Your vehicle report
2013 Nissan Sentra
The problems owners report. The recalls to check. The evidence behind each.
Your vehicle at a glance
Complaint patterns and official recall records, kept distinct.
- Owner complaints
- 638
- Received Oct 2012 to Jun 2026
Owner reports
Most reported problems
- 1CVT transmission fails or loses power80 complaints · 13% of this vehicle’s complaints
- 2Transmission fails or loses power while driving74 complaints · 12% of this vehicle’s complaints
- 3Automatic transmission shifts unexpectedly or slips70 complaints · 11% of this vehicle’s complaints
Official NHTSA records
Recalls to check
- Recall #16V242000Nissan North America, Inc. (Nissan) is recalling certain model year 2013-2016 Sentra vehicles manufactured June 4, 2012, to April 9, 2016. The front passenger seat belt bracket may become deformed if it is used to secure a Child Restraint System (CRS). The deformed seat bracket may cause the Occupant Classification System (OCS) to incorrectly classify the installed CRS, resulting in the front passenger air bag to not be turned off as designed when a CRS is in the seat.
- Recall #16V244000Nissan North America, Inc. (Nissan) is recalling certain model year 2016-2017 Nissan Maxima, 2013-2016 Nissan Altima, NV200, LEAF, Sentra, and Pathfinder, 2014-2016 Nissan NV200 Taxi, Infiniti QX60, QX60 Hybrid, and Q50 Hybrid, 2014-2017 Nissan Rogue and Infiniti Q50, 2015-2016 Nissan Murano, Murano Hybrid, and Chevrolet City Express, 2014-2015 Nissan Pathfinder Hybrid, and 2013 Infiniti JX35 vehicles. In these vehicles, the front seat passenger Occupant Classification System (OCS) may incorrectly classify an adult passenger as a child or classify the seat as empty despite it being occupied. As a result, the passenger frontal air bag may be turned off and not deploy in the event of a crash.
BrakeNews signals
Flagged complaint patterns
Unusual complaint patterns with no matched recall yet. A flag does not mean a recall will happen.
- CVT transmission fails or loses powerFirst signal: Nov 2016
Complaint counts reflect reports submitted to NHTSA, not failure rates or a reliability ranking. Reported in these complaints: 24 crashes, 4 fires, 20 people injured, 1 death.
Explore by system
Where do owners report problems?
Choose an area on the car or a system below to explore the reported problems.
Illustrative only; not this vehicle’s exact design. Areas represent complaint categories, not confirmed defective parts.
Showing all 20 listed problems by system.
Engine & powertrain
- CVT transmission fails or loses power
- Transmission fails or loses power while driving
- Automatic transmission shifts unexpectedly or slips
9 more problems
- Unintended acceleration despite braking
- Engine suddenly shuts off while driving
- Engine stalls and loses power while driving
- Ford Focus transmission clutch slips and hesitates
- Transmission will not engage reverse gear
- Transmission shudders during acceleration at low speeds
- Fuel tank or line leaks gasoline
- Check engine light comes on repeatedly
- Gear shifter fails to register Park
Brakes
- Brakes make grinding or squealing noise
- Brake pedal sinks due to leaking lines
- Brake master cylinder leaks fluid and fails
1 more problem
Electrical & lights
No problems in this category meet this page’s listing criteria. This does not establish that the system is free of problems.
Airbags, belts & seats
Steering, suspension & tires
Body, doors & glass
No problems in this category meet this page’s listing criteria. This does not establish that the system is free of problems.
Driver assistance
No problems in this category meet this page’s listing criteria. This does not establish that the system is free of problems.
Other
No problems in this category meet this page’s listing criteria. This does not establish that the system is free of problems.
Complaint history
When NHTSA received these reports. Changes in reporting alone do not establish a change in failure rates.
Show as a table
| Year | Complaints |
|---|---|
| 2012 | 1 |
| 2013 | 43 |
| 2014 | 52 |
| 2015 | 54 |
| 2016 | 44 |
| 2017 | 63 |
| 2018 | 115 |
| 2019 | 107 |
| 2020 | 50 |
| 2021 | 33 |
| 2022 | 26 |
| 2023 | 25 |
| 2024 | 12 |
| 2025 | 8 |
| 2026 (to Oct 2026) | 5 |
| Total | 638 |
Problems owners report
Listed groups have at least 3 complaints. The page includes the 20 largest groups plus any additional flagged groups; some complaints are not assigned to a group.
| Problem | Complaints | Share | Share ratio | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CVT transmission fails or loses power | 80 | 13% | 75.6× | BrakeNews flag · First signal: Nov 2016 Model estimate of a matched recall within 24 months: 0.2% |
| Transmission fails or loses power while driving | 74 | 12% | – | |
| Automatic transmission shifts unexpectedly or slips | 70 | 11% | 7.8× | |
| Unintended acceleration despite braking | 43 | 6.7% | – | |
| Airbag warning light stays on | 29 | 4.5% | – | |
| Engine suddenly shuts off while driving | 27 | 4.2% | – | |
| Brakes make grinding or squealing noise | 25 | 3.9% | – | |
| Brake pedal sinks due to leaking lines | 21 | 3.3% | – | |
| Passenger airbag sensor wrongly shows off | 19 | 3.0% | – | NHTSA recall #13V069000, #14V138000, #15V681000, #16V242000, #16V244000 |
| Airbags fail to deploy in crashes | 15 | 2.4% | – | |
| Engine stalls and loses power while driving | 14 | 2.2% | – | |
| Ford Focus transmission clutch slips and hesitates | 12 | 1.9% | – | |
| Transmission will not engage reverse gear | 12 | 1.9% | – | |
| Transmission shudders during acceleration at low speeds | 11 | 1.7% | – | |
| Fuel tank or line leaks gasoline | 10 | 1.6% | – | NHTSA recall #13V068000 |
| Check engine light comes on repeatedly | 8 | 1.3% | – | |
| Steering wheel shakes violently at highway speed | 8 | 1.3% | – | |
| Gear shifter fails to register Park | 7 | 1.1% | – | |
| Brake master cylinder leaks fluid and fails | 6 | 0.9% | – | |
| Automatic emergency braking applies without reason | 5 | 0.8% | – |
AI groups complaints by meaning; the groups are approximate. Share ratio compares the problem’s share of this vehicle’s complaints with its share on other vehicles over the last 24 months (shown from 3 recent complaints). A 2× ratio means twice the complaint share, not twice the failure risk. Flags mark unusual shares or recent surges after an AI review of the complaint content. “First signal” does not mean the pattern has persisted continuously.How recall estimates are calculated.
Recalls
NHTSA recall #16V242000April 26, 2016645,898 vehicles affected
air bags: sensor: occupant classification
Nissan North America, Inc. (Nissan) is recalling certain model year 2013-2016 Sentra vehicles manufactured June 4, 2012, to April 9, 2016. The front passenger seat belt bracket may become deformed if it is used to secure a Child Restraint System (CRS). The deformed seat bracket may cause the Occupant Classification System (OCS) to incorrectly classify the installed CRS, resulting in the front passenger air bag to not be turned off as designed when a CRS is in the seat.
If the frontal passenger air bag deploys in the event of a crash when a child seat is installed in the front passenger seat, there will be an increased risk of injury to the child in the CRS.
Remedy
Nissan will notify owners, and dealers will reinforce the seat belt bracket as well as reprogram the Air Bag Control Unit (ACU) and OCS Electronic Control Unit (ECU), free of charge. The recall began on June 13, 2016. Owners are warned not to install a CRS in the front seat. Owners may contact Nissan customer service at 1-800-867-7669.
NHTSA recall #16V244000April 26, 20163,296,947 vehicles affected
air bags: sensor: occupant classification
Nissan North America, Inc. (Nissan) is recalling certain model year 2016-2017 Nissan Maxima, 2013-2016 Nissan Altima, NV200, LEAF, Sentra, and Pathfinder, 2014-2016 Nissan NV200 Taxi, Infiniti QX60, QX60 Hybrid, and Q50 Hybrid, 2014-2017 Nissan Rogue and Infiniti Q50, 2015-2016 Nissan Murano, Murano Hybrid, and Chevrolet City Express, 2014-2015 Nissan Pathfinder Hybrid, and 2013 Infiniti JX35 vehicles. In these vehicles, the front seat passenger Occupant Classification System (OCS) may incorrectly classify an adult passenger as a child or classify the seat as empty despite it being occupied. As a result, the passenger frontal air bag may be turned off and not deploy in the event of a crash.
If the passenger frontal air bag does not deploy as intended in the event of a crash, the passenger is at an increased risk of injury.
Remedy
Nissan will notify their owners. Chevrolet City Express owners will be notified by General Motors. Dealers will reprogram the Air Bag Control Unit (ACU) and OCS Electronic Control Unit (ECU) in Altima, Maxima, Murano, Rogue, and Sentra vehicles, and replace the OCS ECU in LEAF, NV200, NV200 Taxi, Pathfinder, Infiniti Q50, JX35, and QX60 and Chevrolet City Express vehicles, free of charge. Interim notices were sent to owners on May 31, 2016. Owners will receive a second notice when remedy parts become available. Owners may contact Nissan customer service at 1-800-867-7669, Infiniti customer service at 1-888-833-3216 or Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020.
NHTSA recall #15V681000October 20, 2015919 vehicles affected
air bags: frontal; air bags: sensor: occupant classification
Nissan North America, Inc. (Nissan) is recalling certain model year 2013-2015 Altima and Pathfinder vehicles, 2013-2014 Nissan Sentra vehicles, 2013 Infiniti JX35 vehicles, 2014-2015 Infiniti QX60 vehicles and 2014 Infiniti QX60 Hybrid vehicles. The affected vehicles received an incorrect occupant classification system (OCS) control unit during a repair. These OCS control units may incorrectly classify the front passenger seat as empty, when it is occupied by an adult.
If the OCS does not detect an adult occupant in the passenger seat, the passenger air bag would be deactivated. Failure of the passenger airbag to deploy during a crash (where deployment is warranted) could increase the risk of injury to the passenger.
Remedy
Nissan will notify owners, and dealers will update the OCS software, free of charge. The recall began on November 30, 2015. Owners may contact Nissan at 1-800-647-7261.
NHTSA recall #14V138000March 25, 2014989,701 vehicles affected
air bags: frontal; electrical system: software
Nissan North America, Inc. (Nissan) is recalling certain model year 2013-2014 Altima, LEAF, Pathfinder, and Sentra, model year 2013 NV200 (aka Taxi) and Infiniti JX35 and model year 2014 Infiniti Q50 and QX60 vehicles. In the affected vehicles, the occupant classification system (OCS) software may incorrectly classify the passenger seat as empty, when it is occupied by an adult.
If the OCS does not detect an adult occupant in the passenger seat, the passenger airbag would be deactivated. Failure of the passenger airbag to deploy during a crash (where deployment is warranted) could increase the risk of injury to the passenger.
Remedy
Nissan will notify owners, and dealers will update the OCS software, free of charge. The recall began on April 14, 2014. Owners may contact Nissan at 1-800-647-7261.
NHTSA recall #13V068000March 1, 2013392 vehicles affected
fuel system, gasoline: storage: tank assembly
Nissan is recalling certain model year 2013 Sentra vehicles manufactured from September 11, 2012, through October 4, 2012. Some fuel tank assemblies were not properly sealed during the manufacturing process. As a result, a small amount of gasoline may leak from the tank when it is full.
A gasoline leak in the presence of an ignition source may lead to a vehicle fire.
Remedy
Nissan will notify owners, and dealers will replace the fuel tanks as necessary, free of charge. The recall began on April 1, 2013. Owners may contact Nissan Customer Service at 1-800-647-7261.
NHTSA recall #13V069000March 1, 201382,038 vehicles affected
air bags
Nissan is recalling certain model year 2013 Altima, LEAF, Pathfinder, Sentra, and Infiniti JX35 vehicles. Sensors within the passenger Occupant Detection System (ODS) may have been manufactured out of specification. This may cause the system to malfunction and permanently suppress the passenger airbag.
If the vehicle is involved in a crash necessitating airbag deployment and the passenger airbag is suppressed, there may be an increased risk of personal injury.
Remedy
Nissan will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the ODS sensors and replace them as neccessary, free of charge. The recall began on May 6, 2013. Owners may contact Nissan Customer Service at 1-800-647-7261.
Other model years
About this data
NHTSA complaints and recalls through October 2026. Complaints are counted once each, however many components they name. Original complaints are on NHTSA's page for the 2013 Nissan Sentra.
Problem groups are formed by AI and may be approximate. BrakeNews flags unusual complaint patterns; they are not official defect findings. Investigation reports are written and checked by AI, with no human review. Owner reports do not establish that a defect exists.
Read the methodology and track record · Check current recalls by VIN