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2004 Nissan SentraProblems, recalls & complaints

NHTSA has logged 197 owner complaints about the 2004 Nissan Sentra, most often about the engine and engine cooling. It is covered by 4 safety recalls, and for recall 20V-747 the manufacturer reports only 23% of affected cars repaired.

2004 Nissan Sentra
46
CarFlaw IndexSolid year1.2× the Sentra median · #13 of 38 years by complaints
Safety recalls4Lowest repair rate 23%Owner complaints19733 with a crash, fire or injuryTypical failure mileage69kEngine and engine cooling, median miles

Source: NHTSA complaints, recalls, investigations and manufacturer recall reports, through December 17, 2025. Updated daily. Photo: IFCAR, Public domain.

Complaints by system

Where the 2004 Nissan Sentra has problems

197 complaints grouped by the system owners reported.

Box size = number of complaints naming that system. Darker = larger share. One complaint can name more than one system.
Complaints by system
SystemComplaintsCrash, fire or injury
Engine and engine cooling591
Air bags3212
Electrical system280
Engine260
Fuel system, gasoline250
Fuel/propulsion system81
Power train71
Vehicle speed control70
Service brakes, hydraulic64
14 other systems3310

Source: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation. Complaints are submitted by the public and are not verified by NHTSA.

4 recalls

2004 Nissan Sentra recalls and how many were fixed

Each ring shows the share of affected cars repaired, from the manufacturer’s latest quarterly report to NHTSA. Recall repairs are free at authorized dealers.

23%repaired · 2022 Q4

Air bags

Do not drive

Recall 20V-747 · Dec 1, 2020 · 3,930 vehicles · 916 repaired

Risk. An inflator explosion may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.

Problem, fix and repair progress →

36%repaired · 2021 Q2

Passenger side: inflator module

Recall 20V-008 · Jan 9, 2020 · 307,962 vehicles · 111,354 repaired

Risk. An inflator explosion may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.

Problem, fix and repair progress →

27%repaired · 2017 Q1

Air bags

Recall 15V-287 · May 15, 2015 · 1,090,569 vehicles · 297,865 repaired

Risk. In the event of a crash necessitating deployment of the passenger's frontal air bag, the inflator could rupture with metal fragments striking the vehicle…

Problem, fix and repair progress →

–no report yet

Engine and engine cooling

Recall 06V-242 · Jul 7, 2006 · 294,166 vehicles

Risk. IF THE INTERRUPTION IN THE SIGNAL FROM THE SENSOR IS SO BRIEF THAT THE ELECTRONIC CONTROL MODULE (ECM) LOGIC DOES NOT HAVE TIME TO DIAGNOSE THE CONDITION, THE…

Problem, fix and repair progress →

Recalls apply to specific cars. To see whether a recall is still open on yours, enter the 17-character VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls or with Nissan.

Mileage at failure

When do engine and engine cooling problems start?

69kmiles, median

Based on the odometer reading in 55 engine and engine cooling complaints. 80% were reported before 100,000 miles.

median0k50k100k150k200k+
10under 30k miles44under 100k miles11100k miles or more
Best & worst years

2004 vs. every other Sentra year

Bars show complaints per model year. Colors show the CarFlaw verdict: complaints weighted for crashes, fires and injuries, adjusted for years on the road and compared with the Sentra median. How we score

'82'83'84'85'86'87'88'89'90'91'92'93'94'95'96'97'98'99'00'01'02'03'04'05'06'07'08'09'10'11'12'13'14'15'16'17'18'19'20'21'22'23'24'25'26
  • Avoid
  • Caution
  • Solid
  • Best
  • Not rated
NHTSA crash tests

2004 Nissan Sentra safety ratings

2004 Nissan Sentra 4-DR. in NHTSA's New Car Assessment Program. Photos are from NHTSA's crash tests.

2004 Nissan Sentra frontal crash test, NHTSA
Frontal crashNot rated
2004 Nissan Sentra side barrier test, NHTSA
Side barrierNot rated
  • Stability control: No
  • Forward collision warning: No
  • Lane departure warning: No
3 investigations

NHTSA defect investigations

Federal investigations that included the 2004 Nissan Sentra, and the recalls they led to.

  1. Air Bag Inflator RuptureEA15001 · still open
    Led to recall 14V-668
  2. Desiccated Air Bag Inflator RuptureEA21002 · still open
    Open
  3. Air Bag Inflator RupturePE14016 · closed Mar 2, 2015
    Led to recall 14E-073
In owners' words

What Sentra owners report

Recent engine and engine cooling complaints filed with NHTSA, shortened. Personal details are removed.

The contact owns a 2004 Nissan Sentra. The contact stated while driving approximately 20 MPH, the engine began to run roughly and the vehicle was shaking. The contact stated that while depressing the accelerator pedal the vehicle failed to respond. The contact stated no warning light was…
Complaint 11459124 · Mar 31, 2022 · 150,000 miles
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2004 NISSAN SENTRA. WHILE DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 45 MPH, THE ENGINE STALLED WITHOUT WARNING. AFTER MULTIPLE ATTEMPTS,THE VEHICLE RESTARTED AND THE "CHECK ENGINE" WARNING INDICATOR ILLUMINATED. AN INDEPENDENT DIAGNOSTIC TEST DISPLAYED A CODE OF P0335, WHICH INDICATED THAT THE…
Complaint 10632796 · Sep 12, 2014 · 127,000 miles
MY CAR STALLED WHILE DRIVING. I WAS GOING THE SPEED LIMIT OF 45 MPH AND WITHOUT WARNING MY CAR JUST LOST POWER & STOPPED. I WAS LUCKY ENOUGH TO BE ABLE TO COAST OFF THE ROAD WITHOUT GETTING INTO AN ACCIDENT. I WAS ON AN 8-LANE VERY BUSY ROAD IN A MIDDLE LANE. AT THE FIRST MOMENT, THE SERVICE ENGINE…
Complaint 10566294 · Feb 27, 2014 · 86,000 miles

Own a 2004 Sentra?

Decode your VIN to see the recalls for your exact car, then confirm open recalls with NHTSA.