"How reliable is the 2009 Nissan Maxima?"

"Based on 460 NHTSA complaints, the 2009 Nissan Maxima has a median complaint mileage of 70000 miles. The most common issue is STEERING."

"What are common problems with the 2009 Nissan Maxima?"

"The most frequently reported component in NHTSA complaints for the 2009 Nissan Maxima is STEERING, accounting for a significant portion of the 460 total complaints filed."

2009 Nissan Maxima: Reliability Data

Source: NHTSA — 460 complaints

460

Total Complaints

70,000mi

Median Mileage

STEERING

Top Issue

Crash Reports

When Do Complaints Happen?

Distribution of NHTSA complaints by vehicle mileage at time of report.

45,000 25th Percentile

70,000 Median Mileage

104,250 75th Percentile

What Fails?

Most reported component issues from NHTSA complaints.

STEERING

165

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM

AIR BAGS

SUSPENSION

UNKNOWN OR OTHER

ENGINE

SEATS

POWER TRAIN

VISIBILITY/WIPER

WHEELS

Severity Assessment

Crashes

Fires

Injuries

Deaths

Sample Complaint Reports

"TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2009 NISSAN MAXIMA. IMMEDIATELY AFTER PURCHASING THE VEHICLE IN DECEMBER OF 2008, THE CONTACT NOTICED THAT THE AIR BAG LIGHT WOULD REMAIN ILLUMINATED WHEN THE FRONT PASSENGER SEAT WAS OCCUPIED. IN ADDITION, THE AIR BAG SENSOR WOULD NOT WORK WHENEVER A PASSENGER UTILIZED THE B..."

"IN JANUARY 2009 I PURCHASED A BRAND NEW 2009 NISSAN MAXIMA. IN APRIL MY INTERIOR LIGHTS, STEERING WHEEL AND SEAT AND THE HEAT ON MY DRIVERS SIDE SEAT STOPPED WORKING. I TOOK MY CAR IN TO THE NISSAN DEALER FOR REPAIRS, I WAS TOLD THAT THERE WAS AND ELECTRICAL PROBLEM AND THAT THEY HAD REPAIRED IT. ..."

Source: NHTSA ODI Complaints Database. Names and identifying details omitted.

When Were Complaints Filed?

Number of complaints by the year the issue occurred.

When Does Each Component Fail?

Median mileage at complaint for top components.

STEERING 165 complaints

25th: 46,250 mi Median: 61,000 mi 75th: 89,813 mi

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 78 complaints

25th: 46,125 mi Median: 66,746 mi 75th: 92,000 mi

AIR BAGS 40 complaints

25th: 40,000 mi Median: 81,000 mi 75th: 116,000 mi

SUSPENSION 35 complaints

25th: 50,649 mi Median: 83,550 mi 75th: 122,250 mi

UNKNOWN OR OTHER 33 complaints

25th: 58,750 mi Median: 100,052 mi 75th: 126,750 mi

Where Are Complaints Coming From?

Top states by complaint count.

CA: 39 TX: 36 FL: 33 MD: 29 NC: 28 PA: 25 VA: 25 GA: 24 NY: 19 IL: 18

Who Files Complaints?

1.1%

Original Owners

98.9%

Second+ Owners

Nissan Maxima — Other Years

See how this model compares across different model years.

Year	Complaints	Median Mileage	Top Issue	Crashes
1990	138	128,000	VISIBILITY:POWER WINDOW DEVICES AND CONTROLS	7
1991	99	134,097	SEATS:FRONT ASSEMBLY:RECLINER	10
1992	140	139,000	VISIBILITY:POWER WINDOW DEVICES AND CONTROLS	23
1993	102	108,000	AIR BAGS:FRONTAL	13
1994	128	100,000	VISIBILITY:POWER WINDOW DEVICES AND CONTROLS	7
1995	195	131,000	AIR BAGS:FRONTAL	18
1996	117	100,300	AIR BAGS:FRONTAL	15
1997	123	85,892	ELECTRICAL SYSTEM:ALTERNATOR/GENERATOR/REGULATOR	8
1998	133	110,000	AIR BAGS	14
1999	215	80,000	ELECTRICAL SYSTEM:IGNITION	9
2000	467	60,000	ELECTRICAL SYSTEM:IGNITION	33
2001	224	75,000	AIR BAGS	15
2002	278	67,500	AIR BAGS	37
2003	249	88,500	ENGINE	20
2004	1725	78,950	POWER TRAIN:AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION	43
2005	1152	86,000	POWER TRAIN	32
2006	733	84,000	POWER TRAIN	30
2007	168	85,001	STRUCTURE:BODY	5
2008	99	75,000	AIR BAGS	9
2010	399	67,000	STEERING	9
2011	138	70,000	AIR BAGS	9
2012	136	52,000	AIR BAGS	9
2013	71	65,500	POWER TRAIN	1
2014	126	52,725	AIR BAGS	20
2016	223	44,307	POWER TRAIN	16
2017	147	27,907	UNKNOWN OR OTHER	11
2018	44	39,178	UNKNOWN OR OTHER	2
2019	26	17,000	UNKNOWN OR OTHER	6
2020	32	8,296	STRUCTURE:BODY	2

Data source: View this vehicle on NHTSA.gov | NHTSA ODI Complaints Database. Public domain.

Methodology: Complaint counts and mileage distributions are computed directly from consumer-reported NHTSA complaints. This data represents reported issues, not failure rates — vehicles without complaints are not represented. Full methodology.

Data through: 2026-03-28