Other steering problem on the 2011 Nissan Versa
2 crashes 1 injury 3 of the 12 reports for this failure mention a crash, a fire, an injury or a death. Those are the owner's words on the complaint form, not a verified finding, and one report can mention more than one.
When other steering problem gets reported
Owners of the 2011 Nissan Versa report other steering problem at a median of 35,000 miles. A quarter of the reports come in before 15,000 miles and a quarter after 55,000 miles, from 10 reports that carried an odometer reading.
A part like this is normally expected to survive 95,000 miles. It is the 4th most-reported problem on this model year.
The mileage distribution
The reported range runs from 10,000 miles at the tenth percentile to 75,000 miles at the ninetieth, a spread of 67,111 miles across the middle 80% of reports.
When the reports scatter this far, the mileage is telling you about how these cars were driven more than about the part itself.
60% of the dated reports were filed under 36,000 miles.
The whole distribution
| 10th | 25th | Median | 75th | 90th |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10,339 miles | 16,750 miles | 34,000 miles | 54,000 miles | 77,450 miles |
Read the 10th percentile as “one report in ten arrived this early”. Exact figures are shown in this table because it is the table of record; everywhere else on the site they are rounded to the precision the sample can carry.
What a percentile can and cannot tell you here
These five numbers describe the readings owners gave, in order. The median is the middle one: half the reports arrived below it. The 10th and 90th are the edges of the bulk of the distribution, and the distance between them is the part worth reading. A tight spread — say 70,000 to 95,000 miles — points at something that wears out on a schedule, and the schedule is knowable. A wide one, 20,000 to 190,000, points at a fault that hits some cars and never troubles others, which means the mileage on the listing in front of you tells you very little about your odds.
What these figures are not is a survival curve. Every reading here comes from a car whose owner filed a complaint, so the sample contains only failures: it cannot say what share of the fleet made it past 150,000 miles untouched, because those owners had nothing to report. Nor is the mileage the moment of failure — it is the odometer reading as recalled at the time of filing, which may be weeks later and is sometimes rounded to the nearest ten thousand by the person typing it.
Percentiles are shown at all only once 8 readings exist for the vehicle and mode. Below that the middle of a handful of numbers is noise wearing a decimal point, so the figures are withheld rather than dressed up.
What happens, and what it costs
Of these reports, 2 a crash and 1 an injury are mentioned. Owners write their own complaints and the agency does not verify them, so read this as what the reports say happened rather than as a confirmed count.
Putting it right typically runs $350–$2,400 at an independent US shop. That range is an editorial estimate held in this site's failure-mode catalogue, not a figure from NHTSA, and it is a repair cost rather than a diagnosis cost.
The same failure on other years
The same failure is reported on 11 model years of this car. It shows up earliest on the 2016, at a median of 5,000 miles, and latest on the 2009 at 50,000 miles.
By volume the 2012 carries the most reports, with 17; the 2011 has 12. A mode that appears across most years of a model is usually a design choice rather than a bad batch.
If one year stands out to the left, that is the year to avoid; if the whole line sits at a similar mileage, this is wear rather than a defect in one production run.
Tick median reported mileage Solid middle half of reports Faint 10th to 90th percentile Colour how bad the failure is when it happens
What owners wrote
Verbatim from NHTSA complaint narratives, trimmed for length. The mileage is the one the owner gave.
Tl* the contact rented a 2011 nissan versa. The contact stated that the tire rod fractured on the front driver side while traveling 25 MPH. The contact stated that the steel belt was visible on both front tires. The contact did not have the vehicle inspected but it was returned to the vehicle rental company. The VIN was not available. The failure mileage was 4,386.
I have a major steering issue with my 2009 nissan versa sl. The dealership, southern states nissan in raleigh nc, has attempted to fix the vehicle 4 times, but has failed. When making right turns I experience clunking, popping, and vibrations at low speeds. The service has not been satisfactory because I have already taken the car back on four separate occasions, and the problem persists. I have had the same issue with my versa for more than a year, and I have taken the vehicle in for repair on 4 separate occasions. The versa makes a slight "thunk" noise when making slow right hand turns, and I can also feel it in the steering wheel. It seems more prevalent when leaving a parking lot or driveway, when I turn right (or move the wheel back right after a left hand turn, to straighten out the car). All these issues are acting when the vehicle is driving slowly and making right turns, and more so when going up or down elevations, it happens very loudly after the steering wheel has been rotated from the full clockwise (right hand turn) and is being returned to the straight ahead position. The clunk is always there at 1 to 1 1/4 turn…
Tl* the contact owns a 2011 nissan versa. The contact stated that when making a sharp turn, the steering wheel seized or became loose without warning. The vehicle was taken to two dealers, but the failure could not be duplicated. One dealer recommended that all four tires needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired, but the failure persisted. On one occasion, while driving at approximately 60 MPH and merging to the left lane, the steering wheel became loose and suddenly seized. As a result, the contact lost control of the vehicle and crashed into five trees. A police report was filed. The contact sustained injuries to the right wrist, cervical strains, muscle spasms and the left shoulder was impacted and required medical attention. The vehicle was towed to an impound lot, but was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 95,000.
Also reported on the 2011 Nissan Versa
Airbag inflator rupture
Strut, shock or spring failure
Other suspension problem
Airbag warning light or occupant sensor fault
Other body or interior problem
Other engine problem
How far this goes
Complaints are voluntary, so 12 is a floor and not a count of affected cars. Mileages are typed in by owners and cluster on round numbers. And the mode itself is assigned by software reading the complaint text, which is reliable in bulk and fallible one report at a time.
Questions this page answers
At what mileage does other steering problem happen on the 2011 Nissan Versa?
Across 10 owner reports that included an odometer reading, half were filed by 35,000 miles. A quarter were filed before 15,000 miles and a quarter after 55,000 miles. These are the mileages owners reported when they complained, not a prediction for any individual car.
How common is other steering problem on the 2011 Nissan Versa?
12 reports have been filed with NHTSA, about 0.1 per 1,000 vehicles. Complaints are voluntary, so this is a floor rather than a count of affected cars.
What this is and is not. These are the mileages at which owners chose to complain to a federal agency, which is not the same as the mileage at which the part fails on every car. It skews toward failures that happened outside warranty, cost real money, or frightened someone. It is still the only public dataset that carries failure mileage at all, and the shape of a few hundred readings is informative even when a single one is not. Methodology · JSON · this failure on other cars
Source Owner complaints and recall records published by the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, model years 1996–2027 Figures rebuilt Published by AtWhatMileage How every figure is computed