2016 Nissan Sentra Power Train
Owner-reported problems and safety issues filed with NHTSA. Review common failures, severity levels, and complaint trends over time.
Complaint Timeline
Chronological view of owner reports
Replaced catylc converter. No the car is power surging and slipping, took vehicle to my regular auto shop. They reported car needs a new transmission, the CVT is out. Took car to transmission specialist for a second opinion said the same thing. Both shops reported this is common for this make and model. I'd thought I should report it.
I was driving my 2016 Nissan on the highway and it randomly started showing signs of a transmission defect that lead to sudden shaking and jerking while the vehicle was being driven. It would also shift itself into neutral. I had to have the car towed to a dealership that advised there were transmission issues that due to Nissans’s high cost and unreliability of transmissions it would be safer to buy a new vehicle than replace the transmission.
The contact owns a 2016 Nissan Sentra. The contact stated that while his wife was driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle hesitated before losing motive power and failed to exceed 20 MPH. No warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, who diagnosed a failure with the transmission. The contact was informed that the transmission needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 70,000.
The contact owns a 2016 Nissan Sentra. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the vehicle would jerk or stall upon the depression of the accelerator pedal. The contact stated that the check engine warning light had appeared on the instrument panel. In addition, the contact stated that the vehicle had gone into reverse after placing the gear shifter into drive(D). The dealer was notified of the failure and the contact was informed that there were no recalls on the vehicle related to the transmission. The vehicle had yet to be repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 109,000.
Car throttle stop responding while RPM rev high, have car tow to nearest auto shop and was told that transmission have fail. No warning light or anything before failing. Car is regular maintain.
CVT shuddering, slipping while shifting gears; lack of acceleration, then lunging into gear.
I was driving at less than 30 miles per hour when I noticed my vehicle had stopped accelerating. It was moving along fine and when I brake and put my foot on the gas, the car would rev and the RPMs would increase, but it would not move forward. As I approached a hill, it started to roll backward. I was in the middle of downtown on a Saturday afternoon and had to park by the side of the road to avoid getting hit. I towed my car to the closest vehicle and after a diagnosis check, was told that the car's transmission had failed. There were no signs or lights on the dashboard. I did some research online and saw that this was a common issue with the 2016 Nissan Sentra transmission.
The contact owns a 2016 Nissan Sentra. The contact stated while driving at various speeds, the vehicle hesitated while depressing the accelerator pedal. Additionally, while driving at various speeds, the RPM would increase but the vehicle would not respond. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer who diagnosed that the transmission was faulty and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not yet repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure, but no assistance was offered. The failure mileage was 105,000.
The contact owns a 2016 Nissan Sentra. The contact stated while driving 15 MPH, the vehicle stalled. The vehicle was towed to the dealer to be diagnosed. The contact was informed that the axle shaft was leaking fluid into the transmission. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 95,000.
When driving on the interstate above 45 miles per hour, the car jerks and does not want to go. The car almost did not make it thru the intersection with another vehicle coming on more than one occasion. Car finally stopped and had to be towed. Informed that a new transmission was needed.
I have transmission issue
The contact owns a 2016 Nissan Sentra. The contact stated while driving approximately at 35 MPH, the vehicle lost power and dropped speed to 15 MPH. The contact depressed the accelerator pedal and the engine only revved and would not regain forward speed. The contact stated a symbol for a "pedal" was illuminated. The contact had the vehicle towed to the dealer who diagnosed that the transmission needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer had been informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 122,000.
The contact owns a 2016 Nissan Sentra. The contact stated that while driving at an unknown speed, the vehicle stalled while depressing the accelerator pedal. The contact stated that the check engine and battery warning lights illuminated and the vehicle then lost motive power. The contact stated that the vehicle was restarted but failed to exceed 10 MPH while driving. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer and the contact was informed that the transmission needed to be replaced. The dealer informed her that she no longer qualified for the warranty extension for the transmission after 100,000 miles and that the repair would be out of pocket. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 115,000.
When driving, the transmission jumps all the time when accelerating. Also, when driving at speeds over 70 miles per hour, the tachometer jumps up and down like the transmission is not pulling and then starts pulling. This is very dangerous with the slippery weather we have in Wisconsin. The car seems to lose power completely at these speeds as well. This happens every time I drive it. The last time I dorve it was 11/25/22 because it seems too dangerous. Thank you!
Had the Sentra in the dealership three different times for transmission slipping while under warranty. Each time they came back saying there was nothing wrong and couldn’t duplicate any issues. Now out of warranty the transmission failed. Contacted Nissan corporate and their response was nothing we can do. Let them know that I had it in the dealership three times but it made no difference.
Cars loses power after going on the highway for more than 30 miles.
I was driving to work when my car stalled and stopped in the middle of the road. I was almost t boned and mortified. The car turns on, if you press the gas it’s attempting to go but it doesn’t go anywhere. Nissan is now saying that they can’t do anything about this because the warranty was expired in July however this has not only happened to me but over a dozen other clients. This is absurd and unprofessional. Your vehicles are dangerous to drive at this point and I would not recommend as safe due to this. Was there a crash? No, but you shouldn’t wait until someone’s life is taken to do something about it. Was I physically injured or harmed? No, but mentally I was. I love Nissan and was hoping to get another, but this incident does not sit well with me. The assistance I am getting also does not sit well with me, it’s like they don’t even care what happens.
The contact owns a 2016 Nissan Sentra. The contact stated while driving 60 MPH, the vehicle started slowing down and the RPM indicator was circling around. There were no warning lights illuminated. The contact was able to pull over and turn the vehicle off and restart three times and then drove to the dealer to have the vehicle diagnosed. The vehicle was diagnosed with transmission failure. The contact was informed that the transmission needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 123,000.
The contact owns a 2016 Nissan Sentra. The contact stated while driving 60 MPH, the RPM's were rising however, the vehicle was decelerating. The contact stated no warning light was illuminated. The contact was able to regain control of the vehicle and drive to his destination. The contact took the vehicle to the local dealer however, the mechanic was unable to duplicate the failure. The contact stated he continued to experience the failure. The contact stated he had taken the vehicle to the local dealer on four occasions. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer had not been informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 18,000.
CVT transmission. We bought the car February 2021 at approximately 95,000 miles I have 106,000 miles & the CVT transmission needs replaced. I saw there were class action lawsuits against them I California but I'm the Texas. I called Nissan headquarters & was told there was nothing they could do to help me. I stalled in traffic, it jerked & rattled & I thought the tires were going to fall off. I was then scared to drive. I took it to a transmission shop in my town & they said it was the CVT transmission. Nissan told us to take it to a Nissan dealer. They said it was the CVT transmission. Over $4,500.00 to replace it. Please help me.
The transmission of the vehicle was repaired 6 months after the purchase in 2016 by the dealer. Currently, this Nissan car agency no longer exists, the problem reappeared, failure to start due to insecurity when driving
The contact owns a 2016 Nissan Sentra. The contact stated while driving approximately 55 MPH, the vehicle failed to exceed 55 MPH. The vehicle then decelerated to 20 MPH within a few seconds. The contact stated that the check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to a local dealer where it was diagnosed with needing transmission replaced however, the vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was informed of the failure but offered no assistance. The failure mileage was approximately 94,500.
The contact owns a 2016 Nissan Sentra. The contact stated that while at a complete stop, the vehicle stalled upon the depression of the accelerator pedal without warning. Due to the failure, the contact had the vehicle towed to an independent mechanic who informed her of a class-action lawsuit that had been filed against Nissan's CVT transmissions. The dealer was notified of the failure and informed her that she no longer qualified for the warranty extension for the transmission. The manufacturer was also notified of the failure but offered no assistance. The vehicle had yet to be repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 113,000.
I was driving onto the highway trying to accelerate past 40mph and the car started jerking really bad. I almost rear ended another vehicle luckily I was able to just avoid them . I quickly pulled over and cut the car off when I cut it back on the check engine light came on. it was around 2am so I drove it home the best That I could and took it to get diagnosed the next morning. I was told the transmission had sent about 4 failure codes and that I would need a new one. The need of a new transmission was confirmed for my the Nissan dealership themselves. My car has never done anything remotely like that before hand. I felt my life was put at grave risk and others around me. Knowing my car had began to had a jerking motion of which is almost very uncontrollable.
MY VEHICLE HAS BEEN SHUDDERING WHEN IT SHIFTS AND ALSO JERKS DURING SHIFTING AND THE VEHICLE STALLED WHILE I WAS DRIVING ON THE HWY, AND STALLED WHEN I WAS STOPPED AT THE RED LIGHT, I DON'T UNDERSTAND WHY ITS HAPPENING AT 117107 MILES, I WAS TOLD IT WAS MY TRANSMISSION ACTING UP, I HAVE A 3 YEAR OLD DAUGHTER AND THE VEHICLE IS STARTING TO FEEL UNSAFE TO DRIVE
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Quick Summary
The 2016 Nissan Sentra has 81 Power Train complaints on file. 2 crashes have been reported. Review the timeline above for detailed owner experiences.