Owners have filed 242 complaints on the Nissan Versa Note, covering 2014–2019. The system named most often is Power Train (81 reports). Worst years by volume: 2014, 2015, 2016; cleanest: 2019, 2018, 2017. 22 reports describe a crash, 3 a fire. On average the car was 4.2 years old when the problem happened.
What breaks on Nissan Versa Note
Grouped by the system owners named — percentages are shares of all 242 Versa Note complaints. Open any row for the full reports in owners' own words.
Power Train 81 Read
The contact rented a 2018 nissan versa note. While driving approximately 5 mph and attempting to turn, the vehicle shifted into reverse on its own. The vehicle struck a wall and damaged the rear of the vehicle. A police report was not filed and there were no injuries. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer for…
I was in my car sleeping with the ignition off when I woke up there was flames on the driver side of the hood. You can see where the fire started on the ground wire by the battery circuit box. My safety was at risk because I could have not been able to make it out of my car if didn't wake up in time and could have…
See first attached pdf diagram for description. The second attachment shows report of the subsequent inspection by a carmax mechanic. The problem appeared to be intermittent and not reproducible at will. I sold this car back to carmax 42 days after its purchase, sustaining a $2260 loss. Most of the loss was due to a…
Air Bags 30 Read
The contact owns a 2017 nissan versa note. While at a stop, the driver made a turn, failed to yield to an oncoming vehicle, and crashed into the other vehicle. The contact stated that the passenger side air bag did not deploy. A police report was filed. The driver sustained injuries that required medical attention.…
Vehicle was involved in an accident. The driver of this vehicle rear ended another vehicle hard. Car was deemed a total loss and none of the air bags deployed resulting in semi serious injuries. Broken elbow, broken ribs, some cuts and abrasions. If air bags had deployed I believe injuries would have been minimal
On 7/13/2016----- my passenger and I were traveling on clemson road where the posted speed limit is 45 mph, its a four lane highway with no median. A truck did a u turn in front of a lot of traffic my vehicle struck his at about 40-43 mph though me and my passenger had seat belts on my passenger still managed to hit…
Electrical System 19 Read
Unknown
The contact owned 2015 Nissan Versa. The contact stated while the vehicle was parked it experienced a fire. The contact encountered the vehicle had blackened windows. The contact opened the car doors and grey smoke came out. The fire department was not called, the fire had burned itself out. The dash and gear shift…
Takata inflators. Not really sure if it's correctly done. While driving the car I started smelling burning wires. After smelling that, the air-conditioning/fan stopped blowing. No heat, no air-conditioning, no fan, no defrost. I pulled into a had station and cut everything off and seen smoke coming out from underneath…
Steering 17 Read
I rented a 2015 nissan versa note from budget rental out of the prov ri airport on 1-12-16 to go to a wake & funeral. After leaving the wake and about 7:30pm not long after starting the vehicle and traveling 1/2 mile I lost both the ability to brake and steer, I wasn't going more than 10 mph . The vehicle lost control…
While traveling out a country road, I was coming up to a stop sign at the bottom of a hill. When I made an attempt to stop, I had no brakes what so ever. I could see that there was no traffic coming from either direction so I made an attempt to make the turn on to the roadway but had no steering either. With no way to…
The contact owns a 2017 nissan versa note. The contact stated that there was premature rust on the vehicle, and the steering bolts, steering arm, and bushings were prematurely worn. The vehicle was inspected by several independent mechanics, but the cause of the failure was not determined. The dealer (maus nissan,…
Vehicle Speed Control 11 Read
Pulled into parking space, speed 2-3 mph., car went into full acceleration, hit brakes as hard as possible,car jumped 10 foot parking divider, side- swiped lamp post, hit parked car in rear wheel area tearing off rear bumper,my car lurched to left and finally decelerated. Towed to premier nissan of stevens creek santa…
The contact owns a 2016 nissan versa note. On several occasions, while driving various speeds, the accelerator pedal was depressed; however, the vehicle failed to respond. Additionally, on several occasions when the brake pedal was depressed, the stopping distance increased. The vehicle was included in NHTSA campaign…
Car throwing p2135 code - will stop running at random and won't respond to acceleration by gas pedal. Car must be stopped, turned off and back on again in order for the sensor to boot back up. Very dangerous and has shut off on me on the interstate!! Should be a recall as the car is only 2 years old. This happens when…
Suspension 10 Read
The airbag system for the passanger side the light kept coming on and going out it would be on most of time when my wife was in the seat and recently it comes on when anyone sets in the front passanger seat! 2. The wheels were not aleined properly we made four seperate appointments and took car in for service and the…
Driving on highway at least 3 different times. When exiting highway car slowing down. When getting to intersection brakes applied. Pulsating felt on brake pedal. Loud thumping noise heard from left front of car. Took cad still under warranty to dealer service. Dealer test drove car stated they heard or felt nothing so…
I have a 2017 nissan versa note sv and I'm having problems with the cvt transmissions slipping, and also im been having problems with the rear wheel bearings one was at around 59,000 and the next time it happened it was around 86,000. The time it happened it was under warranty the next time it I had to pay over 750$…
Engine 9 Read
Was driving on highway and engine cut off. Could not turn key for 5 minutes after. Looked online and saw the nissan 2017 versa note had recall for ignition switch problems but my VIN number was not included in recall. Sounds like same issue. Very dangerous
I used my car to pick up my spouse. It was a hot summer afternoon. All of a sudden my engine stalled. It will not run. The engine had turned off all of a sudden without a warning.good that I was still in the parking lot with my young son.if I w as in a street I don't really know what will happen next. It was…
The engine completely shut off on my 2015 nissan versa note 3 times now. In all 3 situations, my car was in idle in drive mode and the engine shut down. I restarted the car the first time it happened and I attempted to drive and it shut down again. The last time it happened jan. 6 at 10:30 a.m. In houston when I was…
Service Brakes 8 Read
On december 12, 2016, buy the nissan versa note, on january 7 2017 2.30 pm, crash at 30 or 35 mph, brake, but only when I hit the other car, on february 28 I crash again in full stop 8 am to 20mph, haboa lot of traffic and I had a car of separation, they all advance and brake suddenly, no one crashed, only me that for…
When I step on the brake pedal for a street light or anywhere I need to use the break, my car makes a noise similar to a loose fan, and once I release the brake the noise stops
The break peddle will sink on its own. It has done this at a complete stop with the car off, on the highway, on city streets, in corners. It goes off seemingly at random. It has done this in summer and winter. It has done this since shortly after I got the car, but I'm going to enter today's date. I bought the car in…
Versa Note years to avoid — and the clean ones
Complaints per model year. More reports usually means more cars on the road as well as more trouble, so read the crash and fire columns alongside the count.
| Model year | Complaints | Top system | Crashes | Fires |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | Electrical System,unknown Or Other | — | — | |
| 2018 | Power Train | 1 | — | |
| 2017 | Air Bags | 2 | — | |
| 2016 | Air Bags | 2 | — | |
| 2015 | Air Bags | 7 | 2 | |
| 2014 | Air Bags | 10 | 1 |
The same model year, different builds
Every complaint carries the first 11 characters of the VIN — plant, year, body and engine. That is a production series, and complaints are spread across them very unevenly.
| Measure | Value |
|---|---|
| Distinct production series | 50 |
| Average complaints per series | 4.8 |
| Worst single series | 16 complaints |
| Average age at failure | 4.2 years |
A model average of 4.8 hides a worst series at 16. Enter a VIN above to see the numbers for that exact build instead of the model as a whole.
Owners reported these. Find out if yours is one of them.
- Complaints matched to the exact production run, not just the model
- What the car is worth given what tends to fail on it
- The original window sticker and factory options
- Full research report as a PDF for the pre-purchase inspection
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How we count
Every figure here comes from complaints owners filed with NHTSA — 1,100,006 of them, covering 1,982 models built between 1981 and 2026.
A complaint is an unverified report: someone wrote down what happened to their car. It is not a confirmed defect and not a recall. What makes the volume useful is the pattern — when thousands of owners of the same build describe the same failure, that is a signal no marketing brochure will give you.
Two things we do that the source does not. First, we compute the age of the car at the moment of failure from the incident date and the model year. Second, we group complaints by the first 11 characters of the VIN — the production series — so a bad plant run does not disappear into a model-wide average.
Frequently asked questions
What are the worst years for the Versa Note?
By complaint volume, 2014, 2015, 2016 drew the most owner reports. Bear in mind that popular years put more cars on the road, so check the crash and fire columns too.
Which Versa Note years are the cleanest?
2019, 2018, 2017 have the fewest complaints on file. For recent years that can simply mean the cars are young.
How many complaints does the Nissan Versa Note have?
242 owner complaints filed with NHTSA, covering 2014–2019. Of those, 22 describe a crash and 3 a fire.
Are these complaints verified?
No. They are unverified reports from owners. NHTSA publishes them as filed and investigates only a fraction. The value is in the pattern, not in any single report.
Can I check complaints for one specific car?
Yes — enter its VIN above. We match the first 11 characters, which identify the plant, year, body and engine, so you get complaints on that exact production series rather than the whole model.