Problems · NHTSA complaints

2006 Nissan 3 Series problems

Owners filed 53 complaints about the 2006 Nissan 3 Series with NHTSA between Aug 2006 and Mar 2024. The most-cited component is air bags (14).

Complaints
53
Filed with NHTSA
Crashes
6
Reported by owners
Fires
2
Reported by owners
Injuries
5
People reported injured
Deaths
1
Reported to NHTSA
01 —By component

Complaints by component

One complaint can cite several components
  1. Air bags14
  2. Wheels14
  3. Engine and engine cooling14
  4. Power train6
  5. Engine4
  6. Tires4
  7. Electrical system2
  8. Fuel/propulsion system1
  9. Vehicle speed control1
  10. Visibility1
  11. Suspension1
  12. Equipment1
  13. Other / unknown2

Complaints are unverified owner reports to NHTSA and are not normalized for sales volume. One complaint can cite several components.

Data from NHTSA Complaints API · synced Oct 30, 2026NHTSA vehicle page
02 —Trend

When complaints were filed

Does it get worse with age? Complaints per calendar year filed
View as table
Model yearComplaints filed per calendar year
20063
20078
20089
20094
20107
20113
20121
20133
20141
20153
20164
20172
20180
20190
20200
20212
20221
20231
20241

Mileage at failure isn’t a structured field in NHTSA complaint data, so we don’t chart it. Some owners mention it in their reports below.

03 —Owner reports

Top problems in owners’ words

Verbatim from NHTSA complaints, newest first

Air bags

14 reports5 crashes
“TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2006 NISSAN 350Z. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE AIR BAG WARNING INDICATOR ILLUMINATED. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO THE PEARSON NISSAN DEALER WHERE IT WAS DIAGNOSED THAT THE FAILURE WAS DUE TO THE AIR BAG MODULES. THE VEHICLE WAS REPAIRED; HOWEVER, THE FAILURE RECURRED. THE FAILURE RECURRED AND WAS REPAIRED TWICE A YEAR FOR THE PAST SEVEN YEARS. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED, BUT DID NOT ASSIST. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS APPROXIMATELY 45,532.”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Jun 5, 2017Air bagsODI 10993152

Wheels

14 reports1 crash
“I RECENTLY BOUGHT A USED VEHICLE AT NORFOLK MOTORSPORTS IN NORFOLK VA. THEY HAD BOUGHT THE VEHICLE THRU INSPECTION AND IT DID NOT PASS IT, ACCORDING TO THE MANAGER, IT WAS MISSING THE AIR BAG ON THE PASSENGER AND THEY WAS GOING TO BUY THE WHOLE COMPONENT FOR IT INSTEAD. I HAD A MEETING WITH THE OWNER OF THE COMPANY ALONG WITH THE MANAGER, SALESPERSON; THE OWNER HAD STATED TO ME AND MY FIANC AT THE TIME THAT HE COULD HAVE EASILY CLIPPED THE WIRE TO THE SEAT AND IT WOULD PASS INSPECTION. ABOUT TWO WEEKS LATER I FINALLY RECEIVED THE VEHICLE AND NOW THE PASSENGER AIR BAG LIGHT IS SHOWING THAT ITS ON "OFF", TO ME, THIS INDICATES THAT THEY TRIPPED THE WIRE TO LET IT PASS INSPECTION. I ALSO BELIEVE THAT THEY TRIPPED THE WIRES FOR THE TIRES LIGHTS ON IT. I HAD ASKED FOR MONEY BACK BUT WOULD NOT GIVE IT TO ME SINCE IT IS CONSIDERED A "LEMON". THEY ARE ONLY WILLING TO GIVE ME A TRADE-IN INSTEAD. TILL THIS DAY I STILL HAVE NOT RECEIVED THE TITLE BECAUSE AT THE TIME OF SALE THEY TOLD ME I HAD TO CALL THE DAY BEFORE AND THEIR ADMINISTRATIVE PERSONNEL WOULD GIVE IT TO ME. THEY HAVE BEEN GIVING THE RUN-AROUND ON THIS VEHICLE THAT I HAVE PAID IN CASH FOR. THEY NOW WANT TO ME…”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Nov 2, 2014Air bags, WheelsODI 10651941

Engine and engine cooling

14 reports1 fire
“ON 10/6/2010 I TOOK MY VEHICLE IN FOR AN OIL CHANGE AND EVALUATION OF PROBLEM IN SHIFTING MANUAL TRANSMISSION. THE TRANSMISSION HAD PROBLEM WITH 1-2 AND 4-3 SHIFTS WITH GRINDING AND DIFFICULTY SHIFTING. THE CAR WAS FOUND TO HAVE A FAULTY TRANSMISSION. THE VEHICLE WAS ALSO FOUND TO HAVE, AS STATED BY THE TECH, NO VISIBLE OIL IN THE ENGINE. THIS INDICATES A CONSUMPTION OF 5+ QUARTS WITHIN 6500 MILES. A TSB BY NISSAN: NTB07-088 DATES BACK TO 2007 OF HIGH OIL CONSUMPTION. THE NEWEST TSB (NTB07-088D) ONLY REPLACES THE SHORT-BLOCK OF THE ENGINE AS WAS DONE BY THE DEALER. THIS HAS NOT ADDRESSED THE DAMAGE OF THE ENGINE DUE TO OIL STARVATION, AS THE TSB COVERS ONLY PARTIAL OIL CONSUMPTION, NOT NEAR TOTAL AS IN THIS CASE. AS OF THE REPAIR, THE ENGINE HAS A ROUGHER IDLE AND THE NEW TRANSMISSION IS STILL DIFFICULT TO SHIFT FROM NOW 1-2 AND 5-6. *TR”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Oct 19, 2010Engine and engine cooling, Power trainODI 10361141

Power train

6 reports1 crash1 fire1 related recall
“MY 2006 350Z IS DOING EXACTLY WHAT IS STATED BELOW FROM YOUR WEBSITE. I PURCHASE MY CAR IN 2012 AND WAS NOT AWARE THAT THIS WAS A PROBLEM AS I HAD BEEN DRIVING AUTOMATICS. June 24, 2011 NHTSA CAMPAIGN NUMBER: 11E024000 SERVICE EQUIPMENT/CLUTCH KIT ASSEMBLIES AN OVERSIZED CLUTCH DISC COULD CAUSE THE VEHICLE TO MOVE UNINTENTIONALLY ON THE INITIAL START-UP, IF THE DRIVER DOES NOT FOLLOW THE INSTALLATION INSTRUCTIONS AND FAILS TO USE THE SERVICE BRAKES WHILE THE HAND BRAKE IS NOT APPLIED. UNINTENTIONAL MOVEMENT OF THE VEHICLE COULD RESULT IN A CRASH OR POSSIBLE INJURY TO PERSONS OUTSIDE THE VEHICLE.”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Apr 9, 2022Power trainODI 11460244

Engine

4 reports1 crash
“The contact owns a 2006 Nissan 350Z. The contact stated that while driving at approximately 35 MPH the vehicle became hot, started smoking and it stalled. The contact stated that the vehicle was steered to the side of the road where the hood was lifted. The contact stated that she then observed condensation under the engine compartment. There were no warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was towed to the residence. The vehicle was towed to a dealer where it was diagnosed that the head gasket and engine needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 72,000.”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Mar 21, 2024EngineODI 11578686

Tires

4 reports
“Tire size 265/35ZR19 driving down highway at 55 mph when tire blew out. I was able to lucklily get the shoulder and it looked like my tire was cut open with a can opener on the sidewall. The tpms sensor was working fine and they were never plugged and had plenty of tread. I sent pictures of the damage to continental that just replies they’re not warranted. If you google continental blow outs you will see tires and even recalls that look just like mine. I definitely could of been killed or killed someone else if the blowout occurred on a busy highway because I lost control”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Oct 14, 2023TiresODI 11549900
Data from NHTSA Complaints API (owner reports, unverified) · synced Oct 30, 2026

Complaints are unverified owner reports to NHTSA and are not normalized for sales volume. One complaint can cite several components.