New Nissan Leaf review

Clint Eastwood got his big break in his thirties but won his first Oscar in his seventies. Similarly, the Nissan Leaf found success early on, with the original often considered the first mass-market electric car. And some 15 years later, Nissan believes the Leaf is now destined for new heights.

What’s the basis for that? Well, the longest official range available from previous versions of the Leaf was 239 miles, so for many people it didn't really work as an only car. This new, third-generation Leaf goes much further, though, giving it wider appeal.

New Nissan Leaf video reveal

It certainly looks promising on paper, with the largest of the two battery options expected to offer 386 miles of range officially.

That’s a huge increase and a number that should scare plenty of its rivals. Those competitors, by the way, are in the small electric SUV class. Because while the original Leaf was a VW Golf-sized family car, this new model has had an SUV makeover which now pits it against the likes of the BYD Atto 2, Jeep Avenger Electric and Kia EV3, while also troubling some of the smaller options from the class above like the Skoda Elroq.

The British-built Leaf is set to have an eye-catching starting price to undercut a whole host of competitors, too.

How fast is it and which motor is best?

If you buy a new Nissan Leaf you'll get a choice between a 52kWh battery or a 75kWh one. 

Both versions are front-wheel drive. The 52kWh battery gets a 174bhp electric motor and can officially cover 0-62mph in 8.3sec. The bigger 75kWh battery gets a more powerful 214bhp electric motor and covers the same sprint in a quicker 7.6sec.

So far we've only driven the 75kWh Leaf. Acceleration is certainly strong enough for everyday use on any road, and similar to what’s on offer from the Kia EV3, but there are even quicker versions of the Skoda Elroq available.

Is it agile and is the ride comfortable?

Overall, the new Leaf is average in the ride and handling departments.

The ride is well cushioned – you aren’t subjected to harsh or uncomfortable jolts up through the suspension – but it’s also rather unsettled. That means that, while it’s still comfortable overall, even on a flat bit of road, you can feel the car jiggling around beneath you.

In terms of handling, the Leaf offers plenty of grip and accurate steering, but can suffer from body lean through corners. A Renault 4 feels more agile, and an EV3 offers an altogether more polished ride and handling experience.

Is it quiet and how easy is it to drive smoothly?

The Leaf is as quiet inside as impressively hushed rivals such as the Kia EV3, but there is still some wind noise whipped up around the door mirrors at motorway speeds and suspension thumps every now and then.

What’s less impressive is the car’s brake pedal feel. It’s spongy and light, and feels inconsistent in the way it responds to your inputs – lots of other rivals offer a more natural brake pedal feel which makes it easier to stop smoothly.

What’s the range and efficiency like, and how quickly can it charge?

Range is an area where the Leaf stands out from its rivals. The 52kWh version should offer an official range of around 270 miles which is the same amount you get with an entry-level Kia EV3 but more than what you see with the Renault 4 (247 miles) and entry-level Skoda Elroq (232 miles).

The 75kWh Leaf has an official range of 386 miles, which is very impressive and, yet again, more range than you get with any version of those rivals.

In terms of charging, the smaller, 52kWh battery can charge at a maximum charging speed of 105kW while the bigger, 75kWh battery ups that to 150kW. Both batteries can manage a 20-80% charge in around 30 minutes. Those speeds are slightly faster than for the equivalent EV3, but nothing special.

“Activating 'e-pedal' gives you a one-pedal driving mode, so when you lift off the accelerator the car comes to a complete stop – I found this useful around town, meaning I hardly had to touch the brakes myself.” – Doug Revolta – Head of video

What does the interior look like and is it well made?

The Leaf’s interior has a layout similar to that of the larger Nissan Ariya, featuring two 14.3in screens on the dashboard (or 12.3in screens on the entry-level trim); one is for the digital driver display and the other is the infotainment system. There’s a choice of light or dark interior colour schemes, too.

Things feel pretty premium inside – more so than the Ford Puma Gen-E and running close with the Kia EV3.

You'll find a good amount of soft-touch materials on the dashboard, doors and armrests, and things feel solidly put together, too.

Is the driving position comfortable and is it easy to see out?

The driving position isn’t particularly SUV-like, being only slightly loftier than that of a regular electric car. And any sense of being raised up comes only from the seat itself feeling perched quite high up in the car. The driver’s seatbase seems a little short, and therefore lacking in underthigh support. In our left-hand-drive test car, the pedals and steering wheel lined up well, though.

The front pillars are a little chunky, but there are no real visibility issues even with the narrow rear window resulting from the sloping rear roofline.

Is the dashboard and infotainment system easy to use?

Both the driver display and infotainment screens feature sharp graphics, but the touchscreen could be a bit more responsive to inputs.

Every Leaf trim except the entry-level one has Google enhancement, meaning the Google Maps sat-nav app and Google Assistant are included (Apple CarPlay and Android Auto smartphone mirroring are still standard).

Below the touchscreen, on the dashboard, are touch-sensitive buttons for your climate controls. We’re glad they have their own panel – unlike in the Skoda Elroq where they’re shoved into the touchscreen – and are permanently visible but physical buttons and switches (the like you find in the Renault 4) would still be easier to use while driving.

“I was surprised to see that the top two trims get an electrochromic sunroof (a glass roof that can switch between transparent and opaque). That’s something you often see on more expensive cars.” – Oliver Young, Reviewer

How much space does it have for people?

Up front in the new Nissan Leaf, taller individuals have plenty of room to get comfy, but it’s a slightly different story in the back.

There’s enough leg room for a six-footer to sit behind another with decent room to spare – and while there isn’t much footspace under the seat in front, it at least has a flat floor to help with middle-seat footspace. If no one is sitting in the middle seat, it can be folded down to make use of an armrest with a couple of cupholders.

But rear head room is a bit tight. The same six-footer will find their head very close to (or pressed up against) the rooflining while sitting up straight, which isn’t great. The seats themselves don’t do anything clever, such as slide or recline, either.

So while the Leaf’s good leg room helps make it feel more spacious than the Jeep Avenger Electric and Renault 4, the Kia EV3 is far roomier overall thanks to its superior headroom.

How much room does it have for luggage?

The Leaf gives you 437 litres of boot space – down on the Skoda Elroq (470 litres) and EV3 (460 litres) but up on the Avenger Electric (355 litres) and Renault 4 (375 litres). Due to the sloping roofline, there’s not much room above the parcel shelf in the Leaf, but if you really want to maximise overall storage space, you can fold down the rear seats, which split-fold 60/40 (there’s no ski hatch, like there is in an Elroq).

The boot is a usefully boxy space, and has a big opening which makes access very simple. With the standard height-adjustable boot floor in its highest setting there’s not much of a loading lip at the front, either.

Like the Nissan Qashqai, the Leaf has a false floor split into two sections. That's handy if you want to divide up your items and/or stop them from rolling around in the boot.

“I understand a sloping roof helps aerodynamics and gives the car a somewhat sporty look but it does cut into your rear head room.” – Oliver Young, Reviewer

How much does it cost and what equipment do you get?

At the time of writing, Nissan has only provided an estimate of the starting price for the new Leaf, which is £33,000 for the smaller battery and £36,000 for the bigger battery. The big news is that it is expected to be one of very few cars eligible for the full Government electric car grant of £3750, which would drop its price even further – though this hasn’t been confirmed yet.

That would make its pricing very competitive against the likes of the Kia EV3, and even the smaller Renault 4 (which also has a worse range).

There will be four trim levels to choose from: Engage, Engage+, Advance and Evolve. You can have any of the trim regardless of which of the two battery sizes you choose.

So far, we know that Engage has 18in wheels, the false boot floor (split into two sections) and Nissan’s e-Pedal one-pedal drive mode, as well as four levels of regenerative braking.

Upgrading to Engage+ gets Google enhancement for the infotainment touchscreen and a wireless phone-charger.

Advance then adds an electrochromatic sunroof (lower trims lack a sunroof of any kind), privacy glass, a head-up display and a powered tailgate.

Evolve trim gets 19in wheels. We'll know more about the new Leaf's equipment levels soon.

Is it reliable, and how long is the warranty?

Nissan finished near the bottom of the brand table in the 2025 What Car? Reliability Survey, but this was mainly due to the poor performance of the Juke.

More encouragingly, while we don’t have any reliability data for the new Leaf yet, its predecessor was the third best performing electric car, behind only the BMW i3 and i4.

Like every Nissan, the Leaf will be covered under the brand’s three-year, 60,000-mile warranty – you then have an eight-year, 100,000-mile warranty on the battery. That's similar to most rivals, but Hyundai, Kia and Toyota all offer longer overall warranties.

How safe is it, and is it easy to steal?

The Leaf will have plenty of active and passive safety equipment, but it’s yet to be tested by crash safety experts Euro NCAP.

“I think the length of Nissan’s warranty is nothing special – it’s a shame it isn’t more competitive against other manufacturers.” – Doug Revolta, Head of Video

Buy it if

- You want a long range between charges

- You want a competitively-priced electric SUV

Don’t buy it if

- You want the most practical electric SUV

- You want the most agile electric SUV

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