Nissan Sentra 2007–2012
6th generation (B16)
NHTSA data through 13 August 20261,202 complaints, 934 with mileageMethod
- Reports with mileage
- 934
- Median of reported failures
- 66,000 mi
- Most-reported system
- Airbag system (15.2%)
- Recalls
- 3
Before-you-buy checklist ↓Check this VIN — NHTSA ↗
On this generation, failures are spread across the mileage range, with the middle half between 22,000 and 100,000 miles.
Figure 1 · Nissan Sentra 2007–2012 · 934 reports with mileage
Mileage at failure
Complaints per 10,000-mile bin, 0 to 200,000 miles, equal bins on a linear scale. Tallest bar = 154 complaints.
- Rest of the range
- Median
- 200,000+ — 8 complaints (0.9%), plotted separately
- 10%
- 3,000
- 25%
- 22,000
- Median
- 66,430
- 75%
- 100,000
- 90%
- 130,000
Show the numbers
| Mileage | Complaints | Share |
|---|---|---|
| 0–10,000 | 154 | 16.5% |
| 10,000–20,000 | 60 | 6.4% |
| 20,000–30,000 | 48 | 5.1% |
| 30,000–40,000 | 51 | 5.5% |
| 40,000–50,000 | 45 | 4.8% |
| 50,000–60,000 | 62 | 6.6% |
| 60,000–70,000 | 70 | 7.5% |
| 70,000–80,000 | 78 | 8.4% |
| 80,000–90,000 | 55 | 5.9% |
| 90,000–100,000 | 77 | 8.2% |
| 100,000–110,000 | 55 | 5.9% |
| 110,000–120,000 | 44 | 4.7% |
| 120,000–130,000 | 37 | 4.0% |
| 130,000–140,000 | 22 | 2.4% |
| 140,000–150,000 | 19 | 2.0% |
| 150,000–160,000 | 22 | 2.4% |
| 160,000–170,000 | 16 | 1.7% |
| 170,000–180,000 | 4 | 0.4% |
| 180,000–190,000 | 6 | 0.6% |
| 190,000–200,000 | 1 | 0.1% |
| 200,000+ | 8 | 0.9% |
Source: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation, public domain. Complaint counts reflect what owners reported and are not a measure of failure rate per vehicle sold.
What this can and cannot tell you: these are complaints owners chose to file, not a failure rate. Popular models accumulate more of them simply by being common. How this is built.
Owners filed 1,202 complaints with NHTSA about the 2007–2012 Nissan Sentra, and 934 of them record the mileage at which the failure happened. That is enough to show not just what fails, but when.
Failures are spread across the mileage range, with the middle half between 22,000 and 100,000 miles. The median is 66,430 miles.
The most-reported areas are the airbag system (15.2% of complaints, typically around 82,000 miles), the transmission and driveline (12.1% of complaints, typically around 75,000 miles), the engine (11.1% of complaints, typically around 80,000 miles).
3 recall campaigns cover this generation.
If you arrived asking “is it reliable?” — this page answers the version of that question the data can support: which problems owners reported, and at what mileage.
How many miles does a 2007–2012 Nissan Sentra last?
Half of the failure reports on the 2007–2012 Nissan Sentra were filed by 66,000 miles and 90% by 130,000 miles — figures drawn from 934 NHTSA complaints that record an odometer reading, so they time reported failures, not the cars whose owners never filed one.
8 reports (0.9%) came in past 200,000 miles — each one proof a Sentra reached that mileage, not that it died there.
Before you buy a 2007–2012 Sentra: the 3-minute check
Generated from 934 mileage-tagged complaints, 3 recall campaigns, 2 documented problem areas. Print this page — the checklist survives print.
- Run the VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls. 3 campaigns cover this generation; an open recall is a free repair you can make the seller's problem.
- Check transmission (CVT) on 2007–2012 cars. CVT fluid-temperature protection logic derates the vehicle after sustained high-speed or uphill operation in hot ambient conditions (documented at roughly 4000+ rpm and 65+ mph above ~96 F), and belt/pulley failures…
- Check engine (2.0l mr20de) on 2007–2012 cars. Timing chain guide wear and elevated oil consumption at higher mileage.
- Complaint reports are not spread evenly across model years here — see the by-model-year table below before you settle on a year.
- End with a pre-purchase inspection of this car. Aggregate data describes the population; the example in front of you has its own history.
For a buyer, failures on this generation are spread rather than concentrated: the middle half falls between 22,000 and 100,000 miles, with a median of 66,000. There is no single mileage threshold to watch, which means condition and maintenance records are more informative than the odometer.
On inspection, the airbag system and the transmission and driveline are where this generation's reports concentrate, so those are the areas worth a specific look. The transmission and driveline in particular shows a median failure mileage of 75,000, which gives a concrete number to compare against the odometer of any car you are considering.
None of this is a substitute for a pre-purchase inspection on the individual car. Aggregate patterns describe a population; the example in front of you has its own history.
What fails, and when
Figure 2 · Nissan Sentra 2007–2012
When each system fails
Bar spans the middle half of reports; the notch inside each bar is the median. Miles at failure on a proportional scale — equal distances are equal ratios, not equal miles.
- Steering82 reports51,00020,000–84,000Steering: 82 reports, median 51,000 miles, middle half 20,000 to 84,000 miles.
- Throttle and speed control61 reports62,00010,000–107,000Throttle and speed control: 61 reports, median 62,000 miles, middle half 10,000 to 107,000 miles.
- Transmission and driveline145 reports75,00050,000–103,000Transmission and driveline: 145 reports, median 75,000 miles, middle half 50,000 to 103,000 miles.
- Electrical system125 reports79,00045,000–106,000Electrical system: 125 reports, median 79,000 miles, middle half 45,000 to 106,000 miles.
- Engine134 reports80,00052,000–110,000Engine: 134 reports, median 80,000 miles, middle half 52,000 to 110,000 miles.
- Airbag system183 reports82,00053,000–114,000Airbag system: 183 reports, median 82,000 miles, middle half 53,000 to 114,000 miles.
- Problems owners could not categorise77 reports90,00042,000–120,000Problems owners could not categorise: 77 reports, median 90,000 miles, middle half 42,000 to 120,000 miles.
- Your odometer — appears after you enter it in “Where your car sits”
Ordered by median mileage, earliest first. The first 12,000 miles are shaded: that is the boundary this site uses between a manufacturing defect and ordinary wear, not a property of the world.
Source: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation, public domain.
| System | Complaints | Share | Median | 25–75% |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Airbag system | 183 | 15.2% | 82,000 | 53,000–114,000 |
| Transmission and driveline | 145 | 12.1% | 75,000 | 50,000–103,000 |
| Engine | 134 | 11.1% | 80,000 | 52,000–110,000 |
| Electrical system | 125 | 10.4% | 79,000 | 45,000–106,000 |
| Steering | 82 | 6.8% | 51,000 | 20,000–84,000 |
| Problems owners could not categorise | 77 | 6.4% | 90,000 | 42,000–120,000 |
| Throttle and speed control | 61 | 5.1% | 62,000 | 10,000–107,000 |
| Suspension | 47 | 3.9% | 18,000 | 1,500–57,000 |
| Body structure | 40 | 3.3% | 42,000 | 7,500–92,000 |
| Tyres | 37 | 3.1% | 12,000 | 4,500–34,000 |
Where your car sits
Failure reports by the odometer reading they were filed at. Pick the anchor nearest your car — or type the exact mileage: your marker lands on this curve and on the timing chart above.
Figure 3 · Nissan Sentra 2007–2012 · 934 reports with mileage
Share of reports below each mileage
Share of mileage-tagged reports filed at or below each odometer reading. Steps rise only at bin edges, by exact counted shares.
- 60,000 mi — 45% of reports below
- 90,000 mi — 67% of reports below
- 120,000 mi — 86% of reports below
- Median — the staircase crosses the 50% line here
- Your odometer — appears after you enter it below
The staircase tops out at 99%: the remaining 0.9% of reports (8) came above 200,000 miles.
Nothing is smoothed or interpolated. Linear axis, same as Figure 1.
Source: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation, public domain.
At 60,000 miles
45% of the failure reports on this generation came below this mileage. That describes reports, not your odds.
In the reporting window
- Airbag system — middle half 53,000–114,000 mi
- Transmission and driveline — middle half 50,000–103,000 mi
- Engine — middle half 52,000–110,000 mi
- Electrical system — middle half 45,000–106,000 mi
- Steering — middle half 20,000–84,000 mi
- Problems owners could not categorise — middle half 42,000–120,000 mi
- Throttle and speed control — middle half 10,000–107,000 mi
At 90,000 miles
67% of the failure reports on this generation came below this mileage. That describes reports, not your odds.
Reported earlier than this mileage — ask for repair records
- Steering — median 51,000 mi
In the reporting window
- Airbag system — middle half 53,000–114,000 mi
- Transmission and driveline — middle half 50,000–103,000 mi
- Engine — middle half 52,000–110,000 mi
- Electrical system — middle half 45,000–106,000 mi
- Problems owners could not categorise — middle half 42,000–120,000 mi
- Throttle and speed control — middle half 10,000–107,000 mi
At 120,000 miles
86% of the failure reports on this generation came below this mileage. That describes reports, not your odds.
Reported earlier than this mileage — ask for repair records
- Airbag system — median 82,000 mi
- Transmission and driveline — median 75,000 mi
- Engine — median 80,000 mi
- Electrical system — median 79,000 mi
- Steering — median 51,000 mi
- Problems owners could not categorise — median 90,000 mi
- Throttle and speed control — median 62,000 mi
Which systems, and when
Complaints about this generation are not spread evenly across the vehicle, and the systems that generate the most of them do not all fail at the same point in a car's life. The median failure across all systems here is 66,430 miles; the figures below show which parts of the car run ahead of that and which run behind.
The airbag system accounts for 15.2% of complaints (183 reports, 137 of them with a mileage figure), with a median of 82,000 miles, close to the vehicle's overall pattern. The middle half of these reports falls between 53,000 and 114,000 miles.
The transmission and driveline accounts for 12.1% of complaints (145 reports, 117 of them with a mileage figure), with a median of 75,000 miles, close to the vehicle's overall pattern. The middle half of these reports falls between 50,000 and 103,000 miles.
The engine accounts for 11.1% of complaints (134 reports, 103 of them with a mileage figure), with a median of 80,000 miles, close to the vehicle's overall pattern. The middle half of these reports falls between 52,000 and 110,000 miles.
The electrical system accounts for 10.4% of complaints (125 reports, 97 of them with a mileage figure), with a median of 79,000 miles, close to the vehicle's overall pattern. The middle half of these reports falls between 45,000 and 106,000 miles.
The steering accounts for 6.8% of complaints (82 reports, 71 of them with a mileage figure), with a median of 51,000 miles, close to the vehicle's overall pattern. The middle half of these reports falls between 20,000 and 84,000 miles.
Problems owners could not categorise accounts for 6.4% of complaints (77 reports, 53 of them with a mileage figure), with a median of 90,000 miles, close to the vehicle's overall pattern. The middle half of these reports falls between 42,000 and 120,000 miles.
Differences between model years
Within this generation, complaint volume is not constant across model years. The 2012 model year drew the most — 260 complaints — while 2009 drew the fewest at 81. The median year sits at 213.
Recalls and what they cover
NHTSA records 3 recall campaigns covering vehicles in this generation. A recall means the manufacturer or the regulator concluded there was a safety defect or a standard was not met, and that a free remedy is owed to owners — including second and later owners.
The campaigns cluster around the electrical system (2), equipment (1). Repeated recalls against the same area of the car generally mean the first remedy did not fully resolve the underlying problem.
Recall status is specific to the individual vehicle, not the model. Checking a VIN against NHTSA's lookup is free and takes under a minute, and it is the only way to know whether a particular car has had the work done.
Reported severity
What owners reported alongside the failure itself, out of 1,202 complaints against this generation:
- Crashes
- 147 (12.2%)
- Fires
- 41
- Injury reports
- 94
- Fatality reports
- 3
These flags are self-reported by complainants and unverified by NHTSA; one report can carry several flags, so the counts overlap and do not sum to a total. They are not adjusted for how many of these vehicles are on the road. No chart is drawn here on purpose: overlapping counts spanning very different magnitudes cannot be honestly encoded as lengths.
Documented problems
Transmission (cvt) 2007–2012
CVT fluid-temperature protection logic derates the vehicle after sustained high-speed or uphill operation in hot ambient conditions (documented at roughly 4000+ rpm and 65+ mph above ~96 F), and belt/pulley failures follow overheating. Nissan extended CVT coverage to 10 years / 120,000 miles on affected 2007-2010 vehicles.
Engine (2.0l Mr20de) 2007–2012
Timing chain guide wear and elevated oil consumption at higher mileage.
By model year
| Year | Complaints | With mileage |
|---|---|---|
| 2007 | 215 | 164 |
| 2008 | 233 | 176 |
| 2009 | 81 | 73 |
| 2010 | 212 | 161 |
| 2011 | 201 | 169 |
| 2012 | 260 | 191 |
Recalls (3) — is your car included?
Jan 2012 · 2010–2011 · Electrical SystemThis issue can cause the engine to stall while the vehicle is in motion and it may not be possible to restart…
The defect. Nissan is recalling certain model year 2010-2011 Sentra vehicles equipped with mr20 engines, manufactured from may 11, 2010, to may 22, 2010, and july 8, 2010, to october 25, 2010. The zinc coating applied to the terminal stud bolt was thicker than specification. This can result in a voltage drop that may cause difficulty starting the vehicle and could cause damage to the engine control module (ecm).
What can happen. This issue can cause the engine to stall while the vehicle is in motion and it may not be possible to restart the engine after it stopped, increasing the risk of a crash.
The free fix. Nissan will notify owners and dealers will replace the positive battery terminal and cover, free of charge. The recallbegan on january 23, 2012. Owners may contact Nissan at 1-800-647-7261.
Nov 2010 · 2010–2011 · Electrical SystemThis issue can cause the engine to stop running while the vehicle is in motion at low speed with a difficult…
The defect. Nissan is recalling certain model year 2010-2011 Sentra vehicles, manufactured from may 22, 2010, through july 8, 2010. Due to a machining irregularity, the bolt/washer surface on the positive battery terminal cable end may allow for a gap to occur in the contact area of the terminal. This can result in a voltage drop that may cause difficulty starting the vehicle and could cause damage to the engine control module.
What can happen. This issue can cause the engine to stop running while the vehicle is in motion at low speed with a difficult or no start increasing the risk of a crash.
The free fix. Dealers will replace the positive battery terminal cable end with a new one free of charge. The safety recall began pn november 29, 2010. Owners may contact Nissan at 1-800-647-7261.
Sep 2010 · 2008–2010 · EquipmentOverheated batteries could result in a fire.
The defect. Nissan is recalling certain vehicles that were equipped with a garmin nuvi model 750 navigation system. The batteries contained in the affected gps units can overheat.
What can happen. Overheated batteries could result in a fire.
The free fix. Nissan will notify owners and the repairs will be performed by garmin technicians by replacing the battery and inserting a spacer on top of the battery free of charge. The safety recall began on september 16, 2010. Owners may contact garmin directly at 1-866-957-1981 or Nissan at 1-800-647-7261.
What owners reported
the contact owns a 2007 Nissan Sentra. The contact stated that the alignment was out of place since the purchase of the vehicle. As a result, the vehicle was difficult to steer while driving at speeds of 55 to 70 MPH. The vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer and the contact was informed that the axle was bent and…
2007 · 114 miles · Steering
1-9-07 I purchased a 2007 Nissan Sentra on 1-13-07 the ps light came on and the power steering was out. It corrected itself and drove okay until 1-18, 2007 i took the car to the dealer. The porter drove the car and confirmed the power steering was not working. I had to argue with the service clerk to demand that the…
2007 · 250 miles · Steering
My son bought a 2007 Nissan Sentra s on july 27, 2007. This vehicle has broke down on 08/03/07, 08/07/07, 08/10/00 and as of today it is still at a Nissan dealer. The problem with this vehicle is that three times the while driving along for no reason it the car speed drops to 5 MPH. The first time it happened was at…
2007 · 622 miles · Throttle and speed control
the contact owns a 2007 Nissan Sentra. The contact took the vehicle to the dealer for routine maintenance and informed them that the brakes were not working properly. The dealer stated that the vehicle did not have an ABS recall and it was not covered under the warranty. On november 5, 2008, while driving…
2007 · 1,000 miles · Hydraulic brake circuit
Built from 934 NHTSA complaints with mileage · snapshot 2026-08-18 · open data · reproduce this page