CarComplaints.com Notes: The 2009-2010 Maxima has an expensive problem where the steering lock prevents the car from starting, & costs upwards of $1,000 to fix!

For more information, see this page on the Nissan Maxima Electronic Steering Column Lock (ESCL) defect.

4.5

definitely annoying
Crashes / Fires:
0 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
0 / 0
Average Mileage:
24,733 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.

2010 Nissan Maxima body / paint problems

body / paint problem

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2010 Nissan Maxima Owner Comments

problem #9

Apr 232020

Maxima

  • miles

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

My car has a defective dashboard that melt and become shiny, sticky, and reflective when exposed to sunlight. Soft, sticky mess! shiny dashboards causing distracting and glaring reflections off the windshield. As soon it will be hot again, I will again be afraid to drive a car due to the windshield glare from the shiny melted dashboard. I have no photos of the shiny panel, because it was last summer, when I was taking care of a dying husband, who passed away last September. I did not have time to take photos of the car and think about it. But the panel is still sticky. In addition to this problem, the dashboard has a many cracks, photos that I can show. Such a well-known manufacturer used the wrong material for the dashboard. This is not my fault, so I do not have to pay a lot of money for replacing the dashboard. I don't have money for this, since I only get social security check. In addition, we retired at the beginning of 2015 and my car is most of the time in the garage. I am the only one using this car. The mileage of the car is 51152 ml.

- San Antonio, TX, USA

problem #8

Feb 162020

Maxima

  • miles
While driving on route 24 in brockton, MA on 2/16/2020 at approximately 1am, the hood of my car flew off and completely separated from my car. I immediately pulled over to confirm whether another driver was not behind me and to look at my car. The latch of the hood was still in place as well as the springs. My dash board did not indicate my hood was open. This all occured while on the highway driving towards my exit at approximately 50-60 mph.

- Abington, MA, USA

problem #7

Sep 012019

Maxima

  • miles
Rear cradle bar that holds suspension is rusted with holes on both sides near the rear tires.

- Penn Hills, PA, USA

problem #6

Dec 092018

Maxima

  • miles

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

I've noticed not just in mine but on other 2009-2011 Nissan Maximas undercarriage issues. I've asked a body shop for an estimate and they said they've done quite a few of those and it doesn't resemble normal wear and tear

- Little Elm, TX, USA

problem #5

Oct 192018

Maxima

  • 30,000 miles
Evap recall; severe rust; power steering is weakening; motor has extremely loud start; not safe to drive more than 2 miles - stopped driving today after the car's brakes and rotors were changed due to horrible rust issue

- Far Rockaway, NY, USA

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problem #4

Sep 292017

Maxima

  • miles
Instrument dashboard on top is melting/sticky all over causing the material to become very shiny therefore creating a safety issue. The glare during sunny day in South Florida is causing a safety issue as I can't see pedestrians or certain vehicles when the sun hits the dashboard. The center console around the radio is cracking and separating near the passenger airbag creating a safety concern. Vehicle was purchased used in 2012/2013 and this started to occur September 2017.

- Miami, FL, USA

problem #3

Mar 012016

Maxima

  • 94,600 miles

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

Takata recall the hood shakes tremendously when speeds are reached at 70+. the car shakes so bad that it seems as if the hood is going to come through the windshield if you don't decrease your speed. While driving down the highway and increasing speed to 65+ the hood starts to shake, I thought at first maybe that it was the wind but then I soon recognized this couldn't be the case because the sun was out and the wind wasn't blowing.

- Belzoni, MS, USA

problem #2

Feb 272015

Maxima 6-cyl

  • 51,000 miles
Driving vehicle at a speed of 60 mph when a portion of glass from the panoramic roof detached from the roof assembly. Reported the issue to dealership on 2 different occasions about water leakage prior to this happening. Dealer 1 stated they could not recreate issue. Dealer 2 stated that a seal was causing a water leak but a weather seal would not cause a panoramic roof to detach. Nissan still refuses to acknowledge a manufacturer defect even after the roof completely detached from the vehicle and is also unwilling to help their customers. This could have caused serious injury as I was on a major highway. Please make this as a known issue and force Nissan to release a recall or tsb at the minimum. The next person who this happens to may not be so lucky. There are also multiple reports of this same roof glass on this model exploding while driving.

- Belleville, NJ, USA

problem #1

Dec 012011

Maxima

  • 47,000 miles
This is not a safety complaint. However, I purchased this 2010 Nissan Maxima one year ago. About one month after I purchased it, the paint started chipping off the bumper and now it looks terrible. I paid a lot of money for this vehicle and it was my ideal car and I definitely did not expect to have any issues with it whatsoever, especially one month after my purchase. Now I am having second thoughts about the quality put into the exterior of the Nissan. Love the car itself but very disappointed with the quality. Very disappointed and can't say that I will be purchasing another one. What's sad is that there is no warranty on the exterior when it was only a year and a half old. Definitely not a good look.

- Foley, AL, USA

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