The 2016 Nissan Maxima has 8 NHTSA recall campaigns affecting an estimated 4,084,217 vehicles. Recall repairs are always free at any authorized dealer. Owners have filed 224 complaints with NHTSA, most often about the power train. Last updated July 5, 2026.
Recall campaigns
SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC19V8070002019-11-08391,479 affected
Defect
Nissan North America, Inc. (Nissan) is recalling certain 2015-2018 Nissan Murano, 2016-2018 Nissan Maxima, and 2017-2019 Nissan Pathfinder and Infiniti QX60 vehicles. These vehicles were previously recalled and unrepaired, or inspected and determined to not need a repair, under recall number 18V-601. In addition,…
Consequence
A brake fluid leak on the circuit board may result in an electrical short, increasing the risk of a fire.
Remedy
Nissan will notify owners, and dealers will replace the ABS actuator, free of charge. Owners will receive a second notice when remedy parts become available, currently expected to be during summer 2020. Owners may contact Nissan customer service at 1-800-867-7669. Note: If the ABS warning light remains…
SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC18V6010002018-09-07215,124 affected
Defect
Nissan North America, Inc. (Nissan) is recalling certain 2015-2017 Nissan Murano, 2016-2017 Nissan Maxima, 2017-2018 Nissan Pathfinder, and 2017 Infiniti QX60 vehicles. The Anti-Lock Brake (ABS) actuator pumps may allow brake fluid to leak onto an internal circuit board.
Consequence
A brake fluid leak on the circuit board may result in an electrical short, increasing the risk of a fire.
Remedy
Nissan will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the serial number on the ABS actuator, replacing it as necessary, free of charge. The recall began October 29, 2018. Owners may contact Nissan customer service at 1-800-867-7669. Note: When brake fluid has leaked onto the circuit board, the ABS warning lamp will…
AIR BAGS16V9110002016-12-19757 affected
Defect
Nissan North America, Inc. (Nissan) is recalling certain model year 2013-2015 Altima vehicles manufactured January 3, 2013, to July 29, 2013, 2015-2016 Rogue vehicles manufactured October 14, 2014, to August 12, 2016, and 2016 Maxima vehicles manufactured June 4, 2015, to August 19, 2015. An incorrect Occupant…
Consequence
If the front passenger seat occupant is misclassified, the air bag may deploy incorrectly in the event of a crash, increasing the risk of injury.
Remedy
Nissan will notify owners, and dealers will replace the ECU and update the OCS software free of charge. The recall began February 13, 2017. Owners may contact Nissan customer service at 1-800-647-7261.
SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC16V6360002016-09-02120,329 affected
Defect
Nissan North America, Inc. (Nissan) is recalling certain model year 2016-2017 Nissan Maxima vehicles manufactured February 10, 2015, to August 19, 2016 and equipped with Intelligent Cruise Control, 2015-2017 Murano vehicles manufactured August 22, 2014, to August 19, 2016 and equipped with Intelligent Cruise Control,…
Consequence
A brake fluid leak onto the circuit board may result in an electrical short, increasing the risk of a fire.
Remedy
Nissan will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the ABS Actuator, replacing it as necessary, free of charge. The recall began on December 12, 2016. Owners may contact Nissan customer service at 1-800-647-7261. Note: When brake fluid has leaked onto the circuit board, the ABS warning lamp will remain…
AIR BAGS16V2440002016-04-263,296,947 affected
Defect
Nissan North America, Inc. (Nissan) is recalling certain model year 2016-2017 Nissan Maxima, 2013-2016 Nissan Altima, NV200, LEAF, Sentra, and Pathfinder, 2014-2016 Nissan NV200 Taxi, Infiniti QX60, QX60 Hybrid, and Q50 Hybrid, 2014-2017 Nissan Rogue and Infiniti Q50, 2015-2016 Nissan Murano, Murano Hybrid, and…
Consequence
If the passenger frontal air bag does not deploy as intended in the event of a crash, the passenger is at an increased risk of injury.
Remedy
Nissan will notify their owners. Chevrolet City Express owners will be notified by General Motors. Dealers will reprogram the Air Bag Control Unit (ACU) and OCS Electronic Control Unit (ECU) in Altima, Maxima, Murano, Rogue, and Sentra vehicles, and replace the OCS ECU in LEAF, NV200, NV200 Taxi, Pathfinder,…
SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC16V1930002016-04-0712,616 affected
Defect
Nissan North America, Inc. (Nissan) is recalling certain model year 2016 Murano vehicles manufactured December 17, 2015, to February 11, 2016, and 2016 Maxima vehicles manufactured November 25, 2015, to February 12, 2016 and equipped with an antilock braking system (ABS) and Vehicle Dynamic Control (VDC). The ABS…
Consequence
Insufficient brake fluid pressure may lengthen the distance needed to stop the vehicle, increasing the risk of a crash.
Remedy
Nissan will notify owners, and dealers will inspect and replace the ABS actuator, as necessary, free of charge. The recall began on May 16, 2016. Owners may contact Nissan customer service at 1-800-647-7261.
SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC15V7330002015-11-05119 affected
Defect
Nissan North America, Inc. (Nissan) is recalling certain model year 2015 Altima and 2016 Maxima vehicles manufactured October 6, 2015, to October 7, 2015. The affected vehicles have front brake calipers whose mounting bolts may not be properly tightened.
Consequence
If the bolts were not properly tightened, the caliper may detach and reduce braking ability, increasing the risk of a crash.
Remedy
Nissan will notify owners, and dealers will check the brake caliper mounting bolts, tightening them as necessary, free of charge. The recall began on December 14, 2015. Owners may contact Nissan customer service at 1-800-647-7261.
Nissan North America, Inc. (Nissan) notified the agency on July 31, 2015, that they are recalling certain model year 2016 Nissan Maxima vehicles manufactured February 10, 2015, to August 18, 2015. On October 14, 2015, Nissan expanded the recall to cover an additional 41,388 vehicles, including certain model year…
Consequence
If fuel leaks from between the fuel sending unit and the tank, it may increase the risk of a fire in the event of a crash.
Remedy
Nissan will notify owners, and dealers will install a retainer ring between the fuel tank and the fuel sending unit. The recall began on September 28, 2015. Owners may contact Nissan customer service at 1-800-647-7261.
Complaints by component
POWER TRAIN
33
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
28
3crashes2fires
UNKNOWN OR OTHER
27
2fires1injuries
SERVICE BRAKES
20
4crashes1fires2injuries
ENGINE
18
2crashes1fires
AIR BAGS
13
5crashes10injuries
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL
13
STEERING
9
FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM
8
1fires
STRUCTURE:BODY
8
1crashes1fires
Total complaints224
What owners report
Verbatim reports filed with NHTSA, lightly edited for readability and with personal
information removed.
“The car has been diagnosed with a cvt transmission problem which the mechanic stated was hard to diagnose. The car sometimes slow down to only 30 miles or less being unpredictable when driving and could cause an accident in a busy street or highway as the problem comes at unpredictable times. The…”
“I took my vehicle yesterday to monroe nissan to check on hvac job done last may 2025 as ac was blowing hot air again I was told the ac compressor needs replacement along with that they recommended transmission replacement at a cost of 8000 plus. My nissan is out of warranty but it only has 20000…”
“The 2016 nissan maxima (vin: [xxx] ) I purchased in january 2025 has been confirmed by a certified mechanic to have no driver airbag installed and no passenger side curtain airbag installed, despite a previous airbag deployment shown on the vehicle history report. There is no record of any airbag…”
“The contact owns a 2016 nissan maxima. The contact stated that while driving 55 mph, the vehicle failed to accelerate properly. The vehicle was shifted into neutral, and the rpms revved up. The vehicle failed to move forward and shut off unintendedly. Several hours later, the vehicle was…”
“We started noticing the speed gauge losing speed while driving at around the first of may through june gradually getting worse. When in the last week in june, if you tried to go 70 mph, on the highway, the vehicle would lose power, everything would shut down. Yes it could be harmful on the highway…”
“I had been trying to get the transmission changed on several occasions but was unsuccessful and was told to wait until 100,000 miles. So, I complied to suggestion. On 7/3/25 for a scheduled oil and transmission service, it was told that the transmission was throwing a p17f1 code and it would be…”
“My vehicle has experienced recurring failures where it will suddenly stop accelerating while driving, placing me in a dangerous situation. The engine remains on, but the car will only coast forward or backward with no throttle response. This has happened multiple times, and I have had to pull over…”
“Odometer fraud. The contact purchased a 2016 nissan maxima. The contact stated that while the vehicle was at an independent mechanic pending repairs after the contact was involved in a crash, it was discovered that there was a mileage discrepancy. The independent mechanic requested a carfax report…”
Defect investigations
InvestigationEA19002 Opened 2019-07-29 · closed 2025-06-16
Rear Suspension Control Arm Failure
On July 29, 2019, the Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) opened EA19002 to investigate instances of alleged rear lower control arm failures in 2013-2018 Nissan Altima and 2016-2018 Nissan Maxima vehicles. At the time the investigation was opened ODI had 91 consumer complaints alleging rear lower control arm…
Recall, complaint, and investigation records from official NHTSA datasets (FLAT_RCL,
FLAT_CMPL, FLAT_INV), synced weekly. Counts reflect NHTSA records for the 2016 Nissan Maxima as of
July 5, 2026. Complaint narratives are consumer-submitted and unverified. This page
contains ads and affiliate links. Full methodology.