← New search

2023 Nissan Frontier

Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations

Similar to other model years

Owner complaints for the 2023 Nissan Frontier do not stand out strongly from the model-year median of 64.

About this comparison →

How this year compares

Owner complaints by model year

Other model years Selected year
Compare all Frontier years →

Counts vary with age, sales and reporting. They are not failure rates.

What owners reported most

All reported categories

Tap a category to read its complaints. One report may name several components.

When problems were reported

Mileage at the reported incident

Limited mileage data: 11 of 66 reports include usable mileage. There isn’t enough coverage to show a useful chart.

NHTSA’s mileage field refers to the reported incident, not necessarily the filing date. This shows report counts, not the likelihood of a failure.

What to inspect

Issues worth paying extra attention to based on owner reports.

  • Electrical System. Review the 30 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
  • Service Brakes. Review the 15 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
  • Engine. Review the 13 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →

NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.

4 crash reports3 fire reports2 injury reports

What owners actually said

66 reports
Mileage unknown · Sep 11, 2026
Electrical SystemPower TrainVehicle Speed Control

Muffler developed hole in the top of it prematurely and melted the main wiring harness due to a known design flaw. The vehicle is still at the dealer awaiting repair. All warning lights came on, 4 wheel drive was disabled, center console lost power and hvac was disabled. Safety was put at risk as this happened on the nys thruway…

Read full complaint

Muffler developed hole in the top of it prematurely and melted the main wiring harness due to a known design flaw. The vehicle is still at the dealer awaiting repair. All warning lights came on, 4 wheel drive was disabled, center console lost power and hvac was disabled. Safety was put at risk as this happened on the nys thruway and the vehicles main wiring harness was actively melting/shorting while driving. The shorts disabled all Safety features like lane assist, detections, and abs. Transmission would also not down shift properly leaving me unable to safely accelerate. Im unsure if the tail lights were still operational or not but wouldnt be surprised if they weren't as many other systems to the rear of the vehicle were fully disabled. The truck is at the dealer I have a quote and video of the muffler and melted wiring harness. The truck is not safe to drive but the problem is constant. This is a known problem by nissan as theres a tsb to place a larger heat shield over the wiring harness.

NHTSA ODI #11763691

Mileage unknown · Sep 11, 2026
Electrical SystemUnknown Or OtherFire

I purchased a pre-owned certified vehicle in June of 2025 it was a 2023 model with approximately 23k miles on it. In August of 2026 I was driving on the interstate and the vehicles warning lights came on and the vehicle shut down completely at a speed of 70 mph. The safety flashers quit working along with the headlights leaving …

Read full complaint

I purchased a pre-owned certified vehicle in June of 2025 it was a 2023 model with approximately 23k miles on it. In August of 2026 I was driving on the interstate and the vehicles warning lights came on and the vehicle shut down completely at a speed of 70 mph. The safety flashers quit working along with the headlights leaving the vehicle totally dark on a remote section of Interstate at night. I had the vehicle towed to a Nissan dealership and I was sent a video of what happened from the certified Nissan technician. I can provide the link to the video upon request. The technician stated in the video that the muffler had developed a very large hole in it and the heat from the exhaust coming from the hole melted the vehicles wiring harness. I feel this is a very dangerous situation as it could cause a vehicle to catch fire. It also caused the emergency lights to not work and all of the other vehicle systems stopped working. I did some research online and found that this is a well documented issue with this make and model of vehicle. The manufacturer has even went as far as offering an additional heat shield for purchase which I only recently found out about. 1. I have the old exhaust system available for inspection. 2.The vehicle could of caught fire of we could of been hit by another vehicle since it was night time and the lights quit working. 3.I am unsure but there are many well documented cases available from a simple online search. 4. Just the service center. 5.It was sudden and there were no warnings and the vehicle had passed a certified inspection 11 months prior with nothing noted.

NHTSA ODI #11763659

Mileage unknown · Jul 23, 2026
Electrical System

The power door lock system intermittently malfunctions. During the initial failure, the passenger rear door lock seized in the unlocked position and could not be manually operated. The vehicle was taken to an authorized Nissan dealership, where all three passenger door lock actuators were replaced. Following the repair, the seiz…

Read full complaint

The power door lock system intermittently malfunctions. During the initial failure, the passenger rear door lock seized in the unlocked position and could not be manually operated. The vehicle was taken to an authorized Nissan dealership, where all three passenger door lock actuators were replaced. Following the repair, the seized lock condition was resolved; however, the underlying malfunction continues. The passenger front and passenger rear doors will unlock electronically but will not lock using the key fob, interior lock switch, or intelligent key functions. The driver rear side door does not respond to electronic lock or unlock commands. The only way to secure or access the affected doors is by manually operating each individual door lock. The malfunction affects three of the four doors simultaneously and occurs intermittently without warning. No warning lights or messages are displayed when the failure occurs. This defect creates a safety concern because the vehicle cannot be secured as designed, and passengers may not be able to quickly access or enter through an affected door without manual intervention. In an emergency, delays caused by manually locking or unlocking doors could impede access to passengers or evacuation from the vehicle. The issue has been reproduced multiple times and confirmed by an authorized Nissan dealership. Although the passenger door lock actuators were replaced, the malfunction persists, indicating the repair did not correct the underlying defect. The vehicle remains available for inspection.

NHTSA ODI #11752360

Mileage unknown · Jul 11, 2026
Visibility/wiper

Rear backup camera turned purple in color and not accurate when backing up to a trailer.

NHTSA ODI #11749737

Mileage unknown · Jun 29, 2026
Power Train

Transmission shifting harshly and may have to be replaced

NHTSA ODI #11747309

Mileage unknown · Jun 26, 2026
Power TrainUnknown Or Other

While underway at speeds under 20 mph. Vehicle hesitates and lurches creating a danger when taking off from a stop light. Vehicle may delay acceleration from a stop, which can feel unsafe in traffic and in merging situations.This activity is uncontrollable as the driver has no control and could lead to an accident or injury to p…

Read full complaint

While underway at speeds under 20 mph. Vehicle hesitates and lurches creating a danger when taking off from a stop light. Vehicle may delay acceleration from a stop, which can feel unsafe in traffic and in merging situations.This activity is uncontrollable as the driver has no control and could lead to an accident or injury to pedestrians or other wise. Another problem is rough shifting, hard downshifts and a jerking. There is both an audible clunk and felt responce or "shift shock". Potential safety risk of hesitation or unexpected gear changes may compromise vehicle control. I have reported and visited the Bradenton Nissan dealership. (2 times) to no avail.

NHTSA ODI #11746707

Mileage unknown · Jun 16, 2026
Steering

Bought my 2023 Nissan Frontier PRO 4X last year and immediately noticed a clicking sound coming from the steering wheel. This noise only occurs while driving and making slight adjustments to the wheel. The noise ranges in loudness and intensity and at times can be felt while holding the steering wheel. Reported issue at 2 separa…

Read full complaint

Bought my 2023 Nissan Frontier PRO 4X last year and immediately noticed a clicking sound coming from the steering wheel. This noise only occurs while driving and making slight adjustments to the wheel. The noise ranges in loudness and intensity and at times can be felt while holding the steering wheel. Reported issue at 2 separate dealerships so far with no resolution offered. Concerned that the constant clicking/rubbing in the steering column may lead to a catastrophic failure while driving.

NHTSA ODI #11744632

Mileage unknown · Jun 16, 2026
Back Over PreventionElectrical System

Camera shows purple/pink screen and is not fully functional. Numerous instances found online of this issue.

NHTSA ODI #11744398

Mileage unknown · May 26, 2026
Electrical System

Vehicle door locks causing driver and passengers to exit the vehicle. Have already had front passenger door and driver side back passenger door fixed. Now driver door will lock and once driver inside, is unable to exit vehicle. In the event of emergency, anyone in vehicle could parish because they would not be able to exit the v…

Read full complaint

Vehicle door locks causing driver and passengers to exit the vehicle. Have already had front passenger door and driver side back passenger door fixed. Now driver door will lock and once driver inside, is unable to exit vehicle. In the event of emergency, anyone in vehicle could parish because they would not be able to exit the vehicle.

NHTSA ODI #11740004

Mileage unknown · Apr 19, 2026
Seats

The 2023 Nissan Frontier was purchased new and is under manufacturer's warranty. Beginning in the summer of 2025, the driver's seatback has unexpectedly moved rearward, including more than one instance where it fell completely back toward the rear seat. Each time, the vehicle has been turned off, the seat is unoccupied, and no…

Read full complaint

The 2023 Nissan Frontier was purchased new and is under manufacturer's warranty. Beginning in the summer of 2025, the driver's seatback has unexpectedly moved rearward, including more than one instance where it fell completely back toward the rear seat. Each time, the vehicle has been turned off, the seat is unoccupied, and no one was in contact with the seat controls. The seat does not feel lose when manually pushed and appears normal between incidents. The issue is intermittent and cannot be easily reproduced on demand. This is a serious safety issue. If the seatback recliner mechanism fails while driving, it could suddenly alter the driver's position, reduce control of the vehicle and increase the risk of injury in a crash. I have reported the issue multiple times to an authorized Nissan dealership. The vehicle has been inspected and kept overnight, but the issue was not reproduced and no repair was made. I also contacted Nissan Consumer Affairs who attributed the issue to the seat adjustment switch being accidentally activated. This explanation does not match the conditions under which the problem occurs (vehicle off, seat unoccupied). I am requesting this issue be investigated as a potential defect in the seatback recliner mechanism or power seat system. This condition appears to involve un-commanded seat movement and possible failure of the seatback locking mechanism. I have photos but am waiting for the internet to forward them from my phone to my computer to upload.

NHTSA ODI #11732266

Official recalls

1

23V273000 · Tires:bead

Apr 17, 2023

Nissan North America, Inc. (Nissan) is recalling certain 2023 Titan and Frontier vehicles. The tires may have a tear in the inner bead which can cause a rapid loss of tire pressure.

Consequence & remedy

Consequence: A rapid loss of tire pressure while driving can lead to a loss of vehicle control, increasing the risk of a crash.

Remedy: Dealers will replace all four road tires, or inspect and replace the spare tire assembly, as necessary, free of charge. Owner notification letters are expected to be mailed June 10, 2023. Owners may contact Nissan's customer service at 1-800-867-7669. Nissan's number for this recall is PC973 and PC974.

Model-level recall history does not show whether a particular VIN is affected or has received a repair. Check a VIN with NHTSA ↗

NHTSA investigations

0

No exact-year investigations in this snapshot.