3,776 complaints filed with NHTSA name the continuously variable transmission. 2,318 of them, 61%, are about a Nissan.
That total is a floor. Most owners write "the transmission failed" without saying what kind it is. These are the owners who knew, so the pattern among them is reliable even though the count is low.
| Model | CVT complaints | Per 1,000 complaints about the model |
|---|---|---|
| Nissan Rogue | 587 | 86.0 |
| Nissan Altima | 567 | 42.0 |
| Nissan Sentra | 392 | 76.4 |
| Nissan Murano | 223 | 45.7 |
| Nissan Pathfinder | 189 | 29.7 |
| Subaru Outback | 150 | 18.3 |
| Nissan Versa | 139 | 46.8 |
| Ford Freestyle | 135 | 46.0 |
| Toyota C-HR | 131 | 243.9 |
The Rogue and Sentra lead on rate as well as volume: about one Rogue complaint in twelve is about the CVT. The C-HR's rate is higher still, for reasons covered below.
The 2013 cluster
| Model year | CVT complaints |
|---|---|
| 2013 Nissan Altima | 160 |
| 2013 Nissan Rogue | 115 |
| 2013 Nissan Sentra | 107 |
| 2018 Toyota C-HR | 79 |
| 2014 Nissan Pathfinder | 75 |
| 2012 Nissan Rogue | 72 |
| 2013 Nissan Pathfinder | 71 |
2013 was the year Nissan launched new generations of the Altima, Sentra and Pathfinder, and those three models account for the worst model years in the record.
Earlier than its reputation
The folklore says these transmissions go between 100,000 and 150,000 miles. The complaints say earlier. Where the owner gave a mileage, the median is 82,000 miles, with half falling between 58,000 and 107,000. The median car was six years old.
Both figures sit just beyond Nissan's standard powertrain warranty of five years or 60,000 miles, which is why a quarter of these complaints mention a warranty, usually one that had just run out. Quoted repair bills have a median of $4,200, and a quarter are $6,000 or more.
It rarely ends in a crash
Only 1.0% of CVT complaints involve a crash, against 5.75% across all complaints. A failing CVT takes away drive rather than control. Three in ten of these complaints mention a highway, though, and losing power in fast traffic is a hazard of its own.
The newest wave is a Toyota
Since January 2025, 576 complaints have named a CVT. The largest group, 114, concerns the Toyota C-HR, almost all from the 2018 to 2020 model years. Over the C-HR's whole life, nearly one complaint in four is about its transmission. Honda's HR-V adds 47 more.
Nissan still accounts for at least 251 of the recent complaints, or 44%. That is high, but it is well below the 61% Nissan holds across the full record.
Buying one used
A CVT is no reason to rule a car out, but it changes what you check. Ask for fluid-change records, because these transmissions are sensitive to old fluid. On the test drive, listen for a whine under acceleration, feel for a shudder as you pull away, and watch for the revs rising without the car picking up speed.
The CVT is the fault that defines Nissan in our brand-by-brand list of signature failures. Before you commit, read the full Rogue complaint record or the one for the model you are considering, and run the VIN for open recalls.
Frequently asked questions
Which cars have the most CVT complaints?
Nissan, by a wide margin: 2,318 of the 3,776 NHTSA complaints that name a CVT. The Rogue (587), Altima (567) and Sentra (392) lead, and the 2013 Altima is the worst single model year with 160.
At what mileage do CVTs fail?
Where owners gave a mileage, the median is 82,000 miles, with half between 58,000 and 107,000 and a median vehicle age of six years. That is earlier than the 100,000 to 150,000 miles often quoted, and just past Nissan's 5-year/60,000-mile powertrain warranty.
How much does a CVT replacement cost?
Repair costs quoted in complaints have a median of $4,200, and a quarter are $6,000 or more. Fluid-change records and a careful test drive (whine, shudder, revs rising without acceleration) are the best protection when buying used.
Denis Kataev is a serial solopreneur and the founder of ForCar. With 15+ years in software engineering and 10 years in SEO, he builds data-driven products end to end — backed by a sharp eye for design. At ForCar he mines proprietary vehicle datasets, turning raw numbers into buying advice you can actually trust.
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