There are 16 owner-reported electrical system complaints for the 2005 Nissan Xterrain NHTSA's database. These are unverified consumer reports and may not reflect confirmed defects.
CHECK ENGINE LIGHT CAME. GAS GAUGE READS EMPTY EVEN AFTER YOU FILL IT UP COMPLETELY. DIAGNOSTIC CODE P0463, FUEL LEVEL SENSOR. THE FUEL GAUGE DOES NOT ACCURATELY STATE THE AMOUNT OF FUEL IN THE TANK. THIS ISSUE IS KNOWN TO NISSAN AND NHTSA. IT IS A SAFETY ISSUE AS YOU NEVER KNOW HOW MUCH GAS IS LEFT IN THE TANK OR HOW MANY MILES YOU CAN GO. THIS WAS PREVIOUSLY RECALLED FOR CERTAIN 2006, 2007 AND 2008 XTERRAS. NOT SURE WHY IT HASN'T BEEN FOR THE 2005 MODEL YEAR AS IT IS THE SAME ISSUE.
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2005 NISSAN XTERRA. WHILE DRIVING 15 MPH, THE VEHICLE STALLED WITHOUT WARNING. THE CONTACT STATED THAT "ECM" WAS DISPLAYED ON THE INSTRUMENT PANEL. THE VEHICLE WAS REPAIRED BY AN INDEPENDENT MECHANIC AND THE BATTERY AND CRANK SHAFT POSITIONING SENSOR WERE REPLACED, BUT THE FAILURE RECURRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 223,000.
VEHICLE TURNS OFF WHILE DRIVING AND IS UNABLE TO START. WITH VEHICLE IN OFF STATE THERE IS NOT CONTROL OVER SPEED, BRAKING, STEERING. NISSAN IS UNABLE TO PROVIDE AN ANSWER TO THE PROBLEM AFTER DIAGNOSIS. CODE P0335 CRANKSHAFT POSITION SENSOR.
DID NOT PASS EMISSIONS DUE TO ISSUES WITH THE FUEL LEVEL SENSOR CIRCUIT HIGH INPUT. HAD BEEN HAVING PROBLEMS WITH THE FUEL GAUGE MALFUNCTION. REPAIRED BY NISSAN DEALERSHIP (ECM RECALL, REPAIRED ONE WEEK PRIOR FOR ENGINE STALLING OUT). APPEARS TO BE A COMMON PROBLEM. *TR
THE CAR STOPPED RUNNING AT A STOP LIGHT. THE FAILURE IS A KNOWN RECALL BY NISSAN IN MODEL OF 2005 XTERRA - IT IS THE RECALL FROM 2010 FOR THE ECM (ENGINE CONTROL MODULE). THE PROBLEM STARTED AFTER A WEEKEND ON NON-USE WHEN MY BATTERY WAS DEAD ON MONDAY 11-3-2014. THEN AFTER KEEPING THE CAR RUNNING WITH THE ASSISTANCE OF A BATTERY BOX AND TRAVELING SHORT WAY TO WORK I HAD THE BATTERY EVALUATED AT AUTOZONE AND REPLACED ON MONDAY NIGHT, 11-10-2014. THE CAR THE NEXT MORNING DIED TWICE AFTER QUICK TEMP CHANGE IN DRIVEWAY BUT THEN RAN TO GET WIFE AND 5 MONTH CHILD TO WORK. ON WAY HOME WHILE ON FEEDER ROAD ON MOPAC SOUTH AT DUVAL DIED AT STOP LIGHT UNABLE TO RESTART. CALLED AAA AND TOW WAS IN ROUTE WHEN CAR RESTARTED 20 MIN AFTER FAILURE ALLOW WIFE TO PULL INTO APARTMENT COMPLEX LOT. HAD CAR TOWED THEN RESEARCHED FAILURE WITH LONG CRANKING AND ROUGH IDLE AND THEN TOWED TO TOWN NORTH NISSAN ON 10-12-2014 AGAIN BY AAA. THE CARE WAS UNABLE TO START AND RUN PROPERLY AFTER GETTING INTO THE SAFETY OF THE APARTMENT PARKING LOT. TOWN NORTH NISSAN CONFIRMED RECALLED PART WHICH HAD NOT BEEN DONE ON VEHICLE. WIFE PURCHASED VEHICLE CLOSE TO 2010 RECALL CAMPAIGN BUT DID NOT RECEIVE NOTICE. THE ECM MODULE APPEARS TO REMAIN AND ISSUE AND OUTSTANDING CAMPAIGN OF CONCERN. IF THE VEHICLE WAS NOT ON FEEDER ROAD CAR COULD HAVE EASILY BEEN IN MAJOR ACCIDENT WITH MY WIFE AND 5 MONTH OLD CHILD. PLEASE INVESTIGATE IF RECALL NOTICE NEEDS TO BE REMAILED OR IF THE REPLACEMENT ECM IS PRONE TO SIMILAR FAILURE. IN THIS CASE LUCKILY IT WAS THE ECM THAT WAS SUBJECT TO RECALL THAT WAS THE PROBLEM. *TR
DRIVING DOWN ROAD AND CAR QUITS STEERING WAS DIFFICULT HIT A CURB. THE CAR ALL OF A SUDDEN CAME BACK ON? HAS DONE THIS TO ME SEVERAL TIMES UNTIL I PARKED IT NOW. DANGEROUS SITUATION. LUCKY NO VEHICLES WERE AROUND ME. *TR
THE PASSENGER SIDE AIR BAG LIGHT STARTED BLINKING EVEN WITH THE SEATBELT ON PROPERLY. THIS VEHICLE HAD NEVER BEEN IN CRASH ONCE OR EVER. I AM VERY CONCERN. *TR
JUST FILL UP GAS AND FUEL GAUGE INDICATES ALMOST EMPTY. CANNOT TELL IF I STILL HAVE ENOUGH FUEL. DANGEROUS SITUATION IF I'M DRIVING AND SUDDENLY RUN OUT OF GAS. *TR
I NOTICED THE SERVICE ENGINE SOON LIGHT COME ON 3/13/2013. TODAY, 3/15 I TOOK IT TO THE NISSAN DEALERSHIP THAT I GET MY VEHICLE SERVICED AT AND THEY TOLD ME THAT THE FUEL SENDING UNIT IS MALFUNCTIONING AND THE PRICE TO FIX IT. THEY ALSO MENTIONED THAT THEY HAVE SEEN THIS PROBLEM A FEW TIMES NOW WITH OTHER XTERRA MODELS. I MENTIONED TO THEM THAT I CANNOT AFFORD THE REPAIR AT THIS TIME AND THEY SUGGESTED I KEEP IT FULL AND IT SHOULDN'T BE A PROBLEM. I GOT HOME AND LOOKED UP THE PROBLEM WITH MY VEHICLE AND IT SEEMS THAT A LOT OF OTHER PEOPLE ARE HAVING THE SAME PROBLEM, AND NOT ONLY WITH XTERRAS BUT WITH PATHFINDERS AND FRONTIERS AS WELL, AS THEY ARE ALL BASED ON THE SAME DRIVETRAIN. NISSAN IS NOT COVERING THIS PROBLEM EVEN THOUGH IT SEEMS TO BE A COMMON ISSUE WITH ITS VEHICLES. *TR
RECENTLY THE VEHICLE HAS BEEN TURNING OFF WHILE IN USE (DRIVING DOWN THE ROAD) AND WE HAVE TO THROW IT IN NEUTRAL, CRANK BACK UP, THEN PUT IT BACK IN GEAR. THIS IS NOT SAFE. TOOK IT IN TO GET IT DIAGNOSED AND THE SCAN CAME BACK READING THE CATALYTIC CONVERTERS COULD BE GOING OUT (2 ON EACH SIDE, PRETTY SURE ONLY ONE SIDE IS AFFECTED). THEN WERE TOLD ABOUT AN ECM RELAY RECALL. MECHANICS HAVE TOLD US THAT THIS CAN CAUSE THE CATS TO FAIL. NISSAN SAID TO TAKE IT TO A DEALERSHIP AND SEE WHAT THEY SAY. WHAT?! OF COURSE THE NISSAN DEALERSHIP IS GOING TO REPLACE ONLY THE ECM COMPONENT OF THE RECALL AND SAY IT WON'T AFFECT THE CATS, WHILE OTHER MECHANICS AT NON DEALER AFFILIATED SHOPS HAVE MORE THAN A FEW TIMES SAID IT CAN BE A DIRECT EFFECT OF THE ECM. SO WE HAVE A "CASE" NUMBER WITH NISSAN AND NISSAN WILL "INVESTIGATE" AND LET US KNOW IF THEY ARE WILLING TO PAY ANY TOWARDS THE REPAIR, OR IF A RECALL IS ISSUED IN THE NEAR FUTURE WE'LL GET REIMBURSED FOR THE REPAIR... HOW ABOUT YOU JUST MAKE A VEHICLE WITHOUT FAULTY PARTS AND IF A FAULTY PART CONTRIBUTES TO ANOTHER PART GOING OUT, YOU REPAIR THE PARTS AFFECTED. *TR
I WAS DRIVING TO WORK A FEW MORNINGS AGO. MY CAR HAD OVER A 4TH OF GAS. THEN MY GAS TANK DROPS TO BELOW EMPTY THEN MY CHECK ENGINE LIGHT TURNS ON. THEN IT TURNS OFF AND TURNS BACK ON CONTINUES TO MOVE AND TURNS BACK ON ALL WHILE DRIVING. I PULL INTO A GAS STATION FILL UP THE GAS TANK THEN PROCEED TO GO HOME. THE CAR TURNS BACK ON ONE LAST TIME AND WHEN I TRY AND TURN IT BACK ON IT SHAKES AND TURNS OFF. HAD TO TOW MY CAR TO MY HOME HAD MULTIPLE MECHANICS COME TO MY HOME AND DIAGNOSE MY CAR. I HAVE REPLACED THE FUEL PUMP AND YET STILL DOES NOT WORK. MY MECHANIC TOLD ME THE PROBLEMS IS DEEPER AND THIS CAR AND THIS YEAR IS KNOWN TO HAVE STAGGERING ISSUES. THIS SHOULD BE RECALLED AND FIXED BY NISSAN NOT THE CONSUMER. I HAVE NEVER HAD AN ISSUE BEFORE. IM PUTTING MORE AND MORE MONEY INTO A MANUFACTURE DEFECT. *TR
I WAS DRIVING MY CAR AFTER A LONG TRIP, I HAD ABOUT A QUARTER TANK LEFT. I PARKED MY CAR AND WHEN I RETURNED TO USE IT TO RUN AN ERRAND I BEGAN TO DRIVE. MY GAS TANK NEEDLE WENT ALL THE WAY TO BELOW EMPTY THEN MY CHECK ENGINE LIGHT TURNED ON AS WELL. I HAVE LOOKED UP THIS ISSUE AND FOUND OUT THERE WERE MULTIPLE COMPLAINTS ABOUT THE EXACT SAME THING THAT HAPPENED TO ME. THIS IS A NISSAN ISSUE THAT SHOULD NOT BE TAKEN OUT OF POCKET FROM THE CONSUMER. ESPECIALLY SINCE THERE IS A LONG HISTORY REGARDING THIS EXACT SAME PROBLEM. *TR
AFTER FUELING THE CAR, THE FUEL LEVEL INDICATOR EITHER SHOWS THE TANK AS EMPTY OR A RANDOM LEVEL (NEVER FULL, ALTHOUGH THE TANK WAS JUST FILLED). THE LEVEL FROM THEN ON IS ALWAYS UNRELIABLE AND FLUCTUATES AT RANDOM LEVELS; THERE IS NO WAY TO KNOW WHAT IS THE LEVEL OF FUEL IN THE TANK AT ANY TIME. I AM AFRAID THAT THE CAR WILL RUN OUT OF FUEL WITHOUT ME KNOWING AND STOP THE CAR IN THE MIDDLE OF A HIGHWAY OR WHILE CROSSING TRAIN TRACKS. THIS HAPPENS ALL THE TIME, THE INDICATOR NEVER SHOWS FULL WHEN I FILL UP THE TANK. IT SHOWS EMPTY OR 1/4 FULL AND THEN AFTER A COUPLE OF DAYS THE LEVEL GOES UP TO A LEVEL THAT I KNOW IT IS TOO HIGH FOR THE AMOUNT OF DRIVING THAT I HAVE DONE. *TR
MAY 2012. I WAS DRIVING THE VEHICLE TO WORK, THE DAY THE "SERVICE ENGINE SOON "LIGHT INITIALLY CAME ON. 30 MINUTES LATER, YELLOW FUEL INDICATOR LIGHT CAME ON, VEHICLE WAS NOT OUT OF GAS, HAD APPROX. 1/2 TANK. I WAS CONCERNED ABOUT THE FUEL LIGHT, SO I IMMEDIATELY DROVE TO A NEARBY GAS STATION AND FILLED UP TO A FULL TANK OF GAS. AFTERWARDS, FUEL ENGINE LIGHT REMAINED ON AND GAUGE STILL SHOWED EMPTY. ONLY AFTER DRIVING IT FOR SEVERAL DAYS, FUEL LIGHT FINALLY WENT OFF, SERVICE ENGINE SOON REMAINED ON. SINCE THIS INITIAL INCIDENT EVERY TIME I PUT FUEL IN THE VEHICLE, THE TANK STILL SHOWS EMPTY AND TAKES SEVERAL DAYS OF DRIVING TO SHOW WHERE I FILLED IT UP. I RECENTLY TOOK THE VEHICLE FOR A DIAGNOSTIC TEST AND IT SHOWED PROBLEMS IN THE FUEL SENSOR/FUEL PUMP. I ALSO VISITED MY LOCAL NISSAN DEALER AND THEY SAID, THAT I WAS NOT TURNING THE GAS CAP ENOUGH AFTER FUELING UP. I ALWAYS ENSURE THAT I TURN THE GAS CAP SEVERAL TIMES AT LEAST 4 TURNS, UNTIL SEVERAL CLICKS ARE HEARD WHEN SECURING THE GAS CAP AFTER FUELING. I AM SURE THIS WAS NOT THE PROBLEM. I AM VERY CONCERNED AS I DRIVE A GOOD DISTANCE TO WORK, ON GRAVEYARD SHIFTS. THIS IS THE 1ST MAJOR PROBLEM, I HAVE HAD WITH MY NISSAN XTERRA AND UNFORTUNATELY IT DOES NOT SHOW AS A RECALL. I FEEL UNSAFE DRIVING THE VEHICLE AS I DO NOT KNOW WHEN IT WILL RUN OUT OF FUEL PARTICULARLY ON FREEWAYS AND BUSY INTERSECTIONS. I OFTEN HAVE SMALL CHILDREN AS PASSENGERS AND THIS CONCERNS ME THE MOST. *TR
TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2005 NISSAN XTERRA. WHILE DRIVING 25 MPH THE VEHICLE SHUT OFF. THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO A DEALER WHO STATED THAT THE MAIN COMPUTER STOPPED WORKING AND NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE MANUFACTURER DENIED THE CONTACTS REQUEST TO COVER THE REPAIR COSTS. THE ECM IS CURRENTLY BEING REPAIRED BY THE DEALER. THE CONTACT IS CONCERNED ABOUT THE SAFETY ISSUE SINCE THE FAILURE COULD HAVE CAUSED A CRASH TO OCCUR. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 59,500.
2005 NISSAN XTERRA HAD AN ELECTRICAL WIRE PROBLEM. CONSUMER STATES THAT THE VEHICLE FIRE COMPLETELY DESTROY IT. *NJ
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.
Data synced from NHTSA on Apr 26, 2026