What breaks most · 2004 to 2018 model years
Nissan Armada problems by year
Owners have filed 1,368 safety complaints with NHTSA about the Nissan Armada across model years 2004 to 2018. Three years stand out: 2004 for brakes (hydraulic) complaints, 2005 for brakes complaints and 2006 for brakes complaints. The quietest years are 2016, 2014 and 2015.
- Years to check closely: 2004, 2005, 2006
- Fewest complaints: 2016, 2014, 2015
- Complaints on file
- 13682004 to 2018, all trims
- Worst year
- 2004436 complaints
- Crashes reported
- 4621 fires · 48 injuries · 0 deaths
- Typical failure mileage
- 72kMedian where owners gave mileage
- Recall campaigns
- 41Across the years shown
Complaints by model year
Raw filings with NHTSA, not adjusted for how many were sold.
| Model year | Complaints | Crashes | Recalls | Most-reported component |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 436 | 18 | 3 | Brakes (hydraulic) (157) | |
| 350 | 7 | 5 | Brakes (99) | |
| 248 | 14 | 5 | Brakes (123) | |
| 74 | 0 | 3 | Brakes (36) | |
| 134 | 0 | 7 | Brakes (48) | |
| 18 | 2 | 4 | Body and structure (7) | |
| 31 | 1 | 5 | Unknown or other (8) | |
| 26 | 2 | 1 | Engine (4) | |
| 11 | 0 | 1 | Electrical system (3) | |
| 9 | 2 | 2 | Brakes (3) | |
| 7 | 0 | 1 | Unknown or other (2) | |
| 8 | 0 | 3 | Suspension (2) | |
| 1 | 0 | 0 | Air bags (1) | |
| 13 | 0 | 0 | Powertrain and transmission (6) | |
| 2 | 0 | 1 | Exterior lighting (1) |
What fails on the 2004 Nissan Armada
| Component | Share of complaints | Filings | Crashes | Parts for this job |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brakes (hydraulic)Brake pads, rotors and calipers | 36% |
157 | 4 | Shop all brakes (hydraulic) parts, not filtered to this vehicle |
| BrakesBrake pads, rotors and calipers | 30% |
130 | 6 | Shop all brakes parts, not filtered to this vehicle |
| Electrical systemAlternators, starters and ignition | 6% |
26 | 0 | Shop all electrical system parts, not filtered to this vehicle |
| Air bags | 5% |
23 | 4 | Check recalls for air bags on NHTSA.gov |
| SuspensionStruts, springs and control arms | 5% |
20 | 1 | Shop all suspension parts, not filtered to this vehicle |
| Engine and coolingRadiators, thermostats and cooling | 4% |
19 | 0 | Shop all engine and cooling parts, not filtered to this vehicle |
| Powertrain and transmissionTransmission parts | 4% |
18 | 2 | Shop all powertrain and transmission parts, not filtered to this vehicle |
| Fuel systemFuel pumps and injectors | 4% |
16 | 0 | Shop all fuel system parts, not filtered to this vehicle |
One complaint can name more than one component, so shares add to more than 100%. "Unknown or other" is NHTSA's uncategorized bucket and is shown but never ranked.
In owners' words
Complaint narratives as filed with NHTSA, trimmed for length.
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2004 nissan armada. Brake failure, loud grinding, vibration, would not stop. Turned car off, then back on, and problem was gone. I suspect its a computer related issue that will eventually cause a serious accident.
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"takata recall" i experience surprise excelleration three times, once resulting in a minor vehicle accident with minor body damage. All three occurred on a city street while in starting motion going straight ahead.
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The brakes fail when brake sensor turns on periodically while car is in motion. This happens without warning. The only way to resolve this is to turn off the car. I have been in many near accidents because of this manufacturing defect that many owners have complained about.
How to read this page
Every figure comes from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's public complaint database, which holds every safety-related defect complaint filed by owners since 1995. We refresh it monthly and count each complaint once per component it names. Data through September 30, 2026.
NHTSA only accepts safety-related complaints. Rattles, paint, infotainment bugs and other annoyances are under-reported here, so this page is a map of what fails in ways owners consider dangerous, not a full reliability score.
Counts are raw. Use the year-over-year shape and the component mix, not the absolute numbers. Where a component maps to parts we stock, the row links to that category filtered to the year you are viewing. Air bag and seat belt complaints link to the recall checker instead, because those repairs are almost always covered.
Common questions
Which Nissan Armada years have the most problems?
By NHTSA complaint volume, 2004, 2005, 2006 carry the most filings on the Nissan Armada. The 2004 alone has 436 complaints, led by brakes (hydraulic).
What is the most common Nissan Armada problem?
On the 2004 model year, the most-reported component is brakes (hydraulic) with 157 complaints. The table above lists the top components for every year.
At what mileage do Nissan Armada problems start?
The median mileage at failure across all Nissan Armada complaints that include mileage is about 72,000 miles. Older model years skew higher; the per-year figure is in the "at a glance" card.
Are these complaints verified?
No. NHTSA publishes complaints as submitted and does not investigate individual filings. Patterns across hundreds of complaints are meaningful; a single one is not.