Which parts fail
Components named in complaints (struts, shocks, control arms, ball joints, springs).
Mileage when the problem started
Owner reports
Selected complaints filed with NHTSA by 2009 Nissan Versa owners, lightly cleaned up (personal details are redacted by NHTSA).
The contact owns a 2009 Nissan Versa. The contact stated that while driving out of a parking lot at 10 MPH, the front end of the vehicle made an abnormally loud sound, and the contact noticed a strong rubber odor. The contact inspected underneath the vehicle and became aware that a part had fractured underneath the vehicle. The contact was able to reverse into the parking space. Several independent mechanics were contacted and advised that the failure might be related to the front coil springs corrosion and associated the failure with NHTSA Campaign Number: 15V573000 (Suspension); however, the VIN was not included in the recall. The contact stated that even though the vehicle was not registered in the States listed in the recall, the vehicle had been driven in one of the States listed while the contact was in school. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. …
There is a safety recall campaign for the front coil springs breaking for all Nissan Versas registered in "salt states" The car is registered in a "salt state" and the the front coil has snapped. For a reason that neither corporate Nissan nor the local Nissan service center can explain, this car is excluded from repair.
Tl* the contact owns a 2009 Nissan Versa. While driving 50 MPH, the vehicle spun out of control without warning. The vehicle turned completely around to the point that the contact and her family were facing towards traffic. The vehicle crashed into the bushes on the shoulder. The air bags did not deploy. There were no injuries. A police report was not filed. The rim was bent over the rear driver's tire. The vehicle was repaired and the wheels were replaced by the contact's local mechanic. The crash was related to NHTSA campaign number: 15V573000 (suspension). The failure mileage was 100,000.
While driving on a country side road at 40 miles per hour, passenger side coil spring broke without warning after a small hill top (while the car was compressing the suspension) and tore the sidewall of the front right tire. The tire instantly deflated, the rim punched hard into the ground resulting in a temporary loss of control of the vehicle. The vehicle managed to stay on the road. Car will need a new right suspension and some repair to the front bumper (scratch marks).
Backing out of my driveway I heard a grinding noise, and when I got down to the street and put it into drive, I heard a loud pop and ping from the front end of the passenger side. Part of the passenger side spring had broken off. I pulled it immediately back into the driveway. Upon inspection, I found a piece of the spring in the road and noted that the passenger side front of the car was lower than the other. I called a tow truck, had it towed to my mechanic and they found that the spring had indeed broken off. The spring was not rusty, it is currently 6 years old and has only 45K miles on it. Since there are no aftermarket parts for this and Nissan sells spring, mount, strut (not an assembly), they are forced to put on all Nissan parts which makes me nervous that it will happen again. …
I was routinely pulling into my driveway, and I heard a single ping/knock sound, immediately followed by a grinding noise, coming from the front right of the car. The car instantly became difficult to maneuver. Upon immediate inspection, I could see that the lower part of the coil spring had broken cleanly. The remaining portion of the spring had come away from the metal restraining plate, and was extending against the inside top part of the tire. The metal did not puncture the tire, but it is significantly indenting the rubber. The car is not driveable. Furthermore, the left coil spring, in the same relative place, shows significant corrosion, and does not look safe for driving. Coil springs are expected to last the lifetime of a car-- especially one well cared for and driven in almost ideal conditions, like mine. I have never had a coil spring break on me. …
I live in the kansas city metro, on the kansas side, less than 10 minutes from the border to missouri. There is a current recall that applies to the front coil springs of Nissan versas (NHTSA recall 17v-637) because the springs have insufficient corrosion coating. This current recall applies to missouri but not kansas. I drive my car in missouri all the time because of my proximity to missouri and my husband is employed in missouri. My front, right coil spring broke on March 17, 2018. The coil spring broke when backing out of my parking spot at my apartment in a lot that is relatively new and flat, meaning no pot holes. A loud bang was heard and when moving there was a loud creaking sound. After pulling out about 3 feet I pulled back in and turned the car off. I found a round metal object on the ground near the front with rust on it. It was flat on one end and broken on the other. …
We took our Nissan Versa into tynan's Nissan (780 s havana st, aurora, co 80012) for the recall on the coil springs. After they replaced the coil springs on our low mileage Nissan Versa, the ball joint on the passenger side failed within 10 miles of them replacing the coil springs for the recall. When this happened it put my amanda and our child in danger. Luckily they are safe and unharmed. Jason at tynan's Nissan service department initially apologized and said they would take care of everything and gave us a loaner vehicle, now 3 days later they are trying changing their story and trying to make us pay for the damage they caused during the recall repair. There is no way that a passenger side ball joint would coincidentally break on a low mileage car immediately after coil spring replacement unless they did something wrong to the vehicle to cause it. …
My wife's 2009 Nissan Versa drivers side front end collapsed onto her tire last year in the last week of June 2014. When I entered the vehicle and placed the gear into drive the front driver end collapsed on the tire and a piece of the metal strut fell out of the car onto the pavement. We contacted the company and Nissan finally decided to pay for the repair after we threatened to take legal action. We asked the dealer mechanic who repaired the shock/strut that we were now concerned that the other side would be faulty and if it was safe and/or it needed to be replaced. He said he checked it and it was fine. Sure enough just a little more than 1 year from then my pregnant wife wakes up to find the front end of her car collapsed on the passenger side while being parked in our driveway. …
I was driving slowly, around 20 MPH, and exiting my workplace when I heard a sudden loud noise (like a clang) from the front area of my car. I thought I had hit something, but I stopped to look and there were no pot holes or anything around the car that I could have hit. I tried to continue home, as I live very close to a shop and was going to have the car looked at... But less than a mile later the car began to smoke from the passenger side wheel. I pulled off the road and had to have the car towed last night. Today I found out it was the coil spring, which had snapped off and was digging into my tire. Now I have to have to the coil replaced and purchase a new tire -- the one I have is nearly shredded. While I'm disappointed that I'm just outside my 5/60 warranty (currently at approx. …
Related recalls
Suspension › Front › Springs › Coil springs
Nissan (Nissan North America, Inc.) is recalling certain model year 2007-2012 Nissan Versa vehicles manufactured May 8, 2006, to November 12, 2012, that were sold or ever registered in the District of Columbia, Connecticut, Delaware, Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota,…
Remedy: Nissan will notify owners, and dealers will replace both front coil springs, free of charge. The recall began on February 2, 2016. Owners may contact Nissan customer service at 1-800-647-7261.
NHTSA investigations
Front Coil Spring Fracture
In a letter dated September 10,2015, Nissan North America,Inc. (Nissan) notified the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) of a safety defect that may result in coil spring fracture in approximately 218,019 model year (MY) 2007 through 2012 Nissan Versa vehiclesproduced from May 8, 2006 through November12, 2012 and originally sold or ever registered in the following 22 states and the District of…
Suspension complaints in other Versa years
Frequently asked questions
How common are suspension problems on the 2009 Nissan Versa?
NHTSA has 182 complaints about the suspension of the 2009 Nissan Versa, 36% of the model year's 504 complaints. The component named most often is front › springs › coil springs (5 mentions).
Is there a recall for 2009 Nissan Versa suspension problems?
Yes — NHTSA recall 15V-573 (coil springs, Sep 14, 2015). Recall repairs are free at authorized dealers.
At what mileage do 2009 Nissan Versa suspension problems start?
Half of the complaints with a recorded mileage happened before about 65,000 miles, and 9% before 25,000 miles.
Is it dangerous?
Owners linked 2 crashes, 0 fires and 0 injuries to suspension 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.