Within days of buying the new car in 2009, I noticed a loud, clunking squeak and a pop from around my front wheels when I would make a turn after slowing down to a stop. This had been happening during the entire 3.5 years that I have had the car, so I figured it was normal and harmless because the car was already doing it brand new (right now there are still only 37,343 miles on the vehicle, I park it in my garage, and it has had no accidents.) however, last night, the sound seemed to be louder and looser near the front-right wheel. Then this morning I drove out of my neighborhood and as I began accelerating to 50 mph, a large piece of metal flew out violently from under my car. I was able to find it in the roadway, so I backed up and inspected the part. It is the bottom coil of the coil spring that is over the right-front wheel. Luckily it did not hit anybody behind me or cut my tire. The metal was not only broken, but the face of the break was already slightly rusted, as if it had been cracked for a while before snapping.

- Bellport, NY, USA

Within weeks of my purchase of a 2009 Nissan Versa sl, I noticed, when making right or left turns at slow speeds (5-10 mph), especially going over a bump and when the steering wheel is turned 1- 1 1/2 times (as in going into a driveway) I experience loud clunking and vibrations in wheel, and it can be easily heard coming from the steering column. The clunk is always there at 1 to 1 1/4 turn from the full clockwise stop. I have taken it in the dealership for this problem at least 5 times; they have been unable to fix the problem. Several times, the service writer said he couldn't hear or feel the 'clunk' but the mechanic said he could. The Versa does move around quite a bit at high speeds on the freeway, but I am unsure if that is caused by the above described problem or the light weight of the Versa. The sound and feel of this 'clunk' is very disconcerting, and given the number of complaints I've seen for 3 years about this problem, I'm wondering if the government/automaker are waiting for someone to die before they act.

- Sacramento, CA, USA

The steering column clicks and shifts when making sharp turns, especially getting on and off highway ramps. The steer column often times feel like it could twist off while driving. No injuries, crashes, or incidents in direct relation to this as of yet but does need to be looked into. Other instances have been reported on online forums regarding the same issue.

- Louisville, KY, USA

The contact owned a 2009 Nissan Versa. While driving approximately 55 mph entering the right lane the contact was forced to turn the steering wheel back in the opposite direction in order to center the vehicle. The vehicle did not respond to the change in steering and continued to drift to the right until it crashed. During the failure the brakes would not function. The vehicle was destroyed and towed to an insurance lot where they did not diagnose the failure. The failure and current mileages were 50,000.

- Victorville, CA, USA

2009 Nissan Versa. After a couple of months with car and about 15K miles later, I started hearing a "thump" noise on the steering wheel/column. I took it in to the dealer and got it fixed. A couple of months later at about 30K, it began to do the same thing. I took it in again and got it "fixed". at about 40K it started doing it again. I don't have warranty on it any more so I haven't taken it to get fixed. However, I've been reading threads online about people experiencing the same issue, to the extent they've crashed due to the car not turning, while initial signs starting with the "thumping" noise. I think this is a design error/defect of Nissan Versas and respectfully ask that you please look into this. X.nissanhelp.com/forums/Versa/3861-Versa-turning-right-problem-steering-column.html.

- Pomona, CA, USA

Vehicle wanders at speeds above roughly 45 mph. Wandering is severe at speeds above 60 mph.

- Kenosha, WI, USA