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Nissan FrontierModel year report

1998 Nissan Frontier Problems

Complaints
129filed with NHTSA
Median mileage
110,000miles, 33 complaints with mileage
Recalls
2campaigns on record
Trend
StableComplaints filed in the last 3 full calendar years are within 25% of the 3 years before.
NHTSA crash rating
—overall rating starts with 2011 models
EPA fuel economy
22 mpgcombined, 2.4L 4-cyl RWD · 20 city / 24 hwy

Sources: NHTSA records for the 1998 Nissan Frontier (complaints, recalls, investigations), NHTSA crash tests, EPA fuel economy. Report an error

What owners report

Owners of this model year most often describe the instrument cluster and dash gauges failing or reading inaccurately, often with no replacement part available from the dealer, along with vibration or shimmy from the suspension at highway speeds and tire sidewall or tread problems. Mileage at the time of these complaints varies widely, from under 60,000 to well over 150,000 miles, suggesting a mix of gradual part wear and manufacturing issues. A smaller number of owners report airbag warning lights or non-deployment in crashes and various drivetrain or transmission concerns.

  1. Electrical system

    Instrument cluster and gauges failing or reading incorrectly

    • 18 complaints (14%)
    • median 118,000 mi at 10.5 yrs old (13 state mileage)
    • filed 2003–2017

    Owners describe the speedometer, fuel gauge, temperature gauge, tachometer, and odometer malfunctioning together or one at a time, sometimes pegging out or showing unusual numbers like 999999. Dealers frequently diagnosed a failed instrument panel circuit board or cluster assembly but told owners the replacement part was no longer available or on extended backorder. Reported across a wide mileage range, from around 58,000 to 180,000 miles, with no clear mileage threshold.

    2 related service bulletins

    What to check: Test that the speedometer, fuel, temperature, and tachometer gauges read correctly and consistently while driving, since replacement cluster parts have been reported as hard to find.

    2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

    “Instrument cluster. Does not work. No gauges work at all. Do not know what my speed is, fuel level, RPM, heat gauge, nothing at all. Started by just going out once in a while then in june 2007 completely quit working. Had to buy a GPS so I know how fast I am going. Odometer reads 999999. Dealer says their is no replacement part and it is a known issue but can not get parts.”

    NHTSA complaint #10339191, filed 2010-06, 180,000 miles

    “The circuit board behind the dash instruments that operates all of the dash board instruments on my 1998 Nissan pu has failed. The dealership could not obtain a new one and said that the part is no longer made. The pu has about 58000 miles on it but now I can not have it safety checked because none of the gauges on the dash work. I tried to get some positive response from the customer service in canada but enev after 4 calls -- nothing but a run a round.”

    NHTSA complaint #10204408, filed 2007-09, 58,000 miles
  2. Tires

    Tire sidewall bulges and tread separation

    • 17 complaints (13%)
    • median 77,500 mi at 8.5 yrs old (4 state mileage, few)
    • 2 mention a crash, fire or injury
    • filed 2000–2012

    Owners describe sidewall bulges, cracking, or tread separating while driving, in some cases leading to a blowout at highway speed. Several complaints name Firestone Wilderness tires specifically, and some mention loss of vehicle control after a tire failure. Reported at varying tire and vehicle mileages, including cases with relatively low tire mileage (around 1,300 to 25,000 miles on the tires) as well as higher vehicle mileage overall.

    1 related service bulletin

    What to check: Inspect tire sidewalls and tread for bulges, cracking, or uneven wear, and check tire age/manufacture date regardless of tread depth.

    2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

    “Firestone/bridgestone, wilderness at, p215/65r15, DOT#w2zfnna377. Tire sidewall blew out while driving at 70 MPH on the interstate. Vehicle ended up on the side of the road. The consumer indicated that nothng was hit to cause the tire to blowout. The tire pressure was checked before the trip. It was also check 30 min prior to the blowout becuase the consumer felt a vibration n the steering wheel. Both times the pressure was normal.”

    NHTSA complaint #10090031, filed 2004-09, 40,000 miles

    “Pe00 020; consumer was traveling about 65mph on highway and heard rubber hitting up against vehicle. Left rear tire tread separated. He pulled over and changed the tire. Tires were firestone wilderness #at, size p156516 r15. There were no injuries. Firestone wilderness at p215/65/r15”

    NHTSA complaint #867963, filed 2000-08
  3. Suspension

    Highway speed vibration and suspension shimmy

    • 15 complaints (12%)
    • median 93,400 mi at 8.0 yrs old (1 states mileage, few)
    • filed 1998–2005

    Owners describe a vibration or shaking that becomes noticeable around 40 to 70 mph, sometimes affecting the whole truck including the bed and seats. Several report replacing tires, shocks, and having alignments done without resolving the shake, and some mention stabilizer or sway bar components being loose or broken. Reported from about 93,000 miles and up, typically appearing at sustained highway speeds.

    4 related service bulletins

    What to check: Take the vehicle on a test drive at highway speeds to check for vibration, and inspect shocks, struts, and sway bar/stabilizer link condition.

    2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

    “My 1998 Nissan Frontier xe king cab has around 93,400 miles on it and it started to make noise on the drivers front side, when I would go over bumps and now it makes noise even on smooth roads. …”

    NHTSA complaint #10139477, filed 2005-10, 93,400 miles

    “Truck has bad shake, I have installed new tires, shocks, center support bearing(no charge), had front alignment, truck still vibrates at 40mph and up. Can see bed shake side to side. Makes the back seat thump. Entire truck shakes at 50-55mph. My 95 Nissan truck did the exact same thing, no cause ever found. I was told that other owners are having same problem.”

    NHTSA complaint #713168, filed 1999-10
  4. Air bags

    Airbag warning light and non-deployment concerns

    • 11 complaints (9%)
    • median 135,000 mi at 7.5 yrs old (2 state mileage, few)
    • 9 mention a crash, fire or injury
    • filed 1998–2018

    Owners describe the airbag warning light illuminating intermittently, sometimes resolved temporarily by dealer repairs before recurring, and separately describe frontal airbags not deploying during a reported crash. Reported across a range of mileages and ages, including both warning-light issues reported soon after purchase and non-deployment reports after many years of use.

    3 related service bulletins

    What to check: Confirm the airbag warning light turns off normally after startup and stays off; ask about any prior airbag system repair history.

    2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

    “I was involved in a frontal crash where a vehicle pulled out in front of me. Both vehicles were a total loss resuting personal injury to me. The air bag did not deploy. I was traveling 55 MPH on a major highway at tiime of a accident. I had to have brain surgery as a result. I had other injuries also. The air bags could havd lessening if not have prevented the injury. I will have to confirm the dxact date but the date I put is close to best of my memory. I can confirm exact date but will have to research it.”

    NHTSA complaint #11150891, filed 2018-11, 70,000 miles

    “I was hit head-on by an errant driver. My airbag did not deploy appropriately resulting in a broken jaw in three places, 8 destroyed teeth, and a fractured skull. The vehicle was totaled beyond repair. Received 12/27/07 64200. Updated 12/12/07”

    NHTSA complaint #10202378, filed 2007-09
  5. Transmission and drivetrain

    Drivetrain and transmission shifting concerns

    • 9 complaints (7%)
    • median 110,323 mi at 12.9 yrs old (3 state mileage, few)
    • 2 mention a crash, fire or injury
    • filed 1998–2015

    Owners describe difficulty shifting out of park, a check engine light tied to transmission sensors, unexpected engine revving, a differential locking up while driving, and a manual transmission popping out of gear at highway speed. Some of these were linked by owners to a recall for the shift lever mechanism. Reported mostly at higher mileage, generally above 100,000 miles, with no single consistent trigger described.

    Recall 98V064000

    What to check: Check that the shifter moves smoothly through all gear positions and that the transmission holds gear under load; ask whether the shift lever recall was completed.

    2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

    “I have a 98 Frontier which has twice in the last six months inexplicably reved the engine, on it's own, to almost 6000 rpms in conjunction with this is an increase in speed. The first time it happened I had just left a garage from having a tune-up & oil change. The next was on a very narrow country road. It didn't matter what gear it was in , I have a 5 speed, or reverse. It is very frightening when this happens & the mechanic can find no reason for it. I worry about it happening in the winter on icy roads. …”

    NHTSA complaint #10351318, filed 2010-08, 162,100 miles

    “The was not even a month old when the clutch fan failed. It got fixed but the same problem reoccured twice after the first time. Next when I would drive it in the freeway at about 70 m.p.h. The 5th gear on the manual transmission would pop out of gear into neutral. The whole transmission had to be taken apart to fix it. And now just recently the”

    NHTSA complaint #700042, filed 1998-10

Buying note. This model year shows a notable pattern of instrument cluster failures with limited parts availability, along with highway vibration and tire sidewall/tread issues reported across many samples, so a pre-purchase check of gauges, tires, and a highway test drive is worth the extra attention.

Summary written with AI from a sample of 60 NHTSA complaints for this model year (picked at random, with complaints that state a mileage and recent ones taken first), then checked automatically against the source records. Where a problem shows a complaint count, every complaint for this model year was matched with fixed keyword rules (written with AI and tested against the sample), and the mileage, age and repair figures are calculated from those complaints; owners' figures are as stated, not verified. Other counts refer to the sample. The excerpts come from NHTSA's public complaint records and are unverified; capitalisation is normalised, NHTSA staff notes are removed, and shortened text ends with “…”. Something wrong? Request a correction.

NHTSA recorded 129 consumer complaints for the 1998 Nissan Frontier. 33 of the complaints include a mileage, and 9% of those were filed for vehicles with under 50,000 miles; the median is 110,000 miles. Of all complaints, 12 involved a crash, 11 an injury, according to the filers. NHTSA lists 2 recall campaigns and 30 technical service bulletins for this model year.

Not compared (before 2008). Model years 2008–2023 of the same vehicle that have at least 25 complaints are compared, and a model needs at least 3 of them.

Which parts are reported most

Complaints can name more than one part, so the counts add up to more than the total. Select a part to see its complaints, recalls and bulletins.

Also reported: Other or unknown (3), Steering (3), Body and structure (3), Vehicle speed control (3), Equipment (2), Exterior lighting (2), Visibility (wipers, defrost, mirrors) (2), Wheels (2), Engine (1), Interior lighting (1).

Example complaints

Electrical system: “Alternator failed on my 98 pickup. When changing I found that the original alternator was remanufactured . I bought this truck new and alternator was never changed. Complained to manufacturer - they responded information not available and they are not in a position to move forward .”

NHTSA complaint #10325900, filed 2010-04, 108,000 miles

Tires: “While driving 45 MPH, the consumer had just went around a curve when the left rear tire blew, she lost control of vehicle, hit a sign and then flipped over. The frontal air bags failed to deploy. The driver and passenger were injured.”

NHTSA complaint #10119076, filed 2005-04, 200,000 miles

Suspension: “Vehicle vibrates and shakes excessively at highway speeds, numerous repair attempts without resolve. Dealership beleives there is a problem with this model of truck and has told me that they have seen this problem often with this model truck. Manufacture claims no problem. So far I have had 3 sets of tires,gas shocks, several balances on tires and a tow package installed to try and solve problem. Dealership also mentioned trying to shim the drive train.”

NHTSA complaint #713806, filed 1999-10

Air bags: “Am interested in any reported instances of either driver or passenger side air bags not deploying on this make/model vehicle. I was involved in a moving accident with a large deer 0615 am 30 jan 01. I didn't give much thought to the bag/bags not deploying until both the insurance rep and their appraiser were really concerned about the bags not deploying.”

NHTSA complaint #740561, filed 2001-02

Mileage when problems were reported

9% of the 33 complaints with a mileage were filed for vehicles with under 50,000 miles; the middle half falls between 64,000 and 141,053 miles.

3%0–100%10–256%25–5021%50–759%75–10039%100–15021%150+
Share of complaints by mileage when the problem was reported, in thousands of miles (33 complaints with mileage). Red bars: under 50,000 miles. Bucket widths differ. Median: 110,000 miles.

Complaints by year filed

Trend: stable. Complaints filed in the last 3 full calendar years are within 25% of the 3 years before.

’9826’01’04’07’10’14’17’23
Complaints by year the complaint was filed with NHTSA. Red bars: the last 3 full calendar years used for the trend. The current year (2026) is partial.

Crash test ratings

NHTSA's 5-Star Safety Ratings for the 1998 Nissan Frontier. Frontal results are shown driver / passenger; rollover shows the star rating and NHTSA's estimated risk of rolling over in a single-vehicle crash.

VersionOverallFrontalSideSide poleRollover
Frontier · coupe not rated3 / 4———

Ratings before the 2011 model year come from an older, less demanding test and are not comparable with ratings for 2011 and later.

Source: NHTSA New Car Assessment Program (5-Star Safety Ratings), nhtsa.gov/ratings.

Fuel economy and running cost

EPA ratings for each 1998 Nissan Frontier version. Annual fuel cost is the EPA's estimate at its current fuel prices for 15,000 miles a year (55% city driving).

VersionEngineTransmissionCityHwyComb.Fuel / yr
Frontier 2WD2.4L 4-cyl5-speed manual202422$3,050
Frontier 2WD2.4L 4-cyl4-speed automatic172219$3,550
Frontier 4WD2.4L 4-cyl5-speed manual161917$3,950

Source: U.S. EPA and Department of Energy, fueleconomy.gov. Ratings are for comparing vehicles; real-world mileage varies with driving and conditions.

Recalls and investigations

Recall details for the 1998 Nissan Frontier → · Check a VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls

Technical service bulletins

TSBs are manufacturer notes to dealers about known repair procedures. They are not recalls and do not by themselves mean a vehicle has a fault. 30 on record; the latest 10 are shown.

See all 30 bulletins →

Other model years of the Nissan Frontier

YearComplaintsMedian miRecallsCrash ★MPGScore (50 = typical)Trend
2026112,7001421—Too new
20259—3421—Too new
2024221,1003421—Too new
2023664,500142194 · MoreToo new
20221122,0006420100 · MoreRising
20212026,5002420—Rising
20202328,0002420—Rising
20192812,000141921 · FewerRising
2018259,7452—1931 · FewerRising
20173817,500141950 · TypicalStable
20164432,5001—1946 · TypicalStable
20153329,0000—1923 · FewerStable
20144235,0002—1944 · TypicalFalling
20134827,0001—1950 · TypicalStable
20128043,0003—1972 · MoreRising
20116447,8001—1949 · TypicalFalling
20105941,0004—1972 · MoreRising
20093760,0973—1956 · TypicalFalling
200813685,0005—1977 · MoreStable
200752082,0001—19Not compared (before 2008)Falling
200661780,0004—19Not compared (before 2008)Falling
200553290,0003—19Not compared (before 2008)Falling
20046661,0001—17Not compared (before 2008)Falling
20037765,5004—17Not compared (before 2008)Falling
200212469,5004—16Not compared (before 2008)Falling
200113473,8503—16Not compared (before 2008)Rising
200018988,1253—19Not compared (before 2008)Rising
19997880,0002—21Not compared (before 2008)Rising
1998129110,0002—22Not compared (before 2008)Stable

All Nissan Frontier model years · Best and worst years by complaints

Frequently asked questions

What are the most common problems with the 1998 Nissan Frontier?

Owners of this model year most often describe the instrument cluster and dash gauges failing or reading inaccurately, often with no replacement part available from the dealer, along with vibration or shimmy from the suspension at highway speeds and tire sidewall or tread problems. The issues reported most often: Instrument cluster and gauges failing or reading incorrectly; Tire sidewall bulges and tread separation; Highway speed vibration and suspension shimmy.

How many NHTSA complaints does the 1998 Nissan Frontier have?

NHTSA recorded 129 consumer complaints for the 1998 Nissan Frontier as of Oct 28, 2026. Complaints are unverified consumer reports and may be duplicated or inaccurate.

What part of the 1998 Nissan Frontier is reported most often?

Electrical system is named most often, in 23 complaints (18% of the total), followed by tires with 23.

Has the 1998 Nissan Frontier been recalled?

NHTSA lists 2 recall campaigns for this model year. To check a specific vehicle, enter its VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls.

What gas mileage does the 1998 Nissan Frontier get?

The EPA rates the 1998 Nissan Frontier (Frontier 2WD, 2.4L 4-cyl) at 22 mpg combined, 20 city and 24 highway, with an estimated annual fuel cost of $3,050 at 15,000 miles a year. Other engine and drive versions are rated differently.

At what mileage are problems with the 1998 Nissan Frontier reported?

Among the 33 complaints that include a mileage, the median is 110,000 miles and the middle half falls between 64,000 and 141,053 miles; 9% were filed for vehicles with under 50,000 miles.

About this data. Data from NHTSA (ODI) complaints, recalls, TSBs and investigations, updated Oct 28, 2026. Complaints are unverified consumer reports and may be duplicated or inaccurate. Crash ratings are from NHTSA’s New Car Assessment Program. Fuel economy is from the EPA and DOE (fueleconomy.gov).

Complaint counts come from NHTSA’s public complaint database; we count each complaint once. The source records for this vehicle are on nhtsa.gov. Scores and trends are our own summaries of that data, described in the methodology. This page is not legal, safety or repair advice: for a specific vehicle, check its VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls and ask a qualified mechanic. See an error? Tell us.