Nissan CUBE Reliability by YearBest & worst years, problems & recalls — NHTSA data
Comparing used Nissan CUBE options? We analyzed 6 model years (2009–2014) using real NHTSA complaint and recall data so you can spot stronger years, avoid riskier ones, and know what to inspect before buying.
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Model-year trends show patterns — they can't tell you whether this car was crashed, flooded, or rolled back. A VIN check can.
- Accident & damage history
- Odometer rollback records
- Open recalls & title brands
Based on NHTSA complaint data, the Nissan CUBE has 216 owner complaints and 6 safety recalls across model years 2009–2014. The most reported issue area is ELECTRICAL SYSTEM. 2009 drew the most complaints; 2013 drew the fewest.
- Make
- Nissan
- Model
- CUBE
- Model years analyzed
- 2009–2014 (6 years)
- Total NHTSA complaints
- 216
- Safety recall campaigns
- 6
- Crash-related complaints
- 10
- Fire-related complaints
- 5
- Worst model year (by complaints)
- 2009 (101 complaints)
- Best model year (fewest complaints)
- 2013 (3 complaints)
- Top reported issue area
- ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
- Reliability signal
- Poor
By model year
Nissan CUBE: which years to avoid & which to buy
Based on total NHTSA owner complaints per model year. Higher complaint counts indicate a riskier year to buy used — lower counts suggest a cleaner reliability record.
These years have the most owner complaints. Inspect carefully and always run a VIN check.
These years have the fewest owner complaints on record — lower risk starting points.
Crash test ratings
NHTSA NCAP crash test ratings
New Car Assessment ProgramNCAP crash tests measure how well a vehicle protects occupants in controlled frontal crash, side crash, and rollover scenarios. Stars are awarded per category (5 = safest). These laboratory results are independent of owner complaints and are performed by NHTSA engineers on new production vehicles.
Source: nhtsa.gov/ratings
What the complaint data suggests
PoorThe NISSAN CUBE has 216 NHTSA complaints and 6 recalls on record. 10 complaints involve crash-related incidents. This data reflects owner-reported issues submitted to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
- 216 total complaints filed with NHTSA
- 6 federal recall campaigns
- 10 crash-related complaints on record
- Review NHTSA complaint history for the most-reported components
- Check recall completion status at nhtsa.gov/recalls
- Verify service records for frequently complained components
Consult the by-year breakdown to identify model years with elevated complaint rates.
Consult the by-year breakdown to identify model years with fewer reported issues.
- Run a VIN check on the specific vehicle you are considering
- Verify all open recalls are completed at nhtsa.gov/recalls
- Request service records for the most-reported complaint components
- Have a certified mechanic inspect the vehicle before purchase
Problems by model year (best vs. worst)
Source: NHTSA public complaints database. Updated: Aug 2026
Safety recalls
NHTSA safety recalls
6 recalls foundSafety recalls are mandatory repair campaigns ordered by NHTSA when a vehicle defect poses an unreasonable risk to safety. Manufacturers are required to fix recalled vehicles free of charge. Always verify open recalls before buying a used car.
AIR BAGS:FRONTAL:DRIVER SIDE:INFLATOR MODULE
AIR BAGS:FRONTAL:DRIVER SIDE:INFLATOR MODULE
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM:IGNITION:SWITCH
TIRES:PRESSURE MONITORING AND REGULATING SYSTEMS
FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE:STORAGE
FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE:STORAGE
Source: NHTSA Recalls Database. Data covers model years 2009–2014. Always run a VIN-specific check below for the most up-to-date open recall status.
Common problems
What goes wrong most often
The vehicle systems owners complain about most, ranked from all 216 NHTSA complaints — these are the areas to inspect first on a used car.
Owner complaints
NHTSA complaint reports
216 totalThese are consumer-submitted safety complaints filed directly with NHTSA. Each complaint describes a real owner's experience. Complaints flagged as crash-related or fire-related are highlighted.
Recall issued. Kelly Nissan of 275 Broadway, Lynnfield MA 01940 told me to check back in a month to see if the parts were then available then a month later told me the parts were no longer being manufactured and were unavailable.
The contact owns a 2009 Nissan Cube. The contact received notification of NTHSA Campaign Number: 26V230000 (Air Bags); however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The local dealer was contacted. The contact stated that the dealer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure.
The contact owns a 2009 Nissan Cube. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 26V230000 (Air Bags). The vehicle was taken to the dealer, and the contact was informed that parts were on back order. The contact was later informed that the parts were not available and were no longer manufactured. The manufacturer was contacted, and a case was filed. The contact had not experienced a failure.
The TPMS light keeps flashing off and on and all my tires are the pressure they're supposed to be
2009 Cube would not start. Steering wheel locked prevented me from starting the car. Called AAA and they tried to jump start and still would not start. AAA towed my car to Capital Nissan in San Jose and they confirmed it was the Steering Lock Unit. Replaced and charged me 1363.46. After researching online there was a recall (not my Cube and I don't know why) back in 2011. I also found that "recalls never expired". I feel because this incident happened at a later time the Steering Lock Unit became defective. I've noticed the warning light on my dashboard for awhile but it was off and on and have been taking my car for maintenance over the years at Premier Nissan (now called Capitol Nissan in San Jose) and thought maybe the tech would find the problem. I feel because it was defective and recalled I shouldn't have to pay for parts and labor. Also on my Invoice they wrote down the mileage as 140000 and that is not true. My Cube has 138000.
Many complaints about the nissian cube... the battery are good and even put new batteries in the key fob.. the car isn't registering it and steering wheel is locked bc is a security feature.. many complaints online for these.. is this a recall yet?
Read 14 more owner reports
Started my car at 9. Went to start my car at 10. Wouldn’t start. The escl has failed.
Unknown
The contact owns a 2009 Nissan Cube. The contact stated that the horn failed to operate as needed while driving at various speeds. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where he was informed that the clockspring was defective and needed to be replaced. The contact was also informed that if the clockspring was not replaced, the air bags may not deploy in the event of a crash. The manufacturer informed him that there were no recalls on the vehicle. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 142,000.
THE BACK DOOR LATCH/LOCK DOESN'T WORK. IT PERMANENTLY LOCKED AND CAN'T BE UNLOCKED WITH KEY OR ELECTRONIC KEY FOB. THE VEHICLE WAS PARKED AND LOCKED IN MY APARTMENT DESIGNATED SPACE. WHEN I TRIED TO OPEN THE TRUNK, IT WOULDN'T UNLOCK. MY RESEARCH ON THE CUBE OWNER'S BLOG INDICATED SEVERAL OTHERS HAD THE SAME PROBLEM. THEY HAD ESTIMATES FROM DEALERS OF SEVERAL HUNDRED DOLLARS TO REPAIR THE LOCK. NISSAN DEALERS ARE AWARE OF THE PROBLEM. IT REQUIRES REPLACING THE ENTIRE LOCKING MECHANISM. THERE ARE A FEW INSTRUCTIONAL VIDEOS ON LINE OF HOW TO REPAIR THE LOCK. IT REQUIRES REMOVING BACK DOOR INSIDE OF VEHICLE.
ON 07/20/2020 TRANSMISSION BEGAN SLIPPING. VEHICLE VIBRATES AND SHUTTERS IN MOTION. LACK OF POWER. AT 124,000 MILES. UNABLE TO GET TO 50 MPH. VEHICLE ALSO VIBRATES WHEN STATIONARY.
TIRE VALVE STEM LEAKING AIR, TIRE GOING FLAT ON 2009 NISSAN CUBE. I SEE THERE WAS A RECALL ON THIS ISSUE BEFORE.
MY 2009 NISSAN CUBE HAD A RECALL FOR THE MANUFACTURING DEFECTS ASSOCIATED WITH THE ELECTRICAL STEERING COLUMN LOCK (ESCL). IT WENT OUT IN JANUARY 2020 AND THE NISSAN DEALER WANTS 832.00 TO REPAIR WHAT IS A NISSAN MANUFACTURING DEFECT. INVESTIGATING THIS IT WAS FOUND THAT IN JANUARY 2012, JUST BEFORE THE CAR WAS PURCHASED FROM THE NISSAN DEALER, THE ESCL RECALL WAS FIXED AT THE MURFREESBORO DEALERSHIP. AS I WASNT THE OWNER AT THE TIME I DO NOT HAVE PAPERWORK TO SHOW THIS, ONLY THE WORD FROM THE DEALER. THE ESCL IS OBVIOUSLY STILL A PROBLEM BUT THE DEALERSHIP SAID SINCE IT WAS FIXED ONCE THAT MET THE RECALL CRITERIA AND I HAVE TO PAY FOR THE MANUFACTURERS DEFECTIVE ESCL. THE RED LIGHT WITH THE KEY CAME ON WHEN IT WAS PARKED AT A STORE AND WOULDN'T MOVE SO IT WAS TOWED TO THE NISSAN DEALER. THEY HAVE STATED THE PART IS 579.93 AND THE LABOR WILL BE 312.50. NISSAN CONSUMER HOTLINE WAS CONTACTED AND THEY SAID THAT IT WAS REPAIRED BUT WOULDN'T GIVE ME A DATE/PLACE SO I CALLED THE DEALERSHIP I BOUGHT IT FROM TO GET THIS INFORMATION. THEY ARE THE ONES WHO STATED IT WAS DONE IN JANUARY 2012 WHEN IT WAS IN THEIR POSSESSION TO SELL ON THE LOT. SINCE IT IS A DOCUMENTED MANUFACTURERS WARRANTY AND THE DEALERSHIP SUPPOSEDLY DID THE WORK WHILE THE CAR WAS FOR SALE ON THEIR LOT (MEANING WE HAVE TO TRUST THEY ACTUALLY DID THE EXPENSIVE REPAIR), WHEN THE PROBLEM STILL EXISTS WHY IS IT NOT BEING COVERED? THIS IS A WELL DOCUMENTED PROBLEM THROUGHOUT THE INTERNET OF NISSAN 2009 CUBE OWNERS WHO TO THIS DAY ARE HAVING PROBLEMS WITH THE ESCL AND THE EXTREMELY EXPENSIVE REPAIR BILLS THAT GO WITH IT.
1) CHECK AIR BAG LIGHT WAS FLASHING A MONTH AFTER I PURCHASED THE VEHICLE AND IT WAS REPAIRED. THE LIGHT IS BACK ON ALMOST A YEAR LATER AND HAS CONTINUED TO FLASH ON AND OFF. 2) TIRE PRESSURE LIGHT CONTINUES TO GO ON AND OFF AND I REPLACED AND ALIGNED MY TIRES AND STILL IT CONTINUES. 3) WHEN PUTTING GAS IN MY TANK THE GAUGE IS NEVER ALL THE WAY TO THE TOP AND YET THE PUMP WILL NOT ALLOW ME TO INPUT MORE GAS. ALSO THE GAS IS NOT LASTING THE AMOUNT OF MILE IT SHOULD, AND THE READING DOES NOT SEEM ACCURATE.
THE ANTITHEFT LOCK MALFUNCTIONED. NOW THE CAR WONT START.
VEHICLE STOPPED WHILE IN MOTION ON HIGHWAY. TRANSMISSION WENT COMPLETELY OUT.
THE BRAKE PEDAL HAS PROGRESSIVELY GONE LOWER TO THE FLOOR WHEN APPLYING THE BRAKES. THERE IS A SPONGY FEEL AND ONLY ENGAGES FULLY AT THE LAST MOMENT ALMOST TO THE FLOOR. STOPPING IS AT THE LAST MOMENT, THE BRAKE PEDAL HAS TO BE PUMPED TO ENGAGE THE BRAKES. THE ROTORS, BRAKE PADS AND SHOES AND NEW BRAKE FLUID HAS BEEN REPLACED BUT THE BRAKE ISSUE REMAINS.
THE CUBE WILL FREQUENTLY STOP WHILE DRIVING AT ANY SPEED. IT IS POSSIBLE TO PUMP THE ACCELERATOR AT THE MOMENT THIS HAPPENS AND SOMETIMES THE ENGINE WILL CATCH AND CARRY ON. IF THIS DOES NOT WORK, THE CAR MUST BE SHUT DOWN FOR A FEW MINUTES BEFORE ATTEMPTING A RESTART. UNFORTUNATELY ONCE THIS SITUATION HAPPENS, IT WILL VERY LIKELY RECUR SOON AFTER. IT IS MY OBSERVATION THAT THIS HAPPENS MOST OFTEN WHEN THE AMBIENT TEMPERATURE IS QUITE HIGH (75 F AND ABOVE). ON COOL DAYS THE SITUATION IS NOT LIKELY TO HAPPEN UNLESS THE CAR IS DRIVEN OVER AN HOUR IN DURATION. AS ANOTHER OBSERVATION IT IS MORE LIKELY TO HAPPEN IF THE GAS GAUGE IS LESS THAN FULL. I TRIED TO REPRODUCE THE PROBLEM TWICE FOR MAUS NISSAN BUT IT DID NOT OCCUR. THERE WAS A ENGINE SERVICE LIGHT ON DURING BOTH THOSE ATTEMPTS INDICATING A CATALYTIC CONVERTER ERROR. SINCE THAT TIME (EARLY 2018) THE PROBLEM HAS HAPPENED MANY TIMES WITHOUT ANY SERVICE ENGINE WARNING BEING ON. THE FIRST TIME THE PROBLEM OCCURRED, I TOOK THE CAR INTO NISSAN IN CHATTANOOGA. THEY SAID THERE WAS A LITTLE TOO MUCH TRANSMISSION FLUID. THEY REMOVED SOME AND I CONTINUED ON THE FLORIDA. WITHIN 10 MINUTES THE PROBLEM OCCURRED AGAIN. WHILE IN FLORIDA, WE LIMIT DRIVING TO EARLY MORNINGS AND EVENINGS FOR LESS THAN 30 MINUTES AND WE MAINTAIN THE GAS TANK ON FULL.
REAR HATCH DOOR LOCK DOES NOT UNLOCK THE DOOR. THE LOCK HAS WORKED AND THEN IT QUITS WORKING. IN AN EMERGENCY A PERSON WOULD NOT BE ABLE TO EXIT THROUGH THE HATCH DOOR. ACCORDING TO THE INTERNET THIS IS A FREQUENT OCCURRENCE IN THE EARLY MODELS.
SAME ISSUE AS THE OWNERS IN THIS THREAD WITH REGARDS TO THE ESCL. WENT TO START MY CAR AS A SNOW STORM WAS STARTING AND NO LUCK. MY LOCAL NISSAN DEALERSHIP SAID IT WAS AN ISSUE WITH THE ESCL AND THAT THERE WAS NO RECALL ON THE CUBE. HOWEVER, MY PARTNER OWNS A 2009 ALTIMA AND HAD THE SAME ISSUE A MONTH AGO AND GOT IT FIXED AT NO COST. THE FACT THAT NUMEROUS 09 CUBE OWNERS ARE EXPERIENCING THIS ISSUE AROUND THE SAME TIME WITH NO OFFER TO RECALL OR REIMBURSE US IS RIDICULOUS. I HAVE EMAILED CUSTOMER SERVICE WITH SCREEN SHOTS OF EVERYONE'S COMPLAINT AND REACHED OUT TO NISSAN VIA TWITTER. THEY HAVE RESPONDED AND ARE LOOKING INTO THE ISSUE NOW. FINGERS CROSSED THEY DO SOMETHING FOR US
Showing 20 of 216 total NHTSA complaints. Source: NHTSA Complaints Database
Check the exact car
Before you buy, check the exact Nissan CUBE
These pages show model-year patterns across 6 years. Enter a VIN to verify the exact vehicle's accident history, title brands, odometer records, and open recall status before purchase.
The basics
How to read this data
Complaints, recalls, investigations — here’s what each number actually tells you about a used Nissan CUBE, in plain English.
What is an NHTSA Complaint?
An NHTSA safety complaint is a report filed directly by a vehicle owner or driver describing a safety-related issue. Anyone can submit a complaint at NHTSA.gov. The number of complaints is a signal of how common a problem is — but complaints per model-year matter more than raw totals, since popular vehicles naturally receive more reports. The Nissan CUBE has 216 complaints on record across 6 model years.
What is a Safety Recall?
A safety recall is a mandatory campaign issued by NHTSA when a vehicle component poses an unreasonable risk to safety or does not comply with federal motor vehicle safety standards. Unlike complaints (which are owner-reported), recalls are formally investigated and confirmed by regulators. Manufacturers must fix recalled vehicles free of charge. The Nissan CUBE has 6 recall campaigns in the NHTSA database.
What Are Crash Complaints?
Crash complaints are NHTSA filings where the owner indicates a crash occurred as part of the incident. 10 of the Nissan CUBE's 216 complaints involved a crash. This metric is particularly important because it indicates how often defects resulted in actual collisions — a key safety signal beyond general reliability.
How Is the Reliability Verdict Calculated?
The reliability verdict (Poor) is generated by analyzing the vehicle's total complaints, recall history, crash complaint ratio, fire complaint ratio, and top component failures relative to class averages. This verdict gives buyers a quick interpretation before they review year-level details and VIN-level history. It should be treated as one decision input, not a substitute for a VIN-specific report.
Why Do Newer Years Have Fewer Complaints?
Newer model years appear to have fewer complaints because there has been less time for owners to file them. Complaints accumulate over years of ownership. A 2020 model year vehicle will typically show fewer complaints than a 2015 model year even if it is less reliable — simply because fewer owners have had time to report issues. Focus on complaints per year of market presence when comparing across model years.
Fleet Data vs. Individual VIN
Everything on this page reflects aggregated data across all Nissan CUBE vehicles on the road — not any specific car. Two Nissan CUBE vehicles of the same year can have very different histories: one may have been in three accidents and have an open recall; another may be clean. A VIN check gives you the individual car's history: accidents, title brands, odometer records, service history, and real-time recall status.
What Are NHTSA Investigations?
When NHTSA receives a pattern of related safety complaints, it opens a formal investigation. A Preliminary Evaluation (PE) is the first stage — NHTSA determines if a safety defect may exist. If evidence is strong, it escalates to an Engineering Analysis (EA), which can result in a mandatory recall. The Nissan CUBE has 0 investigations on record (0 active). Investigations listed above may have already led to the recalls shown on this page.
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Check a Nissan CUBE by state
Title-branding rules, flood-damage exposure, and salvage laws vary by state. Run a free VIN check or explore state-specific vehicle history guidance before buying a used Nissan CUBE.
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Keep researching before you buy
Compare brands and categories, then check the exact car's history by VIN.
Nissan CUBE reliability — frequently asked questions
Is the Nissan CUBE reliable?
Poor. The Nissan CUBE has 216 NHTSA owner complaints and 6 recall campaigns across model years. A commonly reported issue area is ELECTRICAL SYSTEM. Use year-level data as a pattern guide, then verify the exact car with a VIN check before purchase.
Which Nissan CUBE years to avoid?
Years with the most NHTSA complaints: 2009 (101 complaints), 2010 (55 complaints), 2011 (31 complaints). Use these years as a shortlist for deeper inspection, and always run a VIN check on the exact vehicle before purchase.
What are the most common Nissan CUBE problems?
Top reported issues: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM (52 complaints); POWER TRAIN (49 complaints); STEERING (42 complaints).
Does the Nissan CUBE have recalls?
Yes — 6 NHTSA recall campaigns have been issued for the Nissan CUBE. Check nhtsa.gov/recalls or run a VIN check to see if your specific vehicle has open recalls.