There's a lot of news out there, but not all of it matters.
We try to boil down it to the most important bits and pieces -- the recalls, service bulletins, and lawsuits that can help you solve you car problems. Interested in getting these quick story bits as an email? Signup over at CarComplaints.com.
And since Nissan refuses to do anything about it, the issue has made its way to court.…
keep reading article "Nissan Sued for Altima Floorboards That Rust So Badly Owners Can Poke Holes Through The Floor With Their Toes"A recent lawsuit says so and thinks it’s time Nissan paid for their mistakes.
The lead plaintiff says a simple warning light quickly escalated into a fried, useless transmission.
“The overheated CVT will send the Sentra into fail-safe mode which takes down the engine RPM to try to protect components from further damage, but drivers can expect vibrations, shaking and shuddering and then dealing with transmission failure.”
The sudden fail-safe mode can leave drivers in a dangerous position and it’s something Nissan has known about for years.
The lawsuit covers all U.S. consumers who bought or leased a 2012-2017 Sentra with an Xtronic CVT.
keep reading article "Sentra Lawsuit Says Xtronic CVTs Overheat by Design"Steph Willems from TheTruthAboutCars.com says Nissan promises a brake pedal designed to gather dust. The brand’s new e-Pedal, found in the 2018 Leaf, allows — with the push of a button — the ability to speed up, slow down, and hold a stop via the pedal on the right.
The car will come to a complete stop when you lift your foot off the e-Pedal, which Nissan says will be a more "exciting and engaging way to drive." The only exciting about it will be watching traffic swerve around the Leaf driver who tried to coast but instead came to a screeching halt.
"Drivers can cover 90% of their driving needs with the e-Pedal, making the process of driving more exciting. In heavy traffic and during city commutes, drivers will greatly reduce the need to shift from one pedal to the other, making your drive simpler and more engaging."
I'd argue that one pedal isn't simpler. Hell, some people still can't tell the difference between the pedals we have now.
keep reading article "Nissan Might be Trying to Ditch the Brake Pedal in the Next Gen Leaf"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"that shakes, jerks, has trouble accelerating, and experiences sudden downshifts. The lawsuit, Pinto of Montville Inc. v. Nissan North America, Inc, was filed by a garbage collection company which is oh so appropriate given the CVTs trashy reputation.
"The plaintiff claims Nissan has concealed the defective transmissions while never ordering a recall, even after years of owner complaints. In addition, the automaker allegedly falsely advertised the transmissions as having fewer moving part to reduce friction and heat which makes the transmissions last longer."
The lawsuit mentions that Nissan issued a warranty extension campaign, but that only included the 2007-2010 Sentra, not the 2014.
keep reading article "NJ Garbage Company Lawsuit Says the 2014 Sentra's CVT is Trash"Years of complaints and countless warranty claims have finally forced Nissan's hand as the automaker announced they will issue a service campaign for 243,000 vehicles with ESCL problems. Service campaign, recall, banana ... whatever you want to call it, Nissan.
The campaign is only for the 2009-2010 Altima, Altima Coupe, Altima Hybrid, and Maxima cars. They all come equipped with ESCLs that lock the steering wheel when the cars are parked and turned off.
Nissan says a manufacturing issue caused the ESCL to malfunction after the car had been turned off. Up until now, the owner's only option was to replace the part which cost, on average, around $1000 with parts and labor.
Nissan will replace the ESCL with an electronic steering column box. If you've already paid for repairs, Nissan will reimburse you with the proper proof. Additional service campagin info is available on CarComplaints.com.
keep reading article "Nissan Agrees to a 'Service Campaign' To Address Steering Lock Problems"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"The automakers are sick of it. I'm sick of it. I sure as heck know you're sick of it too. But here we are – staring down another recall of 152,000 Nissan and Infiniti vehicles.
By now I'm guessing you've heard about the dangers of Takata airbags, but here's a quick recap:
Mazda has now recalled more than 1 million vehicles for this problem. Find out if yours is on the most recent list.
keep reading article "Nissan Recalls Even More Takata Airbags"And it appears to be due to a mistake on the manufacturing line. Looks like some is going to be shown the door:
"During the Altima [door] trim panel installation, a latch-lock cable inside the door was not routed correctly ... [and] the cable can interfere with the window regulator and will inadvertently unlatch the door when the window is opened."
Nissan will recall 341,000 model year 2015-2017 Altimas to fix the issue.
keep reading article "A Misrouted Cable is Opening Altima Doors When They Should Stay Closed"And if there's one thing Floridians know, it's hot sun. According to the GT-R lawsuit, the plaintiff says he took the vehicle to a dealership and was told it would cost about $2,000 to replace the dashboard.
Heuer says he asked Nissan to cover the cost of the replacement, but was told Nissan would not spend its money for the dashboard.
Beyond cosmetics, the lawsuit says the melting dashboard is a hazard because:
For now, the lawsuit is limited to Florida residents.
keep reading article "GT-R Dashboards Melt Under the Sun, Says New Lawsuit"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.