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First how this happened. The Nissan Leaf from about 2011 to mid 2015 on the SV and SL models included Telematics. Telematics in thse models let the owner use a web site or smart phone app to query battery status, start or stop charging and turn on/off the climate control as well as get performance statistics.

After years of warnings from AT&T that the 2G cellular network was going to shut down, AT&T did the shutdown in January 2017. This caused a lot of troubles in the M2M and Telematics space or business.

Nissan responded by offering a (discounted?) upgrade to 2011 to mid 2015 owners of the models affected. Cost was 200USD at the time.

The bug causes the +12V battery to drain overnight. Testing on my part seems to put this drain to inoperative car status around 8 to 10 hours depending on battery condition.

That's the background of how this bug titled "Nissan Leaf Battery Drain Problem" came to be.

As an early buyer of this upgrade I had it installed in January 2017 and immediately found my car would not start the very next day. I didn't think much of it at the time so I called the dealer and we figured out the +12V had run down so I put a charger on it and got the car back to the dealer. Over the next 4 months the dealer under warranty and no news from Nissan USA or Japan replaced the module a few times and then the NAV unit. The NAV unit out of warranty is about 4,500USD which would have meant the end of the car since it's so integrated into the car.

-> Finally at about 6 months Nissan USA figured out there was a problem and was talking to Nissan Japan. The bug got a name and dealers finally were made aware. I was case #117. I hate it when I get such a low case number as this is a sign of things to come.

September 24, 2018 and email arrives that Nissan has a fix. That's over 20 months since the problem surfaces.

I can see why it too so long as the host for the TCU (telematics control unit) is the Clarion made NAV unit. This Clarion NAV unit has some Microsoft OS in it but doesn't show any sign it being Windows CE. Just imagine trying to get developers back in the swing of things to gather up the dev kits and more to tackle this bug. I don't know how many of you have worked in this are but some of the battle is convincing everyone it's a real bug. Next up is "who's paying for this?"

I'll have to update if it's fixed later as it's only day one on the new firmware.

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Good catch, . Nissan eventually documented this as a TCU software defect and issued TSB NTB18-045 for 2011–2015 LEAFs that received the 3G telematics retrofit. The bulletin directs dealers to reprogram the telematics control unit; owners may also see DTCs P3131 or P31C2 when this fault is present. If your 12 V keeps dying after the 3G swap, ask the service advisor to check your VIN against NTB18-045/045A/045B and confirm the TCU has the latest calibration. (tsbsearch.com)

Quick checklist you can use before another tow:

  • Scan for DTCs P3131 or P31C2 with any OBD-II tool; note them on the RO for the dealer. (tsbsearch.com)
  • After parking and locking, measure parasitic draw at the 12 V negative terminal once modules are asleep (give it ~15 minutes). A healthy car typically settles well under ~50 mA; a bad TCU will sit far higher.
  • If the update is backordered, ask the dealer to temporarily disconnect or disable the TCU so the car is usable; Nissan provided a deactivation path during the 2G sunset (Campaign P7332 / NTB17-077). (tsbsearch.com)

For anyone finding this thread later: even with the 2018 TCU reflash, the legacy 3G telematics backend is gone in the U.S. AT&T shut down 3G in February 2022, and Nissan followed with NTB22-100 stating NissanConnect Services are no longer available on affected vehicles (including 2011–2017 LEAF). If you do not need SOS or other functions tied to the TCU, it is reasonable to leave the unit deactivated to eliminate any residual parasitic load. ()

And ’s story is spot on: symptoms that look like hardware often trace back to firmware state. With the LEAF, the cure really was a TCU reprogram.

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Just an update 3 months later. Nissan corrected the issue in firmware. Too bad they haven't taken a page from Tesla about OTA (over the air) updates. They are dinosaurs where you bring the beast in for the work to be done by the dealer.

Member Avatar for Reverend Jim

I have a Dodge Grand Caravan with separate temperature controls for driver/passenger. We go to the cottage at Shebandowan Lake for 4 months of the year and last spring, a week before leaving, the passenger side control stopped working. It was stuck on "heat" regardless of the dial position. Dodge said they'd fix it but the earliest date was the day before we were set to leave and I wasn't about to bring it in fully packed so we left it. I found out from a friend later that summer that the "fix" was to turn both dials in sync slowly to cold-heat-cold-heat. Once I did that the passenger side reset and worked properly. The van was off warrantly and they likely would have charged me $200 to "fix" it. Apparently it is a known (and not uncommon) problem with the firmware which they refuse to permanently fix.

We took a Tesla for a test drive this summer when we were in Cambridge, UK. When they open a dealership in Winnipeg I'm getting one.

Edited by Reverend Jim
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To Reverend Jim. I'm just past 2 years on a cheap second hand 2014 Leaf SV. No gas purchases for my (Canadian) 2000 Honda Odyssey with 88,000 KM. I had to put the Honda on life support with a battery tender. Is there any chance I'll buy another ICE car? Unlikely. Once folk switch so far they are lost to ICE sellers.

There's some great news for those that want a deal on ICE cars. There's an upcoming ICE and oil implosion. Here's a great YouTube about it.
It also gets in why sedan sales have hit the skids. Folk have a choice now. Link follows.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aUC6lsLr04I about #Bigoil #EVs #NowYouKnow
"The Impending Big Auto/Oil Implosion Explained | In Depth"

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