(Videos) 2.5 yo Leaf; startup idiot lights weird sometimes

Hi all,

Sorry to be a first time poster and to do that by asking a question, but my 2017 Leaf has begun behaving weird (only sometimes) when I start it.

When it starts weird:
* the entire dash flashes/blinks on and off, before the typical "bars-go-up-and-down" with the clime noise action
* sometimes at least one of the idiot light remains on. Which light changes, though. Sometimes it is the manual parking BRAKE one. Sometimes the car with the "!" icon, sometimes others. When it does this, turning off, waiting 40 seconds, and turning back on, seems to resolve the problem.
* sometimes the real brake pedal will move all by itself. This has happened 3 times total over the last month, so it is rare. Almost as if the car does not realize that I am pressing down on the brake pedal when I start the car.

Other things I have noticed:
* the 4th regen bubble does not appear until the car is down to like 82-86% charged. It is weird to be sometimes up to 2 range bars down and still not have that 4th regen bubble lit.

I tried doing a search but dont know precisely what terms to use.

Does it make any sense to you guys? Have you seen this before?

I'm gonna try and schedule a nissan dealer to inv into it.

The car is 2.5 years old, < 15k miles, and good on maint.

Short Videos (all < 1minute in length):

https://youtu.be/uEaecWOu8EE

https://youtu.be/8QTJvM8mrYE

https://youtu.be/5CzESbiaxck

https://youtu.be/QIPMfY6ztfs

https://youtu.be/qw2DVZy-8JU

Although I did not take time to watch the videos, I suspect your 12-volt battery is getting very weak. When you attempt to start the car and get the strange actions, the DC-DC converter will be charging the 12-volt battery (if main power contactor closes). If so, then it raises the voltage of the weak 12V battery enough to make the car start normally the next time. The brake pedal movement you describe is also indicative of weak 12V battery during starting of car. If you do find the 12V battery weak, I recommend a deep cycle AGM type to be maintenance free and last longer. The appropriate battery group size is 51R. I used Optima "yellow top" batteries as replacements in both 2011 and 2015 Leafs and plan to put one in the 2019 as soon as the original shows any sign of weakness.

Edited to add: Since the car is less than 3 years old and has less than 36,000 miles, it should be taken care of without cost under warranty (regardless of the cause). If it is the 12V battery, the warranty replacement by the dealer will be no better than original so plan on purchasing a good battery in a couple more years.

The reduced regeneration when near full charge is due to higher internal resistance of the traction battery (probably due to colder winter temperatures and some battery deterioration). Regeneration will probably return when temperatures go up in the spring.

I agree about the 12 volt battery. Do you leave the car plugged in but not charging for long periods? This can drain the accessory battery.

I agree with the 2 posts above. Lengthy experience with VW/Audi/Ford products, and limited experience here (3 years) lead me to believe any random electrical issues can frequently be a weak 12V battery.

Outerspaceguy: help us out by putting your region in your signature. It's helpful when we're trying to diagnose issues.

Sorry for not responding during the day. I only stored the password on my home computer and not on my phone.

I stopped by at AutoZone on the way home today and had them check my 12V battery. Their tool confirmed that the 12V battery is bad.

I dont know if I can attach an image to this post, but I took a photo of their result.

Since it should still be under partial warranty (I think I have to only pay 25%, from the warranty docs), I made an appt with a Nissan Dealer tomorrow to have them inspect it. (I'm in Phoenix area, BTW, so our summers do tend to thoroughly toast 12V batteries).

It is completely bizarre that this would be how the car manifests a bad 12V battery.

Also: I do not leave my car plugged+charged in for long periods of time. In fact, typically I only charge 1 (sometimes 2) times per week.

Thanks all for your responses, BTW.

I'll let you know what the dealer discovers tomorrow!

Update: Dealer confirmed that the 12V battery was bad, and replaced it under warranty.

Since car is less than 3 years old with less than 36,000 miles, I trust that the dealer replaced the battery with no cost to you (no diagnostic charge and no cost for battery). 2.5 years is still better than many OEM car batteries last here in our hot climate.

It was all repaired at no cost. Correct.

I ran into this post and since I have a similar question I figured I would ask here rather than start a new thread.

I checked the 12V battery (which I replaced in 2019) and it is around 13V

I have a 2013 SL and the dash used to startup normally, with the typical "bars-go-up-and-down" and then showing the normal dash info.

A few days ago it stopped doing the typical "bars-go-up-and-down" and it hasn't done it anymore, when the dash lights up it is just like when the car is ready to go, completely skipping the "bars-up-and-down" part.

It is not an intermittent thing, it is consistent ... anyone else experienced this before?

Have not seen that before. Do you still get the startup audio chime?

Did you measure the 13 V of the aux battery open circuit with everything OFF? or was that on laef spy with the car in READY? Not likely that an aux will read that high open circuit unless it just came off a float charger.

my guess is that the aux is actually weak and worn out (sulfated) and no longer able to function. A good full charge to 14.4 on an external charger might desulfate the plates and give you a bit more life.

If the aux battery is left in a partial state of discharge for as short as 3 days, the lead sulfate material will begin to harden and crystallize, forming a permanent insulating barrier.

This video better shows what I'm talking about. Aux bat voltage was 12.6. Battery is <1yr old and I experienced weak battery issues before when I replaced it ... this is not intermittent, the dash startup has changed a couple of weeks ago and it's been like this every time.

https://youtu.be/8lsdRpVTfSI

The combination meter responds to CAN buss commands and signals, so it appears that some CAN data is not getting transmitted to cause the "bulb-check". This may be part of a diagnostic feature, but i couldn't quickly find anything for this condition in the FSM.

if you have laef spy it might be possible to read the OBDII port to see if there are any stored DTCs.

Another option might be to disconnect the aux battery entirely (both - and + terminals) for a couple of hours to see if it will do a reset/reboot and get back to normal.

Thanks for the reply!
I scanned the DTCs and there are a few codes stored... one of them mentions CAN comm circuit.
I uploaded the screenshot:
https://imgur.com/a/WCoMv0T

i was wondering if you had an airbag fault since the red warning light was lit up in the video-- it is supposed to stay on for 7 seconds, then go out.

So you do have some CAN and other DTCs related to the Airbag, Brake control module, Shifter and Telemetry control unit. i only have the 2012 FSM so don't know if these codes troubleshoot the same for the later models.

I was thinking the same thing: my airbag idiot light stays on for like 7 s at car startup

getting SQL error and not able to submit post

There are many possible causes of CAN Bus communication errors. Some errors can be cleared with Leaf Spy, but others require clearing with Leaf Spy, disconnecting 12-volt battery, reconnecting battery, and then clearing codes again with Leaf Spy. I suggest you try clearing codes and disconnecting the 12-volt battery for a few minutes, then clear codes again.