Quick News About Nissan Frontier Problems

Front 3/4 view of a Nissan Frontier

Short stories about Nissan Frontier recalls, lawsuits, and other interesting bits. Signup to have these stories emailed to you for free from CarComplaints.com.

Get Free Email Alerts

  1. Certain Nissan vehicles are shutting themselves off while driving

    thanks to busted ball springs in the ignition switch, with a hearty assist from heavy keychains.

    In August 2017, the ignition switch supplier (Alpha Technology Corp.) told Nissan a problem occurred during manufacturing of the ignition switch ball springs. New tests were created for the ignition switches and how they would function on rough roads during vibrations of the vehicles.

    Tests concluded that those ball springs are giving out way too early. And without springs to support the weight of heavy key chains bouncing around on bumpy roads, the ignition is slipping itself from the “on” to “accessory” position.

    To make sure drivers don’t suddenly find themselves cruising down the highway with their radios on and their engines off, Nissan is recalling over 150,000 vehicles.

    If this all sounds familiar you might be thinking of Chevrolet’s long nightmare with faulty ignition switches. In fact, maybe now is a good time to mention the Chevrolet City Express has found its way into an otherwise all Nissan lineup of recalled vehicles. Seems like more than a coincidence.

    The one key difference is that Nissan’s airbag systems have an electrical capacity reserve, which means they should still stay on even with the ignition in the “accessory” position. Chevy owners weren’t so lucky.

    keep reading article "Nissan Recalls Ignition Switches That Are Inadvertently Turning the Engine Off"

  2. Nissan owners are tired of their timing chains whining, buzzing, ticking, and knocking their engines apart.

    In the case of Kobe Falco, et. al., v. Nissan North America, Inc., and Nissan Motor Company, LTD., the plaintiffs say they were forced to pay for expensive timing chain repairs which happened to fall ever-so-conveniently just outside of Nissan's warranty period. Earlier this year, the class-action was certified by a judge.

    So now Nissan has brought together their best engineers and a top-notch legal team to come up with their defense –– ok, our timing chains are noisy, but they're not a safety defect.

    From CarComplaints.com:

    "According to the automaker, there has never been anything defective about the timing chain systems and the most that owners can show is that the timing chains make noise, not that the systems are a safety risk. Nissan says the plaintiffs admit no crashes are attributed to the timing chains, even though the majority of the vehicles have been in service more than 10 years."

    So the case will attempt to answer are Nissan's timing chains just loud and annoying? Or are they loud, annoying, and potentially dangerous?

    The vehicles named in the suit all use the same uniform timing chain system: the 2004-2008 Maxima, 2004-2009 Quest, 2004-2006 Altima (VQ35 engine), 2005-2007 Pathfinder, 2004-2007 Xterra, and the 2005-2007 Frontier (VQ49 engine).

    keep reading article "Nissan Says Their Timing Chains Are Just Super Noisy, Not Busted"

  3. Heads up, Nissan owners! The sunroof in your vehicle might soon be coming down in a thousand little pieces.

    A lawsuit alleges that all of Nissan's factory-installed sunroofs (panoramic or otherwise) can explode without warning. This includes any vehicle since 2008.

    "Plaintiff Janelle Horne says she was riding with her husband and four kids in a leased Infiniti QX80 when the sunroof exploded like a shotgun, causing Mr. Horne to pull off the highway and see shards of glass everywhere.

    Yikes, that'll get your attention. Hopefully this lawsuit means Nissan will start paying attention too.

    The lawsuit only includes residents of California at this time, but similar lawsuits may be filed nationwide based on its results.

    keep reading article "Heads Up, Nissan Owners! That Sunroof Isn’t As Safe As You'd Hope"

  5. Frontier owners, this should spark your interest.

    Nissan is recalling the 2016 Frontier because electrical shorts could start a fire. More than 1,550 Frontier V6 trucks have problems concerning the starter motor wire harness that could make contact with the heat shield. The contact can cause an electrical short in the area of the wire harness, possibly resulting in a fire.

    The recall was expected to begin in April 2016.

    keep reading article "This Recall Should Spark Frontier Owner's Interest"

  6. A lawsuit says airbags in the Nissan Frontier are deploying without any reason.

    Nissan Frontier side airbag deployments have led to a proposed class-action lawsuit alleging the Frontier side airbags deploy for no reason. The lawsuit says the 2011-2012 Nissan Frontier trucks are dangerous because of the side airbags and Nissan refuses to fix the problems.

    The lawsuit says that a randomly deployed airbag goes off, it poses a serious distraction to drivers. It then goes on to say the sun is hot, ice cream is delicious, and everything's better with bacon.

    keep reading article "Frontier Side Airbags Are Deploying for No Reaon"

  7. A ti

    ing chain lawsuit filed in New York accuses Nissan of manufacturing defective timing chain systems, with issues in the chain tensioner, guides, and shoes. Five lead plaintiffs claim the Nissan vehicles have timing chain systems prone to early failure that can cause a huge expense for repairs. The plaintiffs claim failure of the timing chain can cause extensive damage to the car, including to the catalytic converter and destruction of the engine.

    The class-action is currently only for current and former Nissan owners (and lessees) who live in New York, Florida, Maryland, and New Jersey. However, this could lay the groundwork for other states.

    Loose and busted timing chains are a longtime nightmare for many 2004-2010 Nissan owners. When not properly tensioned, timing chains can cause everything from engine rattles, to misfiring, and eventually catastrophic engine failure.

    The lawsuit alleges that Nissan has known about the issue since at least 2004 when they issued a Technical Service Bulletin (TSB) to their dealerships. Additionally, the automaker is accused of ignoring the defect until the systems fall out of the warranty period.

    The plaintiffs in Vincent Chiarelli, Philip Dragonetti, Michele Maszon, Todd Maszon and Chris Santimauro vs. Nissan North America Inc. and Nissan Motor Co., Ltd. are represented by Kantrowitz, Goldhamer & Graifman, P.C.

    keep reading article "Timing Chain Lawsuit Filed Against Nissan in NY"

  8. Nissan is recalling about 501,000 trucks in the United States because corrosion in the lower steering column joint and shaft can cause a sudden steering failure.

    The lower steering column joint on the affected Frontier and Xterra vehicles can develop corrosion that limits the movement of the joint, although they're saying that's rare.

    If the vehicle continues to be driven in this condition it may, in an extreme case, lead to cracking of the steering shaft.

    The affected vehicles include any of the following manufactured between August 2003 and June 2006:

    • 2002–2004 Nissan Frontier vehicles manufactured from July 9, 2001 to October 20, 2004 in Smyrna, Tenn., for the North American markets
    • 2002–2004 Nissan Xterras manufactured from July 9, 2001 to January 6, 2005 in Smyrna, Tenn., for the North American markets

    Additionally:

    • Nissan Frontier vehicles manufactured from November 30, 2001 to June 26, 2008 in Curitiba, Brazil for South and Central American markets
    • Nissan Xterra vehicles manufactured from February 17, 2003 to June 13, 2008 in Curitiba, Brazil for South and Central American markets
    • Nissan Sentra vehicles manufactured from May 15, 2010 to July 8, 2010 in Aguascalientes, Mexico for global markets

    Nissan plans to begin owner notification in early December once replacement parts are available. Owners will be asked to bring their vehicles to the dealer to have the new parts installed free of charge.

    keep reading article "Steering Shaft Failure Recall"

Having a Problem?

Tell Us What's Wrong With Your Nissan

The best way to find out what's wrong with a vehicle is from the people who drive them. Not only do owner complaints help us rank vehicles by reliability, but they're often used to spark class-action lawsuits and warranty extensions. Plus, they're a great way to vent.

Add a complaint