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 2007 Nissan Xterra owners, lightly cleaned up (personal details are redacted by NHTSA).
Oil is getting into the radiator and causing a gray gunk build up in radiator and possibly the engine. I have had the car less than a 1 1/2 years And I've already had to have the same issue fixed 3 first time. The heater hose blew out caused an air bubble in the radiator which caused us to have to burp the radiator Which is when we found it the first time had sent it to the mechanic. Had it flushed, had it fixed. it was fine or so we thought until about a month ago. Car overheats radiator fluid spews out everywhere. Fix the hose, add radiator fluid and start. The burping process again and out comes the gray gunk. Sent it back to mechanic had it flush had gaskets to the transmission cooler and Oil cooler fixed. Mechanic cannot find how it's getting into radiator. Break pads wear prematurely due to calipers constantly sticking. …
The vehicle was driving just fine, then about a month later the heat gauge started to fluctuate, i replaced the radiator caps, thermostat...it ran good for another month, started to overheat....i made sure water was in radiator and overflow...about a month went by the gauge started to fluctuate again, i had it towed to sayre auto parts in sayre, al to have a water pump installed and the mechanic told me their is now there is water in my oil, meaning a cracked head gasket...the vehicle never got over the 3/4 mark on gauge and this is the 2nd vehicle ive purchased that the same thing has happened to.
I kelp vehicle regularly mantianced shut it off one evening next morning it would start when finally started it wouldn't pull in 1st gear. Took it to transmission shop and found out that a crack had accured and there was coolant mixed with transmission fluid .so 3 days after I pd it off on a 3 yr payment plan it broke down on me . Very hard to find d a placement and someone who will do work on it bc it's so commo
This complaint is in reference to a 2007 Nissan Xterra off road 4x4 with180,900 miles. The transmission began to spontaneously downshift to low gears while moving at speeds above 25 mile per hour. At one point, the transmission seized and locked up while traveling at 45 miles per hour, which resulted in a sudden stop in the midst of the traffic flow on a two lane road. I took the vehicle to the Nissan dealer for service immediately. Inspection revealed coolant had leaked into the transmission via a leaking transmission cooler assembly integrated into the main engine radiator. The transmission sustained substantial internal damage from the coolant mixing with transmission fluid and circulating through the transmission. The transmission and engine radiator had to be replaced in order to make the vehicle roadworthy again. Total cost of the repair with taxes was $4800.00. …
My vehicle was driving perfectly without any issues at all until one day on the way home I stopped at a stop sign near my home. Then as I started to proceed down the city street the check engine light and 4wd lights came on in the dash and the vehicle would barely move. I just barely got it into the driveway of my home. After I turned it off I attempted to restart the vehicle it would not even attempt to turn over. I checked online to see what would cause these symptoms to find that hundreds upon thousands of other Nissan owners have had the same happen to them. It is a known issue of cross contamination of radiator fluid and transmission fluid due to a faulty design in the radiator. I had a mechanic check my engine as well and he confirmed that the grey sludge in the radiator and grit in my transmission fluid fit the symptoms of this issue. …
Boch Nissan south ( formerly Nissan village)sold me a truck on March 30, 2013 where they rolled back the odometer & failed to mention 2 serious accidents in 2011 prior to my purchase March 2013. I believe we were shown a different car fax I was told it was the salesman's wife's truck that she had just traded in. I have had very serious issues that made no since for a truck that had been babyed by me . Complete enigen fire in febuary nuremous oil leaks & radiator mixing with the coolant oil past 10 months. I brought it into to nissian boch south of north attleboro in April they accused me of rolling back the odometer. I was horrified told them you guys sold me this truck. I went home and ordered a carfax and it clearly happened at the dealership when it went in for repairs on 2 accidents that I was not aware of! …
Transmission control unit fried by defected radiator failure. I am now one of the many 2007 Xterra owners taken by the Nissan motor corporation who put out a defective product and now refuse to stand behind it. Me and the wife were stopping to get a bite to eat, ended up being a final stop. After picking up the food the truck would not crank, gauges worked, horn and lights but still would not crank. Had it towed to the house and then contacted the dealership. Then it gets worst, the dealership "technician" replied with the exact same description of problem over the phone that I gave to him when I called to have it towed to the dealer. The symptoms are no crank, milky looking radiator fluid and the automatic transmission fuses keeps blowing. Now I contacted the Nissan motor corporation and got no "joy" when I found out that the were offering a big fat nothing!!!!!! …
Another frustrated 2007 Nissan Xterra owner who's radiator and transmission had to be replaced. Three weeks ago noticed some tranny slippage while driving (normally 80 miles a day, 5 days a week and all on highways), checked fluid, no problem, no leaks or nothing, though maybe just drain and change fluids. Then 1 week ago today, I was at a stop light when my temperature gauge spiked to hot and radiator started to smoke, started to move on the green light to pull over to side of road from a four lane highway and I was in the second lane over, car started to chug and barely made it to the side of road before it quit, then a gray colored fluid started draining out of my radiator overflow all over the ground. Had to make the call to a shop and they knew exactly what the problem was before they came and got it. …
I purchased this vehicle at staten island Nissan exactly two years ago. Since then, I've only put 4,000 miles on it. I've always smelled something a bit awful when first starting the vehicle. During it's last inspection it was determined that it needed new rotors. While getting the rotors replaced, a mechanic who'd formerly worked at Nissan had determined noticed that the secondary timing chain and gasket were bad, causing an internal leak. After brief research, I've discovered that this has been a common problem that Nissan has not been informing their consumers and this is a very dangerous/expensive manufacturer's defect. I've since placed several calls to staten island Nissan and have been receiving the run around. I've also contacted their consumer affairs department who'd informed me to take it to a Nissan dealership to get it inspected. I have to pay for the inspection.
I noticed a vibration, like you were driving on the rumble strip on the side of the road between 40 and 50 MPH, at around 2000 RPM and the transmission would not switch into overdrive. I took it into the dealership and the service tech diagnosed the problem, cooler system failure, in about 5 minutes after taking one look at the transmission fluid and coolant. The cooler had failed leaking coolant into the transmission fluid and vice versa. They replaced the transmission and cooler assembly. I had just under 97,000 miles on the vehicle and had to pay $3300 for the repairs. I am very disappointed in Nissan and how they have handled what is clearly a prevalent and known issue with cooler failures in certain models. A $3000 deductible (plus tax) that expires at 100,000 miles for an issue that's known to occur at close to 100,000 miles is not much of a consolation.
Engine complaints in other Xterra years
Frequently asked questions
How common are engine problems on the 2007 Nissan Xterra?
NHTSA has 160 complaints about the engine & cooling of the 2007 Nissan Xterra, 29% of the model year's 557 complaints. The component named most often is cooling system › radiator assembly (7 mentions).
Is there a recall for 2007 Nissan Xterra engine problems?
No. NHTSA lists no engine & cooling recall for the 2007 Nissan Xterra, though it has 1 recall 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 2007 Nissan Xterra engine problems start?
Half of the complaints with a recorded mileage happened before about 105,000 miles, and 5% before 25,000 miles.
Is it dangerous?
Owners linked 0 crashes, 2 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.