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Engine & cooling

2011 Nissan Maxima Engine problems

Owners have filed 14 complaints about the 2011 Nissan Maxima's engine & cooling with NHTSA - 13% of all its complaints, most recently on May 5, 2023. Stalling, loss of power, oil consumption, overheating, head gaskets, timing chains and engine failure.

Complaints
14
Recalls
0
Crashes
0
Fires
0
Injuries
0
Deaths
0

Engine complaints

SteeringTransmission & drivetrainEngine & cooling

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

Filed Incident Steering · Power train · EngineNHTSA 11520699
Acceleration & cruise controlEngine & cooling

My car has less than 113,500 miles and started losing power and coasting, the speed would fluctuate and something sounds loose in the engine. I took it to lithia nissan in fresno ca on blackstone and they told me the cvt belt needs to be replaced thereby causing the car to need a whole new transmission at $5738.96. The car was in motion.

Filed Incident Vehicle speed control · Unknown or other · EngineNHTSA 11399057
Engine & cooling

This is my third nissan maxima and they all had the same idsue with the mass air flow sensor. Set off check engine light and makes car hesitate when accerlerating. My mom owns a 2013 maxima 45000 miles and has the same issue with check engine light.

Filed Incident EngineNHTSA 11386730
Electrical systemEngine & cooling

My transmission messed up on me with 114,000 miles! Brand new almost and when it would go over 45 it won't catch my gears the rpm would go stay put and make a loud whining noise!!

Filed Incident Electrical system · EngineNHTSA 11193488
Engine & coolingEquipment & accessories

Tl* the contact owns a 2011 nissan maxima. The contact noticed hot air blowing through the vents when the air conditioner was activated. The contact attempted to restart the vehicle more than twice, but the failure still occurred. There were no warning indicators illuminated. The vehicle was taken to sheridan nissan (114 s dupont hwy, new castle, de 19720, (302) 326-6100) where it was diagnosed that the compressor was faulty. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not informed of the failure. The failure mileage was 86,000. *Tt *tr

Filed Incident Engine and engine cooling · EquipmentNHTSA 11103052
Engine & cooling

Letter from senator boozman on behalf of constituent re 2011 nissan maxima consumer complaint against nissan corporate. *Ld the consumer stated the vehicle was making a horrible knocking noise. The consumer was advised the transmission was going out. The manufacturer was notified, but did not offer any assistance. The consumer requested to be reimbursed for the repairs and the rental. *Js

Filed Incident EngineNHTSA 11064030
SteeringDriver assistanceEngine & cooling

Vehicle is parked and engine wont start. Had a 2009 maxima that also had the same issues. Checked battery and it is fine but car wont start. I have jumpstarted it and that has turned the car back on but after a few months I have the same issue. This last time my car did not start , not even with a jump start.

Filed Incident Steering · Electronic stability control (ESC) · EngineNHTSA 10947036
Transmission & drivetrainEngine & cooling

Check engine indicator light has come on intermittently 3 times in the past two months. Upon getting a diagnostic test at a nissan dealership, the second time the light came on, I was told they needed the car another day, for a longer time to further investigate the two codes that came up during the test. The check engine light went back out a few days later. Now two months later the light is on again and this time as I was leaving a shopping center parking lot, turning onto a main road the car made a...

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jerking/surge-stop motion as if it did not want to accelerate. It continued to do this same motion any time I slowed down or stopped at a light or slowed down to make a turn during my 2.5-3.0 Mile trip to my house. I did not drive the car for the next 24-28 hours. Upon driving the car to the dealership to drop off for service I did not experience the jerking/surge-stop motion. After assessing the vehicle today I was informed that the rear timing chain cover has deteriorated causing problems with oil pressure to the engine, code p0011. There were also two other codes for heating system p1217 and transmission fluid pressure p0868. Total cost of repairs $2984. My car is 5 years old, approximately 67,000 miles on it so it is outside of the warranty. After reading others similar complaints about transmission issues just outside of the warranty period, knowing that previous model years had problems that ended up extended warranty it is very disturbing and disappointing to know that nissan is not further investigating these issues further. Also, other issues I have had tire pressure indicator light coming on intermittently and car not starting but all dash lights staying on had technical bulletins. The latter should be a quick resolve yet I was charged almost $400 for something not mentioned in the related bulletin. Nissan lacks responsible customer service!!!

Filed Incident Power train · EngineNHTSA 10892198
Engine & cooling

2011 Nissan maxima. Consumer writes in regards to vehicle shuts down while driving. *Smd the consumer stated the vehicle jerked three times, before it shut off. The consumer was informed, the air filter had not been changed in a year. The dealer claimed, the consumer refused to have the air filter changed. *Jb

Filed Incident EngineNHTSA 10763641
Engine & cooling

I purchased my 2011 nissan maxima brand new in may of 2011. About a year after I purchased my car, the dealership notified me that my engine mount was seriously damaged and needed to be replaced. I contacted my warranty company and found out the particular piece needing to be replaced wasn't covered under my warranty. I was facing a $1000.00+ Repair bill. Needless to say, I have still not been able to repair my engine mount. I am trying to understand how, on a brand new car, can an engine mount be damaged to the...

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point of needing repair and then my warranty not covering that particular piece? Also, for the last 6-7 months, the service engine soon light has been coming on and going off. The car wasn't riding or operating any different so I dismissed it. Recently however, at roughly 85k miles, my service engine soon light has been on and will not go off. When I was at a stop light, my car just shut down. I was able to restart it but while I was accelerating, around about 40mph, the car began to jerk as if it was trying to shift but was confused. The gas tank was at about 1/4 of a tank when all of this occurred. My car is only 3 years old and I am having major issues and cannot understand why, when I bought this car brand new and keep up with all of the regular maintenance. *Tr

Filed Incident EngineNHTSA 10669779
SteeringEngine & cooling

Tl* the contact owns a 2011 nissan maxima. The contact stated that while driving at approximately 40 mph, the steering wheel seized. In addition, the vehicle stalled as all the warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 55,400. Mailed out 01/13/15*lj

Filed Incident Steering · EngineNHTSA 10668289
SuspensionTransmission & drivetrainEngine & cooling

Tsb ntb12-071- factory bearing problems 2009 ? 2012 Maxima; engine knock from #1 main bearing 2009 ? 2012 Maxima (a35) no.1 Main bearing knock noise confirmation use the following criteria and symptoms to confirm the knock noise is coming from the no. 1 Crankshaft main bearing. Knock noise from no.1 Main bearing is confirmed if all of the following symptoms exist: ? Not heard at cold start. ? Can be heard at warm idle (not a cold start condition). ? Heard best from under the engine with...

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the vehicle lifted. ? Using stethoscope, the knock can be isolated to the lower front of the engine (near the # 1 or # 2 main bearing). ? Cannot be heard driving at highway speeds. ? Cannot be heard sitting in the vehicle with the radio on. Planet nissan -5850 centennial center blcd- las vegas nv 89149- refused to resolved or fix this problems [[redacted]] information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u.S.C. 552(B)(6). *Tr

Filed Incident Suspension · Power train · EngineNHTSA 10649371
Engine & cooling

The car has a push button start and could not be turned-off. All emergency procedures in the manual were followed and the car could not be turned-off. The deal actually let the car run until it ran out of gas. There was no evidence there was any issue with the car until I went to turn it off, then the engine would not shut-off. A driver could be in need of gas, or need to stop with children in the car and would be in a situation where the car will not stop running. The doors would not lock with the car running. *Tr

Filed Incident EngineNHTSA 10487868
Engine & cooling

Engine started knocking, I took it to the nissan dealer who pulled the oil pan and found pieces of the main crankshaft bearings in the bottom of the oil pan. The car was still driving ok and the knock could not be heard from inside the car. Nissan replaced the short block engine. Had I not noticed the knock and taken it to the dealer the engine would have eventually seized up and could have caused a dangerous driving situation. I bought the car new and had the first oil change at 3100 miles by a nissan dealer and the engine failed at approximately 5700 miles after 4 months of use. *Tr

Filed Incident Engine and engine coolingNHTSA 10450565

Nissan Maxima engine complaints by year

Maxima engine problems, every year

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Source: U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) complaints and recalls, checked . Complaints are owners' own reports and are not verified. How we use the data

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