2017 Nissan Armada Owner Complaints

Half of the speedometer lights as well as dash lights go out while driving. Lights are full lit when vehicle is started but then fail.

NHTSA ID

11743663

Incident

Jun 8, 2026

Dashboard lights for speedometer blink and half the side has gone dark

NHTSA ID

11741991

Incident

Sep 1, 2025

Unknown

NHTSA ID

11727187

Incident

Jul 9, 2025

I own a 2017 Nissan Armada with factory paint color QAB Pearl White. The paint has begun peeling and separating from the primer in multiple areas despite normal use and proper care. This appears to be a premature paint failure or manufacturing defect, not normal wear. I am requesting Nissan review this issue for goodwill repair or extended paint warranty consideration.

NHTSA ID

11724696

Incident

Aug 1, 2025

BCI MALFUNCTION LIGHT COMES ON AFTER DRIVING FOR ABOUT ONE MILE AND WILL STAY LIKE THAT TILL THE VEHICLE IS TURNED OFF. THE CRUISE CONTROL WILL NOT WORK DURING THIS TIME. ON OTHER ONLINE FORUM A LOT OF NISSAN OWNERS HAVE THE SAME ISSUE BUT NISSAN DEALERSHIP SAID THAT THERE IS NO RECALL ON THIS. I DID PURCHASE NEW BRAKE SWITCHES BOTH OF THEM AND IT GOT WORSE. A BUNCH OF OTHER LIGHTS COME ON AND THE CAR WILL NOT START AT ALL. I REMOVED THE NEW BRAKE SWITCHES AND CLEANED THE OLD ONES. PUT THEM BACK AND IS DOING THE SAME THING WERE AFTER ONE MILE THE BCI LIGHT WILL COME ON.

NHTSA ID

11715586

Incident

Nov 11, 2025

I’ve had my 2017 armada since 2018 and have had issues from the beginning. My GPS antenna has never worked and I assumed it was just a settings issue but after many attempts at resetting them and even purchasing the updated maps CD from the Nissan website it never fixed the issue. When I am driving you can feel the car jerk and slip. We have replaced the battery maybe 3 times in the last year. When I try to start my car it will turn on all the dash lights, shake, then shut off and sometimes if I wait it starts back up and other times it doesn’t. My car is running lean as well. I have kept up with the maintenance of my car and about 6 months ago I paid $3,000 to do repairs on it not related to these issues. These are all TSBs, but for some reason no recalls have been done. My car has become very unreliable.

NHTSA ID

11707231

Incident

Apr 4, 2025

I’ve had to replace the battery three times in three years that I’ve owned the vehicle I purchased it used. The transmission jerks like it’s slipping. It has done this ever since I purchased it no recalls on transmission. The side door airbag sensor is defective. The airbag light flashes on the dashboard took it to the new Nissan dealership was gonna cost five to $7000 for the sensor so that airbag will not deploy in the driver side door. I had a 2010 Nissan Armada airbag sensor went out and the steering wheel and it was outrageous to replace that airbag sensor no recalls I will never buy a Nissan Armada again.. I have had all maintenance and upkeep completed at the dealership on my vehicle. Why is there not a transmission recall an airbag recalls on these vehicles?

NHTSA ID

11699339

Incident

Nov 13, 2025

BCI Malfunction has occurred twice with the vehicle. I almost always have my children in the car with me. The first time it wouldn’t start again after I shut the engine off. Now the malfunction lights remain on. The brake switch was replaced and isn’t the issue. I’m afraid of this happening more often and am afraid of the potential risk for sudden braking.

NHTSA ID

11651055

Incident

Mar 23, 2025

BCI malfunction indication comes on while driving and the car intermittently doesn’t start. According to Nissan this issue has caused recalls but my vehicle is not listed with any recalls. It is causing safety concerns while driving, as well as caused me to be stuck places sometime for hours at a time due to the vehicle not starting. I have taken it to the shop and they have been unable to recreate this issues as it typically happens while driving and then once it doesn’t start the proper way for a full day it starts just fine.

NHTSA ID

11650684

Incident

Mar 26, 2025

The middle section of lights in the instrument panel has been blinking on/off intermittently for about two weeks. This makes it difficult to see your speed while driving at night and it's distracting, which causes me to take my eyes off the road for longer than I consider safe. Also, intermittently the truck hesitates to start, today it had to be towed to the dealer. After the diagnosis, I was told the Instrument Cluster Assembly should be replaced to resolve the light panel issue and the starter needs to be replaced. I find it surprising that the instrument panel would go out so soon. I wonder if this is connected to the previous intermittent BCI (Backup Collision Intervention) malfunction lights on the dash issue I had a few years ago. Additionally, I've had to replace the battery in the truck three times in the last four years since I purchased it (pre-owned). Which is not normal at all. We could not figure out what was causing the batteries to keep draining. The last battery I got was replaced by Nissan (free of charge) and I haven't had any issues with it dying since then. With so many complaints about this instrument Cluster Assembly I've been reading that have been reported over the last few years how many does it take to be considered a recall?

NHTSA ID

11644324

Incident

Feb 22, 2025

The passenger airbag occupancy sensor has failed. The passenger airbag will not deploy in the event of collision. The issue has not been easily able to accurately diagnose. The dealership recommends replacement of the entire passenger seat frame with built in sensors. This repair ranges between 4-7 thousand. If it repairs the issue. This is a significant portion of the value of the vehicle.

NHTSA ID

11640681

Incident

Feb 4, 2025

When pressing button to start, car gets stuck mid turn on and shakes. Doesn’t fully turn on and continues shaking. Button stops working. After multiple presses eventually turns car back off. Sometimes happens twice in a row or will start after the shaking on off.

NHTSA ID

11620884

Incident

Jun 3, 2024

On [XXX] my vehicle engine would not turn over. It then lost complete power moments later. The battery was recharged and reinstalled. I attempted to start the vehicle again and it drained the battery. I installed a NEW battery on [XXX] and the vehicle worked properly. On [XXX] I attempted to start the vehicle and the it drained the battery. This time, I called Nissan Customer Service and was instructed nothing old be done until a NISSAN DEALERSHIP ran diagnostics on the vehicle. Obviously, I had to call for a tow because the battery was dead. The tow truck driver was able to jump the battery and I drove to Ron Marhofer Nissan in Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio to have the diagnostics performed. After explaining the problems to the service technician, I was told that SOME Nissans (regardless of model or year), have been experiencing this problem, and the only fix was a battery saver update to the body control module. To date, I have not had any issues since the battery saver update was performed. The issues are, 1. This is a known problem affecting multiple Nissan models, 2. A Nissan Dealership is the only place this problem can be diagnosed or fixed, 3. The only way an owner becomes aware of this problem is after multiple battery issues, and ultimately, a trip to the Nissan Dealership, 4. Nissan is forcing owners to pay for this update that is necessary for their vehicle to run properly, 5. Nissan controls all aspects of the repair and has a monopoly over it INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

NHTSA ID

11616299

Incident

Sep 20, 2024

Was driving on a smooth road when suddenly airbag light on dash came on flashing. All the steering wheel buttons are working. Brought car to mechanic's shop to scan obd2, no dtc codes. Mechanic says they don't know what it is without a code. Nissan has been shady lately with technical service bulletins TSB instead of recalls. TSB according to Nissan hq is a repair at the discretion of the dealer meaning that they do not have to repair it even while it was under warranty. I had some piston slapping noise and burning smell coming from engine bay while under warranty the dealer Mechanic said," the noise is normal that of a suv and the burnt smell was the peanut packing oil burning off the outside of the engine". There was a TSB put out a few months later saying that Nissan acknowledged a defective short block in the engine causing abnormal wear on the piston. I brought it into the dealer and they refused to replace the short block and damaged cylinder. NHTSA needs to up their game and force these auto companies to be accountable. Years back my first edition Honda accord v6 had failed brakes that made me have an accident totaling the car. Veered off side of highway to minimize harm to others. Three years after the accident a recall on that models brakes came up. I was never given money for the totalled car by Honda. They need to be held accountable. Please take action and force the recalls instead of waiting for more people to be injured. Just look at the complaints on this make and model, why hasn't an investigation even begun? Airbag should be a top priority in recalls. Especially a blinking light with no explanation is a ticking time bomb that can set off an airbag at any given notice worst yet not deploy when there is an actual accident.

NHTSA ID

11614601

Incident

Sep 6, 2024

Timing chain oil leak from faulty gasket.

NHTSA ID

11613461

Incident

Sep 6, 2024

My vehicle was having intermitten BCI (Backup Collision Intervention) malfunction lights on the dash. On one occurrence it caused my vehicle to slam on the brakes suddenly at 20mph, it is definitely a safety issue. I replaced both brake switches which solved it temporarily but now it is on constantly. It has been scanned with various Nissan scan tools and no errors are found. I have read endless forum posts of Armada owners having this problem and the dealerships are giving them the run around with no clear solution.

NHTSA ID

11611048

Incident

Aug 26, 2024

I have had to replace the brake switch twice in this vehicle and it is under 35k miles. Other Nissan models have had this recalled. Once it begins to fail, the car will not start because it doesn't detect the brake is depressed. It also sets off the BCI Malfunction warning randomly and while driving, which impacts cruise control and brake safety. I can send invoices of repairs from dealership if helpful.

NHTSA ID

11592602

Incident

May 29, 2024

The red airbag warning light began flashing on my 2017 Nissan Armada on Friday, April 19, 2024. I took the vehicle to Wood Nissan of Lee's Summit for them to diagnose the issue. I was told the airbag control module had failed as well as the left side (driver side) curtain airbag. The dealership checked for recalls and found none. Non-moving vehicle components, like the airbag system, are designed to last the life of the vehicle and sudden and unexplainable failures like my vehicle experienced presented a risk not only to me, but potentially to other owners of the same model year vehicle. This vehicle has been well maintained with regular dealership visits and has never been in an accident of any kind as I am also the original owner. In searching for airbag system recalls, I found that there were various recalls on Nissan Armada model years just prior to and after my 2017 model and I am concerned there is a system issue that needs to be addressed directly by Nissan and the airbag manufacturer.

NHTSA ID

11587323

Incident

Apr 19, 2024

Although I have a brand new battery, there is a short in the system that causes it to drain entirely when turned off. At least twice a month, the battery will die because it won't hold a charge when not operating. This is especially challenging when it is very warm in the summer. Once the battery is jumped, I have to run the vehicle for 30 minutes to recharge and hope it is full. I've been told it's a known defect but not yet a recall, but I can cite many examples of how this creates a safety issue when I am unable to jump it repeatedly with my portable jumper. As it is an electrical issue, this needs to be addressed and cited as a recall to stop the insanity!

NHTSA ID

11583191

Incident

Apr 15, 2024

Left side driver air bag. Air bag light on. Repair to replace airbag needed at a cost of approximately $2,000 in order to get Massachusetts state inspection sticker. One week later, light back on, now estimate from dealer for $3,400 to replace the harness that the airbag sits in. We can't afford to get this second repair. Should manufacturers be responsible for a required safety feature such as an airbag? We won't be able to get it inspected next year with the blinking airbag light on. We will be driving around with a car with no left side airbag because we can't afford to replace and we will need to get a replacement car next year as the light flashing required to be fixed before Massachusetts will provide an inspection sticker.

NHTSA ID

11582569

Incident

Apr 12, 2024

The contact owns a 2017 Nissan Armada. The contact stated that while driving at low rates of speed, the vehicle came to an abrupt stop with the check engine and ABS warning lights illuminated. The contact was forced to restart the vehicle; however, the vehicle failed to accelerate above 30 MPH. The vehicle was taken to a dealer where the contact was initially informed that the output speed sensor was defective; however, later the contact was informed that the transmission needed to be replaced. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and a case was filed. The vehicle was not yet repaired and remained in the possession of the dealer. The failure mileage was approximately 55,000.

NHTSA ID

11564124

Incident

Dec 24, 2023

Mileage

55,000 mi

As I was driving my Nissan Armada the car suddenly stopped as it does if it feels there may be an accident. There was nothing around the truck at that moment and the truck just jolted and didn’t advance. After this the engine light turned on and it does not accelerate properly .

NHTSA ID

11562016

Incident

Dec 22, 2023

My driver's side rear "CV axel" needs replaced, and there are many TSB's regarding the Powertrain. My vehicle has roughly 87,000 miles on it. It seems as if there is an issue the manufacturer knows about but there hasn't been enough complaints as of yet.

NHTSA ID

11549335

Incident

Sep 1, 2023

Unable to see speedometer between 30 and 100 mph.

NHTSA ID

11548651

Incident

Oct 2, 2021

Middle section of instrument panel lights are out. This is making it hard to see your speed while driving at night and in turn takes your eyes off the road for longer. Service center couldn't believe that a LED instrument panel would go out so soon. Additionally, something drains the battery if the car sits for more than a day. Several times I have not been able to start the car both at home and away. Battery has been replaced 3 times in the last year and a half. Last battery pulled was tested as still good by the service center. There were no warning lights or messages for these issues.

NHTSA ID

11540721

Incident

Mar 16, 2023