2018 NISSAN TITAN Engine Problems
41 complaints about Engine
High Severity Issue
This component has been associated with crashes, fires, or deaths.
This Problem Across All Years
All Engine Complaints (41)
Imminent catastrophic engine failure on 2018 Nissan Titan. The engine has developed severe cylinder wall scuffing and loss of compression (150psi vs 264psi spec) on multiple cylinders. This defect can cause loss of power and potential stalling at highway speeds, presenting a safety risk. The failure matches Nissan TSB NTB19-057 (knock/scuffing). Despite a perfect maintenance history, Nissan is denying warranty coverage by claiming there was no oil change service record because the maintenance was not done at a Nissan dealership. The local Nissan dealership confirmed the issue matches the TSB and an independent inspection confirmed the defect is mechanical (piston/cylinder clearance).
1. Turbo Actuator / Dealer is currently replacing the defective part. 2. When this part fails, you lose throttle control and acceleration capabilities. This part failed on me at highway speeds, and I had to drift over several lanes of high-speed traffic. I was unable to control the speed of my vehicle, with no ability to accelerate. 3. Not sure if they duplicated or are replacing the part solely by the check engine code of P00AH DTC (Check engine code). 4. It is a known issue with Nissan, and they have extended warranty coverage for 2016 and 2017 model year Titans with the diesel motor, but have refused to address it with the 2018 model, even with the same symptoms and DTC. 5.No, when the failure occurred, the check engine light came on, and the truck lost power. Occurred around September 25, 2025, mileage is 61,489. A claim was filed with Nissan North America under case # 55882533, and they have denied to cover the repair.
Truck died driving at highway speed, towed vehicle to Nissan dealership, and was quoted at or above 30 thousand dollars in repairs related the dreaded CP4 fuel pump system that has failed on the truck that only had 134,000 miles.
Engine failure. On rural highway with recreational traffic, engine started rattling, within 5 seconds the engine shut off, luckily I was able to get on the shoulder. My truck is currently at a repair facility 300 miles from my home. Waiting on information from shop and extended warranty company. No warning lights whatsoever.
My 2018 Nissan Titan has suffered two engine failures within two years, with fewer than 37,000 miles on the vehicle. Despite following all scheduled preventive maintenance, the engines failed catastrophically. One of these failures occurred with my family in the vehicle, placing their safety at serious risk. Details: The first engine failure happened at approximately [30,000], and the second at around [37,000], both requiring full engine replacements. These were not minor issues — they were sudden, complete losses of engine power. The second failure was especially dangerous, occurring while driving with my family onboard. Despite clear signs of a major defect or systemic issue, Nissan has refused to take responsibility, treating these catastrophic events as if they are routine, isolated failures. I followed all required maintenance schedules, and the vehicle was well cared for. Nissan’s lack of accountability is unacceptable and deeply disappointing. Based on this experience and their failure to stand behind their product, I will not purchase another Nissan vehicle and cannot recommend the brand to others. I am submitting this report to urge the NHTSA to investigate this issue as a potential safety and manufacturing defect that could affect more owners and put more families at risk.
Component Turbocharger, power train Safety vehicle would not restart so was stranded on highway Unknown if others have had similar issues Components have not been examined at this time but are available Warnings, 1st check engine, 2nd power reduced, 3rd engine was dead Going uphill on the interstate, the check engine light came on. I then observed the turbo boost climbing to 30 PSI, dark smoke coming out of the exhaust, and white smoke. I was attempting to pull over while this happened. When I got to the shoulder of the road , the vehicle was disabled, and coolant was pouring out of the overflow onto the ground. The vehicle needed to be towed to Great Falls, where it is awaiting repair. Vehicle is still not running at this time
Vehicle shut down going down the interstate. After investigating, there’s metal in the oil. Possible spin crankshaft bearing or broken crankshaft
While driving on Interstate 20 at a 75 mph speed in traffic, the truck began a loud knocking noise and the engine shut down. After fighting the dead truck off the roadway from the highway speeds and avoiding traffic, I was able to get the truck safely stopped. Upon attempting to restart the engine, the starter caught on fire. I was able to get the fire extinguished with minimal damage. The truck was towed by a wrecker to my home. I replaced the starter and inspected the wiring harness for fire damages. The truck did restart after sitting for several days, and the knock which was heard on the roadway the day of the failure was excessive. After other checks and inspections, the crankshaft was found to be broken in half causing loud knocking. This is a catastrophic failure with a monetary replacement of approximately $20,000-$30,000.
Oil doesn’t get to the 7th cylinder causing unrepairable damage. It’s a known issue by Nissan
Vehicle was well maintained and only drive it around 10,000 miles per year or less. Had no issues or warning signs, my truck just bogged down while going 65mph on the highway. By the time I pulled over and cut it off I checked all fluids and tried to turn it over again, all you hear is a heavy knocking sound like the engine was struggling. Took it to a mechanic shop and found out it had a broken crankshaft, it has under 50,000 miles!
Traveling 65mph down the highway, engine started shaking extremely bad and smoke pouring from the exhaust.
In November of 2022 we heard a knocking noise from the engine and then the low oil warning came on. Vehicle would then not start. When we towed it to the dealership they found noise from the bottom end and low oil pressure code P0524 and verified engine will not start and does make a bad knocking noise during short crank period. Determined the engine came apart internally and had large rod and main bearing material in oil pan loose metal ran through engine and engine will need to be replaced. We had all necessary warranty work done at the certified dealership and all oil changes were done as recommended, all documentation sent to dealership. Nissan would not cover the damage, we were 12,370 miles over warranty and still owed $24,000 on the vehicle. On April 4/17/2023 we paid $17,977 for a new engine on the truck. Upon our research this is a "known" issue with this engine and the crank shaft failing.
Engine started vibrating and shut off on expectantly at highway speeds. Leaving vehicle disabled in traffic. The crank was found to have cracked.
I was driving down the interstate and my crankshaft broke. It happened suddenly and I lost all power and luckily no one ran into the back of me as I slowed down and made my way to the shoulder. There I sat for 2 hrs waiting for the tow truck. There were no signs or warning lights prior to the engine loosing all power. Nissan inspected and has confirmed it is a broken camshaft and will not warranty it.
While traveling at highway speed, engine suddenly started making noise, shaking, and lost power without warning or check engine light. Vehicle was towed to dealer, suspected crankshaft failure, quoted $31,000 by dealer to replace engine.
Earlier this year my 2018 Nissan Titan experienced catastrophic engine failure at only 56,376 miles. I then learned it was due to a manufacturing defect that is very common on 2017-2019 Nissan Titans and other Nissan models with the same engine. This issue is well known to Nissan as evidenced by Nissan Service Bulletin NTB19-057 which was first issued in July 2019. Most failures have occurred when the vehicles are so new that the manufacturer’s warranty provides engine replacement. Mine, unfortunately, occurred three months after the powertrain warranty expired. I filed a complaint with Nissan Consumer Affairs and Nissan took no responsibility and provided no financial assistance. I was forced to pay for engine replacement at a cost of $8,755.03. The website [XXX] has numerous forums relating to this issue with the main thread having 3000+ posts from owners who have experienced catastrophic engine failure. As these vehicles all have expiring powertrain warranties, Nissan is leaving owners like me to pay extremely high repair bills due to this known factory defect. As premature catastrophic engine failure is an obvious safety issue, Nissan should have the responsibility to issue a recall and repair these vehicles. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
High pressure fuel pump failed (CP4 pump) and put metal through the entire fuel system causes over 10k in repairs and the truck only has 54,000 miles
Crankshaft failure resulting in complete engine failure. I still have both halves of the crankshaft laying on my bench. During the engine failure experience the truck lost all engine power and came to a stop alongside of interstate barrier wall. I couldn't even open my door without obstructing a lane of interstate traffic. No warning lights led up to the event or any symptoms leading to the catastrophic engine failure.
There is a known issue with the engine where the cylinder 7 is scored. If left untreated it is possible that the engine could misfire or stop working all together due to oil entering the engine. Tried contacting Nissan about it and was told that it is not their problem since it is out of warranty. Currently the engine produces a loud ticking and there is lack of power. A dealership has inspected and confirmed the issue and stated it does need repaired or it is not safe to drive.
Crankshaft broke on the freeway seizing the motor vehicle 101,000 miles
Traveling home from working nightshift. I fueled up my truck with diesel and started my commute home which is 85 miles to my residence from work. 60 miles into my commute without warning and no alerts my truck suddenly lost power to everything… engine, steering, acceleration, and electrical. Final able to pull off the road with difficulty steering. Came to a stop and everything shuts off. All the warning lights lit up but no exact detail to what caused it. Had it towed to service shop after failure to start and the sound it made trying to start wasn’t normal. Technicians ran my codes and found nothing that could diagnose the problem.
The crankshaft broke on original engine then my warranty company CARS plus protection sent another engine with 80k miles and mechanic installed and made it 60miles and the crankshaft broke on that engine as well. Warrenty after that did nothing and has still done nothing this incident start on April 28th 2023. I have still been making payments and kept insurance up to date have no choice I don’t have $20k to buy a new engine. Truck is still at mechanics shop
The truck left me stranded on the side of the road resulting in a total engine failure. Zero warning signs. Truck was towed at my expensive resulting in 29 days without the vehicle while nissan replaced the engine
I was driving the truck down the interstate with the cruise set at 70-75 mph and without warning, the truck starts shaking violently and making very loud noises from the wngine and then the engine shuts off and power steering is lost while traveling at highway speeds in traffic. The failure was diagnosed as a crankshaft failure which snapped the crankshaft in the engine. The quote from Nissan to replace the engine out of warranty varies between 35k-42k which TOTALS this vehicle for an engine failure that they are at fault for. Nissan knowingly sold vehicles with faulty engines by putting the safety concerns and financial burden for the public to the wayside. This needs to be addressed soon before someone is seriously injured due to Nissan’s negligence and recklessness for customer safety.
While travelling at 80km/h down a slight hill and towing my caravan the vehicle started shuttering vigorously and then the engine just shut down, had to pull up the vehicle using the caravan brakes, Had the vehicle towed back to the Australian Importers as I am located in Australia and they have told me it has a crankshaft failure.
My vehicle was driving down the highway at 70 mph when without any warning the engine shut off resulting in the loss of power steering. I had to navigate through traffic to get to the shoulder of the road. I had the vehicle towed to Nissan dealership after a couple weeks I was made aware that the engine needed to be replaced. The truck suffered. A broken crankshaft and main fuel components were replaced as well.
Engine failure with a broken crankshaft. - Front driveshaft replaced. - Rear driveshaft replaced. - Transfer case replaced. - Real output shaft seal replaced. - Steering gearbox replaced. - Idler arm replaced. - Body wiring harness replaced. - Lift Pump replaced.
Was driving down the interstate going 70 mph truck started loosing power without any warning or check engine light's. Truck started vibrating violently to the point almost lost control of truck. Dealer says broke crankshaft in motor truck only has 77k miles on it. This should be looked into as it’s happening a lot with models with the Cummings diesel motor. Please look into this before someone is killed. Thank you for keeping us safe.
Elk hunting on a mountain towing trailer with UTV, road was somewhat rough in 4wheel drive suddenly engine goes into limp mode. It took almost 4 hrs to get off the mountain in limp mode....once off towed vehicle 200 miles to nearest dealer (redding,ca). Cause: A sensor in the overflow for the radiator failed and put the truck into limp mode. There was no actual engine failure or any low coolant. Just very poor design on cummings part....
Broken crank shaft caused the truck to stall in the road
While Driving in normal Driving conditions, The Auto at 30 mph will Rev the RPMS up to as much as 5000 rpm before the Transmission will catch and accelerate loosing the ability to accelerate on demand when needed such as merging on to a Highway of speeds of 55 mph or higher. This behavior happens almost every single time acceleration is demanded and is not due to a lack of ATF fluid in the transmission. As the vehcile has done this after The local Service center of nissan in my area had just done the 20k mile check up. This has been on going and constant behavior since I purchased This nissan Titan in 2021. Truck currently has 35k, and has had all service suggestions done. This is a danger to my family and myself as lack of power can cause extreme danagers when you are trying to gain speed to merge onto a busy highway and you are running out of roadway to gain speed and you have to use the emergency lane to have access to safe area to gain enough speed to safely merge. This is a well known issue with this model, as I have been seeing other owners complain for sometime online in forums, when I researched if anyone else had this issue.
The truck loses power and drops to 3000 rpm. When it gets to 3000 rpm the trucks shakes as the rpms jump from 3000 to 3500 rpm. I have videos that site will not allow upload of.
1.The Engine Sub-Harness Assembly failed; melted, I feel due to the engine heat, because this harness insulation is not heat rated and melted off the wire. 2.The dashboard engine light came on and would not go off. 3.The Robbins Nissan Dealership I took my truck to in Humble, Tx. 77338 lied and said this failure was caused by rodent damage; which I know for a fact that my garage is very clean and I've never even seen any signs of rodents. 4.I first noticed a problem approximately in June of 2021 when the dashboard engine light came on and never went off. 5.By this dealership blaming it on rodent damage, this defective harness was not covered by the Nissan North America, Inc. Warranty, so I was charged $1,522.14 for this repair.
while I'm driving my truck, it has a Cummins Diesel engine, at certain times I guess that the engine goes through a regen process, when it odes this process then the cab is filled with noxious gases. This process last a few minutes and causes you to lower the windows to get rid of the toxic gases. I reported it to my Nissan Dealer twice when I took it in for it's service, they acted like they had never heard about it before and told me that there was no issue with my truck. that I had to drive it more to get it to stop ding it. Is this normal or are we being poisoned or getting cancer from these events?
MY 2018 NISSAN TITAN STARTED MAKING A KNOCKING SOUND IN THE ENGINE. I HAVE 28000 MILES ON THE TRUCK THE NOISE HAS GOTTEN LOUDER IN THE LAST 6,000 MILES. THE DEALERSHIP KEEPS TELLING ME IT'S NORMAL. THERE IS NO WAY IT'S NORMAL. THIS HAS BEEN A ONGOING PROBLEM WITH THE 2ND GENERATION TITAN
Mileage: 15,000
1. THE VEHICLE HAD TO BE BRAKED HARD ON THE HIGHWAY TO AVOID A CAR THAT FAILED TO YIELD WHILE MERGING. THE OTHER VEHICLE THEN BRAKED HARD AND I ATTEMPTED TO ACCELERATE TO GET IN FRONT BUT THE VEHICLE WOULD NOT RESPOND TO THE GAS PEDAL. THE ENGINE DID NOT SHUT OFF, BUT THE TRUCK WOULD NOT REV THE RPM'S OR HAVE ANY RESPONSE TO THE GAS PEDAL FOR ABOUT 3 SECONDS. LUCKILY A COLLISION DID NOT OCCUR. 2. WHILE TAKING A RIGHT HAND TURN ONTO A STEEP INCLINE DRIVE FROM A HIGHWAY THE TRUCK ONCE AGAIN WOULD NOT RESPOND TO THE GAS PEDAL. THE TRUCK WAS JUST SITTING ON THE INCLINE FOR ABOUT THREE SECONDS BEFORE IT RESPONDED TO THE GAS PEDAL AND CLIMBED THE HILL. THERE WAS A VEHICLE FOLLOWING BEHIND INTO THE DRIVE AND HAD TO STOP TO AVOID COLLIDING INTO MY REAR END AS THE TRUCK WOULD NOT GO FOR A FEW SECONDS. I AM NOT EXACTLY SURE HOW TO DESCRIBE THESE TWO INCIDENTS OTHER THAN IT IS A "DEAD PEDAL" FOR SEVERAL SECONDS WHEN PROPULSION IS TRULY NEEDED
Mileage: 6,000
I PURCHASED THE VEHICLE NEW IN JULY 2018. WHEN THE ENGINE STARTED MAKING A KNOCKING SOUND I TOOK IT TO A NISSAN DEALER SHIP TO BE DIAGNOSED. I WAS TOLD "THEY WERE AWARE OF ISSUES WITH SOME OF THESE ENGINES AND 2 OTHER VECHICLES HAVE ALREADY REQUIRED THE MOTORS BE REPLACED BY THEIR SERVICE DEPARTMENT. I DECIDED TO GET A SECOND OPINION SO I WENT TO ANOTHER NISSAN DEALER. THIS DEALERSHIP CONFIRMED THAT THEY HAVE A FACTORY NOTICE STATING THERE ARE ISSUES WITH THIS MOTOR. THE DEALERSHIP IS TELLLING ME THEY CAN NOT PERFORM THE FACTORY REQUIRED TEST FOR THREE WEEKS AND IF IT IS DETERMINED IT IS A DEFECTIVE ENGINE IT WILL BE ANOTHER 3 TO 4 WEEKS UNTIL THE ENGINE CAN BE REPLACED. IN THE MEAN TIME I AM STILL DRIVING THE VEHICLE. IN THE EVENT THAT THIS ENGINE FAILS AT A HIGH RATE OF SPEED THERE IS A POTENTIAL FOR LOSS OF STEERING AND LOSS OF BRAKES. CURRENTLY THERE HAVE NOT BEEN ANY RECALLS OR NOTICES SENT OUT TO THE CONSUMER AND FROM WHAT I AM TOLD IT IS UNKNOWN HOW MANY OF THESE VEHICLES ARE DEFECTIVE AND CURRENTLY ON THE ROAD.
WHEN FLOORING THE ACCELERATOR PEDAL (AS TO PULL OUT ON ENTRANCE RAMP) IT HAS DIESEL LAG RESPONSE (JUST TAKE A FEW SECONDS TO ACCELERATE) AND ALSO TRANSMISSION HAS SHIFTING ISSUES DURING THIS TIME. SOMETIMES INTERMITTENT I HAD A NEAR MISS EXPERIENCE WHEN THIS HAPPENED TO ME I WAS PULLING OUT ONTO THE HIGHWAY FROM THE ENTRANCE RAMP..
Mileage: 4,500
TRUCK HAS BAD HESITATION WHEN AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION IS SHIFTING FROM GEAR TO GEAR AND THE RPMS FLUCTUATE BADLY. NO LOW END POWER. THIS CONDITION IS WORSE WHEN TOWING. DEALER SAID THEY ALL DO THIS. I HAVE OWNED 4 TITANS INCLUDING MY 2018 NONE OF MY OTHER TRUCKS DID THIS. WISH I DIDN'T TRADE IN MY 2013
Mileage: 2,000
IN A ROLLING STOP VEHICLE HESITATES/LAGS/STALLS 2ND VISIT THEY DID A SOFTWARE UP GRADE PROBLEM STILL CONTINUES NOT FIX WAS TOLD TAKES 2000 MILES FOR TRUCK TO GET USED TO NEW SOFTWARE NOW AT 11000 MILES SAME ISSUE
Mileage: 5,888
MY JOB REQUIRES ME TO TRAVEL A LOT AND IN DOING SO WHEN I'M EITHER MERGING ONTO THE INTERSTATE OR NEEDING TO PULL OUT AT INTERSECTIONS FROM A DEAD STOP . IT'S AS THO MY TRUCK STALLS AND MY THROTTLE RESPONSE GOES DEAD . LEAVING THE OTHER CARS DO COME CLOSE IN REAR ENDING ME . IT'S SCARY ESPECIALLY WHEN I HAVE MY WIFE ALONG WITH MY THREE KIDS RANGING FROM 8 TO 12 MONTHS OF AGE .
Mileage: 3,000