The car had problems with failing to start and failing to accelerate while driving. Check engine light came on and OBD scanner indicated it was the CVT. The car was inspected and repaired in March 2023. In 2025 (the same problem of check engine indicating the CVT) is occurring. CVT sensor was replaced; however, two weeks later the check engine light is back on indicating CVT issues and is now also overheating.
Nissan Sentra overheating problems
62 of the 5,835 owner complaints about the Nissan Sentra describe engine overheating, most of them for the 2005 model year.
- owner complaints
- 62
- worst model year
- 2005
- typical repair cost reported
- $1,400
- typical mileage
- 82,544
Is there a fix? There are 7 recalls for this area of the car. See below
By model year
Often reported together
CVT failure 11Check engine light 10Loss of power 7Transmission failure 6Stalling 6Engine failure 6Jerking 5Misfire 4
Trouble codes mentioned
P0303 1
What owners say
I purchased the car as a graduation present for my son in 2018. He was using it to get back and forth to work and school. Currently the car has less than 60,000 miles on it. So, it was not being excessively driven. In Dec her of 2023, He began having issues with the vehicle stalling and overheating. It began to jerk and would randomly lose power. While driving to work the car over heated and we got it to a mechanic on 1/7/24. The independent service center stated the engine needed to be replaced and he would also inspect the transmission due to the loss of power and slipping my son was describing. Once the engine was replaced the mechanic confirmed the transmission would also need to be replaced. My son spent all his savings on the engine so we took the car home to determine options. The quote for a new transmission is 3-4k plus labor. I am too scared to let my son drive the car so it has been parked in my drive way since we got the car back in February of 24. My son has been saving to try and get it fixed. His coworker told him about a class action that was filed against Nissan for the same issue for Sentras from 2013-2017. I was never contacted and never received any recall notice. There were no warning lamps or other symptoms when the issues began. I tried to add the receipt from the engine replacement but it will not upload
To Whom it May Concern, I am writing because there has been transmission issues that my 2017 Nissan Sentra SV has been experiencing since I purchased the car brand new on 04/22/2017. I have documentation of me taking it back to Nissan within the first year due to shaking, overheating and a problem accelerating. Nissan has continued to put a bandaid on the cause and has not addressed the real issue in which is the transmission. There are many articles and court documentation of the Nissan CVT Transmission giving people problems in which have bought their cars from 2013-2017/2018. I have taken my car to Nissan and they refuse to address the faulty transmission or pay for any of the repairs. I have documentation over the years from accredited mechanics in which report that the transmission needs. They are trying to charge me over $7,000 for a transmission repair when they are the reason in which it went out to begin with. My car continuted to jerk while driving and stopped while driving in which put myself and others at risk. The dealer acknowledged the recall on CVT transmission and their faulty parts but did not fix it. There was NO warning light or lamos that went off prior to this going out and leaving me stranded on the side of the road. My car was looked at in April of 2024 at Nissan and was told there was no Transmission issues then i come in and all of a sudden they state it needs to be replaced.
The contact owns a 2015 Nissan Sentra. The contact stated while driving 40 MPH, the vehicle hesitated and started overheating. The overheat warning light was illuminated. The contact was able to pull over on the side of the road and waited for the vehicle to cool down and was able to drive the vehicle home once the vehicle had cooled down. The vehicle was diagnosed by an independent mechanic who stated that the transmission needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired; however, the failure reoccurred. The manufacturer was contacted, and a case was filed. The failure mileage was 90,000. The VIN was not available.
The contact owns a 2017 Nissan Sentra. The contact stated the vehicle overheated and stalled. The oil, engine, and battery warning lights were illuminated. The contact received notification of the federal safety agency Campaign Number: 21V135000 (Exterior Lighting) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The local dealer was contacted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 27,321. VIN tool confirms parts not available.
Tl* the contact owns a 2016 nissan sentra. The contact stated that while driving 75 MPH or with the cruise control set for 75 MPH, the rpms revved up. The check engine warning light illuminated. The contact stated that the engine had overheated. The contact took the vehicle to greenway brunswick nissan located at (231 chapel crossing road, brunswick, ga 31525, (912)289-8701) who diagnosed that the heater core and the heater core box needed to be replaced. The contact stated that the heater core was replaced 3 times and the heater box, along with the heater core, was replaced 2 times. The failure continued. The manufacturer was not made aware of the issue. The approximate failure mileage was 32,000.
The transmission started slipping they told me that was normal now after 100k it slips all the time at highway speeds and the transmission overheats and the car not be driven more then 20 to 30 miles without over heating the transmission. Nissan should have done a recall. All they did was extend the warranty to 110 which by the time I reported I am at 112000 miles and now I have no recourse. I feel that these companies are avoiding recalls and doing these extensions to avoid having multiple claims. The government is failing to hold them accountable for defective products!!!
On june 20, 2016, I took my car into a nissan certified dealership to have the transmission redone under the extended warranty that nissan did for the CVT engine. The car drove fine and then in the beginning of august 2019 just 3 yrs later and 40,00 miles on the new transmission, the transmission is messing up again and we are told that we have to replace the transmission for the second time at our cost. After doing some research I found out that there was a service bulletin sent out to the technician on august 15, 2014 stating that a 2007-2012 sentra will need a transmission cooler added to the CVT to prevent it from overheating. The nissan dealership did not put that on our car when we had our transmission redone under their extended warranty in 2016, and now because of their lack of responsibility our transmission is out, and nissan is not wanting to make it right.
I am terrified. Going up a hill my car loses power and I start coasting around 40mph and struggle to maintain the speed of traffic the highest I can go is 60mph. I have nearly been involved in multiple accidents as a result and often have to find a way to squeezes myself into the he truck lane although they still are able to over take me. My car has 50,000 miles and is well kept but it struggles so much going uphill I can feel the whirring and it's like my transmission is struggling to keep up while everyone passes me and tries to avoid colliding with me as a result of my sudden drop in speed. No matter how hard I press the gas nothing happens and I feel unsafe and feel I am a danger to other drivers on the road. This needs to change. This is unacceptable. I heard they attempted to fix the issue but there has to be something more that can be done. Please look into this. You can even borrow my car if you'd like to test this out. I also feel it may cause excessive overheating.
Takata recall when I first step in the car to take a test drove, it seem like it was ok . It didn't have any problem but when I drove it home , on the highway, the car started to shake and it took about 60 second for the gear to switch. The car seen as thought it was overheating when I haven't even drove it long . I took it back to the dealer and he said “ I was covered with warranty “ and that “I wouldn't have to worry about paying anything.” he gave me a loan car and have been extended it for the last two months because my car still haven't been fix yet . I also found that my car was not covered under warranty by the warrant business because they said the car wasn't in good condition when I brought it. They denied the request of fixing the transmission. The dealer refuses to give me another temp tag and told me to leave him premises. I have been paying on a car that I have not had for two months and I believe that this is an unjust situation. I hope that the other customers aren’t getting treated like myself .
Related recalls
Engine and engine cooling
- What is wrong
- On certain passenger vehicles equipped with a 2.5l engine, the crankshaft position sensor can overheat causing a brief interruption in the signal output from the sensor.
- Risk
- If the interruption in the signal from the crankshaft position sensor is so brief that the electronic control module (ECM) logic does not have time to diagnose the condition, the engine may stop running without warning while the vehicle is driven at a low speed increasing the risk of a crash.
- Remedy
- Dealers will reprogram the ECM free of charge. Certain my 2006 altimas which have been previously remedied under recall campaign 06v223 (nissan r0606) are not included in this recall since the reprogramming for 06v223 also included this reprogramming. The recall began on december 31, 2007. Owners may contact nissan at 1‑800‑647‑7261.
Recall number 07V527000 · Recall details
Engine and engine cooling
- What is wrong
- On certain passenger vehicles equipped with a 2.5l engine, the crank angle sensor is affected by temperature variations. Under certain driving conditions, these variations in temperature can be large enough to cause a brief interruption in the signal output from the sensor.
- Risk
- If the interruption in the signal from the sensor is so brief that the electronic control module (ECM) logic does not have time to diagnose the condition, the engine may stop running without warning while the vehicle is driven at a low speed increasing the risk of a crash.
- Remedy
- Dealers will reprogram the ECM free of charge. The recall began on august 21, 2006. Owners may contact nissan at 1‑800‑647‑7261.
Recall number 06V242000 · Recall details
Engine and engine cooling
- What is wrong
- Certain passenger vehicles equipped with 2.5l engines may experience excessive engine oil consumption as a result of improper performance of the piston rings.
- Risk
- If the oil is not maintained at least at the minimum level, engine damage can occur and in extreme cases result in an engine fire.
- Remedy
- Dealers will reprogram the electronic control module (ECM or engine computer). Your vehicle will also be inspected to determine if it has been consuming engine oil at a higher than normal rate. In a small percentage of vehicles, engine replacement will be needed. On june 9, 2006, nissan notified owners of the possibility of excessive oil consumption and the importance of maintaining the oil at a proper level. Follow-up letter to owners advising them of the status of the recall was sent during august 2006. Followup letter to owners was sent on november 15, 2006. Owners may contact nissan at 1‑800‑647‑7261.
Recall number 06V223000 · Recall details
Engine and engine cooling
- What is wrong
- On certain electric vehicles, the front suspension transverse link's ball joint bracket may break from stress concentration at a notch created by surface roughness and the shape of the material cut-line.
- Remedy
- Dealers will replace the bracket on these vehicles. Owner notification began december 15, 2003. Owners should contact nissan at 1‑800‑647‑7261.
Recall number 03V511000 · Recall details
Engine and engine cooling
- What is wrong
- On certain passenger vehicles, the circuit board for the crank position sensor or cam position sensor may have an improper solder joint due to solder deformation caused by heat stress accelerated by the existence of flux residue during the soldering process.
- Risk
- This could cause the "service engine soon" warning light to come on, create a no start condition, cause reduced engine power, or cause the engine to stop running without warning during vehicle operation, which could result in a crash.
- Remedy
- Dealers will replace the crank position sensors. Camshaft position sensor(s), and in some cases, the variable timing control sensor(s). Vehicles involved in a previous recall campaign, 01v357, are also included in this new campaign. The replacement sensors used in that campaign are also affected. Owner notification began on december 22, 2003. Owners should contact nissan at 1‑800‑647‑7261 or infiniti at 1‑800‑662‑6200.
Recall number 03V455000 · Recall details
Engine and engine cooling: exhaust system: manifold/header/muffler/tail pipe
- What is wrong
- On certain vehicles equipped with the 2.5 liter engine, the exhaust pipe hanger pin may catch debris from the road that could be ignited by contact with the main catalyst. Also on 2002 altima and sentra vehicles, certain engine operating conditions may cause the pre-catalyst to overheat and damage the catalyst substrate.
- Risk
- Either of these two conditions could result in a fire.
- Remedy
- Dealers will remove the protruding portion of the exhaust pipe hanger pin. In addition to the corrective action, in order to reduce the risk of fire in the event of poor or improper maintenance that could result in oil spillage, heat shield(s) will be installed on the pre-catalyst and exhaust tube. Owner notification began on july 28, 2003. Owners who take their vehicles to an authorized dealer on an agreed upon service date and do not receive the free remedy within a reasonable time should contact nissan at 1‑800‑647‑7261. Nissan recall nos. R3007, r3014, r3015, r3016, r3017. Also on 2002 altima and sentra vehicles, certain engine operating conditions may cause the pre-catalyst to overheat and damage the catalyst substrate. If substrate particles enter the combustion chamber, they could score the cylinder walls, resulting in increased oil consumption. If the engine oil level is not checked on a periodic basis and drops below the low level, and the driver continues to operate the vehicle ignoring noticeable engine noise, engine damage may occur which could result in a fire. The pre-catalyst will be tested to ensure it is working properly and replaced if necessary. If damage is found inside the pre-catalyst, it will be necessary to replace the engine.
Recall number 03V084000 · Recall details
Engine and engine cooling: engine: gasoline
- What is wrong
- Vehicle description: passenger vehicles equipped with a 1.8 liter engine. The engine could stop running while being driven due to a defective crank position sensor. This could also result in the "service engine soon" warning light coming on or reduced engine power.
- Risk
- If the engine stops running while the vehicle is in motion, it could result in a crash.
- Remedy
- Dealers will replace the crank position sensors. Owner notification began december 10, 2001. Owners who take their vehicles to an authorized dealer on an agreed upon service date and do not receive the free remedy within a reasonable time should contact nissan at 1‑800‑647‑7261.
Recall number 01V357000 · Recall details
Questions about the Nissan Sentra overheating
Which Nissan Sentra years have engine overheating problems?
The model years with the most reports are 2005 (14 complaints), 2011 (6 complaints) and 2002 (5 complaints).
How much does it cost to fix engine overheating on the Nissan Sentra?
Owners who mentioned a price put the repair at about $1,400 (median of 11 complaints that include a dollar amount). Costs vary with mileage, warranty and where the work is done.
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