CSR

Nissan · NHTSA safety record

2025 Nissan Kicks

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

Owners have filed 38 safety complaints about the 2025 Nissan Kicks with the US government. Of those, 2 describe a crash, 1 mentions a fire, 1 person was injured and no death is recorded. 4 recall campaigns are open against it.

The most complained-about system is the electrical system, named in 6 complaints, 16% of the total. The typical failure was reported at 8,479 miles, the median across the 12 complaints that gave an odometer reading.

Compiled from NHTSA's complaint, recall and investigation files · Covers October 2024 to September 2026 · How this is counted

What is on file

38 complaints on file

38

Complaints

2

Describe a crash

1

Mention fire

1

People injured

0

Deaths

A complaint is an unverified account by the person who filed it, not a finding of fault. One complaint is one ODI number, which is how NHTSA counts them.

A recall is the manufacturer conceding a defect, and the repair is free. Whether one covers your particular car is a question only its VIN can answer, because a campaign covers a production range rather than a model year.

Which system owners named

Complaints naming each system
UNKNOWN OR OTHER 7 · 18%
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 6 · 16%
VISIBILITY/WIPER 6 · 16%
POWER TRAIN 5 · 13%
STEERING 5 · 13%
BACK OVER PREVENTION 4 · 11%
STRUCTURE 4 · 11%
WHEELS 3 · 8%
LANE DEPARTURE 2 · 5%
SUSPENSION 2 · 5%
AIR BAGS 1 · 3%
ENGINE 1 · 3%
0 4 8

Red marks a system with a recall campaign against it. One complaint can name several systems, so these add up to more than 38.

When the complaints arrived

By the year NHTSA received them

By the year NHTSA received them, which is not the year the failures happened. They peaked in 2026 at 21.

24 18 12 6
24 25 26

This is the year the complaint was filed, not the year the failure happened. The range runs from 2024 to 2026, the last of them a part year, which is why its column is drawn faint.

Crash test ratings

NHTSA New Car Assessment Program

NHTSA crashes a car into a barrier and a pole and measures what happens to the dummies inside. This is what it awarded the 2025 Nissan KICKS, and it is a separate question from what owners report going wrong later.

Test SUV AWD SUV FWD
Overall
Frontal crash
Frontal, driver
Frontal, passenger
Side crash
Side barrier
Side pole
Rollover
Chance of rollover 17.9% 19.8%
Stability control standard Forward collision warning standard Lane departure warning standard

A rating belongs to a tested body style and drivetrain, not to the model as a whole, which is why more than one is listed. A dash means NHTSA did not rate that test for this vehicle.

Recall campaigns

4 on file

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM: INSTRUMENT CLUSTER/PANEL

26V331000 · May 21, 2026

The defect
Nissan North America, Inc. (Nissan) is recalling certain 2025-2026 Kicks vehicles. A software error in the combination meter may cause the screen display to go partially or fully blank. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard number 101, "Control and Displays."
The risk
A partial or blank screen display will not show critical safety information such as vehicle speed and warning lights, increasing the risk of a crash.
The remedy
Dealers will resume the software reprogramming of the combination meter software, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed July 6, 2026. Owners may contact Nissan's customer service at 800-647-7261. Nissan's number for this recall is PMA66. Vehicle Identification Numbers (VINs) involved in this recall became searchable on NHTSA.gov on May 22, 2026.

Nissan North America, Inc. · up to 51,598 vehicles across all model years covered

BACK OVER PREVENTION:SOFTWARE

25V324000 · June 4, 2025

The defect
Nissan North America, Inc. (Nissan) is recalling certain 2025 Frontier and Kicks vehicles. The center information display unit may display a blank screen when shifted into reverse. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 111, "Rear Visibility."
The risk
A rearview image that does not display can reduce the driver's view of what is behind the vehicle, increasing the risk of a crash.
The remedy
Dealers will update the software on the vehicle’s center information display, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed July 10, 2025. The manufacturer numbers for this recall are PD152 and PMA48.

Nissan North America, Inc. · up to 79,755 vehicles across all model years covered

EQUIPMENT:OTHER:LABELS

25V188000 · April 18, 2025

The defect
Nissan North America, Inc. (Nissan) is recalling certain 2025 Kicks vehicles. The certification label may have been printed with the incorrect Gross Vehicle Weight Rating (GVWR) and Gross Axle Weight Rating (GAWR) values, which can result in the vehicle being overloaded. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of 49 CFR Part 567, "Certification." Additionally, certain 2025 Nissan Kicks SR trim level vehicles equipped with an optional 19-inch wheel package may have a certification label that states an incorrect wheel size. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard number 110, "Tire Selection and Rims."
The risk
An overloaded vehicle can increase the risk of a crash. Vehicles with incorrect wheel and tire information may lead to tires that are inflated improperly, which can also increase the risk of a crash.
The remedy
Dealers will install new labels, free of charge. Additionally, dealers will mail replacement labels to owners. Owner notification letters were mailed May 27, 2025. Owners may contact Nissan's customer service at 800-647-7261. Nissan's numbers for this recall are PD136 and PMA47.

Nissan North America, Inc. · up to 37,003 vehicles across all model years covered

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM:BODY CONTROL MODULE/BCM

24V969000 · December 23, 2024

The defect
Nissan North America, Inc. (Nissan) is recalling certain 2025 Kicks vehicles. The "Shift-to-Park" warning may not activate as intended when the vehicle is shut off and still in a gear other than "Park." As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 114, "Theft Protection and Rollaway Prevention."
The risk
When the vehicle is not in "Park" and the ignition is shut off, the vehicle could move unexpectedly, increasing the risk of a vehicle rollaway and crash.
The remedy
Dealers will reconfigure the body control module (BCM) to activate the "Shift-to-Park" warning, free of charge. Some owner notification letters were mailed January 29, 2025. The remaining owner notification letters will be mailed at a future date, anticipated, May 7, 2025. Owners may contact Nissan customer service at 1-800-867-7669. Nissan's number for this recall is PMA42.

Nissan North America, Inc. · up to 89 vehicles across all model years covered

In owners’ own words

Quoted from the complaint file

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

AIR BAGS

1 injured · crash · towed

I was stopped at a red light waiting for the light to turn green. It turned green and I slowly went out and a car went through a red light hit my front left car. The guy was going at at least 30 to 40 miles and not one airbag went off.

NHTSA complaint 11704977. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

UNKNOWN OR OTHER

fire

My family and I departed the dealership around 7:27 PM with our 2025 Nissan Kicks that only had 4,500 miles on it. My step son and I were driving the new car home. We got maybe a mile from our house and I heard a small pop and started smelling gas really bad. Once we pulled onto our road I heard another pop, all of the lights came on the dash and a bunch of white smoke came from the hood of the car. I put the car in park and turned the engine off and got me and my step son out to the car. We went into the field next to the car and as soon as we crossed the road, there were flames coming out of the hood.

NHTSA complaint 11751256. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM

crash · towed · 50 miles

The contact owns a 2025 Nissan Kicks. The contact stated that she had remotely started the vehicle, preparing to drive her children to school. The contact stated that one child had forgotten a school item inside the home. The contact exited the vehicle with the key fob and had left the vehicle turned on. The contact stated that the parking brake was not engaged. The contact stated that as she returned to the vehicle, she saw that the vehicle was rolling down the slight grade of the driveway by the tail end. The contact estimated the speed at approximately 10 MPH. The contact stated that her children were strapped into the rear passenger seats by the seat belts. The contact stated that the

NHTSA complaint 11710474, quoted in part. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

POWER TRAIN

towed · 8,958 miles

The contact owns a 2025 Nissan Kicks. The contact stated that while driving approximately 60 MPH, there was a loud vibrating sound coming from the rear driver’s side of the vehicle, with several unknown warning lights illuminated. The contact stated that on several occasions, the vehicle wobbled unexpectedly, with a grinding sound coming from the front of the vehicle. The contact stated that the failure persisted and that the vehicle was towed on several occasions. The vehicle was towed to several dealers; however, the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. An undisclosed dealer stated that the loud clunking sound was coming from the front tires during a test drive. The manufacturer was

NHTSA complaint 11712138, quoted in part. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
Was driving at low speed after entering a parking lot and the engine quit. When I attempted to restart the starter would not engage. The power widows still functioned. A subsequent check of the battery indicated it is fully charged. Had this occurred at Highway speed it could have been dangerous situation since the power brakes and power steering were not functional.

NHTSA complaint 11767902. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

STRUCTURE:BODY
Trim from passenger rear side flew off while driving today.

NHTSA complaint 11763969. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

POWER TRAIN
Driving on a highway when rear differential and drive shaft broke loose from vehicle while driving at 65 mph. Right rear wheel went over real diff. causing the rear end of vehicle to come off the pavement. Fortunately was able to get car under control before it flipped. There was no warning signs prior. We were violently lurched and still are feeling residual effects from that incident.

NHTSA complaint 11761598. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

UNKNOWN OR OTHER
I received a recall notice on my 2025 Nissan Kicks. I took my vehicle to the dealer where I purchased it to get the recall repaired on 8/7/2026. The repair was quoted to be completed within 2 hours. After 5 hours the repairs were not completed and my vehicle is inoperable. I was provided a loaner car to use while my vehicle is there. I have kept in contact with the manufacturer (called on 8/14/26) and the dealer over the last two weeks. I have not been provided much information other than my car is inoperable and that there are several other Nissan Kicks that are in the same condition. I was told by the Nissan Company that their engineers will have to come up with a fix and that I need to

NHTSA complaint 11758941, quoted in part. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
On August 5, 2026, an authorized Nissan dealer performed safety recall PMA66 / NHTSA 26V-331 on my 2025 Nissan Kicks SR. The vehicle’s combination meter/instrument cluster had been functioning normally before the recall. During the recall software update, the programming failed and the original combination meter became unrecoverable. After consultation with Nissan Techline, Nissan authorized replacement of the combination meter. The replacement meter was installed and the vehicle was returned on August 11, 2026. Immediately afterward, several new problems were discovered that did not exist before the recall repair: vehicle speed is displayed in km/h instead of MPH even though U.S./miles

NHTSA complaint 11758950, quoted in part. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

UNKNOWN OR OTHER
It' makes noise spoke to nissan dealer did oil change and did not get fixed have the car Uber driver I don't fell safe traveling or picking up passengers

NHTSA complaint 11753662. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

Compare

Other years of the Nissan Kicks

Model year Complaints Recalls Deaths
2026 7 3 —
2024 37 1 —
2023 18 1 —
2021 76 2 —
2020 97 0 —
2019 134 1 —
2018 85 1 —

Other 2025 Nissan models

Every Nissan on this site — 205 vehicles.

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. How many repair attempts it takes, and how long you have to file, is set by the state you bought in and by nothing on this page.

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