2003 NISSAN SENTRA Complaints

TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2003 NISSAN SENTRA. WHILE DRIVING 60 MPH, THE VEHICLE SUDDENLY SHUT OFF WITHOUT WARNING. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO THE DEALER AND THEY STATED THAT THE CAM SHAFT SENSOR NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE CURRENT AND FAILURE MILEAGES WERE 50,700. UPDATED 10/20/08.*LJ THE CONSUMER STATED A RECALL HAD BEEN ISSUED, BUT THE CONSUMER'S VIN DID NOT APPLY TO THE RECALL. UPDATED 10/20/08. *JB

TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2003 NISSAN SENTRA. THE VEHICLE WOULD CRANK, BUT FAILED TO TURN OVER. AN HOUR LATER, THE VEHICLE WAS ABLE TO BE RESTARTED. LATER, THE VEHICLE WOULD NOT START ONCE AGAIN. THE CONTACT WAS ABLE TO FINALLY START THE VEHICLE. WHILE DRIVING 60 MPH, THE VEHICLE STALLED. THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO AN INDEPENDENT MECHANIC AND THE CAM SHAFT WAS REPLACED. THE FAILURE AND CURRENT MILEAGES WERE LESS THAN 100,000.

I HAVE RECEIVED LETTERS OF "IMPORTANT SAFETY RECALL NOTICE" STATING THAT MY VEHICLE HAS A DEFECT WHICH RELATES TO MOTOR VEHICLE SAFETY. MY VEHICLE HAS STOPPED MORE THAN TWICE AND HAS COST ME MORE THAN $300.00 TO FIX. I HAD TAKEN IT TO THE MILLER NISSAN IN VAN NUYS CITY (818-787-8400) AND THE PROBLEM WAS SOLVED BUT THEN THE "CHECK ENGINE SOON" LIGHT CAME ON AND CAUSED MY VEHICLE TO STOP IN THE FREEWAY ON MY WAY TO WORK. MY VEHICLE IS CURRENTLY AT THE SHOP FOR THE SAME REASON IT STOPPED ABOUT A YEAR AGO. I RECENTLY TOOK MY VEHICLE TO THE MILE'S NISSAN IN VAN NUYS CITY BUT NOW THEY WANT TO CHARGE ME FOR A DEFECT ON THE CAR THEY SOLD TO ME. I AM CONSULTING WITH MY LAWYER TO TAKE FURTHER ACTIONS. *TR

RE: 2003 NISSAN SENTRA SPEC-V. SEVERAL TIMES THE ENGINE WOULD STALL WHILE DRIVING ON THE HIGHWAY BOTH AT HIGH SPEEDS (STARTING AROUND 50MPH) AND LOW SPEEDS (WHILE AT FULL STOP OR LOW SPEEDS), CAUSING ENGINE FAILURE AND STEERING WHEEL LOCK WHILE DRIVING. WHILE DRIVING ON THE HIGHWAY I PRACTICALLY ALMOST DIED TRYING TO GET OVER TO THE SHOULDER WHEN THE ENGINE STALLED. I RESEARCHED ONLINE FOR POSSIBLE CAUSES, AND FOUND THIS WEBSITE REGARDING THE RECALLS FOR MY VEHICLE. I DROPPED THE CAR OFF TO A NISSAN DEALERSHIP SERVICE DEPT IN THE MORNING AND INFORMED THE SERVICE TECHNICIAN RE: THE RECALLS. THEY INSPECTED THE VEHICLE AND INFORMED ME THAT THE ECM HAD TO BE REPROGRAMMED. ONCE THEY REPROGRAMMED THE ECM, THEY CALLED ME BACK AND INFORMED ME THAT THE CRANKSHAFT POSITION SENSOR NEEDED TO BE REPLACED AS WELL, WHICH WAS THE POSSIBLE CAUSE OF THE ENGINE FAILURES. ONCE THEY COMPLETED ALL REPAIRS, THEY TOLD ME THAT THE ECM REPROGRAMMING WAS FREE OF CHARGE, BUT I HAD TO PAY FOR THE CRANKSHAFT REPLACEMENT BECAUSE IT WAS NOT VIN SPECIFIC. EVEN WITH ALL THESE SERVICES PERFORMED, THE SERVICE ENGINE SOON LIGHT IS STILL ON. I CALLED NISSAN CONSUMER AFFAIRS. *TR

2003 NISSAN SENTRA ENGINE QUIT AND CHECK ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON. WOULD NOT START. NISSAN HAD A RECALL 03V455000 BUT MY VIN IS NOT INCLUDED IN THE RECALL EVEN THOUGH IT IS A 2003 NISSAN SENTRA. I HAD TO PAY FOR THE REPAIR- AROUND $280.00 OUT OF POCKET. *TR

ONE DAY IN JANUARY I WAS DRIVING TO WORK ON THE FREEWAY WHEN MY ENGINE JUST SHUT OFF. NEEDLESS TO SAY I WAS VERY SCARED BUT WAS ABLE TO COAST OVER TO THE SIDE OF THE FREEWAY WITHOUT INCIDENT. I WAITED ABOUT 20 MINUTES AND STARTED THE CAR BACK UP BUT IS WAS RUNNING VERY BADLY. I TOOK IT IN AND WAS TOLD BY MY MECHANIC THAT IT WAS THE ENGINE CONTROL MODULE THAT HAD WENT OUT. HE SAID HE HAD HEARD THERE WAS A RECALL ON THIS PART AND URGED ME TO CONTACT NISSAN DIRECTLY. I DID AND WAS TOLD THAT IS WAS THE LARGER ENGINE SIZE MODEL THAT THE RECALL WAS ISSUED ON NOT MY MODEL. THE DEALERSHIP QUOTED ME $3,000.00 TO FIX WHICH I COULD NOT AFFORD. I TOOK IT BACK TO MY MECHANIC WHO CHARGED ME ABOUT $1,000.00 TO FIX THE PROBLEM. MONTHS LATER I RECEIVED A RECALL NOTICE FROM NISSAN FOR THE ECM. I SUBMITTED FOR REIMBURSEMENT BUT WAS DENIED BECAUSE THEY SAY THEY WILL ONLY COVER REPROGRAMMING NOT REPLACEMENT OF THE ECM. SO NOW EVEN THOUGH IT WAS A MANUFACTURE DEFECT I HAD TO PAY FOR REPAIR MYSELF. *TR

CAR STARTED IDLING ROUGH, SKIPPING. CHECK ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON AND WAS FLASHING. FOUND A DAMAGED SPARK PLUG, THE GAP HAD BEEN SMASHED SHUT AND COULD SEE WHERE SOMETHING WAS POUNDING ON THE PLUG REPEATEDLY. I DID SOME RESEARCH AND FOUND OUT ABOUT THE BUTTERFLY (POWER VALVE) ISSUE OF THE ASSEMBLY FALLING INTO THE 2.5L ENGINES. USING AN EXTENDABLE MAGNET I WAS ABLE TO COLLECT ALL OF THE PIECES OF THE BUTTERFLY ASSEMBLY AND EXTRACT THEM FROM THE ENGINE. ONE OF THE SCREWS WAS UNRECOGNIZABLE, LOOKED LIKE A BRASS BB FROM A BB GUN BECAUSE IT HAD BEEN SMASHED UP SO BAD. THE BUTTERFLY ITSELF WAS ALSO DAMAGED AROUND THE EDGES. I WENT TO THE NISSAN DEALERSHIP TO SEE ABOUT ORDERING A NEW BUTTERFLY ASSEMBLY AND THEY INFORMED ME OF THE RECALL FOR THESE ENGINES IN THE 04-05 SENTRA SPEC V'S. THEY RECOMMENDED I TALK TO THE SERVICE DEPT ABOUT HAVING IT REPAIRED BY NISSAN UNDER RECALL. NISSAN SERVICE LOOKED UP MY VIN # AND DISCOVERED THAT 03 MODELS DID NOT HAVE A RECALL FOR THE BUTTERFLY SCREWS BUT A NEW ENGINE WAS RECENTLY REPLACED FOR THE PRECAT RECALL ISSUE ONLY 20,000 MILES AGO.. THEY RECOMMENDED THAT I CALL CORPORATE AND FILE A CLAIM REGARDING THE BUTTERFLY SCREW PROBLEM SINCE THEY HAD JUST RECENTLY WORKED ON THE ENGINE AND SHOULD HAVE TIGHTENED THOSE SCREWS. SO I DID. I PAID $150.00 TO HAVE THE CAR TOWED TO THE NEAREST DEALERSHIP, THEY WAIVED THE $96 DIAGNOSTIC AND CONFIRMED THAT THE BUTTERFLY SCREWS DID DAMAGE TO THE ENGINE. IT TOOK ABOUT 3 MONTHS OF GETTING ESCALATED UP THE CORPORATE NISSAN PYRAMID. FINALLY I MADE IT TO THE TOP JUST TO BE DENIED. THEY SAID THAT MY VEHICLE WAS 5,000 MILES OUT OF WARRANTY AND THAT THE RECALL WAS NOT FOR 03 MODELS ONLY 04-05. HOWEVER IT IS THE SAME EXACT ENGINE, SO I DON'T KNOW WHY 03 IS NOT COVERED. THE FACT THAT I HAD ONLY PUT 20,000 ON THE NEW ENGINE THAT THEY INSTALLED DIDN'T SEEM TO MATTER TO THEM. I AM NO ROCKET SCIENTIST BUT I AM PRETTY SURE A 4 CYL ENGINE SHOULD BE ABLE TO RUN FOR MORE THAT 20,000 MILES. *TR

I BOUGHT A USED 2003 NISSAN SENTRA FOR JUST A LITTLE MORE THAN A YEAR AGO FROM A USED CAR DEALER. LESS THAN A MONTH LATER I FOUND SOME LISTED RECALLS ON THE WEB FOR THE ON BOARD CONTROL UNIT WHICH WAS CAUSING THE COMPUTER TO MISS READ THE CRANK CASE POSITIONING SENSOR, AND OXYGEN SENSORS, & CAUSING CARS TO STOP RUNNING FOR ANYWHERE FROM SPLIT SECOND TO SEVERAL SECONDS. THIS COULD CAUSE AN ACCIDENT FOR THIS ON BOARD COMPUTER WAS MAKING ERROR CODES SHOW UP WHEN DOING SMOG TEST AND THERE WAS NOTHING WRONG WITH THESE SENSORS. I WENT INTO MY LOCAL NISSAN DEALER TO HAVE THESE RECALL REPAIRS DONE, I WAS TOLD THAT ONLY ONE OF THE FOUR REPAIRS WOULD BE DONE TO MY VEHICLE BECAUSE MY 2003 SENTRA WAS MADE IN DEC. AND THE RECALL FOR THE OTHER WERE FOR UP TO NOV OF 2003. MY SENTRA HAS BEEN HAVING THE SAME EXACT PROBLEMS THAT THE RECALL REPAIRS WERE SUPPOSE TO FIX, ONLY THEY WOULDN'T FIX MINE. SINCE ABOUT A MONTH AFTER THAT MY CHECK ENGINE LIGHT HAS BEEN ON AND ABOUT A HALF A DOZEN TIMES A WEEK MY CAR WILL JUST STOP RUNNING FOR ABOUT A SECOND AND START UP AGAIN. ALSO SINCE THEN I HAVE HAD BOTH THE CRANK CASE SENSOR AND THE OXYGEN SENSOR REPLACED AND NOT ONLY WILL THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT NOT GO OUT, BUT NOW EVEN AFTER I HAVE REPLACED BOTH OF THESE SENSORS BECAUSE THEY WERE SHOWING UP AS DEFECTIVE WHEN I HAD THE SMOG CHECKED, THIS DEFECTIVE ON BOARD COMPUTER STILL SHOWS THE EXACT SAME DEFECT CODES EVEN AFTER PUTTING NEW PARTS IN. THIS HAS NOW COST ME OVER $150 FOR PARTS I DIDN'T NEED AND EVEN WORSE, THE CAR WON'T PASS SMOG EVEN THOUGH THERE'S NOTHING WRONG WITH THE PARTS I HAD TO REPLACE. SO NOW BECAUSE NISSAN WOULDN'T REPLACE WHAT THEY KNEW WAS A DEFECTIVE PART, THE ON BOARD COMPUTER OR WHAT THE SERVICE MANUAL CALLS IT THEN (ECM) CONTROLLER, I HAVE 3 DAYS (NEVADA ONLY GIVES YOU 10 DAYS EXTENSION IF YOUR CAR DOESN'T PASS SMOG TO FIX IT). ECM CONTROLLER WILL HAVE TO BE REPLACE II DON'T HAVE $700 TO $1000 DOLLARS TO PAY FOR ONE. *TR

TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2003 NISSAN SENTRA. THE CONTACT WAS INVOLVED IN TWO CRASHES. THE ENGINE AND CATALYTIC CONVERTER WERE REPLACED TWICE. THE ENGINE STALLS AND LOSES POWER INTERMITTENTLY. WHEN DRIVING UPHILL AT VARIOUS SPEEDS, THE VEHICLE JERKS. WHEN TRAVELING DOWNHILL, THE VEHICLE SHUTS OFF. WHEN THE VEHICLE IS ON LEVEL GROUND, IT WILL AUTOMATICALLY RESTART. THE FIRST CRASH OCCURRED IN JULY OF 2007, BUT THE FAILURES OCCURRED PRIOR TO THE CRASH. WHILE IDLING AT A STOP LIGHT, THE VEHICLE SHUT OFF. IT TOOK A WHILE FOR THE CONTACT TO RESTART THE VEHICLE. WHEN IT STARTED, THE VEHICLE LURCHED AND JUMPED, WHICH CAUSED HIM TO REAR END ANOTHER VEHICLE AT 7 MPH. BOTH VEHICLES SUSTAINED MINIMAL DAMAGE. A POLICE REPORT WAS FILED. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO THE DEALER FOUR TIMES BEFORE THEY MADE THE FIRST REPAIR, WHICH WAS THE REPLACEMENT OF THE CYLINDER HEADS. THE FAILURE CONTINUED, SO HE TOOK IT BACK TO THE DEALER SIX MORE TIMES. FOUR OF THOSE TIMES THE VEHICLE HAD TO STAY AT THE DEALER, BUT THEY WERE UNABLE TO IDENTIFY THE CAUSE OF THE FAILURE. OVER THE NEXT 18 MONTHS, THE FAILURE CONTINUED TO PERSIST, SO HE DECIDED TO CHECK THE INTERNET FOR RECALLS AND LOCATED SEVERAL RELATED TO THE 2.5L ENGINE. THE DEALER REPLACED THE CYLINDER HEADS UNDER RECALL NHTSA CAMPAIGN ID NUMBERS 03V477000 (ELECTRICAL SYSTEM:IGNITION:MODULE) AND 06V242000 (ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING). THE CONTACT WAS NOT INFORMED OF THESE RECALLS THE MANY TIMES HE VISITED THE DEALER. HE HAD TO CALL NISSAN TEN TIMES BEFORE ANYONE RETURNED HIS CALL. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 10,000.

WHILE DRIVING ON THE HIGHWAY THE TACHOMETER FELL TO ZERO AND THE VEHICLE STALLED WHILE IN GEAR THUS CAUSING THE VEHICLE TO DECREASE SPEED QUICKLY, THE ONLY WAY TO RESTART THE CAR WHILE IN MOTION IS TO BUMP START USING THE CLUTCH. THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT TURNED ON AFTER THIS INCIDENT. AFTER THIS MANY MISFIRES OCCURRED WHILE DRIVE INCLUDING STALLS WHILE DRIVING WHICH IS VERY DANGEROUS BECAUSE THE VEHICLE WILL STOP QUICKLY. I RESEARCHED ONLINE TO FIND THAT OTHER NISSAN MODELS HAVE HAD THIS PROBLEM THE SENTRA/ALTIMA. I ALSO CHECK SOME RECALLS AND IT DOES SHOW SOME SENTRAS AND ALTIMAS HAVE BEEN AFFECTED. HOWEVER WHEN I CONTACT BOTH THE DEALER WHERE I PURCHASED THE CAR AND NISSAN NORTH AMERICA THEY SAID THAT THE 2003 NISSAN SENTRA SE-R SPEC V WAS NOT AFFECTED, AND THAT IT WAS REGULAR MAINTENANCE. I WILL TAKE MY VEHICLE TO THE DEALERSHIP TO HAVE IT LOOKED AT. THIS IS VERY DANGEROUS AND HAVE ALMOST CRASH 3 TIMES. I SUGGEST ALL WHO HAVE THIS PROBLEM NOT TO DRIVE THEIR VEHICLE. *TR