I HAVE HAD MY 2012 SENTRA FOR 1 MONTH 1/2 AND TWICE ON LONG DISTANCE TRIPS THE CAR HAD SLOWED DOWN. GOING 80 SLOWED TO 50 AND THE GAS PEDAL WAS TO THE FLOOR. BOTH TIMES I'VE HAD TO SAFELY PULL OFF THREE FREEWAY AND SIT ON THE SIDE OF THE FREEWAY FOR A 1/2 HOUR. THIS IS VERY DISAPPOINTING OTHERWISE THE CAR IS GOOD
2012 Nissan Sentra
Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations
Similar to other model years
Owner complaints for the 2012 Nissan Sentra do not stand out strongly from the model-year median of 116.
About this comparison →How this year compares
Owner complaints by model year
Compare all Sentra 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
129 reports with mileage · 51 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.
- Power Train. Review the 68 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Engine. Review the 39 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Vehicle Speed Control. Review the 22 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.
Vehicle Speed Control complaints
22 reportsAFTER A 1.5-2 HOUR DRIVE ON THE HIGHWAY, MY CAR WOULD NOT ACCELERATE BEYOND 60 MPH. IT DROVE FINE AFTER GETTING HOME AND GETTING SOME REST. NO LIGHTS CAME ON THIS FIRST. SIMILAR EVENT HAPPENED A COUPLE WEEKS LATER - MUCH SHORTER DRIVE APPROX. 20 MINUTES, SLOWER SPEEDS, BUT MAIN INCLINES. ALL LIGHTS (CHECK ENGINE, OIL, EMERGEN…
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AFTER A 1.5-2 HOUR DRIVE ON THE HIGHWAY, MY CAR WOULD NOT ACCELERATE BEYOND 60 MPH. IT DROVE FINE AFTER GETTING HOME AND GETTING SOME REST. NO LIGHTS CAME ON THIS FIRST. SIMILAR EVENT HAPPENED A COUPLE WEEKS LATER - MUCH SHORTER DRIVE APPROX. 20 MINUTES, SLOWER SPEEDS, BUT MAIN INCLINES. ALL LIGHTS (CHECK ENGINE, OIL, EMERGENCY BRAKE, BATTERY) CAME ON AND THE CAR WOULD NO ACCELERATE AT ALL. I PULLED OVER AND TURNED THE CAR OFF THEN BACK ON AGAIN AND IT WAS COMPLETELY FINE.
I HAVE OWNED THIS CAR FOR 2 YEARS. EVERY YEAR, AS IT STARTS TO WARM UP IN THE SPRING, THE SAME PROBLEM RECURS. I HAVE HAD IT TO SEVERAL REPAIR SHOPS, ONLY TO BE TOLD THAT IT CANNOT BE FIXED. AS I AM DRIVING ON THE FREEWAY, IT WILL SUDDENLY START TO DECELERATE, AND I MUST PULL OFF THE ROAD AND LET THE CAR SIT, TURNED OFF, FOR …
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I HAVE OWNED THIS CAR FOR 2 YEARS. EVERY YEAR, AS IT STARTS TO WARM UP IN THE SPRING, THE SAME PROBLEM RECURS. I HAVE HAD IT TO SEVERAL REPAIR SHOPS, ONLY TO BE TOLD THAT IT CANNOT BE FIXED. AS I AM DRIVING ON THE FREEWAY, IT WILL SUDDENLY START TO DECELERATE, AND I MUST PULL OFF THE ROAD AND LET THE CAR SIT, TURNED OFF, FOR 20-40 MINUTES. LAST WEEK, THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON, AND WHEN I TOOK IT BACK TO THE DEALER, THEY WANT $3000 TO FIX THE CAR. THIS HAS BEEN A PROBLEM SINCE THE FIRST SUMMER AFTER I BOUGHT IT.
AFTER DRIVING FOR 3+HOURS, THE CAR BEGINS TO DEACCELERATE AND YOU CANNOT GO ANY FASTER WHILE ON THE HIGHWAY; VERY UNSAFE. QUOTED OVER $3.5K TO FIX TRANSMISSION. CAR SHOULD LAST LONGER THAN 80K MILES! SCARED TO DRIVE IT NOW. AT ONE POINT, NISSAN COVERED THE TRANSMISSION FOR 10 YEARS OR 100,000 MILES--SHOULD DEFINITELY GO BACK…
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AFTER DRIVING FOR 3+HOURS, THE CAR BEGINS TO DEACCELERATE AND YOU CANNOT GO ANY FASTER WHILE ON THE HIGHWAY; VERY UNSAFE. QUOTED OVER $3.5K TO FIX TRANSMISSION. CAR SHOULD LAST LONGER THAN 80K MILES! SCARED TO DRIVE IT NOW. AT ONE POINT, NISSAN COVERED THE TRANSMISSION FOR 10 YEARS OR 100,000 MILES--SHOULD DEFINITELY GO BACK TO THIS AS THE CVT IS NOT SAFE! CONTACTED NISSAN CONSUMER AFFAIRS TO NO AVAIL...
TAKATA RECALL. THE ISSUE I'M HAVING WITH MY NISSAN SENTRA 2012 IS AN ONGOING ISSUE FOR AWHILE NOW. TRAVELING UP TO NV FROM CA, WHEN I REACHED A CERTAIN HILL OF A SLIGHT ALTITUDE DECREASE MY SPEED AUTOMATICALLY FROM GOING 80MPH TO 50MPH ON THE HWY. EVEN PUSHING THE PEDAL TO THE METAL, DOESN'T DO ANY IMPACT AT ALL. HAD TO PULL OVE…
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TAKATA RECALL. THE ISSUE I'M HAVING WITH MY NISSAN SENTRA 2012 IS AN ONGOING ISSUE FOR AWHILE NOW. TRAVELING UP TO NV FROM CA, WHEN I REACHED A CERTAIN HILL OF A SLIGHT ALTITUDE DECREASE MY SPEED AUTOMATICALLY FROM GOING 80MPH TO 50MPH ON THE HWY. EVEN PUSHING THE PEDAL TO THE METAL, DOESN'T DO ANY IMPACT AT ALL. HAD TO PULL OVER AND WAIT 30MINS FOR CAR TO REST AND THEN IT WENT BACK TO NORMAL. EVEN WITH DOING A OIL CHANGE AND TRANSMISSION FLUSH, PROBLEM STILL OCCURS. CONTACTING THE DEALERSHIP DIDN'T HELP BECAUSE MY WARRANTY JUST RECENTLY WENT OUT WITH NOTHING THEY COULD DO. TALK ABOUT MY LUCK! PLEASE HELP, I TAKE VERY GOOD CARE OF MY VEHICLE AND THIS IS THE OUTCOME I GET?
VEHICLE REFUSED TO ACCELERATE DURING PROLONGED UPHILL DRIVE IN 95F+ WEATHER. VEHICLE SPEED WAS REDUCED TO BELOW 50 MPH AND NO AMOUNT OF ACCELERATOR DEPRESSING INCREASED SPEED OR ACCELERATION. VEHICLE HAD TO BE PULLED OVER FOR 10 MINUTES BEFORE IT WOULD ACCELERATE NORMALLY AGAIN. NO NOTICE OF ENGINE OVERHEAT OR MALFUNCTION WAS RE…
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VEHICLE REFUSED TO ACCELERATE DURING PROLONGED UPHILL DRIVE IN 95F+ WEATHER. VEHICLE SPEED WAS REDUCED TO BELOW 50 MPH AND NO AMOUNT OF ACCELERATOR DEPRESSING INCREASED SPEED OR ACCELERATION. VEHICLE HAD TO BE PULLED OVER FOR 10 MINUTES BEFORE IT WOULD ACCELERATE NORMALLY AGAIN. NO NOTICE OF ENGINE OVERHEAT OR MALFUNCTION WAS REGISTERED ON THE THE DASH. NO INDICATORS VISIBLE.
ON MAY THE 12TH 2016 I WAS IN THE NISSAN WITH MY MOTHER AND SISTER ON OUR WAY TO HEMET CALIFORNIA FROM OUR HOME IN LANCASTER. ON HIGHWAY 138 I BEGAN TO HEAR A WEIRD NOISE COMING FROM THE ENGINE. I ALSO NOTICED THAT I WAS NOT GOING AS FAST AS I SHOULD HAVE BEEN UP A HILL. I PULLED OVER, TURNED THE CAR OFF AND LOOKED UNDER THE HOO…
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ON MAY THE 12TH 2016 I WAS IN THE NISSAN WITH MY MOTHER AND SISTER ON OUR WAY TO HEMET CALIFORNIA FROM OUR HOME IN LANCASTER. ON HIGHWAY 138 I BEGAN TO HEAR A WEIRD NOISE COMING FROM THE ENGINE. I ALSO NOTICED THAT I WAS NOT GOING AS FAST AS I SHOULD HAVE BEEN UP A HILL. I PULLED OVER, TURNED THE CAR OFF AND LOOKED UNDER THE HOOD. I CHECKED THE OIL, WATER, AND IT ALL LOOKED FINE. I WENT BACK IN THE CAR AND CONTINUED MY ROUTE. I GOT ON THE 10 FREEWAY AND EVERYTHING WAS GOOD. NO TRAFFIC AND I'M DRIVING 55 MILES AN HOUR. I PUSH THE GAS PEDAL TO GO FASTER AND NOTHING HAPPENED. THAT IS WHEN I SAW THAT THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT WAS ON. THE CAR HAD STARTED TO SLOW DOWN. I PUSHED THE GAS PEDAL A FEW MORE TIMES AND WHEN NOTHING HAPPENED I STARTED TO PANIC. I GET OVER TO GET OFF OF THE FREEWAY AND NOW MY SPEED IS ABOUT 40MPH. CARS ARE MERGING ON THE FREEWAY BEHIND ME GOING AT LEAST 60. I WAS SO AFRAID THEY WERE GOING TO HIT ME. I SAFELY GOT OFF OF THE FREEWAY AT NORTH UNIVERSITY ST IN REDLANDS CA. I STOPPED THE CAR ON LYTLE ST. I TURNED OFF THE ENGINE AND OPENED THE HOOD AND IT WAS HOT AND SMOKING. I SAT THERE FOR 30 MINUTES WITH MY FAMILY CALLING DRIVETIME AND AEVEREX THE WARRENTY PROVIDER. I WAS SO SCARED AND CONFUSED. AEVEREX TOLD ME THAT THEY WORK WITH PEP BOYS AND I MAY BE COVERED ON GETTING IT FIXED. WITH ONE PEP BOYS BEING JUST 7 MINUTES AWAY. I STARTED THE CAR AND DROVE THERE WITH THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT STILL ON. I DIDN'T NOT LEAVE MY KEY WITH PEP BOYS ON THAT DAY BECAUSE I WAS CONFUSED ON THE WAY AEVEREX WORKED. PEP BOYS OF REDLANDS RECEIVED MY KEY ON 5/14/2016 AND I GOT A CALL LATER THAT DAY FROM STEVE WHO HELPED ME SAYING THAT THE CAR NEEDS A NEW TRANSMISSION. I WOULD LIKE TO KNOW HOW DRIVETIME COMPLETELY MISSED THAT THIS CAR NEEDED A NEW TRANSMISSION. I ONLY HAD IT FOR 6 DAYS!!!!!
TAKATA RECALL: I WAS DRIVING ON THE HIGHWAY WHEN THE "CHECK ENGINE" SERVICE LIGHT CAME ON, AND MY CAR IMMEDIATELY WENT FROM 60PMH TO 20MPH IN A MATTER OF MINUTES. I TOOK IT TO THE DEALERSHIP THAT SAME DAY (3 WEEKS AGO). AFTER A DIAGNOSTIC WAS TESTED, THE THROTTLE PEDAL POSITION SENSOR NEEDS TO BE REPLACED, AND IS ON BACKORDER. W…
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TAKATA RECALL: I WAS DRIVING ON THE HIGHWAY WHEN THE "CHECK ENGINE" SERVICE LIGHT CAME ON, AND MY CAR IMMEDIATELY WENT FROM 60PMH TO 20MPH IN A MATTER OF MINUTES. I TOOK IT TO THE DEALERSHIP THAT SAME DAY (3 WEEKS AGO). AFTER A DIAGNOSTIC WAS TESTED, THE THROTTLE PEDAL POSITION SENSOR NEEDS TO BE REPLACED, AND IS ON BACKORDER. WHEN I ASKED WHAT THAT MEANT, THEY INFORMED ME THAT THE PART IS NOT AVAILABLE. THE DEALERSHIP REACHED OUT TO CORPORATE (AFTER HAVING MY CAR FOR 2 WEEKS) AND COME TO FIND OUT THERE ARE 300 OTHER CASES DEALING WITH THIS SAME PART.
I HAVE HAD MY CAR FOR JUST OVER 2 YEARS. I BOUGHT IT USED FOR BUSINESS TRIPS MOSTLY. I DROVE IT FOR THE FIRST TIME ON A LONG DISTANCE BUSINESS TRIP AND 3 HOURS INTO TRIP IT STOPPED ACCELERATING OVER 70 MILES AN HOUR. THIS CONTINUEED THE ENTIRE WAY TO MY FINAL DESTINATION. NO LIGHTS CAME ON, NO SOUNDS OR SMELLS EITHER. ONCE I WAS…
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I HAVE HAD MY CAR FOR JUST OVER 2 YEARS. I BOUGHT IT USED FOR BUSINESS TRIPS MOSTLY. I DROVE IT FOR THE FIRST TIME ON A LONG DISTANCE BUSINESS TRIP AND 3 HOURS INTO TRIP IT STOPPED ACCELERATING OVER 70 MILES AN HOUR. THIS CONTINUEED THE ENTIRE WAY TO MY FINAL DESTINATION. NO LIGHTS CAME ON, NO SOUNDS OR SMELLS EITHER. ONCE I WAS IN TOWN DRIVING ON NORMAL ROADS IT WAS FINE AGAIN. THEN I DROVE IT BACK HOME, SAME THING HAPPENED BUT MORE EXTREME. I TOOK IT TO THE NISSAN DEALERSHIP IN BOULDER COLORADO. IN DOING SO I FOUND OUT THAT ALL NISSANS HAD A WARRENTY RECALL TO PUT IN A CVT COOLER PART. A FEATURE THAT ALL NISSANS NEED TO INSURE THE POSSIBILTY OF LONG DISTANCE TRAVEL WITHOUT THE TRANSMISSION OVER HEATING AND NOT ACCELERATING PROPERLY. THE DEALERSHIP THEN INFORMED ME THAT IT WOULD HAVE BEEN COVERED IF I HAD BROUGHT IT IN BEFORE IT WAS OVER 60,000 MILES. NOW THAT IT IS HOWEVR, IT IS MY RESPONSIBILITY TO PAY OVER $800 FOR A PART MY CAR SHOULD HAVE COME WITH. I CALLED NISSAN NOTH AMERICA TO FIND RESALUTION, THEY CLOSED THE CASE AND WILL NOT HELP ME. I FIND THIS EXTREMELY UNEXCEPTABLE AND DANGEROUS. AS A SINGLE 31 YR OLD WOMAN, I COULD HAVE BEEN STRANDED IN CORN FIELDS IN THE MIDDLE OF KANSAS IN THE DARK HAD MY TRANSMISSION FAILED UNEXPECTEDLY. I PURCHASED THIS CAR AT 40,000 MILES TWO YRS AGO, IT SHOULD HAVE HAD THAT PART PUT IN BEFORE IT LEFT THE LOT. I WILL NOT ACCEPT THIS AND AM HOPING TO FIND SOME SUPPORT IN GETTING NISSAN TO COVER PARTS AND LABOR FOR THIS ISSUE. PLEASE LET ME KNOW YOUR THOUGHTS AND HOW I SHOULD PROCEED FROM HERE. THANK YOU.
THE VEHICLE DRIFTS BOTH DIRECTIONS WHILE DRIVING, WHEN BRAKING IT SERIOUSLY PULLS RIGHT. I HAVE ONLY HAD THE CAR 6 WEEKS AND HAVEN'T HIT ANYTHING YET BUT IF THERE ARE NARROW LANES WITH PARKED CARS I MAY NOT BE SO LUCKY. THERE ARE OTHER PROBLEMS THE HEAT SHIELDS THAT COVER THE EXHAUST COME LOOSE AND THE AIR SENSORS IN THE TIRES L…
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THE VEHICLE DRIFTS BOTH DIRECTIONS WHILE DRIVING, WHEN BRAKING IT SERIOUSLY PULLS RIGHT. I HAVE ONLY HAD THE CAR 6 WEEKS AND HAVEN'T HIT ANYTHING YET BUT IF THERE ARE NARROW LANES WITH PARKED CARS I MAY NOT BE SO LUCKY. THERE ARE OTHER PROBLEMS THE HEAT SHIELDS THAT COVER THE EXHAUST COME LOOSE AND THE AIR SENSORS IN THE TIRES LEAK SO YOU NEED TO PUT AIR IN THE TIRES WEEKLY.
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.
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