My 2011 Leaf just burned itself to a crisp and Nissan won't help me.

My Nissan Leaf Forum

Help Support My Nissan Leaf Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.

mollycruz2

New member
Joined
Dec 19, 2017
Messages
2
Nobody was home but a neighbor sent the fire department to put out the intense fire that started in the battery according to them. Nissan is not interested in finding out why (it was not on its charger, was locked, not in use, and running perfectly. They shrugged it off with a very short letter basically telling me they wouldn't help. If that can happen, I would not advise anyone to buy one and I won't either. Suppose I had been inside with my grandchildren? I plan to sue, but meanwhile I'd appreciate any information concerning similar incidents.
 
One post, no return, vague negative FUD. Hmmm, why don't I believe this? Oh, ya, now I remember: There have been essentially no Leaf fires in seven years.:

1st one was a forest fire (total loss, but not the Leaf's fault),

2nd one was L1 plug caused a small amount of damage in the garage wall (again, not the Leaf's fault since Nissan doesn't recommend L1 charging even though many do and it's relatively safe if done properly). No damage to the vehicle.

3rd one was actually something interesting. IIRC, it was posted on MNL. The owner smelled electrical fire in the cabin, felt heat near the shifter, pulled over, safely exited the vehicle and called for assistance. A fire eventually formed and damaged the car. Maybe totaled.

So, out of hundreds of thousands of Leafs, only one real fire. Maybe this is number two, but until the OP returns with pictures, news articles, fire/police report, or other corroborating evidence, let's move on.
 
I remember a reported Leaf fire that had a modified battery pack that was left unsealed. Water got into the traction battery and caused a 400V short and then proceeded to catch on fire.

My Leaf hasn't caught on fire, but it is freezing cold here and in a pinch when and if my town gets clobbered with 30ft of snow and the electricity and gas get shut off I might light the Leaf on fire to avoid hypothermia. But other that I'm not worried about it catching on fire.
 
Reddy said:
One post, no return, vague negative FUD. Hmmm, why don't I believe this? Oh, ya, now I remember: There have been essentially no Leaf fires in seven years.:

... but until the OP returns with pictures, news articles, fire/police report, or other corroborating evidence, let's move on.

remember that "regular" people just visit the site once a day or so, so don't be too alarmed that the poster did not answer in just a few minutes, but yes, I agree that we need more details before assuming that this is not a prank.
 
For the record, as chief of police of a small Cape Cod town, I've responded to numerous car fires (all ICE). One theory I have (unsupported by fact) is, when folks go in for a service, if the fuel filter is changed, on rare occasions the filter isn't attached properly, springs a leak and, presto, the car winds up engulfed in flames.

Never been to a car fire of an EV, but then I retired in 2010.

Rich
 
Reddy said:
3rd one was actually something interesting. IIRC, it was posted on MNL. The owner smelled electrical fire in the cabin, felt heat near the shifter, pulled over, safely exited the vehicle and called for assistance. A fire eventually formed and damaged the car. Maybe totaled.

http://www.mynissanleaf.com/viewtopic.php?f=15&t=20476&start=0
 
I'm waiting for post #2, where they clutch their pearls, chastise the non-believers, and stomp out.

hint: Grandpas don't pick a handle of "mollycruz2"
 
2011, bought used in perfect condition in 2015. It was not plugged in, locked and sheltered, nobody home, car incinerated, fire chief said battery caused it , no other plausible explanation, not wet, not near a fire, letter from Nissan said it was out of warranty. Gave me an address to sue them. Didn't seem to want to know what happened to the battery. Car was a pure pleasure to drive and had no problems except short range due to longevity of the battery. The original 60 miles was now more or less 45; but I am far away and had to digest all this by email and phone from witnesses. Glad I wasn't inside it; think they should at least replace it. Not going to buy another, that's for sure. wouldn't suggest anyone else buy one either. They're clearly being irresponsible with this problem. I'm 75, I don't "prank", by the way; to set my car on fire from thousands of miles away, that would be a good one! If you don't have something helpful to say, at least refrain from insulting me. This has been hard enough.
 
Sorry to hear that Molly, i hope you understand that we have to be skeptical because this is the internet and anyone can post anything, so it would be very interesting to us if you posted some pictures at least. There have been hundreds of thousands of Leaf's sold and if yours is the second one to catch fire then compared to normal (ICE) cars the reliability is far greater on the Leaf side. Just the statistics chose you this time around.

Keep us posted on any developments and post some pictures for our own curiosity. Now that it is getting cold out i wouldnt be surprised if maybe a rodent caused a short. Nissan is likely not liable for this, so i wish you luck with any legal action you take. Don't waste too much money though. Was the car insured? i imagine insurance would take care of you if you have comprehensive coverage.

Marko
 
mollycruz2 said:
2011, bought used in perfect condition in 2015. It was not plugged in, locked and sheltered, nobody home, car incinerated, fire chief said battery caused it , no other plausible explanation, not wet, not near a fire, letter from Nissan said it was out of warranty. Gave me an address to sue them. Didn't seem to want to know what happened to the battery. Car was a pure pleasure to drive and had no problems except short range due to longevity of the battery. The original 60 miles was now more or less 45; but I am far away and had to digest all this by email and phone from witnesses. Glad I wasn't inside it; think they should at least replace it. Not going to buy another, that's for sure. wouldn't suggest anyone else buy one either. They're clearly being irresponsible with this problem. I'm 75, I don't "prank", by the way; to set my car on fire from thousands of miles away, that would be a good one! If you don't have something helpful to say, at least refrain from insulting me. This has been hard enough.
Sorry if this really has happened to you. But it is hard to believe do to the fact that many EV haters love posting falsified horror stories about EV's. A link to a news article would be appreciated. Or at least some pictures.

For the record about 5 years ago I put out an engine fire on a Toyota Land Cruiser with a fire extinguisher. So you might want to steer clear of those too.
 
"Product disparagement -- also called commercial disparagement, product defamation, trade libel or slander of goods -- is a false statement about a product that hurts its maker. Victims of product disparagement can sue the perpetrators under both state product disparagement laws and the federal Lanham Act, the law that protects trademarks."

Just being helpful.
 
If fire is a concern then you should definitely never buy a car that has gasoline in it. The cases of ICE cars ending their journey, early, in a ball of fire are so numerous that it's not even news. I've seen plenty of new and old cars at the side of the freeway on fire and never see it in the news afterward.

I'll be buying an electric car again when I need a another one. i'm totally done with ICE cars.

But I would like to know why it did this and I'm surprised Nissan aren't interested too.
 
mollycruz2 said:
2011, bought used in perfect condition in 2015. It was not plugged in, locked and sheltered, nobody home, car incinerated, fire chief said battery caused it , no other plausible explanation, not wet, not near a fire, letter from Nissan said it was out of warranty. Gave me an address to sue them. Didn't seem to want to know what happened to the battery. Car was a pure pleasure to drive and had no problems except short range due to longevity of the battery. The original 60 miles was now more or less 45; but I am far away and had to digest all this by email and phone from witnesses. Glad I wasn't inside it; think they should at least replace it. Not going to buy another, that's for sure. wouldn't suggest anyone else buy one either. They're clearly being irresponsible with this problem. I'm 75, I don't "prank", by the way; to set my car on fire from thousands of miles away, that would be a good one! If you don't have something helpful to say, at least refrain from insulting me. This has been hard enough.

NHTSA would be the ones to contact if your interest is public safety. As for lawsuit, proving manufacturing defect or negligence may be time-consuming and burdensome considering the market value probably south of $6K. If you have other damages, maybe a different story.

Statistically, LEAF has not seemed predisposed to fires. There are possibilities that do not involve manufacturing flaws, such as rodent activity.
 
mwalsh said:
Reddy said:
3rd one was actually something interesting. IIRC, it was posted on MNL. The owner smelled electrical fire in the cabin, felt heat near the shifter, pulled over, safely exited the vehicle and called for assistance. A fire eventually formed and damaged the car. Maybe totaled.

http://www.mynissanleaf.com/viewtopic.php?f=15&t=20476&start=0
Yup, that was the one. I don't remember any others and I've been reading about the Leaf since 2010.
 
Back
Top