The 2016 Nissan NV is a van; vehicles over 8,500 lb GVWR are not certified for fuel economy by the EPA, so this page is built from NHTSA's recall, complaint and investigation records. NHTSA lists 1 recall campaign for this model year, 1 rated critical, which gives it a Safety Signal grade of B. Owners have filed 17 complaints, most often about the service brakes.
2016 Nissan NV
Specs & fuel economy
Source: EPA fueleconomy.gov
No EPA fuel-economy record: the EPA does not certify vehicles over 8,500 lb GVWR. Recall, complaint and investigation data below come from NHTSA.
Specifications filed with NHTSA
Source: NHTSA vPIC
Dimensions Exterior
Body style
Cargo Van
GVWR class
Class 2H: 9,001 - 10,000 lb (4,082 - 4,536 kg)
Engine Basics
Displacement
5.6 L
Fuel Economy
Fuel
Gasoline
Transmission
Drivetrain
4x2
Driver assistance
Standard: Anti-lock brakes
Filed by the manufacturer with NHTSA under the federal vehicle-identification rule and decoded from the VIN pattern — not a manufacturer press kit, so it describes the configurations we could identify rather than every trim (seen: 1500/2500/3500, 3500, High Roof). Figures for the trim you are looking at may differ.
The 2016 Nissan NV is in the years where transmission, electronics and drivetrain repairs land on the owner. What an extended plan does and does not cover is worth reading before a dealer quotes you one.
Affiliate disclosure: some links on this page are affiliate links. If you request a quote or buy through them we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. Nothing on this page changes because of it.
Recalls (1)
Source: NHTSA recall database
!critical
Air Bags
216,678 vehicles53% reported repaired
ProblemNissan North America, Inc. (Nissan) is recalling certain 2012-2017 NV Cargo and NV Passenger Van, 2013-2015 Titan and Armada and 2011-2012 Infiniti QX56 vehicles.Due to a manufacturing issue, the air bag inflator may not function properly or may rupture during deployment.RiskAn inflator rupture may result in metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.FixNissan will notify owners, and dealers will replace the front driver air bag inflators, free of charge. The recall began May 7, 2020. Owners may contact Nissan customer service at 1-800-867-7669 or Infiniti customer service at 1-800-662-6200.
These are vehicle campaigns — the ones the automaker filed against this model. NHTSA also records equipment recalls, filed by a parts maker against a component (a tyre, a child seat, an aftermarket part), and those are not listed here or counted above.
Whether any of this applies to one specific NV
A campaign covers a build range, not a model year, so two identical-looking cars from 2016 can differ. Type the VIN and the WhichTrim recall report sets aside the campaigns that name a different engine or drive, and narrows the rest to its build month.
Hear about a recall before the letter does
The manufacturer’s letter is the last step of a recall: it has up to 60 days after filing to mail owners, at the address on the registration. We email you the day NHTSA posts a recall on the 2016 Nissan NV, with what to do next. Nothing else, ever — no newsletter, no marketing, one-click unsubscribe in every message.
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Parts & accessories for the 2016 Nissan NV
Search by fitment on eBay Motors — OEM take-offs, aftermarket, and the trim pieces dealers no longer stock. The listing and the price are the seller's.
Filed with NHTSA by the people who own these cars, one per problem area. Quoted as written, with anything identifying removed.
The contact owns a 2016 Nissan NV3500. The contact stated that while driving the brakes became inoperable. The speedometer and odometer became inoperable. Several unknown warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer but not diagnosed or repaired. The contact stated that the vehicle was too heavy for lift.
Service BrakesDec 29, 2021NHTSA owner report · ODI 11445447
The contact owns a 2016 Nissan NV. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle stalled. The contact was able to restart the vehicle. The vehicle failed to accelerate over 20 MPH. There were no warning lights illuminated.
Engineat 180,000 milesMar 2, 2022NHTSA owner report · ODI 11454894
The seat belts in the back do not always rewind when pulled all the way out to install child safety seats. So when you pull the belt out all the way to feed it through the safety seat, the belts do not retract. You have to go behind the seat into the mechanism and manually roll the belt back up. This is while the vehicle is parked
My van was sitting parked at our house when the big window on the left (behind driver) just exploded inward. Glass was everywhere and all in the car seats
Visibility/Wiperat 73,000 milesSep 30, 2020NHTSA owner report · ODI 11361978
Upon closing the front passenger door while parked in the driveway, the entirety of the side curtain airbags on the passenger side of the vehicle deployed
Air Bagsat 78,000 milesAug 14, 2020NHTSA owner report · ODI 11349284
The contact owns a 2016 Nissan NV3500. The contact stated while operating the vehicle, the instrument malfunctioned. The check engine warning light, odometer, speedometer, and the braking system malfunctioned causing the brake pedal to extend to the floor while depressed. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer.
Service Brakesat 80,000 milesDec 29, 2021NHTSA owner report · ODI 11445456
Complaint counts are raw owner reports to NHTSA, not verified defects, and scale with how many were sold. Use them to spot patterns, not to rank.
Reported by Nissan itself: 2 death-or-injury claims on this model year in its quarterly Early Warning reports to NHTSA (49 CFR 579.21): 2 injured, as claimed, not verified. Every NV model year, by year and system → Dated and by system, they are exhibit F of the defect dossier.
Crash ratings
Source: NHTSA NCAP
Configuration
Overall
Frontal
Side
Rollover
Rollover risk
VAN RWD
not rated
not rated
not rated
★★☆☆☆
31%
NHTSA New Car Assessment Program.
Service bulletins & campaigns
Source: NHTSA manufacturer communications
Communicationsfiled with NHTSA213
Most recentmanufacturer date2026-04-13
Kindsas classified by NHTSA213 service bulletins
Most often about: Electrical System, Equipment, Engine, Fuel/Propulsion System, Visibility/Wiper.
CERTIFICATION LABEL AND VIN PLATE REPLACEMENT SERVICE INFORMATION Because of collision damage or other vehicle repair, a replacement “Certification Label” or “VIN Plate/Label” may be needed. HINT: Certification Label = FMVSS (Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards) label. These items may be available from Nissan by request if certain criteria are met. This bulletin lists the criteria and provides
CERTIFICATION LABEL AND VIN PLATE REPLACEMENT SERVICE INFORMATION Because of collision damage or other vehicle repair, a replacement “Certification Label” or “VIN Plate/Label” may be needed. HINT: Certification Label = FMVSS (Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards) label. These items may be available from Nissan by request if certain criteria are met. This bulletin lists the criteria and provides
VEHICLE KEY NOT DETECTED / AUTHENTICATED, ENGINE WILL NOT START This bulletin has been amended. See AMENDMENT HISTORY on the last page. Please discard previous versions of this bulletin.
CAN COMMUNICATION – NETWORK DIAGNOSTIC FLOW CHART This bulletin has been amended. See AMENDMENT HISTORY on the last page. Please discard previous versions of this bulletin.
CAN COMMUNICATION CODES – DIAGNOSTIC TIPS AND GUIDELINES This bulletin has been amended. See AMENDMENT HISTORY on the last page. Please discard previous versions of this bulletin.
WINDOW GLASS WARRANTY INFORMATION This bulletin has been amended. See AMENDMENT HISTORY on the last page. Please discard previous versions of this bulletin.
REMOVING FOREIGN MATERIAL FROM THE WINDOW GLASS This bulletin has been amended. See AMENDMENT HISTORY on the last page. Please discard previous versions of this bulletin.
WINDSHIELD CRACKING This bulletin has been amended. See AMENDMENT HISTORY on the last page. Please discard previous versions of this bulletin.
A service bulletin is the manufacturer telling its dealers how to diagnose or repair a known condition. It is not a recall, not a finding that the vehicle is defective, and the work is not automatically free — though a bulletin is often what a dealer works from when you describe a symptom, so quoting the document number can save a diagnosis. The count is every communication filed; the list shows the most recent, one entry per campaign, because a single campaign is usually filed as several documents on the same day. The summaries are NHTSA's; the full documents come from the manufacturer.
Diagnostic trouble codes on file
Source: NHTSA manufacturer communications and complaints
Codes documented against this model year in the federal record. A code appearing here does not mean this vehicle will set it — it means the code is part of this nameplate-year's documented history.
The engine control module has lost its keep-alive memory.
Engine
8 bulletins
Generic codes (the second character is 0 or 2) mean the same thing on every vehicle sold in the United States. Manufacturer-specific codes (1 or 3) mean whatever the automaker assigned, and no honest source can define them for you — which is why the ones here carry the evidence instead of a definition. A code is a link when enough separate federal documents name it across the catalogue to be worth a page of its own; the rest are listed here, where the vehicle is the context that makes them mean something.
Affiliate disclosure: some links on this page are affiliate links. If you request a quote or buy through them we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. Nothing on this page changes because of it.
At the New York inspection station
Source: New York State DMV
In New York’s inspection lanes over the 12 months to Oct 26, 2026, the 2016 Nissan NV failed the emissions check on 0.47% of first inspections — lower than the 4.2% for every 2016 model-year vehicle inspected; and the safety inspection on 0.95% (every 2016 vehicle: 2.2%).
New York inspections0.47%
failed emissions
211 initial inspections of 207 vehicles.
Measure
The 2016 NV
Every 2016 vehicle
Behind it
Failed the emissions check
0.47%
4.2%
211
Failed the safety inspection
0.95%
2.2%
211
Air-bag warning lamp stayed lit
0%
0.27%
211
Miles driven a year
11,918
10,017
odometer at inspection
Average odometer
123,485
103,402
odometer at inspection
New York’s emissions test on these model years is an on-board diagnostics check: it fails a car whose check-engine light is on or whose self-tests have not finished. First inspections only, so a car that failed and came back is counted once; private and special plates, not taxis, livery or commercial plates. A rate appears only where at least 200 inspections stand behind it. “Every 2016 vehicle” is every 2016 model-year car, SUV and pickup inspected in the same window, all makes. This is the state’s record of test results, not a reliability score by itself. Source: New York State Department of Motor Vehicles, Vehicle Inspections (data.ny.gov, Open NY terms).
NHTSA has posted 1 recall campaign for the 2016 Nissan NV, 1 of them rated critical. The most serious on file is 20V188000, covering Air Bags. Check your own VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls; a recall applies to specific build ranges, not every car.
How safe is the 2016 Nissan NV?
NHTSA has not published a crash-test rating for the 2016 Nissan NV yet. On the recall record WhichTrim grades it B (85/100), which measures open and severe recalls rather than crash protection.
What do owners complain about on the 2016 Nissan NV?
Owners have filed 17 complaints with NHTSA about the 2016 Nissan NV, most often about unspecified, service brakes, visibility/wiper. Complaints are unverified owner reports, so treat the pattern as a signal and the individual report as an anecdote.
Are there service bulletins for the 2016 Nissan NV?
The manufacturer has filed 213 service bulletins and related communications with NHTSA for the 2016 Nissan NV, most often covering electrical system, equipment, engine. The most recent is dated 2026-04-13. A bulletin is not a recall: it is the repair procedure a manufacturer sends its dealers for a condition it knows about, and the work is not automatically paid for. It is still worth knowing — if the symptom matches, quoting the bulletin number at the service desk can save a diagnosis. The document numbers and summaries are listed above.
How does the 2016 Nissan NV do at state inspection?
In New York’s inspection lanes over the 12 months to Oct 26, 2026, the 2016 Nissan NV failed the emissions check on 0.47% of first inspections — lower than the 4.2% for every 2016 model-year vehicle inspected; and the safety inspection on 0.95% (every 2016 vehicle: 2.2%). The figures are New York State DMV’s own inspection records, first inspections only, and the table above sets each one against every vehicle of the same model year.
What we hold, and what an empty row means
Paid vehicle-history reports will not tell you the difference between “nothing happened to this car” and “we never received that record” — both of the big two say as much in their own help pages. Most of what is on this page comes from complete federal registers, so we can tell you which is which, row by row.
Data
Held
Source
What it covers — or what empty means
Fuel economy & configurations
none
EPA certification records
The EPA does not certify vehicles rated over 8,500 lb GVWR, so heavy-duty nameplates have no entry at all.
Emission certificates
none
EPA emission certificates
The EPA published no certificate we could match to a configuration on this page.
Recalls
1
NHTSA recall campaigns
A complete federal register: every campaign covering this model year, with severity and advisory flags.
Owner complaints
17
NHTSA complaint database
Also complete, but unverified: these are reports owners filed, not findings. Counts scale with how many were sold.
Crash ratings
1 tested
NHTSA NCAP
Only the configurations NHTSA chose to crash-test, which is never all of them.
Service bulletins
213
NHTSA manufacturer communications
Everything the manufacturer told its dealers about a defect or malfunction, short of a recall.
Investigations
none
NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation
No defect investigation has been opened.
Driver-assist crash reports
none
NHTSA Standing General Order 2021-01
No report has been filed. Only entities named in the order report, and only crashes they hear of — so this is also what an unequipped car, or a manufacturer without telematics, looks like.
Specifications filed with NHTSA
5 fields
NHTSA vPIC, decoded from VIN patterns
What the manufacturer filed under the federal VIN rule — a configuration, not the full trim ladder.
Trims, pricing & equipment
none
Manufacturer press kit
We have not transcribed a press kit for this model year yet. This is our gap, not the manufacturer's — the one row here where an empty cell means we are behind.
Rebuilt nightly; this page was generated 2026-11-04. Every figure above is traceable to the source named beside it, and the JSON for this page carries the same values with their identifiers.
Safety Signal starts every model-year at 100 and subtracts points per open NHTSA recall campaign by severity: critical 15 (fire risk, park-outside or do-not-drive advisories), high 8 (brakes, steering, airbags, loss of drive power, structure, battery), moderate 6, minor 3 (software, labels, lighting fixed by an update). The most serious recall counts in full and each further one counts 85% of the one before, because a vehicle sold in millions is recalled more often than a rare one without being more dangerous — and because a flat subtraction bottomed the scale out, scoring a vehicle with 22 recalls within a point of one with six. A ≥ 90, B ≥ 80, C ≥ 70, D ≥ 60, otherwise F. Read it as what it counts: recall campaigns on the federal record, weighted by severity. The damping reduces the sales bias by roughly 40% but does not remove it: like our complaint counts, this is not normalized by how many were sold, so a best-seller still scores somewhat worse than an obscure model with the same real risk. NHTSA crash ratings, do-not-drive and park-outside advisories, and the crash, fire, injury and death counts in owner complaints are reported separately on every page and never blended into the letter — a vehicle can hold five stars and a poor letter at once, and where that happens we say so rather than leave you to notice. Because the scale subtracts from a clean sheet, a model year too new to have been recalled, complained about or bulletined scores full marks on an empty record; we label those grades provisional rather than present them as earned.
EPA figures come from fueleconomy.gov vehicle records. Recalls, complaints, investigations and crash ratings come from NHTSA's public flat files, refreshed nightly.