CSR

Nissan · NHTSA safety record

2011 Nissan Murano

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

148

Complaints

7

Crashes

0

Fires

2

Injuries

1

Deaths

Owners of the 2011 Nissan Murano have filed 148 safety complaints with NHTSA between September 2011 and June 2026. The most complained-about system is the brakes, named in 38 of them (26%). The typical failure was reported at 85,000 miles, the median across the 107 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 148.

SERVICE BRAKES 38 26%
POWER TRAIN 37 25%
UNKNOWN OR OTHER 23 16%
AIR BAGS 13 9%
STRUCTURE 13 9%
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 11 7%
SUSPENSION 10 7%
VISIBILITY 10 7%
ENGINE 7 5%
FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM 6 4%
VISIBILITY/WIPER 5 3%
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL 4 3%

When the complaints arrived

By the year NHTSA received them, which is not the year the failures happened. They peaked in 2019 at 26.

2011 2019 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.

AIR BAGS

1 death · crash

2011 NISSAN. CONSUMER STATES THAT THE AIRBAGS DID NOT DEPLOY DURING VEHICLE ACCIDENT . *LD *JS *TT *DT AIR BAG SYSTEM COMPONENTS ( THE CURTAIN/ HEAD AIR BAGS AND THE SEAT BELT PRETENSIONERS) WERE ALSO REPLACED. UPDATED 10/3/18*JB *DT CONSUMER STATED CAR WAS BROUGHT NEW ONLY HAD 7,000 MILES. AIR BAG DID NOT DEPLOY AND CONSUMER'S HUSBAND WENT INTO THE FRONT WINDOW CRUSHED HIS FORHEAD HIS BRAIN BLEEDING. HE ALSO BROKE HIS HIP AND SMASHED HIS KNEE. HE WAS UNCONCIOUS AND DIED 2 YEARS LATER. REPAIR WAS OVER $16,000.*JB

NHTSA complaint 11121368. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

AIR BAGS

1 injured · crash · towed

I had a frontal crash in which I had a neck sprain and severe head injury due to the airbags not deploying

NHTSA complaint 11744092. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

AIR BAGS

1 injured · crash · 58,000 miles

ON FRIDAY APRIL 27, 2012 I WAS IN ALBUQUERQUE PROCEEDING EAST IN THE PASSING LANE OF CENTRAL AVENUE SE, GOING 20 MPH. A BLACK CAMERO, PROCEEDING NORTH ON JEFFERSON ST NE, RAN A STOP SIGN, SPED INTO THE INTERSECTION AND COLLIDED WITH THE FRONT OF MY 2011 NISSAN MURANO. WHEN THIS HAPPENED NOT ONE AIRBAG DEPLOYED I SUFFERED INJURIES AND AM GOING IN FOR BACK SURGERY TOMORROW. THE MURANO FRAME WAS BENT AND THE CAR TOTALED. *JS

NHTSA complaint 10458280. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

AIR BAGS

crash · towed · 66,000 miles

WHILE EXITING A PARKING SPACE AT A LOW SPEED (LESS THAN 10 MPH) THE CAR UNEXPECTEDLY ACCELERATED TO FULL THROTTLE. BRAKING WOULD NOT HOLD IT AND MY CAR RAN INTO ANOTHER VEHICLE AFTER TRAVELING 5-15 YARDS, PUSHING IT UP ON A SIDEWALK BEFORE STOPPING. BOTH CARS TOTAL LOSS DUE TO BENT FRAME/RAILS. MY FRONT END DEMOLISHED AND RADIATOR PUSHED INTO ENGINE BUT NO AIRBAGS DEPLOYED. AFTER THE INCIDENT IT WAS DISCOVERED THAT MY ACCELERATOR PEDAL HAD SNAPPED OFF.

NHTSA complaint 10851970. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

POWER TRAIN
In July 2023, at 55,496 miles on the odometer, the original CVT transmission failed and was replaced at Port City Nissan (120 Spaulding Tpke N, Portsmouth, NH 03801), an authorized Nissan dealership, with a Nissan-supplied rebuilt CVT transmission at a cost of approximately $7,000. The rebuilt transmission was warranted for one year. Approximately 2.5 years and only 26,500 miles after installation, the rebuilt CVT transmission has failed again at approximately 82,000 miles. CVT transmission failure while driving presents a serious safety hazard, as the vehicle may lose power unexpectedly, particularly dangerous at highway speeds, during merges, or in intersections. Pattern of Defect:

NHTSA complaint 11728892, quoted in part. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

AIR BAGS
The passenger airbag warning light illuminated and remains on. A Nissan dealer diagnosed the issue as a failure of the Occupant Classification System sensor in the passenger seat. This causes the airbag system to be disabled and could prevent deployment in a crash. I was informed that my 2011 Murano is not included in Nissan’s previous airbag/OCS recalls (such as 16V244), even thought the symptoms appear identical. Repair requires replacement or reprogramming of the seat/OCS components and is very expensive ($2000-$7000). This is a critical safety issue because the passenger airbag may not function at all. Based on similar complaints from other 2011 Murano owners, this my represent a

NHTSA complaint 11699814, quoted in part. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

UNKNOWN OR OTHER
Hi i see this vehicle had a recall campaign previously under notice P1261/NTB12-003/NTB14-076. This campaign includes the replacement of the links and other items under this campaign. This vehicle is a convertible and the top frame is once again damaged due to the same recall for links. I recently took the vehicle to Lorenzo Nissan as the top is not working. They advised the frame links are bound, and the frame needs to be replaced. As this was covered under previous recall, the recall is obviously not adequate.

NHTSA complaint 11610293. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

AIR BAGS
Dashboard light started flashing indicating airbag error. Light indicating passenger airbag inoperative on center stack illuminated. Dealership indicated error code B1018 per ESM diagnostic procedure and recommended replacing entire passenger side seat cushion and retesting. Uncertain if passenger side airbag sensor will prevent driver's airbag from deploying in accident.

NHTSA complaint 11584830. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

SUSPENSION
Premature Subframe Corrosion: first noticed a knocking noise coming from under rear driver side area when going over bumps with our 2011 Murano. Then the knocking noise (metal on metal sound) got worse and then the back of our vehicle would sway uncontrollably side to side when pressing a little hard on the brakes. Brought the vehicle to the Nissan dealer and was told that the subframe had excessive corrosion and the vehicle is dangerous to drive. Our vehicle has only 106,800 miles and has been garage kept and serviced every year by the Nissan dealership. Discovered online that 100’s, probably 1000’s including unreported incidents of other Nissan owners having the same excessive subframe

NHTSA complaint 11574299, quoted in part. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

Compare

Other years of the Nissan Murano

Model year Complaints Recalls Deaths
2025 21 2
2020 42 2
2019 42 1
2018 113 2
2017 107 3
2016 107 5
2015 202 5
2014 144 1 1
2013 72 1
2012 134 1
2010 189 0

Other 2011 Nissan models

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