I recently purchased a 2019 Nissan Maxima in November of 2025 from the Nissan dealership, with in the matter of 2 weeks after getting the car as I was driving the sunroof just exploded sounding like a gunshot. My son was in the car and luckily, I had the shade up, so no glass got all over us. The issue almost caused a wreck due to me having to swerve after thinking someone was shooting and or something fell out of the sky. I have a panoramic sunroof, and the insurance company say they do not cover sunroofs.
Nissan Maxima sunroof shattered problems
78 of the 6,504 owner complaints about the Nissan Maxima describe sunroof shattered, most of them for the 2004 model year.
- owner complaints
- 78
- worst model year
- 2004
- typical mileage
- 61,000
By model year
Often reported together
What owners say
On 12.102025 the panoramic sunroof exploded while I was driving home, with my son in the car. Out of no where it was this huge explosive sound that, sounded like a gun shot or something. It was day time the sun out just driving along. The dealer did not state anything was wrong with the sunroof. I purchased this vehicle in November of 2025. The sunroof was not inspected upon purchase it was explained that they only inspected the engine, abiding by basic inspection protocol. No warning lamps or anything was on and all warning lights work. With my son in the car I was terrified and I'm glad I did not wreck vehicle due to being frantic on behalf of the sound, and also glad that it was cold out and the inside was closed. I have been in contact with my insurance provider and awaiting on the adjuster to come out and see the damage, From research there seems that many Nissan owners have experienced this issue and yet Nissan has failed to to take accountability or acknowledge this known issue
Was getting into the car. As we closed the doors, we heard the sunroof shatter. the edges of the broken glass were pushed up as if the air pressure inside the car broke the glass. If the inside cover was open, we would have been showered in glass. The manufacturer inspected and replaced the glass.
What happened today was the sunroof exploded while driving down the interstate. Loud gunshot sound! Lucky the viser was closed when it happened! I have an appointment next week due to dealership backed up but they said I can come by to get it patched until my appointment day. No Warning lights, messages, or anything happened before the incident occurred. Just glad no one was hurt and it didn’t cause me to have accident.
I was driving on I75 driving around 75 mph when all of a sudden the sunroof exploded. It sounded like a shotgun went off over my head and glass started pouring down on top of me. The sunroof malfunctioned without any warning whatsoever. This was a very jarring event to occur on the interstate of all places. Thankfully, I was able to maintain control of the vehicle and exit the interstate using the first available exit and called my insurance company to report the incident.
May 17,2023 6:30a.m. I drove to work, parked for 9hrs & at 4pm when I went to leave my sunroof was shattered.. there are no trees or anything that is over my car.. it looked as though someone had gotten inside my car & punched the sunroof as the glass was slightly pushed outwards.. my car was locked & no signs of entry... upon my arrival to Hudson Nissan I was informed by a Nissan Service Writer that this happens all the time & he told me to look it up on Youtube or Google.. After looking it up & seeing that exploding sunroofs happen daily, I did more research & saw there are current & past lawsuits pertaining to exploding sunroofs..that is also where I saw that I needed to file my exploding sunroof on this site. My car was inspected by a certified Nissan technician that said my entire roof system needed to be replaced. My car was also inspected by a certified State Farm Adjuster that only wants to pay for the rear glass. Thankfully I was not driving at the time of the incident, however, after viewing several videos of consumers this has happened to, they all said it sounds like a gunshot.. I've been shot, still carry the bullet in my neck, I cannot even imagine how I'd react if I were on the interstate driving 65mph and hear what appears to be a gunshot inside my car...or if my grandson was riding along. I cant say how I'd react,, but im guessing everyone around me would be at risk including myself.. I just can't phathom why this issue is still allowed to happen. The entire process has been a complete nightmare. I've been without a vehicle since May 17, 2023. State Farm doesn't want to pay for what the manufacturer/dealership suggests & once I get it fixed I will be trading it... I do not ever want to go through this again!
I was driving home from Durango, CO when I hear a big bang, I pulled over to see that my panoramic sunroof exploded. There no debris that flew and hit my car, it just exploded for no reason at all. We called Nissan of Durango where it was purchased as of today we have not heard back from them. This incident took place on 3/5/22 around 3:14 pm. There was no oncoming car, there was a vehicle in the right lane, three land highway. I was going the speed limit of 65 at the time of explosion. It was snowing slightly, but not sticking to the highway. our claim number is 22-7318190 with Progressive Insurance.
I was about to get on a highway, so before I got on the highway I heard a loud blast overhead, like a loud boom sound. It was very scary that I most lost control. All that I felt was glass all over me and in the car. The panoramic roof just shattered by itself. It felt like a pressure blew the top off. A very scary experience that I don’t know what would have happened if I was on high speed on the highway, I might have lost control. I managed to close the sunroof cover and slowly made it to the next exit.
Going down a road in Tennessee on my way to my sons house in Fort Campbell. No cars on the road anywhere 545 in the morning and the sun roof explodes out of no where. Parts have been ordered and the car is in my possession till the parts come in so no forms to upload as of yet.
Tl* the contact owns a 2017 nissan maxima. The contact stated while driving 70 MPH, the rear panoramic moon roof exploded without impact. Startled by the failure, the contact pulled the vehicle off to the shoulder of the highway to inspect the damage. The vehicle was taken to valley nissan of longmont (1005 ken pratt blvd, longmont, co 80501) where he was informed that there was no evidence that an impact had caused the moon roof to explode. There was no additional assistance provided. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The contact was informed that the vehicle was no longer under warranty. There was no additional assistance provided. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was 42,800.
Related recalls
No recalls on record for this model year.
Questions about the Nissan Maxima sunroof shattered
Which Nissan Maxima years have sunroof shattered problems?
The model years with the most reports are 2004 (17 complaints), 2010 (7 complaints) and 2011 (7 complaints).
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