Problems · NHTSA complaints

2013 Nissan Armada problems

Owners filed 17 complaints about the 2013 Nissan Armada with NHTSA between Feb 2013 and Jun 2025. The most-cited component is service brakes (7).

Complaints
17
Filed with NHTSA
Crashes
3
Reported by owners
Fires
1
Reported by owners
Injuries
1
People reported injured
Deaths
0
Reported to NHTSA
01 —By component

Complaints by component

One complaint can cite several components
  1. Service brakes7
  2. Electrical system3
  3. Air bags3
  4. Seat belts2
  5. Electronic stability control (esc)2
  6. Power train2
  7. Fuel/propulsion system1
  8. Wheels1
  9. Suspension1
  10. Parking brake1
  11. Structure1
  12. Vehicle speed control1
  13. Other / unknown1

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 Nov 10, 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
20134
20142
20151
20160
20170
20181
20194
20201
20210
20221
20230
20241
20252

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

Service brakes

7 reports1 crash
“AS I WAS LEAVING WITH PASSENGERS FROM STORE WAS GETTING ON STREET HEARD A LOUD NOISE LIKE HIT SOMETHING FROM UNDERNETH VEHICLE. WENT AWAY AS TRAVELING WAS HEARING A SCRAPPING NOISE FROM PASSENGER SIDE REAR. THEN GOT LOUDER LIKE SOMETHING WAS ABOUT TO BUST LIKE METAL TO METAL GRINDING, SCRATCHING, POPPING. NOISE REAR PASSENGER”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Nov 11, 2019Wheels, Electronic stability control (esc), Service brakesODI 11279329

Electrical system

3 reports1 crash
“The instrument cluster starts giving wrong signals which causes the car to either shutdown or not start randomly. for now a tap on the dashboard would help it start sometimes. it is a great safety hazard as if it shuts down on a dangerous road or if it wont start in dangerous areas, which happened with me multiple times while my kids were on the car, it could cause disasters. My car stayed at the dealer for 3 weeks, they were able to reproduce the problem, but they could not resolve the issue. they contacted the engineers in Nissan and no luck. the best they were able to do was guess it was the ecm. that is after they claimed it was the fuel pump and talked me into changing it, although I had a new aftermarket pump installed a month prior, and charged me over $1200 but after a search online I came across a video of an identical issue with a person who posted a video a year ago. in his case, the engineers suggested changing the instrument cluster. the care worked since then. At the time I was watching the video I was setting in my car that wont start. I tapped on the dashboard. it worked! there will be no warning signs for the issue. no pattern either. it…”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Jan 16, 2025Electrical system, Fuel/propulsion systemODI 11636231

Air bags

3 reports1 crash1 fire1 related recall
“On March 12, 2022 the supplemental air bag warning light came on in my vehicle. Nothing new has happened. When I looked in my manual that came with the vehicle it stated it needed servicing. It is flashing intermittently. If not checked and repaired it may not function properly. I have not received any recall on this issue, however, this appears to be a manufacturer issue.”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Mar 13, 2022Air bagsODI 11456468

Seat belts

2 reports
“The contact owns a 2013 Nissan Armada. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the contact's wife, who was occupying the front passenger's side seat noticed that the front passenger's side seat belt failed to retract as needed. Additionally, the contact stated that both the front driver's side and passenger's side seat belts had failed to retract as needed. The dealer was notified of the failure and informed the contact that a fee would be charged for diagnostic testing. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The contact stated that the vehicle owner's manual stated that the seat belts were covered under a lifetime warranty. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and informed the contact that the seat belts were not covered because the VIN was not included in a recall. The failure mileage was approximately 189,500.”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Jun 12, 2025Seat beltsODI 11666485

Electronic stability control (esc)

2 reports
“WAS TRAVELING ON A RESIDENTIAL ROAD APPROACHING A STOP SIGN. ATTEMPTED TO APPLY THE BRAKES AND THE PEDAL WENT STRAIGHT TO THE FLOOR. I PUMPED THE BRAKES AND TURNED THE VEHICLE TO THE RIGHT AS I WENT THROUGH THE STOP SIGN WITH VERY LIMITED BRAKING POWER. LUCKILY, NO ONE WAS IN THE INTERSECTION AND THE VEHICLE EVENTUALLY STOPPED ON THE SIDE OF THE ROAD. THE BRAKE AND THE VEHICLE DYNAMIC CONTROL WARNING LIGHTS WERE BOTH ILLUMINATED ON THE DASH AND I PLACED THE VEHICLE IN PARK. I PUMPED THE BRAKES SEVERAL TIMES WHILE THE VEHICLE WAS IN PARK AND THE PEDAL STILL WENT STRAIGHT TO THE FLOOR. I TOOK A PHOTO OF THE WARNING LIGHTS AND CONTACTED MY DEALER. I AM STILL WORKING THROUGH THE NEXT STEPS WITH THE DEALER. *TR”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Sep 13, 2013Vehicle speed control, Electronic stability control (esc), Service brakesODI 10543422

Power train

2 reports1 crash
“WHILE UNDER MILD ACCELERATION (FROM APPROX. 30MPH TO 40MPH) THE TRANSMISSION COOLANT LINE FAILED, SPRAYING TRANSMISSION FLUID THROUGHOUT THE ENGINE COMPARTMENT, AND CAUSING 1 OR MORE DRIVE BELTS TO SLIP FROM THE TENSION SYSTEM, AND WRAP THEMSELVES AROUND THE COOLING FAN SHAFT. THIS RESULTED IN AN IMMEDIATE REDUCTION IN POWER TO THE VEHICLES DRIVESHAFT,, CREATING A DANGEROUS DRIVING CONDITION. THE FRICTION FROM THE BELTS BINDING BEGAN TO HEAT UP THE RUBBER, AND COULD HAVE CAUSED A FIRE, WHICH, WITH TRANSMISSION FLUID SPRAYED THROUGHOUT THE ENGINE COMPARTMENT COULD HAVE IMMEDIATELY ENGULFED THE ENGINE IN FLAME. VEHICLE WAS STOPPED IMMEDIATELY AND TOWED TO A DEALERSHIP, WHO ACKNOWLEDGED THE TRANSMISSION COOLANT LINE AS THE POINT OF FAILURE.”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Nov 2, 2015Power trainODI 10787663
Data from NHTSA Complaints API (owner reports, unverified) · synced Nov 10, 2026

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