Car Defect Radar
Get the report
Built from NHTSA complaints and recalls collected for this model, generated October 26, 2026. Totals reflect what has been collected, not every complaint ever filed.
Confirm 7 recalls before you buy.

Ask the seller for proof the repair was completed, or run the free VIN check. Recall repairs are done at no cost by a dealer.

Recalls

7 total · 7 to confirm

Safety issues the manufacturer must repair for free. A recall means confirm the fix was done, not walk away.

Airbags recall

Confirm it was repairedRecall 22E066000 · Aug 2022

An inflator explosion may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.

Remedy
Dealers will inspect and replace the inflators as necessary, free of charge. Owner notification letters are expected to be mailed September 14, 2022. Owners may contact Nissan's customer service at 1-800-867-7669.
Status
Remedy available. Confirm by VIN that this repair was completed.
What to do
Enter the VIN on NHTSA's recall lookup to confirm this car was repaired.

Airbags recall

Confirm it was repairedRecall 20V008000 · Jan 2020

An inflator explosion may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.

Remedy
Nissan will notify owners, and dealers will replace the front passenger air bag inflators with alternate desiccated inflators, free of charge. The recall began February 12, 2020. Owners may contact Nissan customer service at 888-737-9511 or Infiniti customer service at 888-810-3715.
Status
Remedy available. Confirm by VIN that this repair was completed.
What to do
Enter the VIN on NHTSA's recall lookup to confirm this car was repaired.

Airbags recall

Confirm it was repairedRecall 18V401000 · Jun 2018

An inflator explosion may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.

Remedy
Nissan will notify owners, and dealers will replace the front passenger air bag inflator with an alternate inflator, free of charge. The recall began July 5, 2018. Owners may contact Nissan customer service at 1-800-867-7669.
Status
Remedy available. Confirm by VIN that this repair was completed.
What to do
Enter the VIN on NHTSA's recall lookup to confirm this car was repaired.

Airbags recall

Confirm it was repairedRecall 18V044000 · Jan 2018

An inflator explosion may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.

Remedy
Nissan will notify owners, and dealers will replace the passenger frontal air bag inflator, free of charge. The recall began March 9, 2018. Owners may contact Nissan customer service at 1-800-647-7261.
Status
Remedy available. Confirm by VIN that this repair was completed.
What to do
Enter the VIN on NHTSA's recall lookup to confirm this car was repaired.

Airbags recall

Confirm it was repairedRecall 17V449000 · Jul 2017

An inflator rupture may result in metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.

Remedy
Nissan will notify owners, and dealers will replace the subject inflator with a new one manufactured by a different supplier, free of charge. The recall began on March 9, 2018. Owners may contact Nissan customer service at 1-800-647-7261.
Status
Remedy available. Confirm by VIN that this repair was completed.
What to do
Enter the VIN on NHTSA's recall lookup to confirm this car was repaired.

Airbags recall

Confirm it was repairedRecall 16V349000 · May 2016

An inflator rupture may result in metal fragments striking the vehicle occupants resulting in serious injury or death.

Remedy
Nissan will notify owners, and dealers will replace the passenger frontal air bag inflator, free of charge. The recall began December 21, 2017. All owners should receive a second notice by May 15, 2017. Owners may contact Nissan customer service at 1-800-647-7261.
Status
Remedy available. Confirm by VIN that this repair was completed.
What to do
Enter the VIN on NHTSA's recall lookup to confirm this car was repaired.

Suspension recall

Confirm it was repairedRecall 15V573000 · Sep 2015

If a front coil spring fractures, it may contact the tire, possibly puncturing it, increasing the risk of a crash.

Remedy
Nissan will notify owners, and dealers will replace both front coil springs, free of charge. The recall began on February 2, 2016. Owners may contact Nissan customer service at 1-800-647-7261.
Status
Remedy available. Confirm by VIN that this repair was completed.
What to do
Enter the VIN on NHTSA's recall lookup to confirm this car was repaired.

Owner complaints by system

269 total

Unverified reports owners filed with NHTSA, grouped by the part of the car. Useful for spotting patterns. Open a group to read recent examples.

Engine & powertrain

Worth reading
18

Most reports here involve sudden stalling.

sudden stalling 6premature wear 4transmission slipping 4
A recent report: AFTER 1 YEAR AND 1/2, MUFFLER HAS RATTLING SOUND, HAS A HOLE AND IS BURNT BLACK AT END OF TAIL PIPE. SAME PROBLEM AFTER MUFFLER HAS BEEN CHANGED IN THE SAME AMOUNT OF TIME. MUFFLER SEEMS TO RUST AND…
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AFTER 1 YEAR AND 1/2, MUFFLER HAS RATTLING SOUND, HAS A HOLE AND IS BURNT BLACK AT END OF TAIL PIPE. SAME PROBLEM AFTER MUFFLER HAS BEEN CHANGED IN THE SAME AMOUNT OF TIME. MUFFLER SEEMS TO RUST AND OVERHEAT/BURN.

Source: NHTSA complaint ODI #11253990 · view all complaints for this vehicle at nhtsa.gov

Electrical & infotainment

Worth reading
13

Most reports here involve sudden stalling. Of these, 1 mention a crash, 2 mention an injury.

sudden stalling 4software faults 1
A recent report: VEHICLE CAUGHT ON FIRE WHILE DRIVING ON HIGHWAY AFTER REPAIR AT A NISSAN DEALER

Source: NHTSA complaint ODI #11048665 · view all complaints for this vehicle at nhtsa.gov

Brakes

Minor
2

Most reports here involve loss of braking.

loss of braking 2
A recent report: Brake Caliper because stuck or seized mid driving making braking unsafe or near impossible.

Source: NHTSA complaint ODI #11730244 · view all complaints for this vehicle at nhtsa.gov

Steering, suspension & tires

Worth reading
62

Most reports here involve loss of steering. Of these, 7 mention a crash, 5 mention an injury.

loss of steering 19premature wear 14
A recent report: BOTH front coil springs suddenly without warning broke while driving collapsing the front end of the vehicle creating difficulty in steering and handling. Although this year/model are the subject of…
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BOTH front coil springs suddenly without warning broke while driving collapsing the front end of the vehicle creating difficulty in steering and handling. Although this year/model are the subject of a front coil spring recall this vin does not qualify.

Source: NHTSA complaint ODI #11647117 · view all complaints for this vehicle at nhtsa.gov

Airbags & seat belts

Read closely
140

Most reports here involve airbags not deploying. Of these, 9 mention a crash, 16 mention an injury.

airbags not deploying 15airbags deploying unexpectedly 13
A recent report: I am submitting a vehicle safety complaint regarding my 2011 Nissan Versa SL. VIN: [XXX] Incident Date: XXX Time: Approximately 7:30 a.m. While driving to work and making a right turn from [XXX] onto…
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I am submitting a vehicle safety complaint regarding my 2011 Nissan Versa SL. VIN: [XXX] Incident Date: XXX Time: Approximately 7:30 a.m. While driving to work and making a right turn from [XXX] onto [XXX], the driver-side airbag suddenly deployed without a collision or impact. Prior to the deployment, the vehicle experienced abnormal electrical symptoms involving the steering wheel. The horn had previously stopped working and later began sounding continuously. After the airbag deployed, I noticed a burning odor, and approximately 20 minutes later, the inside of the steering-wheel/airbag area was still very hot. I disconnected the negative battery cable as a safety precaution. My insurance company referred the vehicle to Caliber Collision, where an SRS diagnostic scan showed: B1049 – CURRENT – Driver Airbag Module OPEN B1057 – CURRENT – Driver Airbag Module SHORT B1050/B1055 – HISTORY – Driver Airbag VB-SHORT B1051/B1056 – HISTORY – Driver Airbag GND-SHORT B1013 – HISTORY – Control Unit I photographed the scan results. Caliber informed me that they do not repair this type of SRS/electrical malfunction. I am concerned that an airbag deployed without a crash or impact while the vehicle was in motion, accompanied by abnormal electrical symptoms and multiple SRS fault codes. I respectfully request that NHTSA investigate this incident as a potential vehicle safety defect and determine whether similar incidents have been reported involving the 2011 Nissan Versa or related SRS components. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

Source: NHTSA complaint ODI #11758382 · view all complaints for this vehicle at nhtsa.gov

Structure & body

Worth reading
9

Most reports here involve premature wear. Of these, 1 mention a crash.

premature wear 2software faults 1
A recent report: The contact owns a 2011 Nissan Versa. The contact stated that the rear passenger's side door failed to unlock and unlatch as intended. There was no warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to…
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The contact owns a 2011 Nissan Versa. The contact stated that the rear passenger's side door failed to unlock and unlatch as intended. There was no warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an unknown local dealer, where it was diagnosed that the door lock actuator needed to be replaced. The vehicle was diagnosed at the owner's expense. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 58,000.

Source: NHTSA complaint ODI #11677573 · view all complaints for this vehicle at nhtsa.gov

Other systems

Worth reading
25

Most reports here involve corrosion. Of these, 1 mention a crash.

corrosion 5premature wear 2
A recent report: THE VIN FOR MY 2011 NISSAN VERSA [XXX] IS NOT AVAILABLE IN YOUR DATABASE, OR IN THE NISSAN DATABASE YOU REFERRED ME TO. I HAVE CHECKED IT THREE TIMES. IT IS CORRECT. SO I HAVE NO WAY OF IDENTIFYING…
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THE VIN FOR MY 2011 NISSAN VERSA [XXX] IS NOT AVAILABLE IN YOUR DATABASE, OR IN THE NISSAN DATABASE YOU REFERRED ME TO. I HAVE CHECKED IT THREE TIMES. IT IS CORRECT. SO I HAVE NO WAY OF IDENTIFYING ANY RECALLS NEEDED. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6). *TR

Source: NHTSA complaint ODI #11244755 · view all complaints for this vehicle at nhtsa.gov

Is 269 complaints a lot? They were filed between 2010 and 2026, roughly 17 a year, which is more than the typical model in this dataset. We do not have sales figures for this model, so treat this as a rough volume, not a rate per car on the road. Popular, high-volume models naturally collect more complaints over time.

How does it compare with other years? The 2011 has 269 complaints on file, more than the 2010 (268) and fewer than the 2012 (486). Of the 16 model years of the Nissan Versa we cover, the 2012 has the most (486). Older model years have had longer to collect complaints.