Nissan Leaf Battery Capacity Lawsuit: Court Approves SettlementNissan Leaf Battery Capacity Lawsuit: Court Approves Settlement

Nissan appears to have reached a final settlement with plaintiffs in a class-action lawsuit over Nissan Leaf electric-car batteries that now goes back almost three years.
The suit was filed in California in 2012 on behalf of all Leaf owners in that state and in Arizona.
Nissan was accused of not accurately describing the Leaf’s real-world range in advertising.
SEE ALSO: Leaf Owners Ratchet Up Attack On Nissan Handling Of Battery Loss (Sep 2012)
After an initial settlement was rejected, Nissan will now have to compensate owners and potentially replace more battery packs, according to InsideEVs.
The suit accused Nissan of misleading customers about the Leaf’s real-world range.
It claimed figures used in advertising for the 2011 and 2012 Leaf were based on battery packs charged to levels beyond what Nissan itself recommended to customers.
2012 Nissan Leaf 4-door HB SL Instrument Cluster
A previous settlement with a reported value of $38 million was rejected by Alex Kozinski, 2011 Leaf owner and Chief Judge of the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals.
Kozinski reportedly referred to the arrangement as a sweetheart deal for the class council that negotiated it, with less real benefit for the bulk of Leaf owners affected by the issue.
Those objections caused the legal process to stall for roughly two years.
RELATED: UPDATED: Should I Buy A Used Nissan Leaf (Or Another Electric Car)?
Now it appears all parties have agreed on a final settlement.
Under the new terms, Nissan will no longer have the option to repair a battery pack that shows less than nine “bars” of indicated capacity on the dashboard gauge.
Instead, it will have to replace those packs with updated versions identical to those used in the 2015 Leaf, which use a newer and more heat-tolerant cell chemistry.
2011 Nissan Leaf
Nissan will also provide 90 days of free access to DC fast-charging through its EZ Charge card program.
Already offered to buyers of new Leafs, the EZ Charge card provides access to stations on the NRG eVgo, Aerovironment, and Car Charging Group networks.
MORE: Easier Electric-Car Charging: BMW ChargeNow, Nissan EZ Charge (Apr 2014)
The card is only available in certain markets, though. Class members outside of those markets–or those not interested in the charging program–can get a $50 check instead.
Any members that opted out of the suit earlier will be contacted via mail about “re-opting” back in under the revised settlement.
[hat tip: Patrick Connor]
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