There are 8 stored owner reports matching the electrical system leading-label group for the 2004 Nissan Xterra in our NHTSA-sourced dataset. These are unverified consumer reports and may not reflect confirmed defects.
This group counts stored reports whose component label starts with one of this site's matching prefixes, ignoring case. Each matching report counts once within the group. Components mentioned later in the label or only in the narrative are not searched. How component counts work
Loaded 8 of 8 matching reports.
Open the full vehicle complaint log (all categories)FUEL GAUGE REGISTERING IMPROPERLY. ONLY SHOWS 3/4 TANK UPON FILLING TANK FULL AND WILL NOT DROP UPON USAGE OF FUEL. GAUGE HAS ONLY DROPPED ONCE SINCE I HAVE OWNED THE VEHICLE.
2004 XTERRA HAD BEEN LOW ON RADIATOR FLUID AND NEEDED TOPPING UP EACH WEEK, THEN EACH DAY. AFTER FILLING WITH WATER AND COOLANT NIGHT BEFORE CAR BEGAN TO OVERHEAT ON HWY. CAR SAT IN SUN ALL DAY, THEN OVERHEATED IN TRAFFIC. HAD TOWED TO WORK ON IT. REPLACED SPLIT RADIATOR HOSE WHERE DRIPPING OCCURS AND REFILLED CAR RADIATOR, NO LEAKING APPARENT. NEXT DAY, DROVE ON HWY TO WORK. AT 65-75 MPH CAR BEGAN MAKING CLICKING/TAPPING NOISES FROM ENGINE. WENT UPHILL TOWARDS INTERCHANGE AND CAR SHOOK VIOLENTLY, STEAM (OR SMOKE) CAME FROM UNDER HOOD AS I CAREFULLY CROSSED FREEWAY TO EXIT, ALL LIGHTS CAME ON ON DASH AND SMOKE OR STEAM POURED INTO THE CAR THROUGH AIR VENTS. I HAD LOST ALL POWER AND POWER STEERING, BUT I STEERED IT SAFELY TO HWY SERVICE ROAD STREET WITH PARKING LOT. CAR WAS SMOKING UNDER HOOD, STEAM OR SMOKE WAS COMING OUT OF VENTS AND ALL LIGHTS REMAINED ON ON THE DASH. UNDER THE HOOD, THE A/C CONDENSER OR RADIATOR HAS A 5" BREAK ON TOP OF IT. WHEN I PUT WATER IN THE RADIATOR IT POURS THROUGH SEVERAL PLACES WHERE HOSES CONNECT (GASKETS AND SEALS, I PRESUME). HAD THE CAR TOWED HOME AND I'M AFRAID TO DRIVE IT EVER AGAIN, BUT NOW I CAN'T GET TO WORK OR PICK MY KIDS UP FROM SCHOOL ANYMORE AND I CAN'T AFFORD TO FIX IT OR PAY FOR REPAIRS SINCE I CAN'T GET TO WORK.
GOT INTO MY CAR ONE DAY AND UPON TRYING TO CRANK IT , WHEN TURNING THE KEY IT HESITATED TO CRANK AND FINALLY DID SO. WHEN I REACHED MY DESTINATION, WHEN I LEFT MY CAR WOULD JUST NOT CRANK. NO CLICKS. LIGHTS WORK FINE. NOTHING IS WRONG WITH SECURITY, BATTERY. JUST REPLACED THE STARTER AROUND OCT OF LAST YEAR.
I HAVE HAD TO REPLACE MY STARTER 3 TIMES IN 4 YEARS. I HAVE ALL OF THE RECEIPTS TO SHOW ALSO. I HAVE ALSO HAD TO REPLACE MY RADIATOR BECAUSE OF A CRACK NEAR THE CAP. I HAD A HOSE THAT GOES THROUGH MY DASH WITH THE HOT WATER EXPLODE ON ME AND BURN MY HAND PRETTY BAD. MY RADIATOR SEEMS TO EVAPORATE COOLING FLUID ON A REGULAR BASIS. I HAVE HAD A PRESSURE TEST IT IS HOLDING PRESSURE. AND NOW MY WARNING BELL IS NO LONGER WORKING. MY BATTERY HAS GONE DEAD 5 TIMES BECAUSE NO WARNING SOUND TO TELL ME I LEFT MY LIGHTS ON.
THERE WAS A BREAK-IN OF MY CAR AND THE DOME LIGHT WAS LEFT ON. THE DOME LIGHT APPARENTLY SHORT-CIRCUITED AND BURNED OFF. THE HOT LIGHT FELL ON MY DRIVER'S SIDE SEAT AND BURNED A HOLE IN THE SEAT. THE TRUCK IS NOW TOTALED BY MY INSURANCE. *JB
ALTERNATOR. *JB
PROBLEMS WITH INSTRUMENT CLUSTER. TACHOMETER, SPEEDOMETER, AND 4-WHEEL DRIVE LIGHT DO NOT FUNCTION PROPERTLY. THE VEHICLE HAS BEEN IN FOR REPAIR 5 TIMES TO REPLACE INSTRUMENT CLUSTER AND ECM. THE VEHICLE STILL DOES NOT OPERATE PROPERLY. *NM
THE FUSES WERE BURNING. WHEN REMOVING THE FUSE ONE COULD SEE SPARKS. DEALER REPLACED THE FUSES, AND THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON. *AK
Complaints are unverified consumer reports submitted to NHTSA. A high complaint count may reflect vehicle popularity, not defect severity. Data sourced from NHTSA public records.
NHTSA source checks for this vehicle year
Checks are recorded separately for each dataset, not for the whole page. Dates use UTC. A missing check date does not mean no records exist.
Vehicle import recorded: Apr 28, 2026. This is the stored import date, not confirmation that every source was successfully refreshed.