7 complaints reported

2017 Nissan Maxima Power Train

Owner-reported problems and safety issues filed with NHTSA. Review common failures, severity levels, and complaint trends over time.

Reports
7
Crashes
1
Fires
0
Injuries
0

Complaint Timeline

Chronological view of owner reports

Aug 2025

Component Failure: CVT transmission completely failed, requires full replacement. Failed unit available for inspection. Consistent with known manufacturing defect affecting multiple Nissan models, evidenced by $400+ million in class action settlements in the USA alone. Safety Risks: Sudden acceleration loss while driving, unpredictable lurching/jerking, complete loss of forward propulsion, risk of rear-end collisions, inability to safely merge or maintain highway speeds. CVT failures occur suddenly without adequate warning. Dealer Confirmation: Younker Nissan in Renton, WA confirmed complete CVT failure requiring replacement, estimated cost $8800. Manufacturer Inspection: None. Nissan declined inspection citing mileage over 84,000-mile limit, despite known manufacturing defect and my vehicle falling within [XXX] v. Nissan settlement model years (2016-2018 Maxima). Warning Symptoms: Initial: Shuddering and jerking while on highway. Within 1 hour: Intermittent hesitation, jerking during acceleration, transmission shuddering, whining noises, slipping, intermittent check engine light Within 2 days: More of the same, but worse. Completely stopped driving it. These match documented CVT failure patterns in Nissan settlements: hesitating, stalling, jerking, lurching, shaking, juddering, premature failure. Context: This systematic manufacturing defect acknowledged through multiple Nissan settlements totaling $400+ million in trhe USA alone. Failure at 106k miles well within expected transmission lifespan for properly maintained flagship sedan. Arbitrary 84k-mile settlement limits exclude well-maintained vehicles experiencing same inherent defect. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

Type: Vehicle, Vehicle: 2017 NISSAN MAXIMA, Manufacturer: Nissan North America, Inc.
Incident: Aug 2025
Sep 2024

The system that failed on my Maxima SL 2017 was the CVT transmission. It was diagnosed by Sutherlin Dealer Nissan on 4/3/24 with the code DTC P17F1 CVT Judder at the cost of $193.83. My safety & others were put at risk when my car STOP in the middle of an intersection not once but 4 times without a warning, not lights, not sounds etc. just STOP. I pressed the gas petal and the car moved slowly. After the diagnosis we were told the car may or may not stop again. We decided to look for another diagnosis & quote. On 4/10/24 the car left me stranded again crossing another intersection. Car was towed again to a certified Nissan transmission shop and left for repairs. A Nissan OEM refurbished transmission was changed, and computer was reprogrammed at Sutherlin Nissan as part of the fixing at a cost of $6,707.49. On 4/29/24 car stop sudden again. Car was towed to the previous independent transmission shop and 4 days later they stated nothing was wrong because not code related to the transmission or anything else showed, but a new battery was placed. We pick up the car again from the independent repair shop on 5/3/24, in our trip back the next day 5/4/24 from returning the 3rd rental car, the car STOP again in the middle of the road (limp mode) We waited about 45 minutes with the car on and noticed a strange noise coming from the new installed transmission and the air conditioner turned off. After turning the engine on and off the AC came back on again and car seems to come back normally. We were able to manage to take it to the Nissan Dealership with was just 15 minutes away. We left the car and waited for the diagnosis to be made on Monday 5/6/24. We were informed that same transmission code showed which means the new installed refurbished transmission was gone bad!!! and the good news was we don't have to pay for another transmission, but we must pay for labor again $2,696.

Type: Vehicle, Vehicle: 2017 NISSAN MAXIMA, Manufacturer: Nissan North America, Inc.
Incident: Mar 2024
Dec 2023

The transmission just stops shifting out of nowhere and has had a transmission judder code since ive owned it. The transmission shakes at acceleration about 90% of the time.

Type: Vehicle, Vehicle: 2017 NISSAN MAXIMA, Manufacturer: Nissan North America, Inc.
Incident: Dec 2023
Aug 2022

Transmission went out

Type: Vehicle, Vehicle: 2017 NISSAN MAXIMA, Manufacturer: Nissan North America, Inc.
Incident: Aug 2022
Jul 2022

I have had my 2017 Nissan Maxima since 2018. It had 29,963 miles when I purchased it. Since I have had it I put 33,000 miles on it and had all of the recommended service done on at the dealership. This would include having the transmission flushed at 32000 miles. My car currently has 62000 miles on it and the CVT transmission has been slipping and the car shudders at low speeds. I took it to the dealership and they told me that it needed to be replaced. I really feel that Nissan needs to investigate how many transmissions have issues with this low mileage. The standard warranty on the power-train is 60,000 miles, how convenient for them.

Type: Vehicle, Vehicle: 2017 NISSAN MAXIMA, Manufacturer: Nissan North America, Inc.
Incident: Jul 2022
Jun 2019

AFTER NUMEROUS VISITS TO THE NISSAN DEALERSHIP WITHOUT GETTING ANSWERS AND CLEARLY EXPLAINING THAT MY CAR IS EXPERIENCING CVT JUDDER AND VIBRATIONS. I HAVE BEEN EXPERIENCING THE VIBRATIONS AS TOLD TO NISSAN FOR AWHILE BUT I DON'T THINK THEY WANTED TO REPLACE MY CVT TRANSMISSION SINCE IT WAS STILL UNDER WARRANTY SO I WAS TOLD THE NOISE AND VIBRATIONS WERE NORMAL CVT CHATTER. I AM NOW PAST MY EXTENDED WARRANTY AND THE JUDDER AND VIBRATIONS HAVE ONLY GOTTEN WORSE. THE 2017 MAXIMA NEEDS TO BE ADDED TO THE VOLANTARY SERVICE BULLETINS LIKE THE 2016 DUE TO ALL THE COMPLAINTS ITS CURRENTLY ALREADY RECEIVING. MY MAXIMA NOW HAS 112,000K MILES BUT I HAVE BEEN SEEING THE SYMPTOMS SINCE AROUND 70K-80K MILES TO ONLY BE TOLD TIME AND TIME AGAIN ITS NORMAL WITH A POSSIBLE $3,700 TRANSMISSION BILL AWAITING ME FOR A CAR THAT HAS ONLY BEEN DRIVEN ON THE HIGHWAY LESS THAN 3 YEARS. NISSAN HAS SHOWN THAT THEIR CVT TRANSMISSIONS ARE EXTREMELY UNRELIABLE.

Type: Vehicle, Vehicle: 2017 NISSAN MAXIMA, Manufacturer: Nissan North America, Inc.
Incident: Jun 2019
Nov 2017 Crash

ON 11/13/2017 I USED THE AUTOMATIC STARTER TO START MY CAR FROM INSIDE THE HOUSE AND MY CAR ROLLED BACK INTO MY NEIGHBOR'S SUV WHILE STILL IN PARK. WHEN I WENT OUTSIDE AFTER HEARING THE SOUND OF MY CAR HITTING THE TRUCK I GOT INTO MY CAR AND HAD TO PUT IT IN DRIVE TO MOVE THE CAR BACK INTO MY PARK. MY CAR WAS PARK OUTSIDE OF MY HOUSE AT 14109 CARMODY PL WOODBRIDGE VA 22193.

Type: Vehicle, Vehicle: 2017 NISSAN MAXIMA, Manufacturer: Nissan North America, Inc.
Incident: Nov 2017

Trend Over Time

Complaints by year

Quick Summary

The 2017 Nissan Maxima has 7 Power Train complaints on file. 1 crashes have been reported. Review the timeline above for detailed owner experiences.