IllustrationTHE "SERVICE ENGINE SOON LIGHT" COMES ON ABOUT ONCE A MONTH. MY AUTOMOBILE MECHANIC HAS TURNED OFF THE LIGHT EACH TIME. HE SAYS THAT THE CATALYTIC CONVERTER IS EITHER WEAKENING OR THEIR IS A DEFECT IN THE LIGHT. I FIND IT ALARMING ESPECIALLY WHEN I'M DRIVING AND I WORRY ABOUT IT EACH TIME IT COMES ON.
2000 Nissan Maxima
Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations
More warning signs than most Maxima years
Owner complaints for the 2000 Nissan Maxima are substantially higher than the model-year median of 99.
About this comparison →How this year compares
Owner complaints by model year
Compare all Maxima 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
210–25K
6625–50K
5550–75K
4375–100K
32100–150K
14150K+
231 reports with mileage · 129 unknown
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 171 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Engine And Engine Cooling. Review the 72 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Service Brakes, Hydraulic. Review the 26 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.
25 crash reports6 fire reports17 injury reports
Engine And Engine Cooling complaints
72 reportsVEHICLE HAS STALLED 3 TIMES WHEN COMING TO A STOP. WAS TAKEN TO DEALER TWICE. IAC VALVE WAS REPLACED, DID NOT REMEDY THE PROBLEM.*AK
CONSUMER STATES THAT WHILE DRIVING THE VEHICLE WILL AUTOMATICALLY SHUT OFF IT HAPPENS AT ANY SPEED. HAS TAKEN THE VEHICLE 5 TIMES IN THE DEALER AND ALSO THEY HAVE HAD IT IN THE DEALER SINCE JANUARY OF 2002 BUT THEY CANNOT FIND THE PROBLEM. NLM
CONSUMER STATED ENGINE WILL MAKE A "POPPING" NOISE DURING ACCELERATION AND A "KNOCKING" NOISE DURING NORMAL OPERATION. DEALERSHIP HAS EXAMINED VEHICLE BUT COULD NOT REPRODUCE THE PROBLEM. *AK *YH
ENGINE KNOCK (PINGING) AT 2K RPM, 40 MPH. *AK
ENGINE CHECK LIGHT ILLUMINATES WHILE DRIVING. DEALER HAS REPLACED CATALYTIC CONVERTER. HOWEVER, ENGINE CHECK LIGHT STILL ILLUMINATES.*AK
WHILE DRIVING AT ANY RATE OF SPEED OR WHILE MAKING ANY TRAFFIC MANEUVERS VEHICLE WILL COMPLETELY SHUTDOWN WITHOUT WARNING, CAUSE UNKNOWN. DEALER CANNOT IDENTIFY CAUSE. *AK CONSUMER STATES STALLING OCCURS MORE SPECIFICALLY WHEN DOWNSHIFTING INTO 2ND GEAR OR GOING AROUND CORNERS, VEHICLE WILL START UP WITH NO PROBLEMS. *SLC
1. ON COLD DAYS, PROCEEDING TO DRIVE AFTER BRIEF WARM-UP, ENGINE NEARLY STALLS WHEN RPM REACHES AROUND 2000. IT FEELS LIKE SOMEONE APPLIED BRAKES WITH A LOT OF FORCE. 2. CAR STALLED NUMEROUS TIMES AT THE LIGHT, COULD NOT RESTART THE ENGINE FOR 30-45 SEC AFTERWARDS. 3. DEALER CHECKED THE ENGINE COULD NOT FIND THE PROBLEM.
ENGINE CHECK LIGHT HAS COME ON 3 TIMES (WITHIN 13 MONTHS OF PURCHASE) CATALYTIC CONVERTER IS THE PROBLEM ALL 3 TIMES. *AK
INTERMITTENTLY WHEN APPLYING BRAKES AND/OR DECELERATING VEHICLE STALLS OUT AND DIES WITHOUT WARNING. VEHICLE WILL START UP IMMEDIATELY AFTER. DEALER HAS REPLACED THE SENSOR AND THE AIR FILTERS AND THE PROBLEM HAS REOCCURRED.*AK
Official recalls
0No recalls in this snapshot.
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
0No exact-year investigations in this snapshot.