1997 Nissan Quest: problems, recalls and reliability
2 recalls and 89 owner complaints on record; the weakest area is structure (16% of complaints); the 1998 model year looks more trouble-free.
Data updated weekly · latest recall Dec 2000
All counts are reports filed with NHTSA in the United States - US market only, not worldwide totals.
Common problems
Computed from 89 owner complaints filed with NHTSA for this exact model year.
“Tl* the contact owns a 1997 nissan quest. The contact was attempting to park when both frontal air bags deployed independently. The contact sustained unknown injuries by the air bags. The contact stated that the air bag warning light was not illuminated when air bags deployed. The manufacturer inspected the vehicle but had not provided the contact with a reason why the air bags deployed. The vehicle was not repaired. The VIN was unavailable. The failure mileage was 105,000 and the current mileage was 108,000.”Owner report · Air Bags · Nov 2010
“Tl*the contact owns a 1997 nissan quest. The contact smells gasoline in the passenger compartment when the vehicle is started. When the heat is activated, the odor intensifies. There is no visible leak. The dealer stated that the VIN was not included in any recalls. The vehicle is more than ten years old. The current mileage was 121,000 and failure mileage was 118,000. Updated 12/31/07 *bf updated *jb”Owner report · Fuel System, Gasoline · Aug 2007
“The car locks spontaneously and constantly. It is a known defect (service bulletin 98068). We did not purchase the car while it was under warranty from the manufacturer, however since this is such a safety concern (my 2 year old nephew was locked in the car in his car seat over labor day weekend), I feel the manufacturer should pay to have it fixed. They are refusing. *nm”Owner report · Latches/Locks/Linkages · Sep 2005
Show 7 more owner reports
“I dt: the consumer spoke to a dealer and asked them if some repair work was done for recall campaign 00v419001 on 1997 nissan quest. Consumer spoke with someone in tampa at courtesy nissan, who told her that the work was fixed, but could not provide anything in writing to prove it due to the previous owner's privacy. Another dealer in orlando, universal nissan , said that it did not appear to be fixed. The consumer called nissan about a month ago and asked them if they could check it, and they said they could send her something, but the consumer has not heard anything yet.*ak”Owner report · Fuel System, Diesel · Aug 2005
“There is a strong smell of fumes, and noise coming from the defogger when the air conditioner is turned on, distracting the consumer from the road. This could cause an accident.*ak”Owner report · Visibility · Jan 2005
“Consumer smelled gas fumes. She has checked, and there was no leakage nor was vehicle losing gas. Also, there wasn't any fire. But the fumes were very strong. Consumer was very concerned. She will take the vehicle to the dealer very soon.*ak”Owner report · Fuel System, Gasoline · Aug 2004
“While driving at 65 mph consumer heard an explosion and slowed down. Vehicle was pulled over on to the shoulder, where the consumer noticed that the entire sidewall of the tire was blown out. *ak”Owner report · Tires · Jul 2004
“Electronic sensor/ control module for airbags has totally failed (airbag warning light flashing) after just over 6 years and less than 38750 miles of usage of the 1997 nissan quest gxe which was bought in march 1997. It cost about $640.00 in replacing the module from the nissan dealer. *jb”Owner report · Air Bags · Sep 2003
“Vehicle stopped with foot on brake. Without warning vehicle surged forward into rear end of vehicle in front. The idle was racing so fast that the brake was unable to hold the vehicle. Idle kept racing until the vehicle was shut off. When restarted the idle was back down. Car had been experiencing intermittently significant forward surges when the a/c compressor kicked on. The problem was reported to nissan several times. All times the dealer advised that the technician could not reproduce the problem.”Owner report · Vehicle Speed Control · Sep 2003
“Vehicle stopped with foot on brake. A/c compressor kicks on and vehicle's idle starts to race so fast that the brake does not hold the vehicle which causes the vehicle to rear-end the vehicle in front. Idle kept racing until vehicle was shut off. When restarted the idle was back down. *jb”Owner report · Equipment · Sep 2003
When filing, owners marked a crash in 10 of these complaints and injuries in 5 - self-reported to NHTSA, not verified accident statistics.
Recalls - 2 campaigns
VEHICLE DESCRIPTION: PASSENGER MINI VANS EQUIPPED WITH AUTOMOTIVE BATTERIES SUPPLIED BY GNB TECHNOLOGIES. THESE BATTERIES HAVE A DEFECTIVE NEGATIVE POST THAT CAN CAUSE ACID LEAKAGE AND RELATED CORROSION DAMAGE.
Remedy: DEALERS WILL REPLACE THESE BATTERIES. UNTIL A NEW BATTERY IS OBTAINED, OWNERS SHOULD NOT ATTEMPT TO "JUMP START" THESE BATTERIES.
VEHICLE DESCRIPTION: MINIVANS. THE FUEL TANK VENT HOSE ALLOWS AIR TO VENT FROM THE FUEL TANK DURING REFUELING. CRACKS HAVE DEVELOPED IN THE VENT HOSE. IF (1) THE FUEL TANK IS OVERFILLED, NOT ALLOWING EXCESS FUEL IN THE VENT HOSE TO FLOW BACK INTO THE TANK, (2) THE VEHICLE IS DRIVEN ONLY A SHORT DISTANCE AFTER REFUELING AND, (3) THERE IS SUBSEQUENTLY SIGNIFICANT HEATING OF THE FUEL TANK, THE FUEL IN THE TANK CAN EXPAND INTO THE VENT HOSE AND LEAK FUEL.
Remedy: DEALERS WILL REPLACE THE VENT HOSE.
Specifications
Factory options offered for the 1997 model year, decoded from the NHTSA vPIC database. Individual vehicles have one of each.
How other years compare
Check your exact Quest 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 1997 Nissan Quest reliable?
NHTSA has 89 owner complaints and 2 recall campaigns on record for the 1997 Nissan Quest. The most complained-about area is structure (16% of complaints).
At what mileage do 1997 Nissan Quest problems usually appear?
Half of the complaints that mention mileage were filed at 68,500 miles or less.
Does the 1997 Nissan Quest have open recalls?
2 recall campaigns have been issued, the latest concerning electrical system:12v/24v/48v battery. 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.