2005 Nissan Xterra problems
Owners have filed 1,175 complaints with NHTSA about the 2005 Nissan Xterra. Drivetrain & axles is the most reported problem area, at 31% of complaints. Next are fuel system (28%) and engine (21%).
At a glance
- Complaints
- 1,175 filed with NHTSA
- Most reported
- Drivetrain & axles 31% of complaints
- Crashes and fires
- 11 and 11
- Injuries and deaths
- 14 and 0
- Typical mileage
- 93,000 miles 1,075 complaints with mileage
Source: NHTSA owner complaints
Where the complaints are
Share of this model year's complaints by the part of the car involved. One complaint can name more than one part, so the shares can add up to more than 100%.
When problems show up
View the numbers
| Mileage | Complaints |
|---|---|
| 0k to 20k miles | 27 |
| 20k to 40k miles | 40 |
| 40k to 60k miles | 132 |
| 60k to 80k miles | 157 |
| 80k to 100k miles | 267 |
| 100k to 120k miles | 239 |
| 120k to 140k miles | 119 |
| 140k to 160k miles | 67 |
| 160k to 180k miles | 17 |
| 180k to 200k miles | 4 |
| 200k+ miles | 6 |
What the data shows
Of the 1,075 complaints that include odometer readings, half describe a problem before roughly 93,000 miles. For drivetrain & axles specifically, the median reported mileage is about 105,000 miles (339 complaints with mileage).
Safety-related details: 11 complaints mention a crash; 11 complaints mention a fire; 14 injuries reported. Its complaints are less severe on average than those of 91% of model years in our database.
Looking only at complaints filed within five years of the model year (so older and newer years are comparable), the 2005 ranks 2nd most-complained-about out of 12 model years of the Nissan Xterra with enough data (378 complaints in that window). It is also covered by 3 safety recall campaigns.
What owners wrote
A few complaints as filed, shortened and with personal details removed. The first ones are among the most serious reports for this model year; the rest are typical.
On february 11, 2006, I was driving not far from my house, when my vehicle suddenly lost control. We rolled five times before we hit the first tree. We went right over that tree. Then we rolled another three times before we were stopped by a chain link fence with a eucalyptus tree. My airbags did not go off. My vehicle was totaled.
Traveling at 45MPH car hit curb and was then diverted to median where the front bumper hit a large tree and the passenger air bag did not deploy. Passenger was severely injured. [xxx]
I filled the tank in our 05 xterra only to find that the gas gauge was not acknowledging the fill up. A few minutes later the gauge dropped to empty, and then the fuel light and check engine light came on. Now, the fuel gauge does not work at all and the repair estimates are $675+. Nissan will not acknowledge this as a problem, yet much internet research tells me that this occurs on most xterras.
The car who was behind me almost got me because all of the sudden my car speed lower dramatically, I took it to the nissan and left it there, they call me and toll me is a problem with the transmission and everything was going to cost me repair it $7,500 with labor and parts, they have the gods to tell me that is better to sell it because the car is not worth fixing it, that car cost me $37,000 brand new to at least have it for 10 years I been changing the oil frequently so I have no problems, but nissan is one of…