AutoUtility currently tracks 31 official NHTSA owner defect complaints for the 2021 Nissan Versa. Powertrain & Transmission issues are the most frequently reported category, appearing in 9 complaints (29% of submitted records). Among these NHTSA complaint records, 5 filings cite a crash, 3 report one or more injuries.
Factual proportion of owner complaints categorized by automotive subsystem in NHTSA records
9 owner complaints submitted to NHTSA ODI for this subsystem.
7 owner complaints submitted to NHTSA ODI for this subsystem.
6 owner complaints submitted to NHTSA ODI for this subsystem.
4 owner complaints submitted to NHTSA ODI for this subsystem.
Formal engineering analyses and preliminary evaluations opened by the NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation
Representative defect filings submitted by owners to the NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation
"Automatic CVT failure confirmed by Future Nissan of Roseville CA. No warning prior to failure. Replaced by Kirkwood Autoworx Mechanical since Nissan Corporate denied a good-will replacement. Reason: 15k miles over warranty - 75081odometer reading at replacement on 5/27/26. CVT failed while on a..."
"Hi, My name is [XXX] and I live in [XXX] . In October 2023 I purchased a used Nissan Versa 2021 from a dealership. It only had 30k miles on it when I bought it. On May 9, 2026 I was driving to work when my car experienced acceleration failure. It had 80,600 miles on it. When the acceleration..."
"I got into the car and started it up. Put in reverse car shuts off. Re started and put in reverse. Was able to drive out of apartment parking lot then no power to speed and car was a little jerky and on dashboard it said warning malfunction see owners manual with a few pictures on dashboard"
"Cvt Transmission failed While driving transmission popped and no forward drive leaving us in traffic unable to move in forward. Had to get out and push the car to the side of the road. No warning lights no warning signs. Just immediate loss of forward drive. Engine revs up but no movement...."
"Transmission failure 2 Times. First time experienced jerking and some smoke coming out and second time same jerking and smoke along with electrical system failure. Nissan paid 40% the first time to help and I paid 60% even though I did not agree with that I did it. 2nd time they refuse to pay..."
Reported defect complaint volume across sibling model years (2015–2025)
| Model Year | NHTSA Complaints | Crash Reports | Safety Recalls | Detailed Report |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 Nissan Versa | 168 | 18 | 1 | View 2015 Problems → |
| 2016 Nissan Versa | 80 | 13 | 0 | View 2016 Problems → |
| 2017 Nissan Versa | 62 | 9 | 3 | View 2017 Problems → |
| 2018 Nissan Versa | 55 | 11 | 2 | View 2018 Problems → |
| 2019 Nissan Versa | 24 | 2 | 1 | View 2019 Problems → |
| 2020 Nissan Versa | 64 | 5 | 2 | View 2020 Problems → |
| 2021 Nissan Versa Current Page | 31 | 5 | 3 | Current |
| 2022 Nissan Versa | 20 | 0 | 0 | View 2022 Problems → |
| 2023 Nissan Versa | 37 | 0 | 1 | View 2023 Problems → |
| 2024 Nissan Versa | 95 | 1 | 1 | View 2024 Problems → |
| 2025 Nissan Versa | 11 | 2 | 0 | View 2025 Problems → |
Complete distribution of consumer defect reports across all 21 granular NHTSA system and subsystem classifications
| Vehicle Component / System | Total Complaints | Crash Reports | Fire Reports | Injury Entries | Fatality Entries |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Powertrain NHTSA category: POWER TRAIN | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Other / Uncategorized NHTSA category: UNKNOWN OR OTHER | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Visibility & Wipers NHTSA category: VISIBILITY/WIPER | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Air Bags NHTSA category: AIR BAGS | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Engine NHTSA category: ENGINE | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| POWER TRAIN,ELECTRICAL SYSTEM | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| AIR BAGS,STRUCTURE | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Electrical System NHTSA category: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,AIR BAGS,ENGINE | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL,UNKNOWN OR OTHER | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| POWER TRAIN,EXTERIOR LIGHTING | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| POWER TRAIN,EXTERIOR LIGHTING,VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Seat Belts NHTSA category: SEAT BELTS | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| SERVICE BRAKES,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Steering NHTSA category: STEERING | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| STEERING,AIR BAGS,SERVICE BRAKES | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| STEERING,ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,EXTERIOR LIGHTING | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| STEERING,SUSPENSION,POWER TRAIN | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| UNKNOWN OR OTHER,ENGINE,FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| WHEELS,ENGINE | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Cross-reference safety recalls, crash test safety ratings, and EPA fuel economy for this model year
Key performance indicators, EPA fuel economy specs, powertrain variants, and summary ratings.
Official recall campaigns, safety defect descriptions, and manufacturer free remedy instructions.
NHTSA 5-Star NCAP crash test results, driver assistance systems, and rollover resistance ratings.
EPA fuel economy ratings, electric range, and annual energy cost benchmarks.
Direct, deterministic answers synthesized from verified United States government databases for the 2021 Nissan Versa
In official NHTSA consumer records, the most frequently cited issue area for the 2021 Nissan Versa is Powertrain & Transmission, appearing in 9 records (29% of submitted filings).
Secondary reported categories include Electrical System (7) and Air Bags & Restraints (6).
AutoUtility does not issue subjective reliability scores or commercial ratings. In official United States government records, NHTSA tracks 31 consumer defect complaints and 3 safety recall campaigns for the 2021 Nissan Versa.
Reviewing documented component complaint distributions, recall remedy notices, and active federal investigations provides an objective, evidence-based view of the vehicle's historical safety and defect record.
Among consumer complaint records on file with NHTSA for the 2021 Nissan Versa, 5 filings cite a crash, 0 cite smoke or fire, and 3 report one or more injuries.
Incident entries represent consumer descriptions at the time of submission to federal authorities and do not establish mechanical causation or legal liability.
NHTSA ODI records list 1 formal defect investigation involving the 2021 Nissan Versa (all closed).
Federal defect investigations are formal engineering evaluations opened when safety defect trends emerge, and do not by themselves establish a confirmed defect or mandatory recall.
The complaint records on this page are retrieved directly from the NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) public database under 49 CFR Part 576.
Local Production Store Compiled: August 2026 • Deterministic Audited Dataset • Zero Dynamic External API Runtime Latency.