The 2016 Nissan Sentra has 6 NHTSA recall campaigns affecting an estimated 4,786,136 vehicles. Recall repairs are always free at any authorized dealer. Owners have filed 400 complaints with NHTSA, most often about the power train. Last updated July 5, 2026.
Nissan North America, Inc. (Nissan) is recalling certain 2016-2019 Nissan Sentra vehicles. The brake light switch may become contaminated, preventing the circuit from closing and the brake lights from illuminating.
Consequence
The brake lights may not illuminate, increasing the risk of a crash.
Remedy
Dealers will replace the brake light switch and install a protective grommet, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed July 1, 2022. Owners may contact Nissan customer service at 1-800867-7769. Nissan's number for this recall is PM971.
AIR BAGS17V2530002017-04-1330,038 affected
Defect
Nissan North America, Inc. (Nissan) is recalling certain 2015-2017 LEAF and 2014, 2016 and 2017 Sentra vehicles. Due to a manufacturing error within the air bag inflators, the passenger frontal air bag may not properly deploy in the event of a crash.
Consequence
In the event of a crash, if the front passenger air bag doesn't deploy properly, it can increase the risk of injury to passengers.
Remedy
Nissan will notify owners, and dealers will replace the front passenger air bag inflator, free of charge. The recall began June 7, 2017. Owners may contact Nissan customer service at 1-800-647-7261.
Nissan North America, Inc. (Nissan) is recalling certain model year 2016 Sentra vehicles manufactured April 11, 2016, through April 26, 2016. The engine room harness may have a terminal pin too large to maintain a connection with the Engine Control Unit (ECU).
Consequence
If the engine room harness loses connection to the ECU, the vehicle may not start or the engine may stall, increasing the risk of a crash.
Remedy
Nissan will notify owners, and dealers will replace the terminal pin on the engine room harness, free of charge. The recall began on August 15, 2016. Owners may contact Nissan customer service at 1-800-647-7261.
AIR BAGS16V4360002016-06-154,355 affected
Defect
Nissan North America, Inc. (Nissan) is recalling certain model year 2016 LEAF vehicles manufactured February 24, 2016, to March 23, 2016, and Sentra vehicles manufactured February 9, 2016, to March 4, 2016. The wiring harness connector may disconnect from the dual-stage passenger air bag.
Consequence
If the wiring harness disconnects, the passenger air bag may not to deploy during a crash, increasing the risk of injury.
Remedy
Nissan will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the wiring harness connector for proper engagement and, if necessary, replace the passenger air bag module and main body harness, free of charge. The recall began on August 9, 2016. Owners may contact Nissan customer service at 1-800-647-7261.
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,…
AIR BAGS16V2420002016-04-26645,898 affected
Defect
Nissan North America, Inc. (Nissan) is recalling certain model year 2013-2016 Sentra vehicles manufactured June 4, 2012, to April 9, 2016. The front passenger seat belt bracket may become deformed if it is used to secure a Child Restraint System (CRS). The deformed seat bracket may cause the Occupant Classification…
Consequence
If the frontal passenger air bag deploys in the event of a crash when a child seat is installed in the front passenger seat, there will be an increased risk of injury to the child in the CRS.
Remedy
Nissan will notify owners, and dealers will reinforce the seat belt bracket as well as reprogram the Air Bag Control Unit (ACU) and OCS Electronic Control Unit (ECU), free of charge. The recall began on June 13, 2016. Owners are warned not to install a CRS in the front seat. Owners may contact Nissan customer…
Complaints by component
POWER TRAIN
121
6crashes1fires1injuries
ENGINE
47
1crashes2fires
UNKNOWN OR OTHER
42
1crashes
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
39
1fires
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL
27
1crashes
AIR BAGS
24
10crashes8injuries
SERVICE BRAKES
18
3crashes3injuries
FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM
17
1crashes
ELECTRONIC STABILITY CONTROL (ESC)
10
STRUCTURE:BODY
9
2crashes2injuries
Total complaints400
What owners report
Verbatim reports filed with NHTSA, lightly edited for readability and with personal
information removed.
“Odometer fraud. The contact purchased a 2016 niss. The contact stated that they discovered that there was a mileage discrepancy after the purchase. The vehicle was a private sale/dealer sale. At the time of purchase, the vehicle mileage was 107,242. It was later discovered upon checking carfax,…”
“The vehicle stopped accelerating while driving and after stopping, would not exceed 5-10 mph. Vehicle was towed to a mechanic who advised that the transmission had failed.”
“The contact owns a 2016 nissan sentra. The contact stated that while driving at 60 mph, the sunroof exploded and shattered without impact. The contact exited the highway, pulled over to the side of the road, and took pictures of the failure. The dealer and the manufacturer were not informed of the…”
“The cvt transmission went out when I was driving on an interstate. I was driving 65 mph and within seconds my speed dropped with a tractor trailer behind me. I thankfully was able to pull off to the side of the road, but almost crashed in the process. The check engine light also did not come on…”
“Ive took my car to alhambra dealer for a recall and before I did I scared my car with the obd2 to make sure everything was okay witch it scanned no check engine and all green check lights im rediness.. After I picked up my car from the dealer I took the car home and parked it for a whole day. The…”
“Ive took my car to alhambra dealer for a recall and before I did I scared my car with the obd2 to make sure everything was okay witch it scanned no check engine and all green check lights im rediness.. After I picked up my car from the dealer I took the car home and parked it for a whole day. The…”
“Ive took my car to alhambra dealer for a recall and before I did I scared my car with the obd2 to make sure everything was okay witch it scanned no check engine and all green check lights im rediness.. After I picked up my car from the dealer I took the car home and parked it for a whole day. The…”
“The cvt transmission, which nissan has had many issues with per the large number of class action lawsuits, failed while I was driving the vehicle on a main street in san diego. The vehicle showed no indication (warning light) that there was any engine failure or issue. The cvt transmission just…”
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 Sentra as of
July 5, 2026. Complaint narratives are consumer-submitted and unverified. This page
contains ads and affiliate links. Full methodology.