2016 Nissan Sentra problems, complaints & recalls
Most-reported problem areas: Power Train (98) · Vehicle Speed Control (27) · Engine (16)
🧭 Reliability snapshot
Compared against other Nissan Sentra model years — complaint volume vs the model's median year, recalls and severity. How we score →
🛣️ Complaints by mileage
146 NHTSA complaints that reported an odometer reading.
Safety recalls (6)
Exterior Lighting:brake Lights:switch 2021-03-03 · campaign 21V135000 · 807,376 vehicles
Defect: Nissan North America, Inc. (Nissan) is recalling certain 2016-2019 Nissan Sentra vehicles. The brake light switch may become contaminated, preventing the circuit from closing and the brake lights from illuminating.
Risk: The brake lights may not illuminate, increasing the risk of a crash.
Fix: Dealers will replace the brake light switch and install a protective grommet, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed July 1, 2022. Owners may contact Nissan customer service at 1-800867-7769. Nissan's number for this recall is PM971.
Air Bags 2017-04-13 · campaign 17V253000 · 30,038 vehicles
Defect: Nissan North America, Inc. (Nissan) is recalling certain 2015-2017 LEAF and 2014, 2016 and 2017 Sentra vehicles. Due to a manufacturing error within the air bag inflators, the passenger frontal air bag may not properly deploy in the event of a crash.
Risk: In the event of a crash, if the front passenger air bag doesn't deploy properly, it can increase the risk of injury to passengers.
Fix: Nissan will notify owners, and dealers will replace the front passenger air bag inflator, free of charge. The recall began June 7, 2017. Owners may contact Nissan customer service at 1-800-647-7261.
Electrical System:wiring 2016-06-29 · campaign 16V485000 · 1,522 vehicles
Defect: Nissan North America, Inc. (Nissan) is recalling certain model year 2016 Sentra vehicles manufactured April 11, 2016, through April 26, 2016. The engine room harness may have a terminal pin too large to maintain a connection with the Engine Control Unit (ECU).
Risk: If the engine room harness loses connection to the ECU, the vehicle may not start or the engine may stall, increasing the risk of a crash.
Fix: Nissan will notify owners, and dealers will replace the terminal pin on the engine room harness, free of charge. The recall began on August 15, 2016. Owners may contact Nissan customer service at 1-800-647-7261.
Air Bags:frontal:passenger Side:inflator Module 2016-06-15 · campaign 16V436000 · 4,355 vehicles
Defect: Nissan North America, Inc. (Nissan) is recalling certain model year 2016 LEAF vehicles manufactured February 24, 2016, to March 23, 2016, and Sentra vehicles manufactured February 9, 2016, to March 4, 2016. The wiring harness connector may disconnect from the dual-stage passenger air bag.
Risk: If the wiring harness disconnects, the passenger air bag may not to deploy during a crash, increasing the risk of injury.
Fix: Nissan will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the wiring harness connector for proper engagement and, if necessary, replace the passenger air bag module and main body harness, free of charge. The recall began on August 9, 2016. Owners may contact Nissan customer service at 1-800-647-7261.
Air Bags:sensor:occupant Classification 2016-04-26 · campaign 16V242000 · 645,898 vehicles
Defect: Nissan North America, Inc. (Nissan) is recalling certain model year 2013-2016 Sentra vehicles manufactured June 4, 2012, to April 9, 2016. The front passenger seat belt bracket may become deformed if it is used to secure a Child Restraint System (CRS). The deformed seat bracket may cause the Occupant Classification System (OCS) to incorrectly classify the installed CRS, resulting in the front passenger air bag to not be turned off as designed when a CRS is in the seat.
Risk: If the frontal passenger air bag deploys in the event of a crash when a child seat is installed in the front passenger seat, there will be an increased risk of injury to the child in the CRS.
Fix: Nissan will notify owners, and dealers will reinforce the seat belt bracket as well as reprogram the Air Bag Control Unit (ACU) and OCS Electronic Control Unit (ECU), free of charge. The recall began on June 13, 2016. Owners are warned not to install a CRS in the front seat. Owners may contact Nissan customer service at 1-800-867-7669.
Air Bags:sensor:occupant Classification 2016-04-26 · campaign 16V244000 · 3,296,947 vehicles
Defect: Nissan North America, Inc. (Nissan) is recalling certain model year 2016-2017 Nissan Maxima, 2013-2016 Nissan Altima, NV200, LEAF, Sentra, and Pathfinder, 2014-2016 Nissan NV200 Taxi, Infiniti QX60, QX60 Hybrid, and Q50 Hybrid, 2014-2017 Nissan Rogue and Infiniti Q50, 2015-2016 Nissan Murano, Murano Hybrid, and Chevrolet City Express, 2014-2015 Nissan Pathfinder Hybrid, and 2013 Infiniti JX35 vehicles. In these vehicles, the front seat passenger Occupant Classification System (OCS) may incorrec
Risk: If the passenger frontal air bag does not deploy as intended in the event of a crash, the passenger is at an increased risk of injury.
Fix: Nissan will notify their owners. Chevrolet City Express owners will be notified by General Motors. Dealers will reprogram the Air Bag Control Unit (ACU) and OCS Electronic Control Unit (ECU) in Altima, Maxima, Murano, Rogue, and Sentra vehicles, and replace the OCS ECU in LEAF, NV200, NV200 Taxi, Pathfinder, Infiniti Q50, JX35, and QX60 and Chevrolet City Express vehicles, free of charge. Interim notices were sent to owners on May 31, 2016. Owners will receive a second notice when remedy par
Service bulletins (197)
Technical service bulletins are repair instructions manufacturers send dealers for known issues. Unlike recalls, the fix is not automatically free — but naming the bulletin at the service desk can save diagnosis time and support goodwill repairs.
Structure:body 2026-04-13 · NTB09-131C · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
certification label and vin plate replacement service information because of collision damage or other vehicle repair, a replacement “certification label” or “vin plate/label” may be needed. hint: certification label = fmvss (federal motor vehicle safety standards) label. these items may be availabl
Structure:body 2026-04-13 · NTB09-131C · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
certification label and vin plate replacement service information because of collision damage or other vehicle repair, a replacement “certification label” or “vin plate/label” may be needed. hint: certification label = fmvss (federal motor vehicle safety standards) label. these items may be availabl
Service Brakes 2025-02-20 · NTB19-033G · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
intelligent cruise control inoperative and aeb/feb warning light on or radar obstruction message displayed with dtc c1a16 or c2582 if you confirm important: the purpose of action (on the next page) is to give you a quick idea of the work you will be performing. you must closely follow the entire ser
Air Bags 2024-09-19 · NTB19-071D · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
dtc b00a0-00 stored this bulletin has been amended. see amendment history on the last page. please discard previous versions of this bulletin. if you confirm dtc b00a0-00 (occupant detection sensor unit) is stored, and ocs zero point reset cannot be performed, (continued on the next page)
Electrical System 2024-05-21 · NTB13-107G · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
vehicle key not detected / authenticated, engine will not start this bulletin has been amended. see amendment history on the last page. please discard previous versions of this bulletin.
Electrical System 2024-05-21 · NTB13-027D · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
can communication – network diagnostic flow chart this bulletin has been amended. see amendment history on the last page. please discard previous versions of this bulletin.
Showing the 6 most recent of 197 bulletins. Search all of them free at nhtsa.gov.
What owners report
2026-09-09 · Engine“the ecu problem is a major issue the vehicle is stalling, not starting, just malfunctioning tremendously while on the road in traffic while driving it stalls in traffic, shuts off in traffic. i was told this was a issue back in july 2017 the same issue has occurred again with safety concerns . …”
2026-09-02 · Exterior Lighting · 130,000 mi“the contact owns a 2016 nissan sentra. the contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the traction control warning light illuminated. the vehicle was taken to an autozone and dtc: c1116 “stop lamp switch" was retrieved. the local dealer was contacted; however, the vehicle was not diagnosed. the contact was informed that the vin was …”
2026-08-21 · Unknown Or Other“in 2023, my vehicle experienced a transmission/cvt-related failure that resulted in a loss of propulsion. the vehicle became unable to continue driving and was stopped in chino hills, california. a neighbor called the police, and officers responded to the scene, although no police report was filed. the vehicle was subsequently towed to an authorize…”
2026-08-05 · Power Train:automatic Transmission:internal:cvt“on friday, july 3, 2026, at approximately 9:30 pm, while driving on the parkway at an approximate speed of 65 miles per hour and preparing to merge onto the highway, the vehicle unexpectedly stalled completely. i was able to safely maneuver the vehicle to the shoulder of the road. after a few minutes, once the immediate traffic situation on the hig…”
2026-06-02 · Electrical System:instrument Panel:speedometer/Odometer · 149,244 mi“odometer fraud. the contact purchased a 2016 niss. the contact stated that they discovered that there was a mileage discrepancy after the purchase. the vehicle was a private sale/dealer sale. at the time of purchase, the vehicle mileage was 107,242. it was later discovered upon checking carfax, that the mileage was 149,244.…”
2026-04-21 · Power Train:automatic Transmission“the cvt transmission, which nissan has had many issues with per the large number of class action lawsuits, failed while i was driving the vehicle on a main street in san diego. the vehicle showed no indication (warning light) that there was any engine failure or issue. the cvt transmission just died unexpectedly while the vehicle was moving with tr…”
2026-03-31 · Unknown Or Other“the vehicle stopped accelerating while driving and after stopping, would not exceed 5-10 mph. vehicle was towed to a mechanic who advised that the transmission had failed. …”
2026-03-13 · Visibility:sun/Moon Roof Assembly · 142,000 mi“the contact owns a 2016 nissan sentra. the contact stated that while driving at 60 mph, the sunroof exploded and shattered without impact. the contact exited the highway, pulled over to the side of the road, and took pictures of the failure. the dealer and the manufacturer were not informed of the failure. the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired.…”
2026-03-05 · Power Train“the cvt transmission went out when i was driving on an interstate. i was driving 65 mph and within seconds my speed dropped with a tractor trailer behind me. i thankfully was able to pull off to the side of the road, but almost crashed in the process. the check engine light also did not come on until 17 minutes after the transmission failed. an ind…”
2026-01-28 · Electrical System:instrument Panel:speedometer/Odometer · 119,200 mi“odometer fraud. the contact purchased a 2016 nissan sentra. the contact discovered a mileage discrepancy after the purchase. the vehicle was a dealer sale. at the time of purchase, the vehicle mileage was approximately 93,000. it was later discovered that the title mileage was 119,200. the contact called the dealer and requested the odometer be upd…”
Excerpts of consumer complaints filed with NHTSA, lightly truncated. They are owner statements, not verified findings.