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Nissan · NHTSA safety record

2011 Nissan Maxima

Every safety complaint, recall and defect investigation the US government holds on this vehicle.

106

Complaints

5

Crashes

1

Fires

15

Injuries

0

Deaths

Owners of the 2011 Nissan Maxima have filed 106 safety complaints with NHTSA between January 2011 and January 2026. The most complained-about system is the air bags, named in 23 of them (22%). The typical failure was reported at 67,500 miles, the median across the 64 complaints that gave an odometer reading.

No recall campaign was matched to this year, make and model. That is not the same as a clean vehicle: recalls are issued against production ranges, and the only reliable check is your own VIN.

What owners report

Complaints naming each system. One complaint can name several, so these add up to more than 106.

AIR BAGS 23 22%
POWER TRAIN 22 21%
UNKNOWN OR OTHER 14 13%
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 12 11%
ENGINE 12 11%
STEERING 9 8%
STRUCTURE 9 8%
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL 5 5%
ELECTRONIC STABILITY CONTROL (ESC) 4 4%
VISIBILITY 4 4%
SEATS 3 3%
SERVICE BRAKES 3 3%

When the complaints arrived

By the year NHTSA received them, which is not the year the failures happened. They peaked in 2018 at 15.

2011 2018 2026
2011 to 2026, the last of them a part year

In owners' own words

Quoted from NHTSA's complaint file. These are unverified accounts by the people who filed them, not findings of fault.

VISIBILITY:SUN/MOON ROOF ASSEMBLY

4 injured · 51,000 miles

I HAVE A 2011 NISSAN MAXIMA. THE SUNROOF BUSTED WHILE I WAS DRIVING DOWN THE HIGH WAY. I HAD TO GO TO THE EYE DOCTOR FOR GLASS PARTICLES BEING IN MY EYE, AND I TOOK THE CAR TO THE DEALERSHIP AND THEY COULD NOT HELP ME ACCORDING TO THE SERVICE REP. I BOUGHT THIS CAR AT MOORE NISSAN IN BIRMINGHAM ALABAMA, AND THEY DID NOT HAVE A SENSE OF URGENCY AT ALL. THE CUSTOMER SERVICE WAS AWFUL AND THEY WERE NOT CONCERNED ABOUT MY SAFETY OR THE SAFETY OF MY TODDLER CHILD......UPDATED12/07/15*BF UPDATED 4/27/18*JB *TR

NHTSA complaint 10806483. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

SERVICE BRAKES

3 injured · crash · towed

THE VEHICLE WAS IN MOTION. WHILE TURNING STEERING WHEEL SLIGHTLY LEFT ENTERING INTO A CURVE, THE 4 TIRES OF THE VEHICLE DID NOT FOLLOW THE COMMAND GIVEN BY THE STEERING WHEEL. PLEASE NOTE THAT THE STEERING WHEEL TURNED WITH GREAT EASE. WHILE REMOVING FOOT FROM ACCELERATOR, THE CAR DID NOT SLOW. THE BRAKES WERE NOT WORKING PROPERLY AND CAUSED THE 2011 NISSAN MAXIMA TO COLLIDE WITH A FIXED OBJECT. THIS INCIDENT DID NOT OCCUR AT A SPEED FAST ENOUGH TO CAUSE THE SEVERE INJURIES THAT RESULTED. THE DRIVER SIDE AIRBAG KNOCKED ME UNCONSCIOUS AND I HAVE NO RECOLLECTION FROM THE MOMENT RIGHT BEFORE "IMPACT" TO WHEN THE VEHICLE CAME TO A COMPLETE STOP. THE CHILDREN IN THE BACK SEAT WERE SERIOUSLY

NHTSA complaint 10816663, quoted in part. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

STEERING

3 injured · crash

S10 DIRECT REPLY - LETTER EXPRESSING SAFETY CONCERNS WITH THE 2011 NISSAN MAXIMA SAFETY, DEFECT, AND COMPLIANCE. *LD THE CONSUMER STATED THE VEHICLE WAS INVOLVED IN A CRASH. CONTROLLING THE SPEED AND DIRECTION OF THE VEHICLE BECAME DIFFICULT. THE STEERING WHEEL TURNED LOOSELY AND BECAME UNRESPONSIVE. THE PASSENGERS RECEIVED LIFE THREATENING INJURIES. *JS SEE ALSO ODI 10816663. *DSY *TR

NHTSA complaint 11130128. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

UNKNOWN OR OTHER

2 injured · 132,000 miles

WHILE DRIVING 70 MPH ON I10, 20 MILES EAST OF BEAUMONT TEXAS, MY PANORAMIC SUNROOF EXPLODED ON ITS OWN. THERE WAS NO COLLISION WITH ANY ROAD DEBRIS, NOR WERE WE IN THE VICINITY OR IMPACTED FROM ANYTHING FALLING FROM AN OVERPASS. THE TRAFFIC WAS HEAVY AND AS A RESULT OF THE EXPLOSION, I WAS FORCED TO GET TO AN EXIT COVERED IN SHARDS OF GLASS. THIS GLASS EXPLOSION CREATED A VERY UNSAFE CONDITION NOT ONLY FOR MY IMMEDIATE FAMILY, BUT FOR THE OTHER INNOCENT PEOPLE THAT WAS IN THE IMMEDIATE AREA. I WAS ABLE TO GET TO THE SIDE SHOULDER TO GAIN MY EXPOSURE THEN DROVE TO AN OFF RAMP. I TOOK PICTURES AND CLEANED THE BROKEN SHARDS FROM MY WIFE, MY TWO CATS AND MYSELF FIRST AND FOREMOST. WE ALL HAD

NHTSA complaint 11072231, quoted in part. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

STEERING
My steering failed completely while driving, making it nearly impossible to turn.

NHTSA complaint 11709444. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

AIR BAGS
Airbag warning came on. I took to dealership for diagnostic. There was malfunction with the passenger airbag. Seat coushin needed to be replaced so the “normal” wear and tear airbag would no longer be an issue. Nissan stated this is not a safety concern and all expenses were out of pocket.

NHTSA complaint 11602442. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

POWER TRAIN
The transmission is slipping it’s a cvt and they’re known for being the worst transmissions. I was entering the highway on a on ramp and I could no longer accelerate past 55 I was near flooring it and you can hear the engine working but the rpm’s are all over the odometer going from 3k-6.5k over and over. The problem has not been diagnosed professionally. The vehicle has not been inspected professionally.There were no lights on the dash when this began happening and nothing occurred that led up to that situation it was just a normal drive for me and now this happens every other day.

NHTSA complaint 11597730. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

UNKNOWN OR OTHER
We are the original owners of a 2011 Nissan Maxima. The dashboard material is deteriorating, creating a sticky and shiny patch across the base of the windshield which is distracting and highly reflective creating glare from the sun and bright lights impeding the ability to safely drive. The dashboard is also cracking and releasing small parts of black dashboard material throughout the car and the passengers. Online research shows this problem has been reported by many Nissan vehicle owners, at our most recent Nissan service appointment, we asked for assistance to have the part replaced and was told we would have to call Nissan directly to request the repair as it was not a recall item. We

NHTSA complaint 11538097, quoted in part. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

STEERING
Cvt transmission jerking , engine is always idling hard sometimes wants to even shut off , accelerating sometimes takes a lil while to respond , rack and pinion assembly faulty I would like for nissan to fix my car or get a lump sum check for all faulty errors these cars have

NHTSA complaint 11520699. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

VISIBILITY/WIPER
Dashboard is melting which is making it extremely sticky but the worst part is that it is causing a visibility issues while driving. The glare is really bad.

NHTSA complaint 11511345. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

Compare

Other years of the Nissan Maxima

Model year Complaints Recalls Deaths
2020 21 1 —
2019 18 1 —
2018 36 2 —
2017 103 4 —
2016 142 8 —
2014 95 0 —
2013 62 0 —
2012 107 0 —
2010 275 1 —

Other 2011 Nissan models

Rogue 362 Versa 268 Altima 241 Juke 153 Murano 148 Sentra 142 Leaf 95 Quest 66

Every Nissan on this site — 200 vehicles, 319 recall campaigns and 5 open investigation s.

If this is your car and a dealer keeps failing to fix it, your state's lemon law may require the manufacturer to replace it or buy it back. What each state asks for , read from the statutes.

Where these numbers come from

A complaint is one owner's account and has not been verified by NHTSA or by us. A vehicle with more complaints is not necessarily worse: models that sold in larger numbers collect more of them. How this is counted.

Compiled and maintained by
Independent developer and analyst