 2014. Due to a problem with the motor control circuit board, the inverter may fail, causing the vehicle shut down.

Remedy Nissan will notify owners, and dealers will replace the inverter, free of charge. The recall began in July 2014. Owners may contact Nissan customer service at 1-800-647-7261.

Recall Structure 2014-04-16 · NHTSA campaign 14V192000

Summary Nissan North America, Inc. (Nissan) is recalling certain model year 2014 LEAF vehicles manufactured February 28, 2014, through March 12, 2014. The front structural member assembly may be missing welds, which could reduce the structural integrity of the vehicle if the vehicle is involved in a crash. As such, these vehicles fail to meet the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 208, "Occupant Crash Protection," and 305, "Electric-Powered Vehicles: Electrolyte Spillage and Electrical Shock Protection."

Remedy Nissan will notify owners, and dealers will inspect to see if any of the welds are missing. Any vehicle missing welds will be replaced, free of charge. The recall began on June 2, 2014. Owners may contact Nissan 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.

Complaints by component (34 total)

Service brakes

Electrical system

Air bags

Seats

Speed control

Steering

Visibility

Electronic stability control (ESC)

Fuel and propulsion system

Latches, locks, and linkages

Powertrain

Seat belts

Structure

Show 5 more Show less

Crash-flagged

Fire-flagged

Injury reports

Death reports

Complaints filed per year

Excerpts from recent NHTSA complaint filings

"[XXX] - I was on the way to work on a clear and sunny morning. After stopping at a traffic light, vehicles started moving forward through the intersection. Traffic was building and the lady in front of me stopped very…"
Electrical system, Service brakes · filed 2024-07-09
"The contact owns a 2014 Nissan Leaf. The contact stated that while his wife was reversing from the garage, the brake pedal was depressed; however, the vehicle failed to stop immediately. Additionally, several unknown…"
Service brakes · filed 2023-04-12
"Complete braking system failure. After putting the car into reverse, only the emergency brake and parking system were functional. Once taken out of park, the vehicle was effectively free-rolling and nearly hit a…"
Service brakes · filed 2022-09-19
"The power steering has intermittently been de-activating. There is a warning light that comes on (yellow triangle with an exclamation mark). When this happens it causes the steering wheel to feel like it’s pulls in a…"
Steering, Electrical system · filed 2022-03-15
"1) start the vehicle 2) exit the vehicle 3) Unplug the vehicle 4) re-start the vehicle 5) put in drive Seat belt chime does not ring. I found that I can also 1) Start the vehicle 2) Put in drive 3) Put in park 4) exit…"
Seat belts · filed 2022-02-03

NHTSA crash ratings

Version	Overall	Front	Side	Rollover
2014 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	126	101	114 MPG / 84 mi range	$700

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 2013 Nissan Leaf Next year 2015 Nissan Leaf See every Nissan Leaf model year →

Frequently asked questions

Is the 2014 Nissan Leaf reliable?

What are common problems with a 2014 Nissan Leaf?

Is the 2014 Nissan Leaf more reliable than the years next to it?

The 2013 Leaf has 81 complaints, 11 per year, and the 2015 has 110 complaints, 11 per year. The 2014 has fewer complaints per year than the 2013. The 2014 has fewer complaints per year than the 2015.

Has the 2014 Nissan Leaf been recalled?

The 2014 Nissan Leaf has 6 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 2014 Nissan Leaf?

Owners have filed 34 complaints about the 2014 Nissan Leaf with NHTSA.

What mpg does a 2014 Nissan Leaf get?

EPA-rated combined fuel economy for the 2014 Nissan Leaf is 114 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.