Model Years

2013 Nissan Frontier Recalls and Problems

NHTSA lists 1 safety recall and 48 owner complaints for the 2013 Nissan Frontier.

Recalled components: electrical system. Most-described problem: the airbag warning light or an airbag fault (6 complaints, 12%). Most-reported area: air bags (15 complaints, 31%).

More complaints than a typical Frontier year

The 2013 drew 20 owner complaints in its first three years, against about 16 for a typical Frontier year.

Years to avoid: 2022 and 2023. Based on owner complaints, not adjusted for sales.

Every Frontier year ranked

1Safety recalls
48Owner complaints
5Complaints citing a crash
1Complaints citing a fire

Opens NHTSA's lookup in a new tab; your VIN goes to NHTSA, not to us. The VIN is on the driver's side dashboard, the door jamb and your registration. Safety recall repairs are free at Nissan dealers.

How to check a car for recalls, step by step

Get a vehicle history report from EpicVIN (opens in a new tab): a paid report with the car's title, odometer and salvage records, from an approved NMVTIS data provider. Affiliate link: we earn a commission if you buy. If you typed a full VIN above, the link sends it to EpicVIN and opens its checkout page for that VIN. Check the price before you pay: EpicVIN's $1 trial lasts 3 days, then becomes a monthly subscription until you cancel ($49.99 to $99.99 a month on its pages as of Oct 2, 2026). Disclosure

Data: NHTSA recall, complaint and investigation filesUpdated Oct 2, 2026

1 safety recall for the 2013 Nissan Frontier

Newest first. Summaries are NHTSA's own wording. Open a recall for the fix and the full notice.

Electrical system

Feb 12, 2014

wiring · fuses and circuit breakers

In the affected vehicles, a circuit breaker may have been installed incorrectly causing the main wire harness connected to the circuit breaker to face outward, potentially contacting a metal bolt located on the A-pillar.

Risk: The bolt may wear through the wire harness covering, resulting in an electrical short which could cause a fire.

The fix and full notice

Fix: Nissan will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the circuit breaker orientation. If the circuit breaker orientation is incorrect, dealers will repair the vehicles free of charge. The recall began on March 17, 2014. Owners may contact Nissan at 1-800-647-7261.

Nissan North America, Inc. (Nissan) is recalling certain model year 2012 through 2014 Frontier vehicles manufactured from November 28, 2012, through December 17, 2013.

NHTSA listing: FRONTIER.

Questions about any of these recalls: call NHTSA's Vehicle Safety Hotline at 888-327-4236 (TTY 888-275-9171) or check your VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls.

NHTSA investigations

NHTSA's investigations file, dated Oct 2, 2026, lists no investigations for the 2013 Nissan Frontier.

What owners report

Owners have filed 48 complaints with NHTSA about the 2013 Frontier. Below, they are sorted by the problems owners describe and by the areas NHTSA files them under. NHTSA does not verify complaints.

Problems owners describe

Counted from the complaint text: a complaint counts once for each problem it describes (how we match them). Some complaints describe none of these. Compare other models in the problem owners report most for every model year.

Areas named in complaints

A complaint can name more than one area, so shares add up to more than 100%.

Nissan Frontier recalls and complaints by model year

The highlighted bars are the 2013 model year. Newer model years have had less time on the road, so their counts are lower. Counting complaints filed in each model year's first three years, the 2022 Frontier drew the most (88) and the 2013 drew 20.

Owner complaints

2013: 48 complaints

Show as a table
Owner complaints by model year, Nissan Frontier
Model yearComplaints
201059
201164
201278
201348
201442
201533
201643
201738
201825
201928
202023
202119
2022112
202366
202422
20258
20269

Safety recalls

2013: 1 recall

Show as a table
Safety recalls by model year, Nissan Frontier
Model yearRecalls
20104
20111
20123
20131
20142
20150
20161
20171
20182
20191
20202
20212
20226
20231
20243
20253
20261

Crash test ratings

NHTSA's 5-Star Safety Ratings for each version it tested. Rollover risk is NHTSA's estimate of the chance of rolling over in a single-vehicle crash.

Tested versionOverallFrontalSideRollover
Nissan Frontier Crew Cab PU/CC 4WD
Rollover risk 19.8%
Not ratedNot ratedNot rated
Nissan Frontier Crew Cab PU/CC RWD
Rollover risk 21.2%
Not ratedNot ratedNot rated
Nissan Frontier King Cab PU/EC 4WD
Rollover risk 19.8%
Not ratedNot ratedNot rated
Nissan Frontier King Cab PU/EC RWD
Rollover risk 21.2%
Not ratedNot ratedNot rated

2013 Frontier MPG

EPA rates the 2013 Nissan Frontier up to 21 mpg combined.Every version and fuel cost

Questions

What are the most common 2013 Frontier problems?

In the 48 owner complaints filed with NHTSA for the 2013 Nissan Frontier, the problem described most is the airbag warning light or an airbag fault (6). NHTSA does not verify complaints, and one complaint can describe several problems.

Is NHTSA investigating the 2013 Nissan Frontier?

No. NHTSA's investigations file, dated Oct 2, 2026, lists no investigations for the 2013 Nissan Frontier.

How do I check if my Frontier has an open recall?

Enter the 17-character VIN from your dashboard, door jamb or registration at nhtsa.gov/recalls. The lookup lists unrepaired recalls for that exact vehicle. Safety recall repairs are free at Nissan dealers.

Sources and method

  • NHTSA recalls file (NHTSA datasets), dated Oct 2, 2026; every campaign checked against NHTSA's recalls API.
  • NHTSA owner complaints file, dated Oct 2, 2026. Counted by complaint number, so a complaint naming three components counts once in the total.
  • NHTSA investigations file, dated Oct 2, 2026. Defect petitions, which ask NHTSA to open an investigation, are listed apart and only while open. Audit queries, which check whether a company met its recall and reporting duties rather than whether a vehicle has a problem, are not listed.
  • NHTSA 5-Star Safety Ratings (NCAP).
  • NHTSA model names covered: FRONTIER.

Complaint counts are unverified owner reports. They rise with sales volume and time on the road, so compare model years with care. How we build these pages. Spotted an error? Tell us.