2005 Nissan Armada: problems, recalls and reliability
5 recalls and 373 owner complaints on record; the weakest area is service brakes (25% of complaints); the 2007 model year looks more trouble-free.
Data updated weekly · latest recall Oct 2010
All counts are reports filed with NHTSA in the United States - US market only, not worldwide totals.
Common problems
Computed from 373 owner complaints filed with NHTSA for this exact model year.
“The brakes light comes on frequently and brakes stop working properly when going over a bump in the road decrease speed then engine fails. Has to be turned off then on to start engine.”Owner report · Engine · Aug 2022
“My breaking system has a malfunction that comes on and off. Sometimes the brakes automatically stop working and start grinding as if I have no brakes, but when I brought it to be looked at they couldn't find the problem. I notice that when you turn the car off and turn it back on the problems of sides for a little while will eventually come back later. For someone to detect it, they cannot shut the car off at the time that is presenting itself.”Owner report · Service Brakes · Mar 2022
“The contact owns a 2005 Nissan Armada. The contact stated that the fuel gauge inaccurately displayed the fuel level in the tank while the fuel tank was empty; causing the vehicle to stall. The contact refueled the vehicle and was able to restart the vehicle. The vehicle was not diagnosed nor repaired by an independent mechanic or dealer. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and a case was opened. The manufacturer informed the contact that there was no recall associated with the VIN. The contact related the failure to NHTSA Campaign Number: 10V074000 (Fuel System, Other) however, the VIN was not included in the recall. The failure mileage was approximately 192,000.”Owner report · Fuel System, Other · Mar 2022
Show 7 more owner reports
“I got this vehicle from a buy here pay here with 355,xxx miles the motor runs and drives great but when I went to go down the interstate after a month having the vehicle it was shaking really bad so I called auto parts and autozone and even took it to a mechanic they all told me alignment and if that doesn't work them put new rotors and breaks and we'll it's still there and if you go 35 you can hear something rubbing and when you hit 60 it starts shaking really bad and the steering wheel is very hard to hold when this happens so still don't know what it is!”Owner report · Visibility/Wiper · Aug 2021
“The contact owns a 2005 Nissan Armada. The contact stated that the fuel gauge was incorrectly reporting the amount of fuel in the vehicle. Upon investigation, the contact associated the failure with, NHTSA Campaign Number: 10V074000 (Fuel System, Other) however, the Vin was not included. The manufacturer was informed of the failure and confirmed that the Vin was not included in the recall. The failure mileage was approximately 172,000.”Owner report · Fuel System, Other · Jun 2021
“Tl* the contact owns a 2005 nissan armada. The contact stated while driving 25 mph, the brakes locked up and the contact felt the vehicle slide when the brake pedal was depressed. The contact stated while making turns, the brakes locked up and made the steering wheel difficult to turn. The contact stated the ABS, the air bags, and the vdc off warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent dealer to be diagnosed. The contact was informed that the brake booster needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired however, the failure persisted. The manufacturer was informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 100,151.”Owner report · Service Brakes · Jan 2021
“Tl* the contact owns a 2005 nissan armada. The contact stated that the muffler had been replaced 3 times due to it cracking around the header. The contact stated that the muffler damaged wiring harness and the computer system, which caused the vehicle to stall. Hummel's nissan (4770 merle hay rd, des moines, ia 50322) was made aware of the failure. The muffler was replaced twice by the dealer however, the muffler failure recurred. The muffler was replaced a third time by an independent mechanic. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 68,000.”Owner report · Engine And Engine Cooling · Oct 2020
“This is a major safety issue! The brake light on the control panel comes on and when stepping on the brakes, the car hardly brakes. It feels like the brakes are grinding and skidding. I have to carefully pull the car over and turn the car off and back on. Lately this has been happening around once a week.”Owner report · Service Brakes · Aug 2020
“Fuel reads at around 1/4 even when empty. Not knowing it needed fuel, the car ran out of gas, stranding the car in the middle of the street. Vehicle was going n motion at 35 mph, vehicle was guided to less crowded side street and stalled. Vehicle was pushed to an open space.”Owner report · Fuel/Propulsion System · Jan 2020
“Driving in traffic causes brakes to lock as if the parking brakes were set. I have to pull over safely to the side of the road and place the vehicle in park, press on the parking foot brake to engage and disengage the brakes, turn off and on the vehicle to "reset" the brakes. It happened a few times especially on the freeway. In all multiple occasions nearly rear ending the vehicle in front of me especially when I have my family with me in the vehicle. When this occurs the brake light comes on, on the dash. Happens on both the freeway and the city streets in motion and once when the brakes was press in traffic.”Owner report · Service Brakes · Nov 2019
When filing, owners marked a crash in 8 of these complaints and injuries in 7 - self-reported to NHTSA, not verified accident statistics.
Recalls - 5 campaigns
NISSAN IS RECALLING CERTAIN MODEL YEAR 2004-2006 ARMADA, TITAN, INFINITI QX56 AND MODEL YEAR 2005-2006 FRONTIER, PATHFINDER AND XTERRA VEHICLES. THE INTELLIGENT POWER DISTRIBUTION MODULE (IPDM) ASSEMBLY CONTAINS AN ENGINE CONTROL MODULE (ECM) RELAY THAT HAS A DIODE FOR ELECTRICAL CURRENT NOISE REDUCTION. THE ECM RELAY MAY ALLOW SILICON VAPOR TO FORM AND, OVER TIME, THE SILICON EVAPORATES FROM THE DIODE MOLDING WHICH CAUSES SILICON OXIDE TO DEVELOP ON THE ECM RELAY CONTACT DUE TO ARCING.
Remedy: DEALERS WILL REPLACE THE ECM RELAY INSIDE THE IPDM ASSEMBLY. THIS SERVICE WILL BE PERFORMED FREE OF CHARGE. THE SAFETY RECALL BEGAN ON DECEMBER 6, 2010. OWNERS MAY CONTACT NISSAN AT 1-800-647-7261.
NISSAN IS RECALLING CERTAIN FRONT AND REAR LOWER LINKS, P/NOS. 54501ZQ00A, 54500ZQ00A, 551A1ZQ00A, 551A0ZQ00A , 54501EA00A, 54500EA00A, 551A1EA500, 551A0EA500, 54501ZR00A, AND 54500ZR00A, SOLD BETWEEN NOVEMBER 25, 2009 AND MAY 14, 2010 AS REPLACEMENT PARTS FOR MODEL YEAR 2004 THROUGH 2010 TITAN, ARMADA, AND QX56, AND MODEL YEARS 2005 THROUGH 2010 FRONTIER, XTERRA, AND PATHFINDER VEHICLES. THE LOWER CONTROL LINK ASSEMBLY HAS TWO CYLINDRICAL COLLARS FORMING THE INBOARD ATTACHMENT POINTS TO THE CHASSIS. DUE TO AN IMPROPER WELDING PROCESS SOME COLLARS MAY CONTAIN WELDS THAT DO NOT MEET STRENGTH SPECIFICATIONS.
Remedy: NISSAN WILL NOTIFY OWNERS AND DEALERS WILL REPLACE ANY AFFECTED LOWER LINK FREE OF CHARGE. THE SAFETY RECALL BEGAN ON JULY 12, 2010. OWNERS MAY CONTACT NISSAN AT 1-800-647-7261.
NISSAN IS RECALLING CERTAIN MODEL YEAR 2005-2009 TITAN, ARMADA, AND INFINITI QX56 VEHICLES. THE INSTRUMENT PANEL FUEL GAUGE MAY INACCURATELY DISPLAY THAT THE VEHICLE STILL HAS SOME FUEL, TYPICALLY ABOUT ONE QUARTER TANK, WHEN THE FUEL TANK IS EMPTY.
Remedy: DEALERS WILL REPLACE THE FUEL SENDER UNIT INSIDE THE FUEL TANK WITH A NEW IMPROVED SENDER CARD. THIS SERVICE WILL BE PERFORMED FREE OF CHARGE. THE SAFETY RECALL BEGAN ON MARCH 22, 2010. OWNERS MAY CONTACT NISSAN AT 1-800-647-7261.
NISSAN IS RECALLING 180,664 MY 2005-2006 TITAN, ARMADA AND INFINITY QX56 VEHICLES MANUFACTURED AFTER MARCH 17, 2005, THAT ARE EQUIPPED WITH A VISTEON AIR CONDITIONING CONDENSER FAN MOTOR. THE FAN MOTOR MAY NOT BE PROPERLY SEALED ALLOWING EXCESSIVE WATER INTRUSION AND INADEQUATE DRAINAGE OF MOISTURE.
Remedy: DEALERS WILL INSTALL A 'THERMAL PROTECTOR KIT' AND TEST THE AIR CONDITIONING CONDENSER FAN MOTOR AND REPLACE IT IF NECESSARY. THE RECALL BEGAN ON AUGUST 2, 2008. OWNERS MAY CONTACT NISSAN AT 1-800-647-7261.
CERTAIN HOPKINS AFTERMARKET TRAILER BRAKE CONTROL CONNECTION HARNESSES SOLD FOR USE ON CERTAIN MODELS OF NISSAN VEHICLES WHICH ARE LISTED ABOVE. THE INTERNAL PART NUMBERS WITHIN HOPKINS ARE: 1010476025, 1040376025, 1110476025, 1170376025, 1290376025, 1010476035, 1040376035, 1110476035, 1170376035, AND 1290376035. A WIRE MAY HAVE BEEN PLACED IN AN INCORRECT POSITION IN THE ELECTRICAL CONNECTOR HOUSING. THIS RESULTS IN AN INCORRECT ROUTING OF WIRES BETWEEN THE TRAILER BRAKE CONTROLLER AND THE TOWING VEHICLE WIRING SYSTEM.
Remedy: HOPKINS WILL NOTIFY OWNERS AND REPLACE THE ORIGINAL HARNESS WITH A REVISED HARNESS FREE OF CHARGE. THE RECALL BEGAN AUGUST 17, 2007. OWNERS CAN CONTACT HOPKINS AT 800-835-0129.
Specifications
Factory options offered for the 2005 model year, decoded from the NHTSA vPIC database. Individual vehicles have one of each.
How other years compare
Check your exact Armada by VIN
Recalls and equipment differ between individual vehicles. Decode your VIN to see what applies to yours.
Open VIN decoderFrequently asked questions
Is the 2005 Nissan Armada reliable?
NHTSA has 373 owner complaints and 5 recall campaigns on record for the 2005 Nissan Armada. The most complained-about area is service brakes (25% of complaints).
At what mileage do 2005 Nissan Armada problems usually appear?
Half of the complaints that mention mileage were filed at 80,032 miles or less.
Does the 2005 Nissan Armada have open recalls?
5 recall campaigns have been issued, the latest concerning engine and engine cooling. Check your specific vehicle by VIN - recall repairs are free at franchised dealers.
Source: NHTSA recall campaigns and owner complaints (public domain). Counts reflect reports on file and are not a defect rate.