IllustrationCONSUMER CANNOT START VEHICLE WITH KEY, THE KEY WILL NOT TURN IGNITION SWITCH, . CONSUMER CONTACTED DEALER, AND DEALER HAD TO RECODE KEY. *JB
1999 Nissan Maxima
Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations
Similar to other model years
Owner complaints for the 1999 Nissan Maxima do not stand out strongly from the model-year median of 99.
About this comparison →How this year compares
Owner complaints by model year
Compare all Maxima years →Counts vary with age, sales and reporting. They are not failure rates.
What owners reported most
All reported categories
Tap a category to read its complaints. One report may name several components.
When problems were reported
Mileage at the reported incident
20–25K
1125–50K
2950–75K
1375–100K
28100–150K
6150K+
89 reports with mileage · 76 unknown
NHTSA’s mileage field refers to the reported incident, not necessarily the filing date. This shows report counts, not the likelihood of a failure.
What to inspect
Issues worth paying extra attention to based on owner reports.
- Electrical System. Review the 83 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Engine And Engine Cooling. Review the 38 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Air Bags. Review the 18 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.
7 crash reports5 fire reports1 injury reports
What owners actually said
165 reportsI HAVE A 1999 NISSAN MAXIMA AND HAVE HAD THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT ON. CHECKED THE CODE AND CAME BACK WITH CYLINDER 1 MISFIRE. DEALER WANTED $1,000 TO "TRY AND FIX THE PROBLEM". I DON'T HAVE THAT KIND OF MONEY. AS I WAS GETTING ON THE FREEWAY LOST MOST POWER OUT OF THE CAR AND COULDN'T SPEED UP TO AVOID AN ACCIDENT. FORTUNATELY NOB…
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I HAVE A 1999 NISSAN MAXIMA AND HAVE HAD THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT ON. CHECKED THE CODE AND CAME BACK WITH CYLINDER 1 MISFIRE. DEALER WANTED $1,000 TO "TRY AND FIX THE PROBLEM". I DON'T HAVE THAT KIND OF MONEY. AS I WAS GETTING ON THE FREEWAY LOST MOST POWER OUT OF THE CAR AND COULDN'T SPEED UP TO AVOID AN ACCIDENT. FORTUNATELY NOBODY WAS HURT HOWEVER IF THE DEALER WOULD HAVE FIXED THEIR FAULTY PART I AM 100% POSITIVE THERE WOULD NOT HAVE BEEN AN ACCIDENT. *JB
MY VEHICLE,A 1999 NISSAN MAXIMA WAS EXPERIENCING A SEVERE ENGINE MISFIRE CONDITION. I TOOK IT TO A MECHANIC AND WAS INFORMED THAT THE IGNITION COILS WERE DEFECTIVE AND WOULD NEED TO BE REPLACED. I WAS TOLD THAT THE DEALER JUST HAPPENED TO HAVE PLENTY IN STOCK AS THIS WAS A COMMON PART FAILURE WITH THIS MODEL. I ORDERED THE NEW A…
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MY VEHICLE,A 1999 NISSAN MAXIMA WAS EXPERIENCING A SEVERE ENGINE MISFIRE CONDITION. I TOOK IT TO A MECHANIC AND WAS INFORMED THAT THE IGNITION COILS WERE DEFECTIVE AND WOULD NEED TO BE REPLACED. I WAS TOLD THAT THE DEALER JUST HAPPENED TO HAVE PLENTY IN STOCK AS THIS WAS A COMMON PART FAILURE WITH THIS MODEL. I ORDERED THE NEW AND IMPROVED PARTS WITH A TOTAL PRICE OF AROUND $ 500.00. I AM AMAZED AT WHAT A WIDESPREAD PROBLEM THIS IS WITH THE IGNITION COILS AND YET NISSAN HAS ACCEPTED NO RESPONSIBILITY FOR THIS DEFECTIVE PART. I LIKE NISSANS BUT I'M AFRAID IF THEY DON'T STEP UP TO THE PLATE I WILL BE LOOKING AT A HONDA FOR MY NEXT CAR PURCHASE. *NM
1999 NISSAN MAXIMA IGNITION COIL FAILURE. ENGINE CHECK LIGHT AND OTHER LIGHTS CAME ON. COILS ARE ~$100@ THIS IS A VERY COMMON PROBLEM WITH THESE CARS AND A RECALL SHOULD BE ISSUED. IT HAS INSTEAD BECOME A CASH COW FOR NISSAN DEALERS AT `$1200 COST FOR EACH CAR REPAIRED. *JB
1999 MAXIMA 72000 MILES. ENGINE BEGAN RUNNING ROUGH. PAID FOR A $65 DIAGNOSTIC AND MECHANIC RECOMMENDED REPLACING THE COILS. HAD TO REPLACE ALL SIX IGNITION COILS. $1000 FOR SEALER REPAIR. I DID THE REPAIR MYSELF FOR $390 IN PARTS AND 3 HOURS OF TIME. *AK
THIS COMMENT IS REGARDING THE IGNITION COIL PROBLEM ON THE 1999 NISSAN MAXIMA. MY 1999 MAXIMA HAS ABOUT 71,000 MILES ON IT. RECENTLY THE "CHECK ENGINE SOON" LIGHT CAME ON. WE TOOK IT TO A NISSAN DEALERSHIP SERVICE DEPARTMENT. THEY RAN A DIAGNOSTIC TEST ($93) AND SAID IT'S GIVING MULTIPLE MISFIRE READINGS. THEY RECOMMENDED REPLAC…
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THIS COMMENT IS REGARDING THE IGNITION COIL PROBLEM ON THE 1999 NISSAN MAXIMA. MY 1999 MAXIMA HAS ABOUT 71,000 MILES ON IT. RECENTLY THE "CHECK ENGINE SOON" LIGHT CAME ON. WE TOOK IT TO A NISSAN DEALERSHIP SERVICE DEPARTMENT. THEY RAN A DIAGNOSTIC TEST ($93) AND SAID IT'S GIVING MULTIPLE MISFIRE READINGS. THEY RECOMMENDED REPLACING ALL SIX IGNITION COILS. TOTAL COST ABOUT $1000 INCLUDING THE PARTS AND THE LABOR. FROM WEBSITES, I FOUND THAT THIS SAME PROBLEM HAPPENED ON SEVERAL MAXIMAS. PEOPLE COMPLAIN THIS A LOT. *AK
DT*: THE CONTACT STATED THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT ILLUMINATED INTERMITTENTLY. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO THE LOCAL DEALERSHIP WHEN THE LIGHT ILLUMINATED. THE DEALERSHIP WAS NOT ABLE TO DUPLICATE THE PROBLEM; HOWEVER, THEY DID RESET THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT. THE VEHICLE WAS INSPECTED BY THE DEALER, AND THEY SUGGESTED CHANGING THE IGNITI…
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DT*: THE CONTACT STATED THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT ILLUMINATED INTERMITTENTLY. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO THE LOCAL DEALERSHIP WHEN THE LIGHT ILLUMINATED. THE DEALERSHIP WAS NOT ABLE TO DUPLICATE THE PROBLEM; HOWEVER, THEY DID RESET THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT. THE VEHICLE WAS INSPECTED BY THE DEALER, AND THEY SUGGESTED CHANGING THE IGNITION SWITCH.*AK
FAULTY IGNITION COILS ON 1999 NISSAN MAXIMA. *NM
THE "CHECK ENGINE SOON" LIGHT CAME ON. I TOOK IT TO A SERVICE STATION AND THEY RAN A DIAGNOSTIC TEST AND SAID IT'S MISFIRING. THEY RECOMMENDED REPLACING ALL SIX IGNITION COILS @ ~ $150 EACH AND SAID THAT THIS IS A COMMON PROBLEM WITH NISSAN MAXIMA'S. *JB
A WEEK AFTER THE AIR BAG LIGHT WAS FLASHING I TOOK THE CAR TO THE DEALER TO GET IT CHECK. THEY TOLD ME THAT THE RIGHT AIR BAG MODULE NEEDS TO BE REPLACED. THE EXTENDED WARRANTY THAT I GOT WHEN I BOUGHT MY CAR A YEAR AGO DID NOT COVER THIS TYPE OF REPAIR. I WOULD HAVE TO COME UP WITH $500 TO REPLACE THE AIR BAG. THE CAR HAS N…
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A WEEK AFTER THE AIR BAG LIGHT WAS FLASHING I TOOK THE CAR TO THE DEALER TO GET IT CHECK. THEY TOLD ME THAT THE RIGHT AIR BAG MODULE NEEDS TO BE REPLACED. THE EXTENDED WARRANTY THAT I GOT WHEN I BOUGHT MY CAR A YEAR AGO DID NOT COVER THIS TYPE OF REPAIR. I WOULD HAVE TO COME UP WITH $500 TO REPLACE THE AIR BAG. THE CAR HAS NOT BEEN IN AN ACCIDENT THEREFORE I CONSIDER THIS A DEFECTIVE PART ON NISSAN. *NM
Official recalls
0No recalls in this snapshot.
Model-level recall history does not show whether a particular VIN is affected or has received a repair. Check a VIN with NHTSA ↗
NHTSA investigations
0No exact-year investigations in this snapshot.