CarComplaints.com Notes: The 2013-2017 Nissan Sentra has an expensive CVT transmission failure defect that shows up plainly in our complaint data.

In late 2019, the CVT defect was subject to a class action settlement. However the settlement only covers transmission repairs up to 7 years after purchase or 84,000 miles (whichever occurs first).

Because many owners commonly drive 20,000 miles/year or more, Sentra owners experiencing CVT transmission problems may find they are not covered by this settlement due to the mileage limitation.

10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
1 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
2 / 0
Average Mileage:
62,765 miles

About These NHTSA Complaints:

This data is from the NHTSA — the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints are spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem.

So how do you find out what problems are occurring? For this NHTSA complaint data, the only way is to read through the comments below. Any duplicates or errors? It's not us.

2013 Nissan Sentra drivetrain problems

drivetrain problem

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2013 Nissan Sentra Owner Comments (Page 3 of 15)

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problem #260

Jun 112021

Sentra

  • miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

CVT Transmission. Yes available for inspection. Vehicle was juddering/flaring Yes confirmed by dealer and independent service center No warning lamps or other symptoms besides the juddering/flaring First appeared around mid June 2021 The ServiceCampaign Bulletin dated 9/28/17 does not include our VIN#... even though the problem is identical! Because our VIN was not included, Nissan refused to compensate us for this problem. There was a class action suit regarding this issue that has now expired. We are asking for compensation as this was a known Nissan issue and this vehicle is still relatively new with low milage.

- Wilmington, DE, USA

problem #259

Jun 042021

Sentra

  • miles
Cvt Transmission my car just has 125,000 miles

- Bakersfield, CA, USA

problem #258

May 262021

Sentra

  • miles
My 2013 Nissan Sentra CVT transmission prematurely failed at 82,000 miles and is available for inspection upon request. One year ago (2020) my car started to shudder and stall when going from a stop, at 75,000 miles. I took my car to the Nissan dealership and they said that they felt the same issues when test driving it and contacted Nissan HQ to see if I qualified for the extended warranty. Nissan HQ requested that they check the transmission fluid and run some diagnostic tests and check for specific codes. In 2020, the Nissan dealership did as requested and found that the transmission fluid was black and smelled burnt or spent but reported that there were no shavings in the fluid. In 2020, they also could not get the specific diagnostic codes that were requested by Nissan HQ. When Nissan HQ got these results, they said that all my car needed was a transmission fluid change, even though this year's model is known to have CVT premature transmission failure. Currently, in 2021 my car started shuddering and stalling again along with new problems such as: kicking when putting the car in reverse, trying to shift gears at inappropriate times, RPMs racing even when on a flat, straight road with cruise control on. I took my car to get inspected by the Nissan dealership again and this time they told me that my car has "internal transmission failure" and is not recommended to be driven. The price for a new transmission is $4343.93 which is worth more than the car. Nissan HQ refuses to pay for this even though they know that this transmission has this problem. Nissan HQ claims that they cannot help due expiration of the extended warranty, this is unfair to people who gently drove their cars and took care of them which delayed the occurrence of the inevitable problem These transmissions are unsafe for the driver and those around and in the car and it is wreckless for Nissan not to have a recall on these transmissions.

- Somerset, KY, USA

problem #257

Jan 012016

Sentra

  • 86,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

The contact owns a 2013 Nissan Sentra. The contact stated while driving 10 mph, he heard an abnormal sound coming from the vehicle. There was no warning light illuminated. The vehicle was driven to his residence. The contact towed the vehicle to the local dealer, where it was diagnosed with needing the transmission to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired however, the failure persisted. The vehicle was not yet repaired. The manufacturer was not informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 86,000.

- San Francisco, CA, USA

problem #256

May 072021

Sentra

  • miles
Purchase car in 2015. On Sept 27, 2017, my transmission blew. The warranty covered the repair. On Sept 12, 2018, the transmission blew again. I had to pay $3,106.83 out of pocket. On May 7, 2021, the transmission blew again! I now have no warranty and no money to repair. I feel as though I was sold a lemon.

- White Plains, NY, USA

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problem #255

Apr 182021

Sentra

  • 101,070 miles
Transmission has stop being affective in a dramatic time frame. No check engine light, no previous issues, nothing called out by the many Nissan techs who have worked on the car over the years. When putting the car into reverse or drive, there is a delay, followed by a hard jerk into gear. While accelerating the car struggles to provide power through the transmission. Then fails to shift into higher gears while accelerating on all road types. When going to accelerate up a hill, I have lost all power when pressing the gas pedal. The car needed to be parked in a no parking zone, due to the sudden loss of power.

- Smyrna, TN, USA

problem #254

Mar 292021

Sentra

  • 147,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

Transmission very sluggish especially trying to accelerate uphill. Periodic lost of power while driving. Jerking motion when turning.

- Mobile, AL, USA

problem #253

Mar 052021

Sentra

  • 86,000 miles
The contact owns a 2013 Nissan Sentra. The contact stated while driving 60 mph, the vehicle started to hesitate. The contact stated no warning light was illuminated. The contact stated she decided to drive the vehicle that way. The contact stated while driving up a hill at 25 mph, the vehicle failed to move forward and started rolling backwards. The contact used the parking brake to park at the bottom the hill. The vehicle was not drivable. The vehicle was towed to nielsen Nissan (59 us-206, stanhope, NJ 07874, (973) 347-2200) where it was diagnosed with needing the transmission to be replaced. The vehicle had been repaired. The manufacturer had been informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 86,000.

- Hopatcong, NJ, USA

problem #252

Mar 082021

Sentra

  • 86,000 miles
The transmission on this car shredded itself to bits in a day at 86K miles. It made a very mild grinding noise going into work in the morning on an expressway and driving home the same night it sounded like the engine was about to jump out of the car. Revving engine with no power only for it to launch like a rocket with no warning, terrible clunking, stalling, the works, especially at a stop-start. I've researched online and found that this is a very common problem and that Nissan is fully aware that they break around 80K miles and choose to do nothing about it.

- Monaca, PA, USA

problem #251

Feb 062019

Sentra

  • 78,000 miles
The contact owns a 2013 Nissan Sentra. The contact stated while driving at various speeds, the transmission would fail and the vehicle would start to shake. The contact stated that the check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an unknown dealer to be diagnosed. The contact was informed that the transmission needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The dealer informed the contact that manufacturer had extended the warranty on the vehicle and to contact the manufacturer for assistance. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 78,000.

- Compton, CA, USA

problem #250

Feb 022021

Sentra

  • 103,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

Driving in motion on interstate going 60 and all of a sudden check engine light comes on and then violent shakes and jerks!scary as all get out made me swerve and almost hit traffic beside me!! also going up a hill and lost power had to stop in road turn the car off and then turn it back on. Almost got hit from behind!

- Oakridge, TN, USA

problem #249

Jan 282021

Sentra

  • 80,000 miles
The vehicle hesitates significantly when acccelerating... axts like it doesn't shift out right.... and bogs down when accelerating at normal speeds.

- Leesville, LA, USA

problem #248

Jan 092021

Sentra

  • 116,000 miles
We have a Nissan Sentra 2013, we've changed the transmission when vehicle had 80,000 miles (almost one year and a half ago), vehicle doesn't have 30,000 miles and is broken again, while Nissan knows about this issue and now they say that they can't do anything about it. Shame on Nissan!!! the worst part is that their own dealers know this is a common issue because Nissan transmisin builder is cheap and they tend to fail for no reason.

- Lawrenceville, GA, USA

problem #247

Dec 192020

Sentra

  • 88,000 miles
The vehicle has been having transmission issues recently. When accelerating the transmission causes the car to stop and then to jerk forward and shudder. When reversing this has also become an issue. This is extremely concerning, especially when attempting to reach the speed limit on a highway. Even entering normal streets is a cause for concern since the car will stop and shudder suddenly. Because of transmission concerns, I took the vehicle to be serviced and was told the transmission was bad but was out of the extended warranty that Nissan provided as a settlement in a class action lawsuit regarding the transmission issue which appears to be a systemic problem with Nissan's cvt transmission system.

- Eustis, FL, USA

problem #246

Oct 212020

Sentra

  • 132,000 miles
I was merging onto the interstate when the transmission stop pulling right when I got into traffic. The car began to jerk and would not move almost caused me to have a accident because I was not able to get any speed after merging into traffic. I was able to put my blinker on an merge to the shoulder and had to rent a uhaul trailer to pull the car home. My car only have 132,000 miles.

- Cordova, TN, USA

problem #245

Oct 172020

Sentra

  • 130,000 miles
My wife was driving down a road going 50 mph when the transmission started shipping and minutes later the car started jerking heavily and lost power while driving I only have around 130K miles and the cvt transmission went from perfectly fine to speed working in a matter of minutes

- Millville, NJ, USA

problem #244

Nov 082019

Sentra

  • 93,000 miles
Cvt transmission over heat/ failure at 93000 miles. Vehicle after about 1- 2 hours of driving would not move forward or backward while in drive. Blocked traffic for about 30 minutes as police officers were getting a tow truck. After car had been sitting while off for about 30 I was able to start and move it off the road. Nissan recognizes that there is a problem increased transmission warranty to 84K miles. Should be recalled!!! no warning or check engine light has ever come on. Nissan = junk!!

- Chapel Hill, NC, USA

problem #243

Aug 182020

Sentra

  • 101,000 miles
I have a 2013 Nissan Sentra, which I have had continuous problems with the transmission. A year or two ago, it locked up and left me stranded. When I towed it in, and they replaced the entire shifter. They also did an "adjustment" to the transmission. This caused the vehicle to drive poorly. It either would have a lag when accelerating, or would rapidly accelerate. I called to complain after the adjustment. The dealer told me it was and adjustment Nissan required in order keep the transmission from going out. So I put up with it. Unfortunately, I was not able to use the car to teach my kids to drive because of the transmission adjustment. Once it accelerated so instantly that my daughter almost ran through the garage. I talked to the dealer and they said the adjustment was needed and there was nothing they could do. Now guess what, the transmission is going out. It only has around a 105000 miles. It starts jerking and stays stuck in a low grear. Almsot died on the highway. I have had it serviced properly and meticulously. I have put up with the trans adjustment. Now the dealer (rikart Nissan) wants $4200 to fix it. After some research, I have noticed there are tons of class action suits, etc. They say they will not repair or rebuild it. They say it is such a terrible transmission they will only replace the whole thing.

- Reynoldsburg, OH, USA

problem #242

Oct 022020

Sentra

  • 13,200 miles
My car started jerking and all sudden when driving on the freeway it was like loosing its power and then it made a loud jerk also no warnings light came on and the car dealer put a new transmission in about 4 years ago

- Wharton, TX, USA

problem #241

Apr 132018

Sentra

  • 74,000 miles
Vehicle has been having acceleration problems since first bought from carmax. Transmission was replaced under warranty but vehicle is still not accelerating when going up hills. This vehicle is a major safety problem and liability issue. Carmax has failed to address it further and fix

- Newbury Park, CA, USA

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