Can A Nissan Leaf Be Towed? (Flat Towed Or Any Other Way)

ByRowan A Updated on

The Nissan Leaf is a solid option if you are looking to buy a family-friendly electric vehicle with plenty of space inside and in the trunk to store your luggage or possessions. While also being at a more affordable price than other EVs like Tesla. 

EVs are the way forward to a more environmentally-friendly future for traveling around. Not only do they release zero emissions, they’re also relatively more affordable to run. But they also, unfortunately, do not come without their setbacks.

One of these setbacks is the possibility of the battery dying midway through a journey, and unlike gas-powered vehicles, you can’t fill it back up with a jerrycan to get you to your nearest gas station. So you’ll need someone to come and pick you up and take your vehicle somewhere.

This begs the question, is it possible for the Nissan Leaf to be towed, and if so, do they need to be towed a certain way? Read on to find out all the answers.

Will A Nissan Leaf Warn You Before The Battery Dies?

The Nissan Leaf can travel up to around 155 miles on a maximum charge (depending on your driving speed) before the battery dies.

When your battery drops below a certain level, a voice will tell you that your battery is low, and there will also be signals and lights on your dashboard that will notify you of this. As the battery gradually gets lower, the signals may become more frequent. 

The Leaf also has a turtle mode, much like the buffer in the Tesla, which will allow you to drive a few extra miles within your vehicle before the battery dies completely. This will allow you to hopefully make it to a safer location on the side of the road or even a nearby charging station.

You may also want to consider keeping an EV adapter with you in the car at all times just in case you begin to run out of battery, but you can’t find any compatible charging units nearby, and you need to use one that would require an adapter. 

Can A Nissan Leaf Be Towed?

So, your Leaf has come to a complete standstill, and your battery is dead. What do you do now?

With most gas-powered cars, you can just get them towed, but this is not always the case with electric vehicles. 

Older models of the Nissan Leaf, like the 2011 model and a 2011 Chevy Volt, can be towed because they’re front-wheel-driven cars, and you can make sure that the drive end is aloft when it’s being pulled back to a gas station or an impound. 

Generally, though, Nissan does not recommend you tow your Leaf model because the car’s electric motor is always connected to the wheels, and the car doesn’t have a true neutral gear. So towing it could cause severe damage to your vehicle, and you probably wouldn’t be able to claim your warranty if they found it you didn’t follow the instructions for the vehicle. 

However, these rules may change depending on the model of Nissan Leaf, so make sure to read the handbook before allowing your vehicle to be towed. Or even consult with a team member of Nissan on the phone beforehand. 

Interestingly, Nissan also recommends against trying to jump-start your Nissan Leaf in the case of a flat battery.

Flatbed Towing Your Nissan Leaf

Don’t worry. This doesn’t mean you have to leave your car dead on the side of the road until the end of time. There are still ways to get around getting it up and running again.

The main way to do this is by lifting your Leaf onto a suitable trailer (ensure it’s the right weight capacity and the dimensions are correct). The Leaf can be positioned facing the towing car or away from the towing vehicle on the trailer; it doesn’t matter. 

A flatbed trailer can be expensive to hire, so it’s highly recommended to ensure you’ve got roadside recovery assistance included in your insurance policy plan otherwise, you could easily be spending hundreds if not thousands of dollars.

Rules to know about towing your Nissan Leaf:

  • Never tow your EV Nissan Leaf with the front wheels touching asphalt, which includes having all four wheels on the road as it can damage the motor.
  • Make sure the power is off when you’re towing with the rear wheels on the road.
  • Ensure the electric parking brake is off when the car is being towed with the rear wheels on the tarmac.
  • If the Leaf is being towed by lifting the rear wheels, then you’ll need to ensure the drive wheels are supported with a mechanism to stop them from making contact with the road.

Can You Tow Something With Your Nissan Leaf?

Yes, a Nissan Leaf can tow trailers or other vehicles of up to 1,500lbs. However, you’ll want to ensure your towing adheres to official guidelines. However, these EVs are not manufactured primarily for towing, so Nissan does not recommend that you do so with the Leaf. 

You’ll want to ensure you buy the right hitching kit, which enables your Nissan Leaf to comfortably tow things and stay safely attached for the entire journey.

However, these hitches will only be able to be installed on your Leaf by making some alterations to the plastic bodywork underneath the car. 

Final Thoughts

So there’s your answer, you should never flat tow Nissan Leaf unless it’s the only option you’re left with. Doing this could seriously damage your vehicle and void your warranty, leaving you with a broken car and no safety net to fall back on apart from buying a new car. 

The best option if you need to tow your Nissan Leaf is flatbed towing it on a trailer. 

Related Articles:
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Can a Nissan Leaf use a Tesla Supercharger?
How long will a Nissan Leaf battery last for?
What does it cost to charge a Nissan Leaf?
How to replace a Nissan Leaf key battery
Why are used Nissan Leaf’s so cheap?
The BEST EV home chargers for the Nissan Leaf

Written by:

Rowan A

I’m a mechanical and electrical engineer from the University of Cape Town, obsessed with electric vehicles and electronic music. Consider me a human hybrid of gears and beats.