2008 Nissan Armada: ABS light or ABS activating

Filed Nov 7, 2019 · Brakes · 115,000 miles · MN

Several indicator lights have come on: ABS, vdc, slip, etc. The nissan dealership has attributed the issue to the ABS actuator. This, according to many nissan owners, is an issue with the armada between 2004 and 2010. Outside of the indicator lights, I do not have a mechanical issue that others have reported. However, the descriptions of unintended braking as described by other armada owners is disconcerting. Nissan has been issued a recall regarding passenger cars from 2016-2018 with ABS actuator issues. There is a history of a problem with the ABS systems for the company.

Filed Jun 17, 2019 · Brakes, Electrical · 180,000 miles · SC

Within the last two months the ABS light will appear on the dash accompanied by a loud vibration and a loss of braking power. I had the brakes replaced and that did not fix the problem. This is dangerous and could lead to a loss of braking ability on corners and at highway speeds leading to a crash. Also within the past few months the fuel guage has started to show more fuel in the tank than what is actually in the tank. I called the dealership and provided the VIN and they said that the fuel level sensor recall service had already been performed on this VIN.

Filed Oct 6, 2017 · Brakes · 109,000 miles · CA

While transmission is in drive, and proceeding down the road, has happen at speeds between 10mph up to 70mph. The emergency brake light on the dashboard goes on. Within 5-10 seconds hearing a grinding sound coming from the front of the car, sounds like coming from breaks in addition to a spring like sound and a reduction of breaking power. This continues until you pull off the road, and turn off the car and turn it back on. Once the car is reset it appears to fix the problems. I purchased the car at with approximately 69k miles on it, it currently has roughly 114k miles on it and has happen approximately 3 times since 95k miles. I have taken the vehicle to a dealership and have explained the issue. They advised they have heard of this, but there is no recall for the VIN number on my armada. That this would require a technician to provide a software update. This should be able to fix the problem, but not guarantee. Approximately take 1-2 hours for a technician to do this and I would be responsible to pay. Spoke to nissan USA and they view the software upgrade as regular service maintenance. This issue has seemed to be common in armada's from 2004 to 2008, based on what has been listed on several forums. Example: http://www.clubarmada.com/forums/26-brakes/4018-more-ABS-near-brake-failure-problems.html this has happen in 2016 - 2017.

Filed Apr 25, 2016 · Brakes · 105,000 miles · OR

Brake light comes on and brakes stop working properly. Loud noises and crunching sounds from under the hood. If I turn the truck off and restart, it fixes itself for a couple of weeks or so. Nissan says many things but really dont know. Abs control module $1600.00 brake booster$800.00 which I've read does not work . This happens while driving at any speed! So dangerous. I tow a 24' trailer. Not anymore. I also read in s.carolina, nissan just lost a law suit on this same subject. Nissan.....do the right thing and recall before someone dies!

Filed Aug 31, 2015 · Brakes, Electrical · 68,000 miles · MO

Numerous times since january 2013 when we have been driving on the highway, roadways and parking lots the red brake light comes on and the brake pedal goes to the floor and makes noises. The car is very hard to stop and has almost caused accidents. One of the times it happened I took the car to firestone to see what was going on but when I turned off the car it stopped doing it but they did have code c1179/ABS control unit come up. We contacted nissan and left our car at suntrup nissan for a month. They told us they could not find anything even when I gave them the code. We met with a nissan specialist who told us the problem was the brake booster and gave us a price of just over $1,000 to fix it. I have been online doing my own research and many other people have had this same problem and code and have all said the ABS control module needs to be reprogrammed and there is a firmware update to fix a known bug. I am not sure why nissan can not find anything wrong and tell me it is the brake booster but when I do research I find what could be the problem and now have to take more time out and go to a different dealership to get the problem resolved before my family is in a horrible accident. From my research this is a common known problem that can be very dangerous if not fixed right away and I think nissan should be responsible. The last time we talked to nissan they told us they would not do anything for us. I want people to know about this safety problem and also the problem with dealerships who think they can take advantage of people who don't know about cars.

Filed Jun 4, 2015 · Brakes · 103,000 miles · FL

Brake light and ABS light illuminated followed by marked reduction in braking power. Braking caused a grinding and springy sound. Once car was turned off problem resolved. This has happened on 3 occasions. Twice even after brake booster was replaced (code c1179). There is no current recall but there are multiple similar complaints to find online. Safety is definitely impacted.

Filed Sep 4, 2014 · Brakes, Electrical · 72,500 miles · OR

Tl- the contact owns a 2008 nissan armada. The contact stated while traveling at any speed the brakes seized and abruptly stopped the vehicle or the brake pedal was soft which did not provide enough safty to depress the pedal to slow down intermittently. The vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer who indicated that the brake actuator needed to be replaced but was not able to give a definate diagnosis indicating that the part specifically needed to be repaired. The vehicle was also taken to an independent mechanic who indicated that there was an ABS failure and to have the authorized dealer repair the vehicle. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact was not included in the federal safety agency campaign id number: 10v072000 (service brakes, hydraulic). The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 72,500. Dyd

Filed Sep 3, 2014 · Brakes · 120,000 miles · TX

The ABS and brake light came on and brakes would not work. I could feel vibrations and heard grinding whenever I attempted to apply the brakes. After pulling over and restarting the vehicle while waiting for assistance, I noticed the brake light did not come on. I pulled off to test the brakes at this point and they worked fine. The problem occurred again on september 1, 2014 while driving at minimal speed, but only the brake light came on when the braking system failed. Again, after coasting to the side of the road and restarting the vehicle, the brake light turned off and the brakes were operational. After having the braking system checked I was told that the computer diagnostic showed code 1179. I called nissan's corporate number to report the incident and was off handedly told that all 2008 nissan armadas are not experiencing the problem. My vehicle is currently being inspected by the central nissan dealership in houston texas, and I will report the findings to the north american nissan corporation.

Filed Aug 19, 2014 · Brakes · 179,753 miles · NV

During normal driving the vehicle has a brake light that comes on and the car will not stop properly. The ABS is activated and the car must be restarted to clear the brake light and for the brakes to work properly. This is a very dangerous situation because it happens at random.

Filed Apr 7, 2014 · Brakes · 60,000 miles · TX

As I was driving I attempted to apply the brakes to make a right turn , ironically into an auto parts store , and the brake pedal felt as if it went all the way to the floor. The pedal vibrated as if the ABS was kicking in but also made a loud grinding noise. The armada finally rolled to a complete stop , I didn't know what to do so I turned it off. I popped the hood checked the fluids and did a visual check of the breaks and everything seemed normal. I restarted the vehicle and to my surprise it fixed itself. The next morning I went to robbins nissan where I purchased the vehicle and I was advised nothing could be since the brake light was not on. Ever since then, this same issue occurs at least once every 3 months. I took it in two more times but nothing could be done since I didn't take it in with the brakes not working. So basically I'm suppose to drive it in to the dealer with no breaks and the brake light on which no is going to especially if they are driving with their family as I was. Or if you're traveling and there isn't a dealer around.

Filed Jun 26, 2013 · Brakes · 76,554 miles · OH

My wife was driving the nissan to illinois from ohio and while driving on the freeway the brake light comes on and she proceeded to hit the brakes which were not there the pedal went completely to the floor and made a grinding sound as if the brake lines were cut. She calls me in a panic and I tell her how to down shift the car. She finally gets it to a stop and turns off the vehicle and when she goes to start it again the brakes are completely back with out any malfunction. She was able to get to her destination were she took it to courtesy nissan in moline ill. They diagnosed it as a right front wheel bearing grinding causing ABS sensor to think wheel speed was different, which they replaced right front hub and sensor and sent her on her way with $829.16 bill. That was july 25, 2012 she drove the vehicle for a day on july 27, 2012 she was going down a hill when the brakes decided to fail again she down shifted and came to rest against a atm to stop from going into busy traffic. She drove the car to the dealership while the brakes were still in fail mode where they promptly plugged it into the computer and the scan showed code c1179 delta sensor, they said they performed test to determine internal ABS controller failure and then replaced ABS controller at a very steep price. My wife was able to drive the nissan home with my family inside because they said it was safe to drive and then on june 14, 2012the brakes failed again when we took the vehicle to nissan of mansfield mmg they got the code but once the car was tuned off they could not get the problem to duplicate. Corporate and the local dealer said that they don't know what they can do for me since the problem will not duplicate and if it happens again to bring it right over which is a 40 minute drive for me from my house let alone putting myself and my family's life at risk.

Filed Sep 10, 2012 · Brakes · 88,000 miles · LA

8/22/12 while driving in daytime normal conditions was stopped at a red-light, turned right onto a very busy 4 lane divided road, brake light on dash came on and brakes made a grinding/spring popping kind of sound and "grabbed" or stopped jerkily when I pushed on the brake pedal again to slow to a stop at the next red-light. Took extra distance to stop due to decreased brake power/strength, luckily I was the first car in line at the red-light. Turned off the road and into a parking lot with brakes continuing as noted above, sat in parking lot until my father in law arrived. I turned engine off to take my car key off my keyring so my f-I-l could drive my car home or to the shop, the brake light was off then and the brakes worked normally. Had vehicle checked with code-reader which didn't read any errors, husband changed brake pads and ensured fluids were at appropriate levels, brakes continued to function normally. 9/10/12 driving in normal daytime conditions, stopped at red-light on extremely busy 6 lane road, turned left onto another street, experienced same problem described above, videoed issue with iphone as drove around empty parking lot. Parked and turned engine off, husband came and drove car to dealership, brakes functioned normally. Online research revealed hundreds of owners with this complaint, some with complete brake failure, is said to be ABS system engaging for no reason d/t brake booster problem. Dealership charged my husband $100 to "diagnose" problem, determined to be brake booster issue, stated nissan not responsible for cost of repair which could be $500-$1000. Nissan notified of issue by my husband, rec'd case #, waiting on response from nissan as to what they are going to do. Very dangerous situation, could've easily resulted in severe accident and catastrophic injuries to myself, my child, and my husband.