2013 Leaf rear bumper misaligned!?

[ichristopherg]

Took my Leaf this morning to the dealer to have the rear bumper adjusted. I showed the service advisor the issue, he agreed it shouldn't be like that, and the paint was already lifting/peeling off where the bumper was too tight on the driver side. I told him that it was the first thing I noticed on the leaf and that all of them on the lot seem to have the issue. The dealer was actually unloading a new shipment of leafs off of a semi when I got there, we went over and looked at them and sure enough all of them had the rear bumper misalignment issue. He said, "THATS CRAZY its definitely a defect." Some of the leafs looked worse than mine! They have to send my leaf to the body shop have the bumper adjusted and touched up where the paint has already peeled. I already miss my leaf but I rather get it taken care of then have it get worse with the peeling and then be responsible for it when my lease is up.

 

[TomT]

To paraphrase an old Ford saw, "Quality is job 2..." :lol:

The dealer was actually unloading a new shipment of leafs off of a semi when I got there, we went over and looked at them and sure enough all of them had the rear bumper misalignment issue. He said, "THATS CRAZY, its definitely a defect." Some of the leafs looked worse than mine!

 

[ichristopherg]

I have the same problem on my 2013 Leaf that I purchased 4 weeks ago. The passenger side of the rear bumper had a bigger gap between it an the metal rear quarter panel of the car, also it was loose so that when you pushed on it, it moved. It had also scraped paint off on the lights on both sides of the car where it had been too tight on the drivers side, and moving about on the passengers side.

I took the car back to the dealer, who then sent it to their body shop, who have been working on it for a week. The tried refitting the bumper, which failed. The then aquired and painted a new bumper, which also did not fit. They also tried the bumper of another leaf they had in the shop. Then they took some measurements of the of some welded metal panels on the passenger side rear of the car and determined that parts were welded 5mm out of allignment.

They then sent someone from teh body shop over to the dealer and discovered the same missalignment on EVERY SINGLE NEW LEAF on the lot.

This is obviously a manufacturing defect. As one guy at my work put it, "when they installed the welding robot, someone must have tripped over the extension cord and knocked it out of allignment."

The body shop is doing their best to refit the bumper so that it doest rub or move, but they are unable to fix the problem. I guess this could potentially become a BIG headache for Nissan. The warentee states that it covers any manufacturing defects, and this apears to be that. 5 mm is a BIG missalignment in my book.

Took less than a day and I got my leaf back! They were able to refit my rear bumper; looks perfect now! My service advisor did say the problem is with the rear quarter panels not the bumper. He also said if I wanted I could bring it back and have the quarter panels adjusted... I don't think that'll be necessary. How'd things work out with your situation?

 

[egodley]

I got my Leaf back after 8 days, with a new bumber (or paint repaired - not sure which), and the bumper reattached. Looks pretty much exactly the same as before, minus the rubbed off paint. I did contact Nissan USA, whom actually called me back last night saying they are investigating the issue. The said it was the first time they had this issue reported to them. I mentioned this thread, and now it looks like we have two dealer lots full of cars with the issue. The Service guy at my dealer also mentioned that it is an issue with the rear panel and not the bumper. We will just have to wait and see what Nissan says about it.

 

[cossie1600]

Does it have anything to do with the car being built in usa

 

[ichristopherg]

Damn Bumper!!! It has started to squeak when I'm driving its so loud I can sometimes hear it over my music... so annoyed. Back to the dealer I go.

 

[lfriedman]

I am having the same problem. When I first looked at the Leaf the car we tested had the back bumper very misaligned. I showed the salesperson and she said, "Oh, we'll give you a different one." I got mine home and see that the problem is minor, but visible. The back panel moves if I push on it. On the back passenger side where it connects to the top of the car the sporty groove is not aligned. I'm taking it to the dealer today. I don't want to leave it there long if they can't fix it though! Bummer. I just want it documented so they don't try to make me pay at the end of the lease.

 

[ichristopherg]

I am having the same problem. When I first looked at the Leaf the car we tested had the back bumper very misaligned. I showed the salesperson and she said, "Oh, we'll give you a different one." I got mine home and see that the problem is minor, but visible. The back panel moves if I push on it. On the back passenger side where it connects to the top of the car the sporty groove is not aligned. I'm taking it to the dealer today. I don't want to leave it there long if they can't fix it though! Bummer. I just want it documented so they don't try to make me pay at the end of the lease.

Yes, its a common problem... according to my dealer.. the rear passenger quarter panel is the issue... it is welded ever so slightly out of alignment which causes the bumper to be off. I'm leasing too so I didn't make much of a fuss after they tried to fix it... They had to send my leaf to a body shop to have the bumper removed and completely repainted, because on the driver side the bumper was pinching and rubbing causing the paint to lift. Bumper is still out of place and pops out a little on the passenger side. It would require too much work to have them re-weld and adjust the quarter panel... maybe If I wasn't leasing I'd consider it. Good luck with your bumper, keep us posted!

 

[lfriedman]

Well, I took the car to the dealer and just had them document the problem and give me a copy so at least at lease-end I will not be blamed.