AutoUtility currently tracks 75 official NHTSA owner defect complaints for the 2021 Nissan Kicks. Body & Structure issues are the most frequently reported category, appearing in 25 complaints (33.3% of submitted records). Among these NHTSA complaint records, 6 filings cite a crash, 2 report one or more injuries.
Factual proportion of owner complaints categorized by automotive subsystem in NHTSA records
25 owner complaints submitted to NHTSA ODI for this subsystem.
18 owner complaints submitted to NHTSA ODI for this subsystem.
11 owner complaints submitted to NHTSA ODI for this subsystem.
9 owner complaints submitted to NHTSA ODI for this subsystem.
Representative defect filings submitted by owners to the NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation
"The rear door actuator on the passenger side failed causing the door to not be able to unlock electronically. This is particularly concerning as this is the side we would put our infant child on and we would be unable to access in an emergency. The dealership was not helpful in addressing this..."
"I had a noise and highway vibration in my 2021 Nissan Kicks. Brought it to the dealer and was told the front axle nut was loose. They said it is a common issue. There is a TSB on it but I believe it is a safety issue due to it being a loose axle nut and vibration"
"The CVT transmission is slipping and losing acceleration while driving, overheating and smelling really bad like burnt rubber, the oil is black and smells burnt, its currently at 52,100 miles and I sent it up to Chuck Colvin Nissan and they did not fix my car, they drove it back to me and when I..."
"I was involved in a pile up on the highway, upon impact, my seatbelt and my daughter’s seat belt popped off. My sons however, remained intact. The air bags did not go off."
"At first it just seemed sluggish like it didn’t want to take off then the Transmission started jerking would not allow the car to go engine revving up to 5000 rpm before the transmission would engage."
Reported defect complaint volume across sibling model years (2018–2026)
| Model Year | NHTSA Complaints | Crash Reports | Safety Recalls | Detailed Report |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 Nissan Kicks | 84 | 1 | 1 | View 2018 Problems → |
| 2019 Nissan Kicks | 134 | 5 | 1 | View 2019 Problems → |
| 2020 Nissan Kicks | 93 | 7 | 0 | View 2020 Problems → |
| 2021 Nissan Kicks Current Page | 75 | 6 | 2 | Current |
| 2022 Nissan Kicks | 22 | 2 | 0 | View 2022 Problems → |
| 2023 Nissan Kicks | 30 | 2 | 1 | View 2023 Problems → |
| 2024 Nissan Kicks | 33 | 2 | 1 | View 2024 Problems → |
| 2025 Nissan Kicks | 35 | 2 | 4 | View 2025 Problems → |
| 2026 Nissan Kicks | 0 | 0 | 3 | View 2026 Problems → |
Complete distribution of consumer defect reports across all 29 granular NHTSA system and subsystem classifications
| Vehicle Component / System | Total Complaints | Crash Reports | Fire Reports | Injury Entries | Fatality Entries |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Structure & Body NHTSA category: STRUCTURE | 23 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Forward Collision Avoidance NHTSA category: FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Other / Uncategorized NHTSA category: UNKNOWN OR OTHER | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Electrical System NHTSA category: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Powertrain NHTSA category: POWER TRAIN | 5 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Air Bags NHTSA category: AIR BAGS | 2 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,UNKNOWN OR OTHER | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| SERVICE BRAKES,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| UNKNOWN OR OTHER,ENGINE | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| UNKNOWN OR OTHER,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| AIR BAGS,SEAT BELTS | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| AIR BAGS,SEATS,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,ENGINE | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,SERVICE BRAKES,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,UNKNOWN OR OTHER,ENGINE | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Engine NHTSA category: ENGINE | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Doors, Latches & Locks NHTSA category: LATCHES/LOCKS/LINKAGES | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| POWER TRAIN,ENGINE | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| POWER TRAIN,ENGINE,FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| POWER TRAIN,STRUCTURE | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Service Brakes NHTSA category: SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Steering NHTSA category: STEERING | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| STEERING,ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| STEERING,POWER TRAIN,WHEELS | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| UNKNOWN OR OTHER,LANE DEPARTURE | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| UNKNOWN OR OTHER,LANE DEPARTURE,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| UNKNOWN OR OTHER,SERVICE BRAKES,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Vehicle Speed Control NHTSA category: VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Visibility & Wipers NHTSA category: VISIBILITY/WIPER | 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 Kicks
In official NHTSA consumer records, the most frequently cited issue area for the 2021 Nissan Kicks is Body & Structure, appearing in 25 records (33.3% of submitted filings).
Secondary reported categories include Driver Assistance & Safety Tech (18) and Electrical System (11).
AutoUtility does not issue subjective reliability scores or commercial ratings. In official United States government records, NHTSA tracks 75 consumer defect complaints and 2 safety recall campaigns for the 2021 Nissan Kicks.
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 Kicks, 6 filings cite a crash, 0 cite smoke or fire, and 2 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.
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.