7th generation (A35) · A35 (Nissan D platform) · 1,331 complaints, 1,037 with mileage
Owners filed 1,331 complaints with NHTSA about the 2009–2014 Nissan Maxima, and 1,037 of them record the mileage at which the failure happened. That is enough to show not just what fails, but when.
Failures are spread across the mileage range, with the middle half between 40,000 and 96,487 miles. The median is 65,950 miles.
The most-reported areas are the steering (26.7% of complaints, typically around 64,000 miles), the electrical system (15.0% of complaints, typically around 66,000 miles), the airbag system (11.3% of complaints, typically around 33,009 miles).
| System | Complaints | Share | Typical mileage | Middle half |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Steering | 355 | 26.7% | 64,000 | 48,000–88,984 |
| Electrical System | 200 | 15.0% | 66,000 | 50,000–88,000 |
| Air Bags | 150 | 11.3% | 33,009 | 7,500–74,000 |
| Unknown Or Other | 112 | 8.4% | 70,000 | 50,000–113,000 |
| Power Train | 111 | 8.3% | 94,000 | 67,000–112,000 |
| Suspension | 75 | 5.6% | 75,211 | 45,000–122,000 |
| Engine | 74 | 5.6% | 67,000 | 41,000–96,487 |
| Structure | 40 | 3.0% | 55,000 | 35,000–90,000 |
| Exterior Lighting | 34 | 2.6% | 90,000 | 60,000–111,570 |
| Seats | 32 | 2.4% | 38,000 | 4,440–70,000 |
| Year | Complaints | With mileage |
|---|---|---|
| 2009 | 460 | 364 |
| 2010 | 399 | 343 |
| 2011 | 138 | 82 |
| 2012 | 137 | 104 |
| 2013 | 71 | 56 |
| 2014 | 126 | 88 |
Complaints about this generation are not spread evenly across the vehicle, and the systems that generate the most of them do not all fail at the same point in a car's life. The median failure across all systems here is 65,950 miles; the figures below show which parts of the car run ahead of that and which run behind.
The steering accounts for 26.7% of complaints (355 reports, 307 of them with a mileage figure), with a median of 64,000 miles, close to the vehicle's overall pattern. The middle half of these reports falls between 48,000 and 88,984 miles.
A single system taking 26.7% of all complaints is a concentration worth noting. It means that for this generation, most of what owners reported came back to one area of the car rather than being distributed across many small faults.
The electrical system accounts for 15.0% of complaints (200 reports, 170 of them with a mileage figure), with a median of 66,000 miles, close to the vehicle's overall pattern. The middle half of these reports falls between 50,000 and 88,000 miles.
The airbag system accounts for 11.3% of complaints (150 reports, 112 of them with a mileage figure), and it fails early — a median of 33,009 miles, well before the vehicle's overall median. Failures clustered this far below the rest of the car usually point to a design or manufacturing problem rather than wear, because wear does not selectively target one system on low-mileage examples. The middle half of these reports falls between 7,500 and 74,000 miles.
Problems owners could not categorise accounts for 8.4% of complaints (112 reports, 67 of them with a mileage figure), with a median of 70,000 miles, close to the vehicle's overall pattern. The middle half of these reports falls between 50,000 and 113,000 miles.
The transmission and driveline accounts for 8.3% of complaints (111 reports, 90 of them with a mileage figure), with a median of 94,000 miles, close to the vehicle's overall pattern. The middle half of these reports falls between 67,000 and 112,000 miles.
The suspension accounts for 5.6% of complaints (75 reports, 56 of them with a mileage figure), with a median of 75,211 miles, close to the vehicle's overall pattern. The middle half of these reports falls between 45,000 and 122,000 miles.
Within this generation, complaint volume is not constant across model years. The 2009 model year drew the most — 460 complaints — while 2013 drew the fewest at 71. The median year sits at 137.
That makes 2009 an outlier: roughly 3.3 times the median year of this generation. A single year standing that far apart usually reflects either a first-year issue that was later corrected, or a component change introduced for that year. Anyone shopping this generation has a straightforward reason to prefer a different year, all else being equal.
No recall campaigns covering this generation appear in NHTSA's post-2010 recall file. That is not the same as an absence of problems — recalls address safety defects specifically, and many of the complaints above concern faults that are expensive or annoying without meeting that threshold.
Of the 1,331 complaints filed against this generation, 56 reported a crash; 10 reported a fire; 69 reported an injury. Crash-involved reports represent 4.2% of the total.
These are owner-reported outcomes, not verified investigations, and they are not adjusted for how many of these vehicles are on the road. They are included because the distinction between a fault that strands a car and a fault that causes a collision is the one that matters most, and it is not visible in a complaint count alone.
For a buyer, failures on this generation are spread rather than concentrated: the middle half falls between 40,000 and 96,487 miles, with a median of 65,950. There is no single mileage threshold to watch, which means condition and maintenance records are more informative than the odometer.
On inspection, the steering and the electrical system are where this generation's reports concentrate, so those are the areas worth a specific look. The steering in particular shows a median failure mileage of 64,000, which gives a concrete number to compare against the odometer of any car you are considering.
None of this is a substitute for a pre-purchase inspection on the individual car. Aggregate patterns describe a population; the example in front of you has its own history.
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VQ35DE timing chain wear (Falco v. Nissan settlement) and oil consumption.