Nissan Xterra Problems by Model Year
NHTSA recorded 3,095 consumer complaints across the 15 model years of the Nissan Xterra (2000–2015) that have at least 5 complaints. 2005 has the most, with 845. Across all years, the part named most often is fuel system (1,083 mentions). Pick a model year below to see its parts, mileage, recalls and service bulletins.
All Xterra model years
Years with fewer than 5 complaints are not listed. The score compares years of the same model, allowing for the era and for how long each year has collected complaints: 50 is a typical year, lower means fewer complaints. It is not adjusted for sales volume.
| Year | Complaints | Median mi | Recalls | TSBs | Score (50 = typical) | Trend |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | 10 | 66,000 | 0 | 83 | — | Not enough data |
| 2014 | 10 | 68,090 | 0 | 96 | — | Not enough data |
| 2012 | 16 | 4,291 | 2 | 101 | — | Rising |
| 2011 | 24 | 54,000 | 2 | 99 | — | Rising |
| 2010 | 38 | 81,900 | 4 | 96 | Not compared (fewer than 3 comparable model years) | Falling |
| 2009 | 19 | 66,550 | 3 | 87 | — | Falling |
| 2008 | 119 | 95,000 | 6 | 93 | Not compared (fewer than 3 comparable model years) | Stable |
| 2007 | 557 | 89,468 | 1 | 86 | Not compared (before 2008) | Falling |
| 2006 | 780 | 81,460 | 3 | 84 | Not compared (before 2008) | Falling |
| 2005 | 845 | 88,684 | 3 | 89 | Not compared (before 2008) | Falling |
| 2004 | 84 | 59,000 | 2 | 44 | Not compared (before 2008) | Stable |
| 2003 | 72 | 72,700 | 3 | 38 | Not compared (before 2008) | Falling |
| 2002 | 157 | 80,000 | 5 | 39 | Not compared (before 2008) | Falling |
| 2001 | 150 | 65,000 | 3 | 36 | Not compared (before 2008) | Falling |
| 2000 | 214 | 72,000 | 3 | 34 | Not compared (before 2008) | Falling |
Parts named most often, all years
Counts add up complaint mentions across the listed years. A complaint can name several parts.
- Fuel system1,083 31%
- Transmission and drivetrain1,031 29%
- Engine cooling440 12%
- Engine373 11%
- Electrical system204 5.8%
- Air bags177 5.0%
- Other or unknown127 3.6%
- Brakes110 3.1%
Example complaints
One per model year, chosen for length and detail. Personal details are removed. They are consumer reports, not findings.
2007: “Catastrophic transmission failure.attempted to leave my home,put vehical in drive.applied accelerator,transmission will not hardly pull,put in reverse.operates in reverse properly, parked my vehical.turned engine off.attempted to start the engine to get my vehical to level ground to check fluids,attempted to start the engine,engine now will not turn over at all.”
NHTSA complaint #11388623, filed 2021-01, 101,123 miles2002: “I had my brake boosters replaced on 05/22/2019.I was backing up slowly on 07/24/2020 in a parking lot of a convenience store. As I was backing up, I tried to apply the brakes and they became stiff. I tried to pump harder on the brakes and they would not stop the vehicle in which it was to late and my car collided into a utility pole.”
NHTSA complaint #11342829, filed 2020-08, 131,058 miles2008: “Vehicle was in motion (highway driving). I began to hear a whinning sound at any rate of speed.the sound never went away. It became louder during acceleration. I checked any recalls on the Xterra models and found out that it has a faulty timming chain issue. I had the vehicle serviced and indeed, the problem was the timing chain.”
NHTSA complaint #11193910, filed 2019-04, 58,000 milesOther Nissan models
15,507 complaintsNissan Rogue
7,416 complaintsNissan Pathfinder
7,382 complaintsNissan Maxima
6,949 complaintsNissan Murano
5,965 complaintsNissan Sentra
5,957 complaintsNissan Frontier
3,363 complaintsNissan Versa
3,327 complaints
About this data. Data from NHTSA (ODI) complaints, recalls, TSBs and investigations, updated Oct 29, 2026. Complaints are unverified consumer reports and may be duplicated or inaccurate. Methodology