Everything NHTSA's vPIC database knows about this exact vehicle:
Decoding from NHTSA…
Vehicle history — accidents, title & owners
The decode above is what this vehicle is. For what it's been through — accidents, title brands, odometer, theft/total-loss and previous owners — pull a full history report.
NHTSA publishes the first 11 characters of the VIN with every complaint — that identifies the plant, model year, body and engine. So these are reports from cars built exactly like this one, not an average across the whole model.
3N1AB6AP5CL••••••2012 Nissan SENTRA
That is about average for the 2012 Nissan SENTRA — 8 complaints per build across 21 builds.
11on this build
161on the model
21builds in total
1involved a fire
Most reportedPower Train 3Engine 2Electrical System 2Air Bags 2
What owners of this build wrote
EnginefireAug 2016
While driving, a piece fell out of the bottom of the car, after which the engine began to smoke and the car began to lose power. I pulled off the road and turned off the car, at which point the engine became engulfed in flames. The car has had no problems to date, and the check…
Power TrainAug 2019
Car won't go over 20 mph. Rpms increase but no additional speed. The panel flickers of and then right back on. The wheel jerks. Has happened repeatedly. Twice while turning. Once while driving straight. Luckily I was. It on a highway only residential streets and rte 5. It…
Vehicle Speed ControlJul 2019
On my way home visiting my son, I was on the freeway driving 75 mph, when I began to experience acceleration loss in my 2012 nissan sentra sl. My cvt transmission was overworking and you can clearly hear the transmission trying to change gears, my car dropped from 75 mph to…
StructureOct 2018
When opening the door the handle no longer functioned. Upon analysis of the problem, a plastic piece that had allowed the spring to activate had broken and this would not allow the door to open via the handle from the inside of the car. I was however able to open the door from…
Air BagsOct 2015
I was dropping off my passenger, I was in drive and had my foot on the brake, so the car was not moving, and he closed the door, maybe slammed a little as he was in a hurry to get out of the car, and then the air bags on the roof of the passenger side deployed, along with the…
Read all 11 complaints on this exact buildFull text, search by keyword, and the systems that fail most on cars built like yours.Unlock with Pro →
Owner complaints…
Now the whole model — all 21 builds of it, not just this build. Same NHTSA reports, wider net:
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Exact value for this VIN, adjusted for mileage
The original window sticker and factory options
Full research report as a PDF you can hand to a mechanic
Decoded via NHTSA vPIC. Recalls, complaints and safety from NHTSA; MPG from EPA fueleconomy.gov. Full history reports from our partner. VIN 3N1AB6AP5CL615974 · decoded Nov 2026. — ForCar Reviewed by Denis Kataev, founder of ForCar.