CarComplaints.com Notes: The 2003 Nissan Xterra doesn't seem to have any problem trends. The only thing prospective owners should be aware of are the less-than-perfect (but acceptable) crash test ratings.

There are a very few transmission complaints, but nothing like the huge defect that shows up starting in with the 2005 model year.

10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
2 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
2 / 0
Average Mileage:
18,000 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.

2003 Nissan Xterra suspension problems

suspension problem

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2003 Nissan Xterra Owner Comments

problem #2

Jan 292004

Xterra 4WD 6-cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • 18,000 miles

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

Product defect. No summary listed (Nissan). While the consumer was driving down a smoothly paved road she suddenly lost control of the vehicle. The vehicle veered sharply across the yellow lines and flipped end over end at least twice. The vehicle landed upside down on the opposite side of the road facing in the opposite direction. The air bags did not deploy. The manufacturer's sent an employee of an engineering firm as an unbiased third party. The engineer determined that there was no impact to the ball joint to cause a failure. The manufacturer ignored his findings and denied the consumer's claim. The vehicle was totaled.

- Smithville, OK, USA

problem #1

Jan 292004

Xterra 4WD 6-cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • 18,000 miles
While driving 50 mph driver lost control of the vehicle. A technician determined that upper ball joint on driver's side broke. The air bags did not deploy during this accident. The technician indicated that he had never seen ball joint fail this way before.

- Smithville, OK, USA

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