— Nissan won't have to recall 606,000 cars to repair alleged master cylinder problems after the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) closed its investigation into the matter.
NHTSA opened the investigation in May 2014, after it received eight complaints about braking problems in 200,000 model year 2013-2014 Nissan Sentra, Versa and Versa Note cars. Once the investigation was underway, the number of potentially affected cars reached 606,000 and included 19 complaints to NHTSA, 275 complaints to Nissan and 701 warranty claims.
Owners complained about brake pedals that went to the floor and a complete loss of brake performance. In some cases, the only way to stop the car was to apply the emergency brake.
Reports from Nissan suggested the brake pedal problems are caused by seals inside the master cylinder. The automaker says the supplier of the master cylinder determined the internal seals can leak due to contamination at the assembly plant.
NHTSA says a different master cylinder design was implemented in September 2013, and with the change came a large decrease in warranty claims. An analysis of data further shows 22 crash claims that alleged master cylinder failure or brake pedal problems couldn't be proven. NHTSA says it could link only three crashes to brake performance related to the master cylinders.
Nissan Sentra and Versa owners might not be happy about it, but NHTSA says the investigation is closed and will remain closed unless circumstances change.
If you've experienced brake problems in your Nissan vehicle, file your complaint here.
- Read what owners say about their Nissan Sentra, Nissan Versa or Nissan Versa Note.
