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Electronic stability controlPart report

2002 Nissan Xterra Electronic stability control Problems

Complaints
4about this part
Share
3%of 157 total for the year
Median mileage
147,000miles
Trend
Not enough dataFewer than 15 complaints, too few for a reliable trend.

NHTSA recorded 4 complaints about the electronic stability control of the 2002 Nissan Xterra, 3% of the 157 complaints for this model year. Where a mileage was given, the median is 147,000 miles. 2 of these say a crash was involved, according to the filers.

Fewer than 15 complaints name this part, so treat the figures as a rough indication only.

Example complaints

Selected from NHTSA records; personal details are removed. They are consumer reports, not findings.

“Unable to control speed and battery keeps dying even though battery and alternator test good. When driving at low speed I cannot accelerate gradually, the car revs really hard and pulls hard when trying to increase speed. Once I drive for about 20 minutes and pickup speed the brakes are loose and hard to come to a stop, and the pedal does not respond when accelerating or reducing speed. …”

NHTSA complaint #10958662, filed 2017-03, 147,000 miles

“I bought the car from hertz, thecar had been in a accident before I bought it. I did not find out about the accident until after I bought the car. The car tires could not stay aligned, the headlights were shooting up about 15 feet off the ground, there is paint splatter on the inside of the car motor, paint splatter on the outside by the guards tire, and you can see paint on the hood by the window on the right side, the toe hook on the right side looks to be new.there is a paint line on the inside of engine compartment, the hood is new, there isno rubber mount on the hood arm that hold the…”

NHTSA complaint #10633284, filed 2014-09

“The contact owns a 2002 Nissan Xterra. The contact stated that while driving approximately 55 MPH, the vehicle became unstable and the driver lost control of the vehicle. As a result, the driver crashed into a guard rail causing the vehicle to roll over twice. The air bags failed to deploy. The driver sustained fatal injuries. A police report was filed. The vehicle was destroyed. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 80,000. Updated 02/05/15 updated 9/20/2017”

NHTSA complaint #10679769, filed 2015-01, 80,000 miles

Electronic stability control: other model years

YearComplaintsShare of year
2015110%
2014110%
201114%
201013%
200915%
200843%
200761%
200581%
200411%
200243%

Other parts of the 2002 Nissan Xterra

Brakes
28 complaints
Engine cooling
24 complaints
Steering
22 complaints
Air bags
19 complaints
Electrical system
13 complaints
Fuel system
13 complaints
Suspension
13 complaints
Other or unknown
11 complaints
Vehicle speed control
11 complaints
Engine
8 complaints
Visibility (wipers, defrost, mirrors)
8 complaints
Tires
7 complaints

← All problems reported for the 2002 Nissan Xterra

About this data. Data from NHTSA (ODI) complaints, recalls, TSBs and investigations, updated Oct 30, 2026. Complaints are unverified consumer reports and may be duplicated or inaccurate.

To check a specific vehicle for open recalls, use its VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls. Methodology