2005 Nissan Xterra: recalls and complaints

NHTSA lists 3 recall campaigns for the 2005 Nissan Xterra. The newest campaign is 10V517000. NHTSA received the report on 28 Oct 2010. The NHTSA record gives the component Engine and Engine Cooling. NHTSA has 845 complaints on file for this model year. 1 NHTSA investigation names this model year.

The NHTSA recall file shows no do-not-drive advisory and no park-outside advisory on these campaigns.

This page cannot show if a recall applies to one vehicle. The NHTSA VIN lookup shows the unrepaired recalls of one vehicle.

Remedy of the newest campaign, 10V517000, in the NHTSA record

Dealers will replace the ecm relay inside the ipdm assembly. This service will be performed free of charge. The safety recall began on december 6, 2010. Owners may contact nissan at 1-800-647-7261.

NHTSA VIN lookup

Complaint information entered into NHTSA’s Office of Defects Investigation vehicle owner's complaint database is used with other data sources to identify safety issues that warrant investigation and to determine if a safety-related defect trend exists.
NHTSA publishes these words. Source: NHTSA Datasets and APIs, section Complaints, read on 1 Oct 2026. Complaint file through 30 Sep 2026. Recall file through 30 Sep 2026.

Since the last update

No tracked figure of this page changed in a data update. What the log tracks

All updates to the register

Recall campaigns

3 campaigns, newest first. 1,002,700 units in total.

10V517000Received 28 Oct 2010. 747,480 units.
Engine and Engine Cooling
Defect, in the NHTSA record
Nissan is recalling certain model year 2004-2006 armada, titan, infiniti qx56 and model year 2005-2006 frontier, pathfinder and xterra vehicles. The intelligent power distribution module (ipdm) assembly contains an engine control module (ecm) relay that has a diode for electrical current noise reduction. The ecm relay may allow silicon vapor to form and, over time, the silicon evaporates from the diode molding which causes silicon oxide to develop on the ecm relay contact due to arcing.
Consequence, in the NHTSA record
This could cause engine stalling increasing the risk of a crash.
Remedy, in the NHTSA record
Dealers will replace the ecm relay inside the ipdm assembly. This service will be performed free of charge. The safety recall began on december 6, 2010. Owners may contact nissan at 1-800-647-7261.
Report filed by NISSAN NORTH AMERICA, INC.. Owner notification date in the NHTSA record: 6 Dec 2010.
08V690000Received 29 Dec 2008. 242,720 units.
Air Bags / Frontal
Defect, in the NHTSA record
Nissan is recalling 242,720 my 2005-2009 pathfinder, frontier and xterra vehicles originally sold in or currently registered in the states of connecticut, delaware, illinois, indiana, iowa, maine, maryland, massachusetts, michigan, minnesota, missouri, new hampshire, new jersey, new york, ohio, pennsylvania, rhode island, vermont, west virginia, wisconsin, and the district of columbia. In those areas of the country which use heavy concentrations of road salt in the winter, a mixture of snow/water and salt can enter into the front crash zone sensor (czs) housing. If this occurs, the czs may internally rust resulting in a signal interruption. If this happens, the red air bag warning light will illuminate to alert the vehicle operator.
Consequence, in the NHTSA record
This issue could result in the non-deployment of the driver and passenger front air bags in a crash, increasing the risk of personal injury.
Remedy, in the NHTSA record
Dealers will replace the front czs with a redesigned sensor. The recall began on january 26, 2009. Owners in the other states will receive extended warranty coverage for the sensor to 10 years. These owners will be notified of the warranty extension by mail and will receive a sticker to place in their warranty booklet explaining the extended warranty coverage. Owners may contact nissan at 1-800-647-7261.
Report filed by NISSAN NORTH AMERICA, INC.. Owner notification date in the NHTSA record: 26 Jan 2009.
05V458000Received 5 Oct 2005. 12,500 units.
Trailer Hitches
Defect, in the NHTSA record
On certain sport utility vehicles equipped with a nissan accessory tow hitch, inadequate quality of some welded joints in the hitch assembly may result in separation of the hitch from the vehicle when being used to tow.
Consequence, in the NHTSA record
This could result in the trailer separating from the vehicle and cause a crash without warning.
Remedy, in the NHTSA record
Dealers will replace the tow hitches. On october 17, 2005, owners were sent an interim letter advising them not to use the tow hitch until it can be repaired. Another letter was sent out on november 21, 2005, notifying them to bring their vehicles in for repair. Owners may contact nissan at 1-800-647-7261.
Report filed by NISSAN NORTH AMERICA, INC.. Owner notification date in the NHTSA record: 21 Nov 2005.

The campaign number opens the NHTSA record. Each quotation is the text of the NHTSA recall file.

Recall campaign: One recall in the NHTSA recall file, with one campaign number. A campaign can name many makes, models and model years.

Units: The number of vehicles or products that a recall can include. The manufacturer or the firm reports the number to the agency.

Complaints by component

845 complaints, 1,175 component mentions.

A complaint can name more than one component. Each component that a complaint names is one component mention. The figure per 1,000 component mentions shows how many of each 1,000 mentions name the component.

2005 Nissan Xterra
All 2005 vehicles

2005 Nissan Xterra: complaints by component, per 1,000 component mentions
Component	2005 Xterra	All 2005 vehicles	Xterra, all years	Mentions
Power Train	355.7	115.1	249.2	418
Fuel System, Gasoline	207.7	48.2	175.3	244
Engine and Engine Cooling	143	54.9	106.8	168
Engine	97	44.5	89.4	114
Fuel System, Other	41.7	6.6	33.1	49
Electrical System	33.2	121.9	49.8	39
Fuel/Propulsion System	27.2	29.7	55.1	32
Unknown or Other	21.3	28.1	28.9	25
Air Bags	17	86.7	42.7	20
Vehicle Speed Control	10.2	51.7	16.2	12

The table shows the 10 components with the most mentions, of 24.

Complaints that report a crash: 7
Complaints that report a fire: 6
Injuries in the complaints: 8
Deaths in the complaints: 0
Date of the newest complaint: 25 Feb 2026

These figures are the entries of the persons who sent the complaints.

Complaint: A report about a possible safety problem that a person sends to NHTSA. This site shows the number of complaints and not their text.

Complaints about the 2005 Nissan Xterra, by the year NHTSA received them. The largest year is 2010, with 158 complaints.

Investigations

NHTSA investigations that name the 2005 Nissan Xterra
Number	Type	Subject	Component	Opened	Closed	Campaign
DP12004	Defect petition	Transmission Failures	Power Train / Automatic Transmission / Control Module (Tcm/Pcm/Tecm)	11 Jun 2012	22 Oct 2016

Investigation: A study of a possible safety defect by the NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation. An investigation with no closing date in the NHTSA file is open.

Other model years

The number under each year is the number of recall campaigns.

A year without a link has fewer than 2 campaigns and fewer than 25 complaints. It has no page.

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Official channels

NHTSA VIN lookupNHTSA shows the unrepaired recalls of one vehicle from its VIN or its license plate.
NHTSA: report a safety problemThe NHTSA form for a complaint about a vehicle, a tire, a child seat or equipment.
NHTSA page of the 2005 Nissan XterraThe recalls, the complaints and the investigations that NHTSA shows for this model year.

Cite this page

Recall Register. 2005 Nissan Xterra: recalls and complaints. https://recallregister.com/vehicle/nissan/xterra/2005/. Source: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation, recall, complaint and investigation files. Data through 30 Sep 2026.

Sources

Source: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation
Licence: US government work, public domain
Recall file through: 30 Sep 2026
Complaint file through: 30 Sep 2026
First complaint in the file: 1 Jan 1995
Manufacturer in the recall file: NISSAN NORTH AMERICA, INC.

The NHTSA record is the authority. A complaint count is the number of different complaint numbers for the make, the model and the model year. How the register is made. Report an error.

Questions

How many units are in the recall campaigns for the 2005 Nissan Xterra?: 1,002,700 units in 3 campaigns. A campaign can name other models and model years, and its units include them.
How many recall campaigns does the Nissan Xterra have for all model years?: NHTSA lists 21 recall campaigns for the Nissan Xterra, model years 2000 to 2015. 3 of them name the 2005 model year.
Which component do the complaints about the 2005 Nissan Xterra name most often?: Power Train: 418 of 1,175 component mentions, or 355.7 per 1,000. For all 2005 vehicles the figure is 115.1 per 1,000.
Is an NHTSA investigation of the 2005 Nissan Xterra open?: No. The 1 investigation that names this model year has a closing date in the NHTSA file.