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2011 Nissan Maxima

Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations

Similar to other model years

Owner complaints for the 2011 Nissan Maxima do not stand out strongly from the model-year median of 99.

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When problems were reported

Mileage at the reported incident

64 reports with mileage · 42 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.

  • Air Bags. Review the 23 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
  • Power Train. Review the 22 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
  • Electrical System. Review the 12 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →

NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.

5 crash reports1 fire reports7 injury reports

Vehicle Speed Control complaints

5 reports
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Mileage unknown · Jan 12, 2023
Power TrainService BrakesVehicle Speed Control

Hi I bought car Nissan maxima 2011 transmission not working well when I driving I stopped at the traffic after that car does not move forward

NHTSA ODI #11501538

113,000 miles · Mar 4, 2021
EngineUnknown Or OtherVehicle Speed Control

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…

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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.

NHTSA ODI #11399057

113,532 miles · Oct 19, 2018
Electronic Stability Control (esc)Power TrainVehicle Speed Control

ON MY WAY TO WORK AS I WAS DRIVING DOWN THE HIGHWAY MY 2011 NISSAN MAXIMA ALL OF THE SUDDEN WOULD NO LONGER SPEED UP. THE VEHICLE WAS ON AND AS I TRIED TO ACCELERATE WHILE DRIVING DOWN THE HIGHWAY THE SPEEDOMETER WENT TO 0 MPH BUT THE RPM WOULD CLIMB. I LUCKILY WAS ABLE TO STEER THE CAR INTO AN EMPTY PARKING LOT. MY CAR HAD NO C…

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ON MY WAY TO WORK AS I WAS DRIVING DOWN THE HIGHWAY MY 2011 NISSAN MAXIMA ALL OF THE SUDDEN WOULD NO LONGER SPEED UP. THE VEHICLE WAS ON AND AS I TRIED TO ACCELERATE WHILE DRIVING DOWN THE HIGHWAY THE SPEEDOMETER WENT TO 0 MPH BUT THE RPM WOULD CLIMB. I LUCKILY WAS ABLE TO STEER THE CAR INTO AN EMPTY PARKING LOT. MY CAR HAD NO CHECK ENGINE/SERVICE ENGINE LIGHTS ON. THERE WERE NO WARNINGS. I THOUGHT IT WAS THE SPEED SENSOR DUE TO THE ORIGINAL DIAGNOSTIC CODE OF P0500 AND TRIED REPLACEMENT BUT THAT DID NOT SOLVE THE ISSUE. MY VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO A NISSAN DEALERSHIP WHO SAID IT WAS SHOWING 'PAGES FULL OF CODES' AND THEY TOLD ME THAT MY TRANSMISSION NEEDED TO BE COMPLETELY REPLACED AND THAT 'IT JUST HAPPENS.' PRIOR TO THIS TOTAL FAILURE I EXPERIENCED ABSOLUTELY ZERO SIGNS OF TRANSMISSION FAILURE. THERE WERE NO WARNING LIGHTS (CHECK ENGINE/SERVICE ENGINE SOON), NO SLIPPING/JERKING, LEAKING, NOTHING AT ALL. AFTER RESEARCHING THE POTENTIAL CAUSE OF TRANSMISSION FAILURE IN MY MAKE/MODEL/YEAR VEHICLE I FOUND THERE WERE MANY 2011 OWNERS WHO WERE EXPERIENCING THE SAME ISSUE, TOTAL TRANSMISSION FAILURE WITHOUT WARNING.

NHTSA ODI #11141395

75,000 miles · Aug 22, 2017
Vehicle Speed ControlCrashInjury

TL* THE CONTACT OWNED A 2011 NISSAN MAXIMA. WHILE THE CONTACT'S SON WAS DRIVING 55 MPH, THE VEHICLE ACCELERATED INDEPENDENTLY AND CRASHED INTO A TREE. ALL THE AIR BAGS DEPLOYED. A POLICE REPORT WAS FILED. THE CONTACT'S SON SUSTAINED SHOULDER PAIN, CHEST PAIN, AND LOT OF CUTS AND BRUISES THAT REQUIRED MEDICAL ATTENTION. THE VEHIC…

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TL* THE CONTACT OWNED A 2011 NISSAN MAXIMA. WHILE THE CONTACT'S SON WAS DRIVING 55 MPH, THE VEHICLE ACCELERATED INDEPENDENTLY AND CRASHED INTO A TREE. ALL THE AIR BAGS DEPLOYED. A POLICE REPORT WAS FILED. THE CONTACT'S SON SUSTAINED SHOULDER PAIN, CHEST PAIN, AND LOT OF CUTS AND BRUISES THAT REQUIRED MEDICAL ATTENTION. THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO AN UNKNOWN DEALER. THE VEHICLE WAS DESTROYED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT CONTACTED. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 75,000.

NHTSA ODI #11018829

62,053 miles · Feb 3, 2015
Power TrainVehicle Speed Control

INTERMITTENT HIGH RPM'S WITH NO CONTROL OF SPEED. WOULD HAPPEN THEN NOT HAPPEN FOR DAYS. WOULD NOT GO AT STOP SIGNS/STOP LIGHTS THEN SURGE FORWARD WHEN THE TRANSMISSION (WE LATER LEARNED) FINALLY ENGAGED. ON A DAY IT WASN'T ACTING UP WE TOOK IT TO WHERE WE BOUGHT IT (DEALERSHIP) AND THEY IMMEDIATELY NOTIFIED US THAT WE NEEDED…

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INTERMITTENT HIGH RPM'S WITH NO CONTROL OF SPEED. WOULD HAPPEN THEN NOT HAPPEN FOR DAYS. WOULD NOT GO AT STOP SIGNS/STOP LIGHTS THEN SURGE FORWARD WHEN THE TRANSMISSION (WE LATER LEARNED) FINALLY ENGAGED. ON A DAY IT WASN'T ACTING UP WE TOOK IT TO WHERE WE BOUGHT IT (DEALERSHIP) AND THEY IMMEDIATELY NOTIFIED US THAT WE NEEDED A BRAND NEW TRANSMISSION $5,500. 2,053 MILES OUTSIDE OF WARRANTY. WE COULD NOT BELIEVE THAT WHEN THEY CONTACTED CORPORATE NO CONSIDERATION FOR OUR LONG-TERM RELATIONSHIP.NEVER IN A MILLION YEARS DID WE THINK IT WAS SOMETHING SO SERIOUS AS A COMPLETE TRANSMISSION FAILURE. THIS TRANSMISSION IS SUPPOSEDLY THE SECOND (IMPROVED) TRANSMISSION TYPE THAT NISSAN HAS PUT IN THE MAXIMA WITH THE PRIOR GENERATION OF TRANSMISSIONS BEING GIVEN A WARRANTY OF UP TO 10 YEARS OR 100,000 MILES DUE TO ALL THE PRIOR PROBLEMS THAT WERE SUPPOSED TO HAVE BEEN FIXED WITH THIS SECOND GENERATION. NOW, THEY WON'T EVEN HONOR THE TRANSMISSION ISSUE WITH A 62,053 MILEAGE. THE TRANSMISSIONS AREN'T FIXED! WE HAVE 2 SMALL GRANDCHILDREN WE PICK UP EVERY OTHER WEEK AND REGULARLY USE THE CAR TO PICK THEM UP. HOW SCARY TO HAVE REALIZED WE COULD HAVE BEEN IN AN ACCIDENT WITH THE KIDS IN THE CAR BECAUSE WE HAD NO IDEA THAT THE TRANSMISSION ON A CAR WITH ONLY 62,053 MILES WOULD BE COMPLETELY SHOT. SOMEONE PLEASE AT YOUR ORGANIZATION LOOK INTO THIS. *TR

NHTSA ODI #10680772

Official recalls

0

No 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

0

No exact-year investigations in this snapshot.