Which parts fail
Components named in complaints (engine, cooling system, oil leaks, timing chain, exhaust).
Mileage when the problem started
Owner reports
Selected complaints filed with NHTSA by 2017 Nissan Titan owners, lightly cleaned up (personal details are redacted by NHTSA).
The contact owns a 2017 Nissan Titan. The contact stated that upon the start of his vehicle, an abnormal, knocking sound was coming from the engine with several unknown warning lights illuminated. The contact had the vehicle towed to the dealer where a defect was found in cylinder #5. The engine was replaced due to a defect. The contact also mentioned various electrical failures had occurred with the vehicle including the headlights and taillights ceasing to operate as needed while driving. The contact took the vehicle back to the dealer where they discovered that a plug had disconnected from the wiring harness. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The vehicle was repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 14,000.
The truck's engine died while traveling down the highway around 60 mph. I lost all power and struggled to pull to the side of the road avoiding traffic. there were no warning lights or engine lights before the truck died. There was only a slight vibration and loss of power. Once I stopped on the side of the road smoke started coming out from under the hood. The truck has been maintained well and taken care of and has 59,000 miles on it. I was told by a Nissan mechanic that the motor is locked up because of a broken crank, and they are still trying to see what happened with the electrical wiring that caused the fire. The truck is out of warranty and they informed me that a new motor would cost upwards of $25,000 dollars.
The contact owns a 2017 Nissan Titan. The contact stated that the turbo stand, the liftgate latch, and the bolt had failed and were previously repaired. Additionally, the contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where it was diagnosed that the Diesel Exhaust Fluid (DEF) system and the EGR cooler were leaking. The dealer determined that the DEF tank and the EGR cooler needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired and remained at the dealer for over 6 months. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and offered to partially cover the cost of the repair. The failure mileage was approximately 109,000.
The contact owns a 2017 Nissan Titan. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, there was an exhaust odor entering the cabin of the vehicle. The contact was forced to lower the windows to escape the foul odor. The contact stated that the failure occurred while the vehicle was performing the DEF (Diesel Exhaust Fluid) system operation. The vehicle was taken to a dealer, where the failure was related to the windshield cowl system not properly filtering the air. The contact was provided an estimate for the repair, and declined. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 30,000.
The contact owns a 2017 Nissan Titan. The contact stated that while driving at 65 MPH, the vehicle lost motive power. There was an abnormally loud sound coming from the engine. Additionally, the TPMS warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer, where it was diagnosed with engine failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was contacted, and a case was opened. The failure mileage was approximately 80,100.
Driving down the highway and the truck shut off. Pulled over and the engine will not crank. Suspect the engine is locked as the starter tries to turn over the engine but just starts to smoke due to engine not moving
I received a recall notice back in Sept 2019 (19V-495 ). I went to Antwerpen Nissan (Woodlawn, MD ) and they eroneously closed my recall ticket without completing the work. This was the second time that dealership falsified documents. Antwerpen Nissan said that they didn't see anything wrong with the wire harness. I've been having electrical problems sporadically since 2019. The problems are getting worse. My console / touch screen system is rebooting on its own while I am driving. I am still experiencing loss of power, LED driving lights will turn on and off while driving. Draining battery ( was replaced once at the dealership ). Antwerpen of Owings Mills was the last to investigate this issue. This was just before my factory warrantee expired. They replaced the radio. Electronic issues remained. I phoned Nissan USA and tried working with Nissan Rep "CHRIS";... …
Driving down I40 between exit 57 and exit 47 when my truck started making a bad vibration and horrible noise. it was dark so I could not see if it was smoking or anything coming from the exhaust. Had the truck towed to my dad's house which was closer to mine. Once there we did an initial investigation on what was wrong. After pulling the dip stick and noticing there was metal material on the dip stick, we knew that something had failed in the motor. We then loaded the truck on a trailer and took to my house 50 miles away. I reached out to the dealer ship that I purchased the truck from, "Nelson Nissan" in Broken Arrow, Oklahoma. They told me the truck was out of warranty by 1 month on the 5-year warranty but it only has around 98,000 miles. Since purchasing this truck from them I have only done simple maintenance. I have not even changed the tires at this point. …
The vehicle is available for inspection immediately by all parties. While driving down the highway, the truck started a vibration, without any warning indicators. The vehicle was taken to the next travel center truck shop. The writer acknowledged the vibration like a misfire, but no codes were present. He recommended another shop or dealer. A detour was made to the nearest Nissan dealership. On the way, the truck stumbled with a violent vibration and shut down on the road without warning lights. There was a complete loss of power from the engine on the highway, giving way to the risk of being hit by other motorists and blocking traffic. Since the engine shut down, there was also a loss of power steering, giving high risk to the possibility of an accident. The truck was unable to restart. …
Received a recall for my vehicle. Recall was pd128. Took vehicle to dealer to have recall serviced on vehicle which was for a pm sensor and reprogram the emissions control module. After recall, DEF system error code and reduce speed to 5mph showed up on truck. Went back to dealer to explain issue after the recall. They ran codes and thought it could be the DPF filter or EGR without thinking the recall could be to blame. Went to another mechanic and did a DEF system check and found no issue with system but a miscommunication with the NOx sensor. Had NOx sensor replaced and a week later had same DEF system error come on but was more intermittent and would clear on its own. Checked codes and found said miscommunication with the same NOx sensor that was replaced. Went back to the original dealer to explain the issue and believe it was due to the recall reprogram. …
NHTSA investigations
Loss of motive power due to broken crankshaft with no ability to restart.
On November 15, 2023, the Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) opened Preliminary Evaluation PE23020 to investigate allegations of loss of motive power in model year (MY) 2016 through 2019 Nissan Titan XD trucks equipped with 5.0L Cummins diesel engines. The complaints allege the condition was due to a failure of the engine crankshaft.
Engine complaints in other Titan years
Frequently asked questions
How common are engine problems on the 2017 Nissan Titan?
NHTSA has 102 complaints about the engine & cooling of the 2017 Nissan Titan, 55% of the model year's 187 complaints. The component named most often is exhaust system (2 mentions).
Is there a recall for 2017 Nissan Titan engine problems?
No. NHTSA lists no engine & cooling recall for the 2017 Nissan Titan, though it has 3 recalls for other components. If the problem is widespread, a repair may still be covered by an extended warranty or a manufacturer service bulletin — ask a dealer.
At what mileage do 2017 Nissan Titan engine problems start?
Half of the complaints with a recorded mileage happened before about 22,000 miles, and 59% before 25,000 miles.
Is it dangerous?
Owners linked 0 crashes, 4 fires and 0 injuries to engine & cooling problems on this model year. If you notice symptoms, have the car checked before driving further.
Source: U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) — owner complaints through October 20, 2026, recalls and defect investigations; fuel economy from the EPA. Complaints are unverified reports and are not proof of a defect. How we rate model years.