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Nissan Armada grinding brakes problems

327 of the 1,857 owner complaints about the Nissan Armada describe grinding or squealing brakes, most of them for the 2004 model year.

owner complaints
327
worst model year
2004
typical repair cost reported
$900
typical mileage
80,000
Is there a fix? There are 2 recalls for this area of the car. See below

By model year

Often reported together

ABS 71Brake failure 62Shudder 10Spongy pedal 7Warning lights 5Jerking 4Engine failure 3Airbag light 3

Trouble codes mentioned

C1179 19U1001 1U1000 1B1034 1

What owners say

Filed Sep 2, 2025 · Brakes · CA

Earlier in the year the brake light (some times with slip and ABS) came on the dash and suddenly braking was diminished. There was a horrid grinding sound plus vibration under the pedal. I was on highway 17 (a dangerous mountain freeway in CA) going downhill and it was extremely scary as has a car full of friends kids and hardly any brakes. I braked as much as it would allow, down shifted and pulled to the side (which again if you google that highway people die all the time from idiot drivers/speeders/tight corners). I instinctively turned off the car and got out to check off something had gotten caught in my wheel but nothing. I turned the car on and the problem had gone so drove to the nearest garage but he couldn't find anything wrong. I called Nissan but they said they knew of no problems with breaking systems on the Armada and said to bring it in and pay for an expensive diagnosis. When I got home I googled it and found 100s of similar experiences with all sorts of repairs at Nissan that hadn't worked. Some say brake booster, others sensor, other reset or upgrade hardware. Not one actually fix so far but I did find a couple of lawsuits for the same reason so don't understand how this is not a recall. The second time I was in town so it wasn't too bad but hard to stop at the crossing for a pedestrian and today it went again going back up the mountain but luckily don't need to brake much going in that direction. If it can't be fixed and it involves brakes then surely this is a serious safety violation. I also noticed that others are having a similar problem with newer Armadas with a newly upgraded braking system from Nissan and another lawsuit is on file. How is this being ignored? My car is 20 and I was looking into another Nissan but if they don't stand by and honor their mistakes then I really have no faith in them

Filed Mar 5, 2024 · Brakes, Seat belts · MA

My breaking system has a malfunction that comes on and off. Sometimes the brakes automatically stop working and start grinding as if I have no brakes, but when I brought it to be looked at they couldn't find the problem. I notice that when you turn the car off and turn it back on the problems of sides for a little while will eventually come back later. For someone to detect it, they cannot shut the car off at the time that is presenting itself.

Filed Jan 23, 2024 · Brakes · WA

On a continuing basis, while vehicle is in motion, applying the brakes causes brake pedal to sink to the floorboard with loss of braking power and with loud grinding noise coming from front of vehicle. Turning vehicle off then back on temporarily fixes the issue.

Filed Nov 27, 2023 · Brakes · CA

While driving the brake light came on and when I attempted to stop pedal goes almost to the floor and loud grinding noise is heard. I was able to barely stop the vehicle, I then shut off the vehicle, checked around the vehicle as well as engine compartment not finding any noticeable issue. Restarted the vehicle and brake light was off able to stop with no issue and no grinding noise was heard. Mentioned this to dealer when it was brought in for oil change and they indicated that there was no notice of a recall for this issue. They checked the vehicle and could not find any issues. This has happened several more times where brake light goes on, issue with trying to stop and loud grinding noise. The remedy seems to be to get the vehicle stopped, barely, shut off the vehicle, wait for a short moment and then restart the vehicle. This is very concerning if this happens when needing to make an immediate stop as it takes a bit to get the vehicle to stop when this occurs. Nothing in particular is being done while driving to cause this to happen and I have not been able to replicate.

Filed Sep 9, 2022 · Brakes · CA

Several times when driving, my brake light will come on and when pressing the brake, it does not engage. When you press on the pedal you hear a loud grinding sound. It does not slow down the vehicle at all and the grinding is loud and seems to be damaging internal parts. When you turn the engine off, and restart it the problem goes away. I have read so many similar issues with 2006 nissan armada about the brake light. How is this not a safety recall especially when I’m on the freeway driving 65 MPH and all of a sudden brake light comes on! I have to pull over safely and hard to do especially when the brake does not engage at all when the light is on. This is a huge safety concern for me due to the fact that I never know when this is going to happen again. What if it happens while I need to come to a quick emergency stop?! This is a major safety concern that needs to be looked into!!

Filed Aug 9, 2022 · Brakes · GA

I was driving on the road and my brake light came on and my brakes failed. As I tried to stop my brakes made a grinding spring noise. I turned the car off and after about 3 minutes I restarted and everything was fine. I continue to drive and less than 10 minutes later it did it again. I have went online to look for information and I see that there was a lawsuit about the booster Delta sensor. I called Nissan and they denied this, and I went to the Nissan dealership and they will check it out because they have not seen any recalls on my vehicle for this problem yet online there's a whole lot of customer complaints about this model doing the exact same thing. Here is the Case# 46966578 Nissan gave me to document the call. https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=https://m.carcomplaints.com/news/2014/nissan-delta-stroke-sensor-brake-lawsuit.shtml&ved=2ahUKEwiW_sjo1rn5AhXiIEQIHVLABjMQFnoECBsQAQ&usg=AOvVaw2DxxR2-Vd0tjpN2-V2JVBq

Filed May 27, 2022 · Brakes · WA

I was driving in traffic and my breaks went out and I almost got in a collision. The breaks at first didn't work and then were bouncing and grinding to stop and the break warning light came on. I swerved and barely missed another car. I pulled over in a parking lot there was a burning smell and let it sit for 4hr. I took it to get the breaks fixed an they couldn't find any issues with the breaking system except for the Delta Stroke Sensor Failure. I understand this has a been an ongoing issue with cars. One situation killed 3 people and Nissan lost a $25M lawsuit on this. I can't understand why this wouldn't be on a recall as issues with the breaking system is life threatening. My car is now at Nissan getting fixed, has been there for 2 weeks, they still can't figure out the issue with the Delta Sensor breaking system. This is very serious and no matter what age of the car, should be covered under a recall. You can find hundreds of articles online to understand how many cars are affected. Please look into this and issue a recall.

Filed May 25, 2022 · Brakes · WA

This issue had been going on for years with my 2004 Nissan Armada. Driving down the freeway at approximately 70mph and the brake light comes on out of no where. When this happens there us no way to safe stop the vehicle because the brakes will not engage. There is this rattling and grinding sound that happens each time. The only way to safely continue is turn the truck off and back on. This needs to be corrected immediately before there is a fatal because of brake failure. Nissan refuse to research all the complaints.

Filed Jul 14, 2021 · Brakes · WY

As I was driving through the canyon at 55 mph I pressed on my brakes to begin to slow down for the construction zone coming up and they felt like air no pressure then there was a grinding sound like something was breaking underneath my vehicle as I let off my brakes the brake light came on and it sounded like a spring releasing under my vehicle. I attempted to use my brakes almost a dozen times attempting to stop with the same grinding and spring sound happening. Once I was finally able to come to a safe stop I turned my vehicle off and once I turned it back on the brake light was off and the pressure was back in my brakes

Filed Apr 28, 2021 · Brakes · 310,000 miles · TN

While vehicle is in motion during highway travel and city travel brake light on the control panel will come randomly come on. When applying brakes after light has illuminated there will be severe vibration and grinding when you press the brakes. This behavior in the vehicle will continue until the ignition has been turned off and then restarted which seems to reset the brakes, discontinue the light and resumes normal operation. On several occasions the light has come on while vehicle is parked but still running. This has happened many times.

Related recalls

Service brakes, hydraulic: foundation components: master cylinderReported September 18, 2013 · 3,247 vehicles affected
What is wrong
Nissan North America, Inc. (Nissan) is recalling certain model year 2013 Titan and Armada vehicles manufactured February 22, 2013, through May 3, 2013. The affected vehicles have a brake master cylinder which may intermittently reduce the pressure supplied to the front brakes.
Risk
If the front brake pressure is reduced there would be less braking power, requiring a longer distance to stop the vehicle, increasing the risk of a crash.
Remedy
Nissan has notified owners, and dealers will replace the master cylinder, free of charge. The recall began on October 21, 2013. Owners may contact Nissan at 1‑800‑647‑7261.

Recall number 13V451000 · Recall details

Service brakes, hydraulic: pedals and linkagesReported March 2, 2010 · 179,383 vehicles affected
What is wrong
Nissan is recalling certain model year 2008-2010 titan, armada, and infiniti qx56, and model year 2008-2009 nissan quest vehicles. The brake pedal pivot pin end was not spin-formed to specification during the manufacturing process of the brake pedal assembly. The pivot pin could slide and cause the brake pedal to partially disengage from the brake pedal bracket.
Risk
The driver will experience unusual and noticeable looseness in the pedal and a reduction in braking force increasing the risk of a crash.
Remedy
Dealers will inspect to see if the pivot pin had been formed properly and will replace the brake pedal assembly if necessary free of charge. The safety recall began on march 22, 2010. Owners may contact nissan at 1‑800‑647‑7261.

Recall number 10V072000 · Recall details

Questions about the Nissan Armada grinding brakes

Which Nissan Armada years have grinding or squealing brakes problems?

The model years with the most reports are 2004 (90 complaints), 2006 (90 complaints) and 2005 (83 complaints).

How much does it cost to fix grinding or squealing brakes on the Nissan Armada?

Owners who mentioned a price put the repair at about $900 (median of 33 complaints that include a dollar amount). Costs vary with mileage, warranty and where the work is done.

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