Problems · by component
2018 Nissan Sentra Nismo power train problems
42 owner complaints to NHTSA about the 2018 Nissan Sentra Nismo cite power train, 24% of all 172 complaints for this model year.
Complaints
42
24% of all complaints
Crashes
0
Reported by owners
Fires
0
Reported by owners
Injuries
0
Reported by owners
What owners say about the power train
Verbatim from NHTSA complaints, newest first
“Driving down the road with a lot of traffic then my car didn't want to shift into gear the it went into gear real hard then I hear load noise under the the car then I was no longer moving. So me and some friends push it out of the road and I call tow truck to take to my house I know a lot of people have the same issue with cvt transmission”
“I am writing to express my deep concern and frustration regarding the transmission issues in my 2018 Nissan Sentra. It is widely known, including to the past recalls of similar models that Nissan has an ongoing problems with its continually very reliable transmission CVT. Despite this, no recall has been issued for 2018 Sentra, even though the many customers myself include our experienced significant transmission problems. I had my transmission replaced in 2023 not knowing it was already a problem with Nissan. It was covered through my extended warranty. Now 2 years later I am having the same problem again.”
“When I connect an OBD 2 meter. It cannot read the powertrain and it’s not the first time that I haven’t been able to diagnosed the car. I’ve taken it to a dealership. I’ve been used scan tools from a dealership and mechanics shop. The powertrain isn’t readable it spiders when I drive as in like it feels like the transmission is skipping or going out. It stopped while I was driving by itself like the car brake, and then kept going like it was skipping a gear or had a hard time going to the next gear as well as when we were pulling into a driveway, the wheel on the passenger side went underneath the car like it was only attached by the upper control arm because the lower arm came out of the joint. I’m a driver side a tire is at an angle. The tire is about to fall off or the lower control arm is about to come out of socket impacts the safety of my children and myself when driving down the road is not safe or structurally stable to go down a highway even.”
“My 2018 Nissan Sentra has under 60,000 miles on it and is on its 3rd set of brake rotors, as well as had both front and rear brake pads replaced 2 times. The vehicle has always given the warning , front radar not detected alert, until the last 12 months where I began receiving a malfunction warning. My car has been brought to 2 different Nissan dealerships to work on this issue. The current one stating my front sensor is failing & will need to be replaced however there is no warranty on it. I am the only owner of my vehicle and it has not been in any forward collisions. As for the power train/transmission, I received a transmission flush in May of 2023, and now 15 months later was told by a different Nissan dealership it needed a flush as it appeared the transmission was going bad. The vehicle has stalled several times, continuously has a high RMP when accelerating and the AC has gone out a couple of months ago.”
“The contact owns a 2018 Nissan Sentra. The contact stated that when moving the vehicle from park to drive the vehicle would display a jerking sensation. When attempting to accelerate there would be a hesitation before doing so. There were no warning lights. The vehicle had been taken to the dealer code S indicating transmission failure. The transmission needed to be replaced. The vehicle had been repaired with a rebuilt transmission. The failure reoccurred 60,000 miles after receiving the repair. The vehicle had been returned to the dealer who confirmed that the failure was no longer covered under warranty. The vehicle had not been repaired again. The manufacturer had not been made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 133,000.”
“My 2018 nissan sentra has 118.5k miles and have been experiencing slight slippage with the CVT since buying it in 2020 with 26k on the odometer. The vehicle had work done by a local mechanic to pass NYS inspection. No warning lamps have been illuminated. The vehicle now, drives under its own power but shakes, bangs and slips into "gear". I have called a local Nissan dealership and they have quoted me of roughly $6500.00 for a replacement. This has not been taken to confirm that the CVT is the problem but, given all the class action lawsuits against Nissan, it pretty safe to assume its a bad CVT. This can potentially cause a safety risk to driver, occupants and other motorists due to inability to gain speed up to local speed limits or causing issues if the CVT fails at speed. As a consumer of a Nissan product, I have received the warranty extension but, that does not cover my vehicle because they sent out the extension when my vehicle had 115k. Reading the class action lawsuits against Nissan of North America, it states, Nissan has not fixed the issue, they only offer to install a known bad transmission back into the vehicles. This shows gross negligence on…”
Showing 6 of 42 reports. Read every report on NHTSA.gov.
Data from NHTSA Complaints API (owner reports, unverified) · synced Oct 30, 2026NHTSA vehicle page
Complaints are unverified owner reports to NHTSA and are not normalized for sales volume. One complaint can cite several components.