The battery replacement/buyback thread.

[Dooglas]

You spent a year of your life fighting the turkeys at Nissan corporate over a stinking battery. There is no way in h3ll I am going to put myself in a position to have to go through that. Life is too short.

Actually I agree with you. But to avoid the above experience, I suppose I'd not buy a 9 bar LEAF intending to go fishing for a new battery.

 

[kansas]

Got my Biweekly call from the dealer. No update yet as anticipated. I wonder how long till nissan calls as I am in a loaner from the dealer. It's a 20sl plus. I am sure it's costing nissan a 1000 bucks a month to give me a loaner.

I'm in the same boat. Bad cells in my 2017. I've been in a loaner for a year. I receive a text from the dealer every month asking for mileage. I asked about the state of my car sitting on their lot for a year. They said not to worry. Nissan would cover any issues, dead 12 volt etc. They can take all the time they need

 

[GaleHawkins]

New 40 kwh battery installed under warranty in my Leaf this week

2016 SL with 65k miles

Timeline:

Dec 2022 - purchased used for $11k cash
April 2023 - battery health dropped to 8 bars
4/21/23 - inspected by local Nissan dealer, approved for battery replacement under warranty, battery ordered, est. 18 months
May 2023 - contacted by Nissan CA pushing buyback, eventually offered ~$8k, I declined, saying I prefer battery replacement
Sept 2023 - called and emailed local dealer asking for update, no response
Dec 2023 - sent email to Nissan corporate via main website
12/8/23 - new Nissan CA contact emails me, again pushing buyback, offers ~$6,500 (current KBB value, will not recognize my purchase price paid since I had no loan documents - says cannot use bill of sale)
Dec 2023 - Jan 25, 2024 - 23 email messages back/forth with Nissan CA contact. Not exactly a joy to deal with this person.
-- Will not provide basis/reasons for anything, such as why my bill of sale cannot be used.
-- Refuses to connect me with supervisor.
-- States there are no replacement batteries available.
1/13/24 - submitted BBB Autoline intake form
1/17/24 - received email from Nissan CA contact telling me my complaint has been received by BBB. Note that BBB was basically unresponsive/unhelpful. It was very interesting that my BBB complaint found its way directly to the specific contact at Nissan CA that was dealing with my case.
1/25/24 - send email to Jeremie Papin, President Nissan North America, copy the CA contact.
-- Very happy with my Leaf, not happy with Nissan CA
-- Assert that battery shortage is a fallacy - batteries could be diverted from new Leafs to fix old ones
-- Ask him to get me a replacement battery to fix my Leaf
1/26/24 - Receive email from CA contact saying Nissan is working to get a battery sent to my local dealer
2/4/24 - Receive a call from my local dealer saying my replacement battery has arrived
2/7/24 - New 40 kWh battery installed
2/10/24 - Send email thanking Jeremie Papin, receive auto reply error message indicating my email address has been blocked

Throughout the process, I maintained that I wanted Nissan to fix my car and that I didn't want a buyback.
Hopefully this info is helpful to others.

Congratulations.

This mirrors my experience in 2020 with our 2016 Leaf SL. In Oct 2019 I found our 9 bar Leaf and 5 weeks later it triggered the warranty for a new 40 kWh pack. They started with buy back talk and I said the selling Nissan dealership assured me I would be getting a new battery under warranty. I was surprised when I got the 40 to replace the 24 kWH pack that only had 25K miles on it. Four years and 22K miles later all is well.

SOH this week readout was 90.90 and has been stable for the past year. We still only have $13.5K in the Leaf. It gets driven about 30 mi a week on the one day that I cannot take the wife to work which I normally do in our 2023 Tesla Model Y dual motor long range. I have put 23,500 mi on the Model Y in the past 12 months.

You should have a great 150 mile range EV for years to come.

 

[W2016L]

Congratulations.

This mirrors my experience in 2020 with our 2016 Leaf SL. In Oct 2019 I found our 9 bar Leaf and 5 weeks later it triggered the warranty for a new 40 kWh pack. They started with buy back talk and I said the selling Nissan dealership assured me I would be getting a new battery under warranty. I was surprised when I got the 40 to replace the 24 kWH pack that only had 25K miles on it. Four years and 22K miles later all is well.

SOH this week readout was 90.90 and has been stable for the past year. We still only have $13.5K in the Leaf. It gets driven about 30 mi a week on the one day that I cannot take the wife to work which I normally do in our 2023 Tesla Model Y dual motor long range. I have put 23,500 mi on the Model Y in the past 12 months.

You should have a great 150 mile range EV for years to come.

Thanks! Yes, I'm very happy with the outcome.

 

[SpaceCadet]

Okay, so here’s my goodbye post. I no longer own a Leaf. I got a check from Morely about a month ago and figure the statute of limitations has passed. Here’s my story and two cents for anyone it helps:
Bought a used 2017 in February for $11,200 at 8 bars from a Non-Nissan dealer who didn’t know what they had (golden ticket).

Took it to a Nissan dealer to get in line for a battery repair or replacement. Waited 3 months and kept driving the car.

Asked the dealer for the number for Nissan Corporate in late June and called to ask when I could expect the repair to be completed. Vehicle had dropped to 7 bars in the meanwhile.

They referred my case to consumer relations. I got a buyback offer of ~10,000 after about two weeks. I negotiated them up to 14,500 over the course of a day or two and accepted the buyback.

It took about 2 more weeks to get cleared to meet with Morely. Then that meeting was scheduled 1 week out from when the deal was cleared and I was given the number for Morely.

I turned over the car in late August and deposited the check the same day.

I appreciate Nissan paying me a few thousand dollars to drive an EV for a few months. All told, I probably spent 10 hours of my time buying/moving/calling/negotiating the car and buyback, so that’s a pretty good payout.

It was a fun car, but I learned that I prefer PHEVs. I got turtled for the first and last time on the way to the meeting with Morley because I was accelerating hard on the freeway, no longer concerned about battery life or having enough juice to make my commute. I noticed that the battery had been rapidly degrading (and acting weird) over the last few weeks I owned it.

This is my opinion: Look up your state’s lemon laws to know what to expect from a buyback offer. Nissan will likely offer you the minimum required by law. If you bought used, you probably saved them a bundle. Keep in mind that if you insist on holding out for a battery, that means they will have to pay out for a more expensive car which takes the buyback. I don’t know if you can negotiate as well in states with weak lemon laws, but I would assume so. I expect most of the battery replacements are going to states like California.

From their language, I suspect--with no proof--that they have batteries coming out, but they want to put them in the vehicles that will cost more to buyback. If I had bought mine new, they would have had to pay ~16,000 per the lemon laws in my state, so I figure it was a good deal for all involved. I also got some local incentives for buying a used EV. I didn’t wait to get the federal used EV tax credit, because that can only be taken once every 3 years, and I intend to buy a different qualifying used PHEV before the end of this year.

Anyway, that’s my story. Use it for a data point if you like. Good luck to all those waiting for batteries or negotiating with Nissan!

So, final update. Just got my check from the IRS to close out this saga. Here's my final accounting:
Initial cost: $11,200
Utility Credit: -$4,000
Nissan Buyback: -$14,500
Tax Credit: -$3,360

Total Profit: $10,660

What a deal! I recently went looking for more of these "golden ticket" Leafs, and there are none around anywhere. I think the warranty period is expiring as well.

 

[squirrel4569]

I'm in the same boat. Bad cells in my 2017. I've been in a loaner for a year. I receive a text from the dealer every month asking for mileage. I asked about the state of my car sitting on their lot for a year. They said not to worry. Nissan would cover any issues, dead 12 volt etc. They can take all the time they need

I'm surprised that I haven't heard from my dealer on my loaner yet. They said they would be contacting me each month to renew the rental. I'm not mad though, the Ariya I'm in is NICE.

 

[ATXLeaf]

Started the process on Jan 10
Gave them all the info required on 1/17, BUT they said they didn't receive it and suggested to split it into 3 smaller emails, these were <6MB and were received.
Today Jan 25 got the repurchase offer and signed it immediately as the numbers made pretty much sense.
It took 15 days from initial call to final offer.

Car is in TX. and it has ~20k Miles on it, so at an approx. usage fee of ~10c/mile wasn't worth haggling over at all.

Really just glad to have this offer and now hope to get the car turned over by end of February (fingers are still crossed).
View attachment 3135
Will update post once repurchase is complete

Happy Valentine Day indeed.
Surrendered today, no issues, process as others described. Had check within 30 minutes.
Still a little sad to let the Leaf go.

Waved goodbye to Nissan Dealership forvever - Incompetence all over.
Loving the new Tesla Model Y LR - easiest, fastest and most painless car purchase ever.

THX Y'all for all the help in this FORUM

 

[LeafyLeaf]

Just started this process with my 2017 Leaf SV. EV Tech confirmed that the 30kWh battery needs replacing. I have a case number from the dealer, who told me a replacement or a buyout offer could take many months. If anyone has a tip for speeding the process, please let me know! I'm planning to contact Nissan Customer Service next week.

 

[stevebyan]

I finally found a nearby dealer that will submit a warranty claim: Ron Bouchard Nissan in Lancaster, MA. Very impressive compared to the ignorance I got from Commonwealth Nissan and the outright hostility and lengthy run-around from Marlboro Nissan. I took the car in to Bouchard’s on Jan. 30. Three days later they were into the warranty process with Nissan. On Feb 16 I received a call from Nissan Consumer Affairs saying my battery replacement is scheduled to arrive at the dealer on March 8.

I guess the rumors of Nissan US receiving 500 40 kWh batteries are true. I never expected to actually have the car repaired.

 

[LeafyLeaf]

I finally found a nearby dealer that will submit a warranty claim: Ron Bouchard Nissan in Lancaster, MA. Very impressive compared to the ignorance I got from Commonwealth Nissan and the outright hostility and lengthy run-around from Marlboro Nissan. I took the car in to Bouchard’s on Jan. 30. Three days later they were into the warranty process with Nissan. On Feb 16 I received a call from Nissan Consumer Affairs saying my battery replacement is scheduled to arrive at the dealer on March 8.

I guess the rumors of Nissan US receiving 500 40 kWh batteries are true. I never expected to actually have the car repaired.

Congrats! Hoping for a similar outcome. Please keep us informed.

 

[Driver8]

For all the folks at 8 bars and applying for battery warranty: Were you up to date on your service? I got a used 2017 Leaf from a Nissan dealer in Sept of 2020 and haven't taken into a dealer since then (the only issues I've had have been needing to replace the tires and the 12v battery). Is Nissan being really strict about you meeting specific mileage service checks?
I'm still at 10 bars, so doubt I'll end up in warranty territory anyway, but I was curious.

 

[MBorsheim]

I finally found a nearby dealer that will submit a warranty claim: Ron Bouchard Nissan in Lancaster, MA. Very impressive compared to the ignorance I got from Commonwealth Nissan and the outright hostility and lengthy run-around from Marlboro Nissan. I took the car in to Bouchard’s on Jan. 30. Three days later they were into the warranty process with Nissan. On Feb 16 I received a call from Nissan Consumer Affairs saying my battery replacement is scheduled to arrive at the dealer on March 8.

I guess the rumors of Nissan US receiving 500 40 kWh batteries are true. I never expected to actually have the car repaired.

I have a 2011. In 2015 the battery was failing. I was TOLD at the time by the dealer that the warranty was 8 years or 100,000 miles for the new ones
. Great, I thought. Wrote that down that by 2022 I should look into replacing the batteries. When I started calling to see about getting a new battery, I found out that the 8 years was from the “birthday/factory date” the car was started. NOBODY told me that. So the warranty was over in 2019. And if I purchase a new battery it has a one year warranty for spending $12,000

 

[Jerther]

And if I purchase a new battery it has a one year warranty

What!??!?

 

[stevebyan]

For all the folks at 8 bars and applying for battery warranty: Were you up to date on your service?

Yes, I was careful to have the battery report done yearly, and had the dealer do the firmware update when it came out.

 

[MBorsheim]

Yes, I was careful to have the battery report done yearly, and had the dealer do the firmware update when it came out.

I definitely did my battery reports on time, and when the charge started depleting, the service writer said "oh, you need to get this update done for $150 which will greatly increase your battery life". Did no good at all.

 

[MBorsheim]

For all the folks at 8 bars and applying for battery warranty: Were you up to date on your service? I got a used 2017 Leaf from a Nissan dealer in Sept of 2020 and haven't taken into a dealer since then (the only issues I've had have been needing to replace the tires and the 12v battery). Is Nissan being really strict about you meeting specific mileage service checks?
I'm still at 10 bars, so doubt I'll end up in warranty territory anyway, but I was curious.

Be aware, warranty territory definition. The 100,000 mile 8 YEAR warranty is FROM THE FACTORY DATE YOUR CAR WAS MADE. So mark 8 years from the correct month in 2017. Your warranty should be up 2025. I seriously doubt any of us has 100,000 miles on our cars. Make sure you have correct date

 

[goldbrick]

The 100,000 mile 8 YEAR warranty is FROM THE FACTORY DATE YOUR CAR WAS MADE.

Are you sure? I always heard it was from the date the car was put in service, meaning the day it was sold and driven off the lot.

 

[MBorsheim]

Are you sure? I always heard it was from the date the car was put in service, meaning the day it was sold and driven off the lot.

Almost the same thing. But check early. Last thing you want is for them to tell you your "date" was last month......sorry.

 

[MBorsheim]

For all the folks at 8 bars and applying for battery warranty: Were you up to date on your service? I got a used 2017 Leaf from a Nissan dealer in Sept of 2020 and haven't taken into a dealer since then (the only issues I've had have been needing to replace the tires and the 12v battery). Is Nissan being really strict about you meeting specific mileage service checks?
I'm still at 10 bars, so doubt I'll end up in warranty territory anyway, but I was curious.

Like I keep saying, make SURE when your car date "birthday" date of service, whatever.

 

[squirrel4569]

Almost the same thing. But check early. Last thing you want is for them to tell you your "date" was last month......sorry.

I lucked out. I just found out about the replacement warranty option less than one month before my warranty expired. I'm about a month and a half into my wait to get mine. Enjoying the Ariya in the meantime as my indefinite rental.