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Nissan Armada

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Comments

  • waynebrucewaynebruce Member Posts: 16
    After about one year and 17,000 miles I got rid of my Armada SE 4x4. This has been the worst new car experience I've ever had bar none!! I owned mid 90's GM products which put this car to shame. All the problems that have been well documented here I had...from brakes to rattles. The build quality of this truck is a disaster. While mine was an early one it seems that even after a year many of the problems are still there. Also, Nissan is not willing to do anything about it. You can call their customer service number and they'll open a file and nothing happens. I had regional managers ride in my truck twice to listen to thing as it rattles like it was filled with cans and nothing....all was deemed "normal." It is hard to believe that a major manufacturer such as Nissan would/could put such a poorly designed/built product on the market. While it did have a great engine and drove very well, that was not nearly enough to make up for such a lousy interior and bad customer service. Yes Nissan, you are making money but a reputation is hard to develop and even harder to fix. Needless to say I won't be buying any future Nissan products....and this is coming from someone who has owned two other Nissan products and was happy with them...but no more.

    I took a bath on the trade-in as expected but am as happy as fish that I don't have to get depressed and get into my lemon Armada. For those considering an Armada, check out the Dodge Durango...a relative has one and it is put together much better than the Armada will ever be and fully equipped with a Hemi and Nav is still much less than the Armada....wish I had bought one but who would have guessed that Nissan would put out such a bad product...live and learn!!

    Best of luck to all current and future Armada owners!!
  • paisanpaisan Member Posts: 21,181
    Fit and finish is great. So far only good things to say about it. Hard to compare it to the Durango, as that is significantly smaller than this beast.

    -mike
  • big0147big0147 Member Posts: 15
    I too have had brake judder problems but I guess I am pretty lucky as thats the only problem as of it and I have 10,000 plus miles on it. I drive my Mada every chance I can and I am in Hawaii. Now about the Durango. I wouldnt be so fast to buy one because a associate of mine bought one 3 months after I bought my Mada and just 2 weeks ago was trying to trade it in because of the bad transmission.
  • camlamarcacamlamarca Member Posts: 40
    An easy update this vehicle needs is a strap on the back of the third row to make it easier to pull back up right when folded down. Right now, one must mildly hurl over the rear end, grab the top of the rear seat and use gravity and leverage to pull it back up. Might just make it split folding too. Guess this little obvious win was reserved to entice fans back to the 2007s.

    Other than the brakes, the 3rd row in general was the biggest gripe I had about this vehicle before buying it. However, we still love it.
  • paisanpaisan Member Posts: 21,181
    3rd row, other than pulling it up the 3rd row is great. It's roomy and it is matching leather, unlike Yukon XL and Suburban that have Vinyl 3rd rows and have to be unbolted to be removed.

    -mike
  • jessedogjessedog Member Posts: 4
    If you keep the center passenger seat belt attached while the seat is folded down, you can grab the belt from behind and lift the seat back into possition. That seems to be working for me and my wife.

    BTW...I'm bringing my Armada in for brake-work tomorrow; only 1600 miles and the thing shakes like crazy under braking. We do mainly street driving and it's taking a toll on these crappy brakes. My service guy tells me he won't have the new brake parts until May so he will turn the rotors to keep me going until he can replace the old parts. At least there is hope ahead...
  • paisanpaisan Member Posts: 21,181
    On my 04 I had them put it in wiriting when I bought it that they'd do the brake upgrade as soon as it's available.

    -mike
  • rosie726rosie726 Member Posts: 40
    Nissan has had 2 brake upgrades already, who's to say this one will work?
  • paisanpaisan Member Posts: 21,181
    I'm not too worried, worst case I'll spend about $100/corner and get cryo-treated rotors. I hear that the newest upgrade is larger rotors and calipers both front and rear. Brakes are pretty easy to fix, you just get bigger ones/thicker ones or specially treat them/get a better material and you are good to go. So I'm not really worried. Then again, I also race cars, so I'm used to doing brakes every few miles on my race car so swapping pads and rotors is relatively a routine task for me.

    -mike
  • scott174scott174 Member Posts: 74
    I have an 05 Armada (My second) and was unhappy with the center armrest being hard plastic. I was able to replace the center armrest "Lid" with the same one from the QX56. It is plush leather and really is a better armrest than the hard stock Armada lid. It was $67.00 at Everything nissan. I also replaced all four door armrests with the QX leather parts. $73.00. Yes, I also replaced the stock steering wheel with the wood one from the QX too. Anyway, just sets it apart while adding comfort. :blush:
  • tonygoaltonygoal Member Posts: 1
    I bought the "05" Armada LE after owning a "03" Toyota Sequoia that had
    a serious "Drive Train Thump" that Toyota refused to address on the
    Sequoia but fixed the Lexus version, so I traded it in. The Sequoia had
    the same brake problem as the Armada (UNDERSIZED!!!) but luckily a TSB
    was issued 1 month into me owning the truck & it was revamped
    ASAP.............I have been a NIssan owner for over 20 years prior to the
    Sequoia, (280ZX, 300ZX, 3 Pathfinders, 2 XTerras & now this ARMADA)
    .............Besides a loud Cabin (plastic creeks & rattles, Road noise, Engine noise), poor
    tires (Continental) , Bogus MPG rating on Sticker and Completely
    undersized braking system!!! There is a few facts I have learned while
    researching my "Brake Judder" that started at 2800 miles............If you were
    like me and hated American Craftsmanship & thought that you were buying
    a Japanese designed vehicle, READ ON!!...........You have just bought
    an American Truck with a Nissan logo from a company(Nissan), who is now
    majority owned by a French company who has failed at making vehicles
    their entire history (Renault)...........Now if you think that the
    Armadas are being built by "Experienced" workers, the plant went from ground
    breaking, to building, to training, to production in 14 months & in Canton Mississippi!!!! Feel
    better about your purchase??? I don't!! This is an American vehicle
    through & through......and it shows 100%. Worst yet, Nissan used to have a
    great customer service system, and stand behind their products 100%
    (thus the reason for my purchase) call 1-800-NISSAN1 now and see what you
    get.....NOTHING!!!! They will set up a file and that is where it ends. I even had one of the Morons tell me to bring the truck to my dealer on a specific date to let a field Rep. look at it...I dropped off the truck & they called me in the afternoon telling me no one knows about it at Nissan1 or the dealer?????
    The dealer I deal with is less informed than me on this brake problem,
    and the new TSB that addresses the Nightmare isn't readily available &
    will be done in a "Production Date Hierchy" along with fixing the tons
    of Lemon law vehicles in litigation first..........So their answer is,
    cut the Rotors every 3000 miles until they are up to my "production
    date".........And live with the noises because they don't know how to fix
    them.............By the way, my facts came from a master Nissan mechanic
    who has 24 years with Nissan....& he doesn't like this Poor Quality!! any
    more than me............My advice to all considering this vehicle, Wait
    at least till "2006"......................... ???? We'll see!!
  • abzuli99abzuli99 Member Posts: 3
    My 2004 Armada has the following things wrong with the vehicle: 1) brakes do not stop the vehicle as fast as they should 2) fuel gage is flawed (when you fill up the tank, sometimes the level indicator shoots up to the correct level, other times it takes up to 1/2 hour to register correctly) 3) sunroof shade makes popping sounds when driving 4) engine sounds unusual (whining sound), as if there is slippage in one of the belts 5) driver door noise, similar to sunshade noise. Has there been any official recall on the brakes? I have not received any notice. The problem with the brakes, in my opinion, does not just involve changing rotors, or placing a bracket on the brake system. The problem, I think, since the rotors are undersized, is that stopping distance is compromized, which would suggest a greater probability of not stopping in time to avoid a collision. I think there should be a recall. For Nissan's sake, ASAP
  • paisanpaisan Member Posts: 21,181
    Wow I take it you are an automotive brake engineer then? From what I've been told the kits replaces all 4 rotors, pads and calipers....

    -mike
  • rshershe Member Posts: 236
    I have seen nothing that addressed replacing the calipers... Where did you hear that? :confuse:
  • soldaustinsoldaustin Member Posts: 91
    My front rotors have been in on order for over 3 weeks now. The bolt kit and pads are in. Also the rear pads are part of the deal and are in. No calipers and no rear rotors are part of the fix. They checked as I told them all should be replaced. (I felt so) He said no, the fix does not include replacing calipers or rear rotors. He said the rear rotors might be turned if they need it but the rear brakes are not the problem since they don't have the stress of the front ones. I would have to disagree I told him. What is wrong for the front probably was also chosen to be mis-sized for the back. This is just another way to be put off hoping everyone will go away I guess. Since I have waited so long and my brakes are shaking badly, I am going to have no choice but to tell the dealer monday they have to give me something to drive. This is just wrong. I am in Real Estate and it is not only a pain for me but really embarassing to go to a stop sign and fight the wheel every time I stop. One of my clients even said that we should take their car next time. This of course didn't make me feel any better about the Armada. I am just waiting for something else to come out that I can trade this thing off for. I am resigned to the fact that the resale sucks. I looked up the book prices on it and it took a beating. I expected to lose but a new supposedly hot vehicle like this shouldn't take such a huge hit. Save yourself some grief and buy something else if you are looking around. It just isn't worth the hassle or the risk.
  • paisanpaisan Member Posts: 21,181
    So far 1500 miles on it, with lots of heavy braking in NYC, lots of brake dust but other than that all is good with my brakes. We'll see how time goes on how it holds up.

    -mike
  • jandtngjandtng Member Posts: 1
    My brakes didn't start to shake until about 6000 miles. Bought it into Nissan dealer and all they did was change the pads and cut the rotor. I probably will have to bring it in again in the next few thousand miles. I also had the dealer fix the rattling on the doors, but they had to order the parts. If not for me calling to see if the parts came in, they would probably not call me to bring my Armada back in. I am very disappointed of what Nissan company have became. Used to be a reliable company. I probably not buy another Nissan.
  • rshershe Member Posts: 236
    You are right.. Their customer service on all levels is abysmal....I had the same deal... I had to call the dealership to find out the parts were in for one of the fixes I had done..I ended up finding out from the parts dept. and then had to call my service writer to tell him they were in.. They are literally about 20 feet apart (parts and service)..Another one the parts department called me and told me that if I didn't come get the parts within 3 days they would be sent back, even though I was having the work done there :confuse:

    Anytime I have had anything done on my Toyota the service dept. called me the day the parts came in and scheduled an appointment for me..

    As much as I love driving my Armada, I have made up my mind that next year I'm going to trade it in for a Sequoia..
  • paisanpaisan Member Posts: 21,181
    I guess you don't need the capabilities of the Armada then? I mean so far since I've been on here I've seen tons of posts comparing the Armada to some other SUV they were going to buy (MDX, Pilot, Sequoia) yet none of them are in the same class or have the capabilities of the Armada. This leads me to believe that most of these people were in the wrong vehicle to begin with. From my research the only ones that come close to the capabilities are the Tahoe/Yukon, Suburban/YukonXL, Excursion, and Expedition. If you think one of the Detroit companies would give better service.... I highly doubt it.

    -mike
  • tiger10tiger10 Member Posts: 46
    are you kidding me? please name some of the things that are in Armada which is not in Sequoia, the Titans are already having problems and who knows when Nissan is going to have a recall on the Armada. i think the Suburbans and Yukons are the only thing that are comparable to the Sequoia.
  • paisanpaisan Member Posts: 21,181
    Towing capacity on the Sequoia is about 6000-6500lbs. That is well below the 8000-10000 capacity of the Armada/Burban/Expedition. The Sequoia is also significantly more expensive than an Armada. I picked mine up for $37k with 1% financing for 60 months. With every option except the Navi/DVD/Sunroof. A sequoia would have been 10K more with the same options and 6% financing at best.

    With a towing capacity of only 6500lbs you might as well get one of the larger mid-size vans out there with AWD and have the same towing capacity and more interior room.

    -mike
  • aggiedogaggiedog Member Posts: 238
    Well, someone has realized how over priced the Sequoia is. Carmax has them with Nav/DVD for about 45k, about 600 under invoice. When that new engine and Nav system came out, you couldn't get one under MSRP. Of course that doesn't make up for the lack of towing capacity or the second row room which is superior in the Armada to anything not a Sub or Excursion. My daughter, who is a tall 2.5 year old can't kick the front seats from her car seat and believe me, she's been trying. To me, that's priceless.
  • rotti92201rotti92201 Member Posts: 14
    Paison......... Which dealership did buy your Armada from???.. I noticed you said that you live in NYC.
  • paisanpaisan Member Posts: 21,181
    In Keyport, NJ, I'm in Staten Island.

    -mike
  • rshershe Member Posts: 236
    Your right.. I don't need to tow anything that weighs 10,000 lbs... In regards to the other capabilities, I don't know what you are referring to. I bought this vehicle as I go off road on to soft sand at our beachouse and only true 4WD vehicles are allowed into this area.(of which the Sequoia is more than adequate).. No minivans with AWD are allowed in this area.... Don't get me wrong I love the Armada, but Nissan just sucks on reliability, build quality and customer service.
  • paisanpaisan Member Posts: 21,181
    Well there you go, at least you have a reason, and for your purposes the sequioa is probably great. As for reliability? Nissan is fairly decent, it's not Toyota, but since my truck was at least $10K less than a comparably equipped Sequoia, $10k goes a long way to repair my car in the event it does break (although that's only after my 100k btob warranty runs out) :) It's a matter of preference, but to say the Sequoia is "superior" in the Armada forum is a bit ridiculous.

    -mike
  • khousworthkhousworth Member Posts: 3
    Mike i agree with you, I just purchased a 05 SE with leather package. I have researched this vehicle and the Toyota for about a month. I know Brake Pros,makes a full kit for $1600.00 that will stop that Armada like a brick wall. I hope that maybe the 05 since it is on the lot in Miss. that it might have the upgrades on brakes. The rattles and squeaks will be taken care of the day it hits here. Nissan does not add sound deadening material to the rear doors and can use extra on the rear floor and the headliner. I will be able to take care of that for $400-600 dollars.
    Mike how much did the 100K mile btob warranty cost you? Did you puchase it from Nissan?
    And the comparable Sequoia is $5,000 to $6,000 more than the Armada.
    We do all of our own maintenance here at our business and I am used to extreme customization of trucks and car stereo installation. I will let warranty handle what it will and I will take care of the rest.
  • paisanpaisan Member Posts: 21,181
    I rolled it into my payments. Came to about $15/mo extra over 60 months for the Premium Gold + I got the LE so an equivilent Toyota financed at 6.9% would have been at least 10K more.

    -mike
  • rshershe Member Posts: 236
    "$10k goes a long way to repair my car in the event it does break"

    There comes a point when this $ difference isn't worth it if your constantly taking it into the shop or if it leaves your stranded. The Sequoia is superior in overall quality and having been in the Armada's, Infinity cousin (QX)I would say the Sequoia is superior in quality to that as well.

    What I will give the Armada is

    #1-fold flat 3rd row-Toyota really needs to look at that, but can't do anything until a complete redesign as a result of the rear axle.

    #2-Sequoia is bland compared to the Mada.

    #3-towing if you need the xtra 3000 lbs., but I doubt that most Armada drivers tow anything at all..

    In regards to saying the Sequoia is superior to the Armada in this forum, where should I say it? In the Hyundai forum? ;) Like the umpire, I call them as I see em.
  • paisanpaisan Member Posts: 21,181
    I don't see any difference, as there have been almost no problems with the Titan/Armada other than the brake issues. No blown motors, etc. If we want to talk about Toyota reliability.... we can always bring up the sludge issues that Yoda tried to sweep under the carpet....

    "Overall quality is Superior" please quantify this. I mean anyone could say that about anything...

    As for towing, well if you aren't towing or offroading, there is absolutely no reason to own a big SUV, a van or mid-van would serve those purposes far better than even the best SUV. So $ for $ I feel the Armada is a better buy.

    As for refinement, the Armada having 4-wheel indy suspension will outhandle the Sequioa any day of the week and the ride is significantly better due to this as well. I've also tried to sit in the 3rd row of the sequoia and find it to be a lot smaller with less leggroom than the armada has.

    Also anyone who tows knows you can't have "too much towing capacity" essentially you want to tow about 70-75% of the weight that the manufacturer recommends, and you have to subtract any cargo and passengers from the towing capacity....

    So take the 6500lbs of the Sequoia....
    Put 5 of your closest friends @ 175/each
    A cooler, some overnight bags etc @ 200lbs
    1100 lbs total.
    6500 - 1100 = 5400lbs towing capacity 75% of that = 4050lbs of towing capacity, which isn't a whole lot of towing.

    Same scenario in the Armada.....
    9100 - 1100 = 8000lbs 75% of that = 6000lbs of safe towing capacity....

    That's about 33% more than that of the Sequoia. This also translates to how well the vehicle will handle and accelerate when not trailering but loaded down with bodies and gear.

    If you bought your truck just for the family of 4.... or to pimp around in, then yeah there is not a big difference between the sequoia and the armada...

    But if you bought it to actually use, the capabilities, standard features and VALUE can't be beat on the Armada.

    -Mike
  • rotti92201rotti92201 Member Posts: 14
    Mike thanks for the info.. i am in Brooklyn and trying to get out of Pathfinder lease that ends in August. I have been neg. with some NYC dealers and would like to compare with the Jersey ones... See who will offer me a better deal.

    Just out of curiosity why a '04 rather then '05???

    christina
  • khousworthkhousworth Member Posts: 3
    The rebate on the 04's is 3,000 right now, and 1,500 on the 05's .
  • paisanpaisan Member Posts: 21,181
    1% financing + Rebate :) My e-mail is in my profile if you need to contact me with questions regarding the dealer's performance.

    -mike
  • khousworthkhousworth Member Posts: 3
    Paisan how much did the bumper to bumper warranty cost you for 100K?
  • norbnnorbn Member Posts: 70
    What kind of defeatist mentallity do you need to purchase the Armada? The kind that needs $10K for upgrades, or $1600 for new brakes on a $30K+ new car? Or $400 worth of sound deadning?!!!! Geez, the whole reason you buy a new car is because you don't have to pay extra to maintain it. So buying an Armada is like buying a new old car???!!!!

    Come on Nissan fix the Armada. Almost bought the Land Cruiser but its so dated looking. Still holding out for the real Aramada to show up.
  • kidsddskidsdds Member Posts: 11
    I had the same problem with the Fuel Gauge from day 1 with my 2004. I kept taking it in saying that there was a problem that I could only get at the most 22 gallons into my tank even if gauge was below E. I was told repeatedly that this was normal. Finally the gauge was stuck the full position for three days before they would even test the thing. They eventually replaced something in the fuel tank and have had no problems since then. I am able to actually "fill up" my tank now with the proper amount of fuel.
  • kidsddskidsdds Member Posts: 11
    Does anyone know if Nissan comes out with periodic update discs for the Navigation Systems? It appears that the discs are already a few years behind.
  • paisanpaisan Member Posts: 21,181
    What kind of defeatist mentallity do you need to purchase the Armada? The kind that needs $10K for upgrades, or $1600 for new brakes on a $30K+ new car? Or $400 worth of sound deadning?!!!! Geez, the whole reason you buy a new car is because you don't have to pay extra to maintain it. So buying an Armada is like buying a new old car???!!!!

    Come on Nissan fix the Armada. Almost bought the Land Cruiser but its so dated looking. Still holding out for the real Aramada to show up.


    No car is ever built perfect every time. So basically if you want a perfect car you will NEVER find it. As for brake issues, they'll get worked out, that's what happens on a 1st year build of a new car. As for "10k in upgrades" I'm not adding anything, i'm saying that you have $10k worth of discount for a superior car in almost all respects, of course you don't get the "Toyota Name" but i'm not into names anyway.

    -mike
  • paisanpaisan Member Posts: 21,181
    I belive cost around 1100 for the Premium Gold + from Nissan.

    -mike
  • dklaneckydklanecky Member Posts: 559
    The Nav maps can be purchased from Zenrin.com at about $185 each.

    I originally received v 6.1 with the vehicle, and bought the v 6.3 a few months ago.

    I didn't notice a huge amount of changes from v 6.1 to v 6.3, in the area that I drive.

    I plan on updating every two or three years, no more often, unless my daily driving routes need to change for some reason.
  • rshollandrsholland Member Posts: 19,788
    When are you taking it to the Pine Barrens? I'd be curious as to how you feel it would compete against your old Trooper off road. Yeah, the Armada is much bigger and probably can't get into tight areas like your Trooper could, but other than that I bet it's as good as your old Trooper.

    Bob
  • paisanpaisan Member Posts: 21,181
    I'd need to remove the front bumper to do any offroading. Due to the airdam below the front bumper offroad abilities in any completely stock Armada would be dismal. The skid plates are thin sheet metal. And the running boards are plastic. So compared to the Trooper, it would likely not do well at all. The trooper don't forget is a fairly purpose built offroader. The Armada is made for the American highway! I have to look into how hard it is to remove the air dam and side steps and then I might take it offroad but not likely. In all reality I'll likely tow down a buddy's offroad Jeep or Montero behind the trooper if I want to do any serious offroading.

    -mike
  • paisanpaisan Member Posts: 21,181
    Ramping up onto obstacles with a 4-wheel indy suspension vehicle isn't too much fun, it is likely to rollover if I try it. At least on the Trooper it had 1 solid axle.

    -mike
  • rshollandrsholland Member Posts: 19,788
    I dunno, you may be surprised as to how well it will do.

    Bob
  • paisanpaisan Member Posts: 21,181
    On off-camber with indy suspension, the weight is shifted to the opposite side of the vehicle (the lower wheels) in extreme camber situations this will result in a rollover. Also the biggest issue is the lower cladding on it, I can't even put my head under the vehicle from the front without hitting the air-dam and the side steps hang down pretty low.

    -mike
  • howalkerhowalker Member Posts: 1
    Does anyone know when the 2006 Armada coming out? I've done all kinds of searches but didn't come up with anything.
  • mark51mark51 Member Posts: 1
    I have a 2004 Nissan Armada, purchased in December of 2003, I just recently noticed the problem with the brakes, surging or pulsating when I apply brakes. The Armada has approximately 50k miles, has anyone had similar problem at high mileage and if so did y run into any problems getting brake problem fixed. Secondly I am having a loss of transmission fluid without any signs of exterior leaks, has anyone experienced this problem.
  • btill1btill1 Member Posts: 69
    Has anybody else had this problem when I go to put gas in my Armada it does not let me fill it up all the way. The Armada has a 28 gallon gas tank and if I am close to empty it still will only take about 20 gallons and then the gas nozzle shuts off like it is full. Has anyone else had this problem?
  • tidestertidester Member Posts: 10,059
    Has anyone else had this problem?

    Apparently you're not as close to empty as you think. You might try letting it run down a little further and see how much difference that makes.

    tidester, host
  • btill1btill1 Member Posts: 69
    I guess maybe I am having an issue with my gas gauge, I believe others have also had issues with their gas gauges.

    Is there a TSB for the gas gauge?
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