2011 Nissan LEAF - Ratings, Complaints and Recalls

"my airbag sensor light went off for no reason. i took it into the dealership and was told that it would cost $3,700 to get it repaired/replaced since the seat needs to be removed. i am concerned that this safety issue is not taken care of and have read that many 2011 leaf's are having this same issue."

"the airbag warning light has come on. an independent shop and the dealer say the repair is $4500 or more -- greater than the value of the vehicle, because nissan only sells the complete passenger seat as a repair part, and requires the airbag be paired with the car at the dealer. i ask that this situation be resolved by nissan making just the seat cushion available as a repair part, as they have for recalls of airbags on other model year cars. the safety problem is that nissan's refusal to sell a repair part, leads to a fiscal incentive to bypass the airbag. see also nhtsa #: 08v-521"

"passenger airbag sensor is not working. when car is turned on and driving, the dashboard continually displays a red flashing warning light indicating an airbag malfunction. there is also a message that the passenger air bag is off. newer nissan leaf models have had the same problem and have been recalled, but not the 2011 year. it should be recalled. estimated cost to fix is $3000. seat bottom was replaced in 2016."

"airbag light comes on when it should not. vehicle disables the passenger airbag because it has code b1018. airbag should not disable when an adult is sitting in the passenger seat. code can be reset, but will come back any time someone sits in the passenger seat, regardless of size."

"passenger airbag sensor is not working. when car is turned on and driving, the dashboard continually displays a red flashing warning light indicating an airbag malfunction. there is also a message continuously displaying that the passenger air bag is off. newer nissan leaf models have had the same problem and have been recalled, but not the 2011 year. it should be recalled. estimated cost to fix is $3000."

"airbag light flashing. passenger air bags are disabled. dealer fix is a need a new passenger seat at a cost of $3,000+. current fault code is b1018. occupant sensor unit fail. seat is perfect and no one sits on it - it just stopped working. this is a known iissue"

"2011 nissan leaf has code b1018 occupant sens(unit fail) following a cup of water spilled on front seat. vehicle was stationary at time. only proposed remedy is to replace front seat and sensor for ~$2,624. 2013-2016 leaf were recalled nhtsa campaign number 16v244000; please expand recall to 2011 & 2012 nissan leaf."

"air bag light flashes indicating air bag system inoperative. it can be reset by recycling the car on/off 3 time within certain time limits. the light starts flashing again within about 5-20 miles of driving. same problem on other nissan leafs that were previously recalled. nissan dealer wants $250 and change to diagnose the problem and then tell me what the solution is, but everybody already knows the solution in a few thousand dollars to replace the passenger seat and sensor. the nissan customer affairs office insists that i pay the diagnosis fee despite the fact that the dash board light already diagnoses this problem, which along with the know history of nissan leaf clearly points to the known problem. nissan customer affairs says "we will consider good will assistance" - after i pay the diagnosis, but later in the call noted that the car is out of warranty so it is clear no good will assistance is being considered. the dealer service manager (hayward) tells me that he has had a number of leafs in with the airbag light flashing and it could be "anything from a loose connector to the wiring harness," which interestingly is a set of possibilities that excludes the sensor/seat replacement which is the well known fix. this is a safety issue that is nissan's responsibility. please recall this vehicle. thanks."

"passenger air bag has shut off. dealer ran a diagnostic test and said i need a new passenger seat at a cost of $3,182. current fault code is b1018."

"the airbag warning light and danger symbol began flashing recently. took the car to the dealership and they said the airbag sensor in the seat failed and needed to be replaced and the airbags would not function until the repair was completed. this vehicle has under 60,000 miles on it and the repair part costs nearly $3000 which is above the kbb value of the vehicle. there was no incident to report, just a failure on the vehicle."