CarComplaints.com Notes: The 2012 Nissan Maxima is a very good reliable vehicle, continuing a stretch of good model years from 2010. Beware of Maximas from 2009, and 2004-2006 though.
The 2009 Maxima has an expensive problem where the steering lock prevents the car from starting, & costs upwards of $1,000 to fix.
Nissan Maximas from 2004-2006 have a widespread transmission defect, but judging from our complaint data, Nissan fixed the transmission problem starting with the 2007 model.
For the 2012 Maxima, so far so good!
10.0
really awful
Crashes / Fires:
5 / 1
Injuries / Deaths:
5 / 0
Average Mileage:
25,955 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.
Passenger airbag notifi action blinks and will not show it is activated to function in a crash. Airbag has never worked. Also driver seat belt keeps releasing without being pushed to open. Seat belt issue just began Dec 2023
Whenever someone sits on the front passenger seat the warning light comes on indicating that if something happen (accident) the airbag will not deploy. All the people I have tested are over 120 lbs. I brought this problem to pinnacle Nissan in scottsdale, AZ but they didn't do anything to fix it saying there's nothing wrong with my car. They said they tested it but they didn't find anything wrong with it.
2012 Nissan Maxima passenger seat belt notice stays on no matter who sit in seat. Dealer says need to be replaced $1,600 to fix this is absurd as they recalled 2013 models. Has been doing this for past 3 months.
On Dec 12, 107 my 2012 Maxima had a side airbag sensor replaced (dealer replaced air bag control unit fp-number 98820-9N09C). The airbag light on the passenger side would not go off after the car started. The warning light stayed on regardless if the car was still or moving or whether there was a passenger in the car or not. In September of 2018 the exact same warning light returned which makes me think that there is a larger airbag problem at hand.
Had a minor rear end collision. Air bags did not deploy. Car only has 74,000 miles. The air bag light was on after car was repaired. Nissan dealer stated the main air bag control unit was bad and the weight occupant sensor was bad. This issue alone of over $2,000 dollars caused the vehicle to be a total loss by insurance. The minor damage should not have caused this issue. Therefore Nissan needs to recall these cars and fix their issues with the airbag suppliers asap before someone is seriously injured.
- Harrodsburg, KY, USA
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Vehicle has 50,300 miles when the airbag light went on. Nissan says that the interanal failure to air bag control unit.part number 98820-9N092 was replaced for part price of $463.15. Labor to install was also $463.15.
Air bags failed to deploy. I was involved in an accident that caused substantial front end damage. I was traveling westbound in the flow of traffic on highway 84 at approximately 30 mph. The vehicle in front of me slammed on brakes and came to a sudden stop. I applied my brakes but was unable to avoid impacting the rear of the vehicle. Upon impact the entire front end of my car was crumpled. Both front quarter panels, front bumper, grill assembly, and hood were destroyed. The windshield also cracked. With the extent of the front end damage, the air bags should have deployed.
The airbags failed to open in a car accident. The front bumper was smashed and my daughter could have prevented injuries if the airbags had open. I have lost trust in Nissan and this crushed my faith in their products! !!!
The passenger airbag sensor light comes on intermittently, meaning airbag is off, when someone is sitting in the seat and the car is in motion; the light also randomly comes on when no one is sitting in the seat, then it goes off for a while. This has been happening for over a year and I keep checking for a recall. I talked to the dealer and they said a recall would be coming out in March 2016, but it's July and there is still no recall. I am astounded that I am put in a position to have an adult child of mine in the passenger seat riding with me when they would not be protected by the airbags that I trusted Nissan to provide and keep in operational condition in my car. Fortunately, I have not had an accident yet.
The contact owns a 2012 Nissan Maxima. The contact stated that the passenger side air bag off warning light illuminated whenever a 120 lbs passenger occupied the seat. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed that the passenger side seat air bag sensor was defective and needed to be replaced. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was 36,000.
There is a new recall for airbag senser misinterpreting the weight in the front passenger seat in many Nissan models. According to the dealership where I bought my car, my car is not included in the recall - but I have had the same issue. When my wife, who is around 130 lbs, sits in the seat, about half of the time the airbag light indicates that the airbag is disabled. She always sits all the way back in the seat. Speed or driving environment do not appear to have any effect on the issue. I have discussed the issue with two Nissan dealerships, and the issue still occurs. The first denied they could help because it wasnt currently happening when I had it at the shop. The second dealership recalibrated the sensor and it that brought the frequency down slightly to the current 50% I am frustrates that my car is not included in the current recall and feel like it needs to be expanded to include other model years, such as mine.
Takata recall!! the "passenger airbag off" light is on with or without a person in the passenger seat while driving. The drivers side chair rocks when slowing down. The front end makes a knocking noise when pressing on the breaks.
The passenger air bag light turns off and on when someone is sitting in the passenger seat and even when no one is in the seat. And this happens while the vehicle stationary and in motion.
Vehicle indicates that the passenger side air bag is on when seat is vacant; off with seat is occupied. The problem does not occur every time, but is a frequent problem. The dealer claims to be unable to diagnose the problem and has deemed the vehicle safe to drive.
2012 Maxima's passenger airbag off light comes on with adult passengers every 3rd or 4th trip. Went to Nissan dealership, Maxima under warranty, they said no codes were tripped and that they can't fix the problem but are aware of it. They also gave me a handout describing the difference between airbag off light and airbag malfunction light. The service manager told me he would call me if there is anything he can do for me. I called 1-800-nissan1 and filed a case, but they won't do anything because the dealership is "working on it". the dealership confirmed that if I have an adult passenger in my Maxima and the passenger airbag light off is on, the airbag will not deploy. I do not feel safe driving any passengers in my Maxima and feel Nissan is aware of the problem and trying to ignore it.
My wife weighs about 135 pounds.the airbag on passenger side does not work properly when she sits in the seat the airbag light goes on which indicates that the airbag is not working I have pictures to validate. So far Nissan is not trying to rectify the problem I have taken the car to 2 dealers, they say everthing is normal but the photo prove my complaint.
The passenger airbag light illuminates sporadically when there is an adult passenger sitting in the seat which informs that the airbag is deactivated. Brought car to dealer 5 times over the past 6 months. Each time I was told they could not duplicate the problem and that there were no error codes showing up. The last time they checked was Friday April 4th 2014. The dealer stated the same thing. The mechanic who tested came out to talk to us about this. My wife sat in the drivers seat and started the car. I sat in the passenger seat and the light illuminated in front of the mechanic. I asked him if I was seated properly, he agreed I was and took the vehicle while it was still running to test for codes again. He could not find any error codes but, acknowledged that there was a problem. Nissan North american told me that they spoke to the repair manager and he stated that the airbag system was operating properly and Nissan told me that there is no problem. Seems strange that Nissan is recalling 994,000 2013 and 2014 vehicles for this same issue claiming there is a software problem but will not consider updating the software in my 2012 Maxima. This is a safety issue that should be addressed by Nissan and they are refusing to do so.
Since I bought this car, whenever my wife sit on the passenger seat, the "air bag off" light turns on. My wife is 120 lb. Being very concern that airbag would not deploy during an accident I took the car to dealership couple times in early 2012 and was told that there is no issue. I even brought my wife to the dealership and show it, and they said that my wife is not sitting correctly... such a stupid excuses. Nissan need to fix this... this is a serious safety issue ! looking at forum and checking the complain here, apparently I am not alone.. just very surprised that either Nissan or NHTSA has not take any action over it...
Since I bought my car in May 2013 I have noticed several times that with or without someone in my passenger seat my air bag sensor will light up showing that the air bag is off no matter how I or the person in the seat moves it will not come on. The air bag just remains turned off. This is a huge safety concern for me I just found out how to file a complaint about it in hopes of getting it fixed. I know there are recalls on many Nissan makes and models for this but the 2012 Maxima is excluded.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Kansas City, MO, USA