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2018 Nissan Sentra

Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations

Similar to other model years

Owner complaints for the 2018 Nissan Sentra do not stand out strongly from the model-year median of 116.

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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

97 reports with mileage · 88 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 46 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
  • Service Brakes. Review the 38 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
  • Electrical System. Review the 32 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →

NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.

17 crash reports3 fire reports9 injury reports

Steering complaints

6 reports
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Mileage unknown · Oct 30, 2025
Steering

The horn does not work when pressing the steering wheel, even though the horn itself and the fuse are functional. I got my car inspected yesterday, and the initial diagnosis points to a faulty clock spring.

NHTSA ODI #11696615

114,000 miles · Sep 8, 2025
Steering

The contact owns a 2018 Nissan Sentra. The contact stated that while operating the vehicle, the steering wheel became difficult to turn in both directions, with an audible beeping alarm activated. Additionally, the message "Malfunction" was displayed. The vehicle was restarted, and the failure was self-corrected. The cause of th…

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The contact owns a 2018 Nissan Sentra. The contact stated that while operating the vehicle, the steering wheel became difficult to turn in both directions, with an audible beeping alarm activated. Additionally, the message "Malfunction" was displayed. The vehicle was restarted, and the failure was self-corrected. The cause of the failure was not yet determined. The manufacturer was notified of the failure, but no assistance was offered. The local dealer was not contacted. The failure mileage was 114,000.

NHTSA ODI #11685680

Mileage unknown · Jan 26, 2025
Power TrainSteeringUnknown Or Other

When I connect an OBD 2 meter. It cannot read the powertrain and it’s not the first time that I haven’t been able to diagnosed the car. I’ve taken it to a dealership. I’ve been used scan tools from a dealership and mechanics shop. The powertrain isn’t readable it spiders when I drive as in like it feels like the transmission is …

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When I connect an OBD 2 meter. It cannot read the powertrain and it’s not the first time that I haven’t been able to diagnosed the car. I’ve taken it to a dealership. I’ve been used scan tools from a dealership and mechanics shop. The powertrain isn’t readable it spiders when I drive as in like it feels like the transmission is skipping or going out. It stopped while I was driving by itself like the car brake, and then kept going like it was skipping a gear or had a hard time going to the next gear as well as when we were pulling into a driveway, the wheel on the passenger side went underneath the car like it was only attached by the upper control arm because the lower arm came out of the joint. I’m a driver side a tire is at an angle. The tire is about to fall off or the lower control arm is about to come out of socket impacts the safety of my children and myself when driving down the road is not safe or structurally stable to go down a highway even.

NHTSA ODI #11638615

Mileage unknown · Nov 2, 2023
Steering

I heard what sounded like rocks under my car so I took it into Firestone to have them look at it and they let me know they could not even align it because the tie rod had to be replaced. Apparently this part controls your steering and you can potentially lose a wheel while you are driving down the highway. Now I am worried and I…

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I heard what sounded like rocks under my car so I took it into Firestone to have them look at it and they let me know they could not even align it because the tie rod had to be replaced. Apparently this part controls your steering and you can potentially lose a wheel while you are driving down the highway. Now I am worried and I don't dare drive my vehicle any further than necessary right back over to Firestone to have them replace it on Monday. This is a safety concern because if I lose steering and the wheel comes off in that distance of even one mile anyone in the area of such a situation could get hurt. I actually don't have much money, but have no choice but to pay to have it done. I have continually maintained my vehicle. I have not hit any rocks that would have caused this issue either. I asked Joe at Firestone what would have caused the problem and he told me simple wear and tear. I only have 27,360 miles on my car. That makes no sense to me with such a small amount of mileage that the tie rod would have to be replaced to remain safe on the road.

NHTSA ODI #11553317

60,000 miles · Sep 15, 2020
Service BrakesSteeringUnknown Or Other

CAR PULLS TO RIGHT ON THE EXPRESS WAY MAKING VERY LOUD FUNNY NOISES , RPM SHOOTS TO 2 TO 5 AND THE STEERING WHEEL HAS LOCKED A FEW TIMES TAKING ME OFF OF THE ROAD BUT NOT CRASHING OR INTO A ACCIDENT , THE BRAKES ARE ALSO SOUNDING BAD. ON STREETS THE CARS STEERING DRIFTS LIKE THE CAR WANTS TO DO ITS OWN THING .

NHTSA ODI #11355109

45 miles · Jun 11, 2019
SteeringSuspension

CAR PULLING TO LEFT CONTRACTION LIGHT GOING ON WHEN DRIVING

NHTSA ODI #11219244

Official recalls

2

21V135000 · Exterior Lighting:brake Lights:switch

Mar 3, 2021

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.

Consequence & remedy

Consequence: The brake lights may not illuminate, increasing the risk of a crash.

Remedy: 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.

19V654000 · Back Over Prevention: Sensing System: Camera

Sep 12, 2019

Nissan North America, Inc. (Nissan) is recalling certain 2018-2019 Nissan Altima, Armada, Frontier, Kicks, Leaf, Maxima, Murano, NV, NV200, Pathfinder, Rogue, Rogue Sport, Sentra, Titan, Titan Diesel, Versa Note and Versa Sedan vehicles, as well as Infiniti Q50, Q60, QX30 and QX80 vehicles. Additionally included are 2019 Nissan GT-R and Taxi and Infiniti QX50, QX60, Q70, Q70L vehicles. The back-up camera and display settings can be adjusted such that the rear view image is no longer visible and the system will retain that setting the next time the vehicle is placed in reverse. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 111, "Rear Visibility."

Consequence & remedy

Consequence: The lack of an image in the back-up camera display increases the risk of a crash.

Remedy: Nissan will notify owners in phases, having dealers update the back-up camera settings software, free of charge. The recall began November 11, 2019 and all affected VINs should be activated. Owners may contact Nissan customer service at 1-800-867-7669 or INFINITI customer service at 1-800-662-6200.

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.