2021 Nissan Sentra problems & reliability
129 owner complaints filed with NHTSA for the 2021 Nissan Sentra, alongside 3 safety recall campaigns. Last verified Aug 7, 2026. Complaints are unverified reports submitted by owners to the federal Office of Defects Investigation.
Each complaint is counted once (by NHTSA case number), even when it names several vehicles.
8 complaints report injuries (8 injured).
Federal crash records (FARS 2020–2023): 2021 Nissan Sentra vehicles were involved in 46 fatal crashes with 28 occupant deaths. Involvement counts are not adjusted for how many are on the road and do not imply fault or a vehicle defect.
Most reported problems
| Component | Complaints | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Steering | 40 | 31% |
| Electrical System | 38 | 29% |
| Forward Collision Avoidance | 38 | 29% |
| Service Brakes | 23 | 18% |
| Unknown OR Other | 18 | 14% |
| Engine | 7 | 5% |
| Exterior Lighting | 6 | 5% |
| Vehicle Speed Control | 6 | 5% |
| Suspension | 5 | 4% |
| Wheels | 5 | 4% |
Component groups as classified by NHTSA. A complaint can name more than one component, so shares may sum to more than 100%.
Common symptoms owners describe
Keyword analysis of complaint narratives; one complaint can describe several symptoms.
Complaints by incident year
What owners report
“My 2021 Nissan Sentra has experienced multiple false Automatic Emergency Braking (phantom braking) events where the vehicle suddenly applies the brakes despite there being no vehicle, pedestrian, or obstacle in its path. This issue occurred before and after my vehicle was serviced by AutoNation Nissan Chandler on June…”
Forward Collision Avoidance · filed Jul 18, 2026
“The scope of repair required fixing a recalled tie rod that suffered a catastrophic failure, which directly caused the vehicle’s ADAS, Advanced Emergency Braking (AEB), and collision detection systems to crash. Berman Nissan promised a legally compliant, safe repair but breached this agreement by returning an unsafe…”
Steering · filed Jul 15, 2026
“Alternator needed replacement Front windshield needed replacement Unfortunately this kicked off the malfunction warning. All Nissan can say is it’s the ADAS 2 controller. They are unable to determine part numbers. However the alternator and windshield replacement kicked off the malfunction warning.”
Forward Collision Avoidance · filed Jun 8, 2026
Verbatim excerpts from complaints filed with NHTSA. Reports are not independently verified.
Technical service bulletins
132 manufacturer communications (TSBs, service campaigns, warranty extensions) are on file with NHTSA for the 2021 Nissan Sentra. The 10 most recent:
CERTIFICATION LABEL AND VIN PLATE REPLACEMENT SERVICE INFORMATION Because of collision damage or other vehicle repair, a replacement “Certification Label” or “VIN Plate/Label” may be needed. HINT: Certification Label =…
NTB09-131C · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Apr 13, 2026
CERTIFICATION LABEL AND VIN PLATE REPLACEMENT SERVICE INFORMATION Because of collision damage or other vehicle repair, a replacement “Certification Label” or “VIN Plate/Label” may be needed. HINT: Certification Label =…
NTB09-131C · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Apr 13, 2026
AUTOMATIC EMERGENCY BRAKING WARNING LIGHT BLINKING APPLIED SYSTEMS: Vehicles equipped with a lane camera (see Figure 1) SERVICE INFORMATION If the Automatic Emergency Braking (AEB) warning light or is blinking (but not…
NTB19-042F · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Feb 20, 2025
INTELLIGENT CRUISE CONTROL INOPERATIVE AND AEB/FEB WARNING LIGHT ON OR RADAR OBSTRUCTION MESSAGE DISPLAYED WITH DTC C1A16 OR C2582 IF YOU CONFIRM IMPORTANT: The purpose of ACTION (on the next page) is to give you a…
NTB19-033G · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Feb 20, 2025
SERVICE INFORMATION If one of the APPLIED VEHICLES has DTC P2100 for “ETC MOT PWR-B1” or P2101 for “ETC FNCTN/CIRC-B1” stored in the Engine Control Module (ECM) with a customer complaint of loss of power, Perform the…
NTB25-005 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Jan 13, 2025
DTC B00A0-00 STORED This bulletin has been amended. See AMENDMENT HISTORY on the last page. Please discard previous versions of this bulletin. IF YOU CONFIRM DTC B00A0-00 (OCCUPANT DETECTION SENSOR UNIT) is stored, AND…
NTB19-071D · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Sep 19, 2024
ENGINE SUPPORT TOOLS APPLIED VEHICLES: 2020-2024 Sentra (B18) SERVICE INFORMATION A new Engine Support Bracket is now available to allow the CVT to be removed from the APPLIED VEHICLES without having to remove the…
NTB24-045 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Sep 4, 2024
RATTLE OR KNOCK NOISE FROM FRONT WHEN DRIVING OVER BUMPS AND/OR TURNING APPLIED VEHICLES: 2021-2024 Sentra (B18) APPLIED DATES: Built from January 2, 2021 to April 11, 2024 IF YOU CONFIRM A rattle or knock noise is…
NTB22-045B · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Aug 16, 2024
DTC B2E01-96 (INTERNAL BATTERY) STORED AS CURRENT IN IVC This bulletin has been amended. See AMENDMENT HISTORY on the last page. Please discard previous versions of this bulletin. SERVICE INFORMATION The APPLIED…
NTB22-027B · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Aug 15, 2024
DTCS B2E4B-06, B2E60-06, B2E61-06 DISPLAYED AS CRNT IN THE TCU This bulletin has been amended. See AMENDMENT HISTORY on the last page. Please discard previous versions of this bulletin. IF YOU CONFIRM The customer…
NTB21-037D · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Aug 15, 2024
TSBs are repair guidance manufacturers send to dealers — they are not recalls and repairs are not automatically free. Full documents are available on NHTSA’s site.
Safety recalls
The 2021 Nissan Sentra has 3 NHTSA recall campaigns — recall repairs are free at franchised dealers regardless of the vehicle’s age.
Check whether your specific vehicle is affected
Recall campaigns often cover only certain VIN ranges. Enter your VIN on the official NHTSA site to confirm whether your vehicle is included and whether the repair is still open.
Check VIN on NHTSA →Buying a used 2021 Nissan Sentra?
- · Decode the seller’s VIN with our free VIN decoder to confirm the exact year, engine and trim.
- · Check for unrepaired recalls by VIN on NHTSA’s official lookup — recall repairs are free.