2014 Leaf | Didn't Start | Lots of Warning Lights

[Townsend]

One thing about my 2014 Leaf. I've always been impressed about how reliable it has been. Not this morning. Kind of scary. Let me explain.

I forgot something in the house, so I shut the car off -- went in, came back out and tried to start the care as usual. But all I got were like 8-9 warning lights on the dash. (I should have taken a photo. If it happens again I will.) I tried over and over again. Shutting it off, and restarting. Nothing. Sane warning lights. And each time when I went to put it into gear. Nothing. Just a beep. The good news is, after waiting a half hour or so, it started up fine.

Question1: Has anyone else ever experienced anything like this. Any idea what it means?

Question2: If by some chance this happens again and I have to have the car towed, can they even get the car out of park, to roll it onto a tow truck?

PS: I checked the 12v battery. It was at 9.8 volts. That shouldn't be a problem.

 

[LeftieBiker]

PS: I checked the 12v battery. It was at 9.8 volts. That shouldn't be a problem.

Heh! A moderately charged 12 volt battery should read about 12.5 volts. 9.8 volts is "Deep coma,prognosis poor" for one. That is indeed your problem. Either the battery is old and virtually dead from old age, or it's being killed by something like leaving the car plugged in all the time, which drains the 12 volt battery. Or there may be a 'vampire drain' that keeps pulling power when the car is off. In any case, I suggest replacing it with a new fully charged battery. If you can afford it, get an AGM type battery as those are hardier and better able to withstand the stresses of life as a Leaf battery. Keep checking the voltage of the new battery, with the car Off, to see if it's being drained..

 

[Townsend]

Thanks for the reply! Yes. The battery is many years old. Putting a new one in looks like a pretty easy job.

Question: Can I just unhook the old battery and put a new one in? Do I have to worry about the car loosing any kind of memory or anything?

Answer from Chat GPT: Replacing the 12-volt accessory battery in a 2014 Nissan Leaf is a straightforward process. According to the information found, you can simply unhook the old battery and replace it with a new one without having to be concerned about the car losing its memory or other unwanted consequences.

 

[LeftieBiker]

While you can buy or make a device to retain the memory while the battery swap is being done, all that you will lose without one is the window position memory and maybe the radio presets. The main issue with fuel-burning cars is the fuel injection having to re-learn some parameters in the first few miles of driving, and the Leaf doesn't suffer from that.

 

[Townsend]

If you can afford it, get an AGM type battery as those are hardier and better able to withstand the stresses of life as a Leaf battery.

I bought a good AGM battery. $208, with tax. Looked like an easy switch, but it turns out the battery terminals are a different size. I gather these smaller AGM battery terminals are called, "Japanese Pencil-Posts". So I ordered these terminal sleeves, which should allow me to make the switch to this more durable battery.

If anyone is interested, here's what I found. The measurements match what I need. Should this should work fine.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07W3GBF3S/Terminal%20Adapter%20Posts

 

[cwerdna]

I bought a group 51R 12 volt from Costco as I mentioned at https://www.mynissanleaf.com/viewtopic.php?p=572068#p572068.

On my used former '13 Leaf, the original 12 volt bit the dust followed by the "84 month" free replacement from the dealer.

 

[GerryAZ]

Group 51R is the correct size and has correct terminals. The sleeves you purchased should be OK and allow you to use the battery with small terminals. I replaced the OEM Nissan battery with a deep-cycle Optima (yellow top) AGM battery (Group 51R size) in each LEAF when the OEM failed. I did not need to replace the Optima in either the 2011 or 2015 and have not yet needed to replace the one in my 2019.

FWIW, I received a dashboard full of warning lights each time the OEM 12V battery failed (2011, 2015, and 2019) so your experience is not unusual.