Nissan Class Action Lawsuit Filed Over Dangerous and Defective Emergency Braking Features

Nissan faces a class action lawsuit over allegations indicating the automaker intentionally concealed safety defects related to emergency braking features to avoid a costly recall

A class action lawsuit against Nissan alleges that the Japanese auto-maker has intentionally concealed information about a defective radar sensor in its automatic emergency braking software, which may increase the risk of an auto accident.

The complaint (PDF) was filed by a group of plaintiffs in the U.S. District Court Middle District of Tennessee on February 15, indicating the company has known about design defects in several models of Nissan vehicles equipped with sensors used in Forward Emergency Braking (FEB), Automatic Emergency Braking (AEB) and Forward Collision Warning (FCW) systems.

Despite evidence of high failure rates, rather than addressing the problems, Nissan continued to manufacture, market and sell the vehicles, according to the lawsuit.

Ten different model year Nissan vehicles are equipped with Continental ARS-410 radar system used in the design of FEB, AEB, and FCW systems, which the complaint indicates may falsely identify obstacles ahead and engage the braking systems, or may malfunction and unexpectedly disable the emergency braking software without notice to the driver.

Plaintiffs argue that not only has Nissan known of the defects prior to vehicle production, but that both scenarios presented by the defective Continental ARS-410 radar systems pose an unreasonable safety hazard to drivers, passengers, other motorists, and pedestrians.

The complaint cites several Nissan AEB failure reports submitted to the manufacturer, including an incident on December 31, 2017, when the owner of an impacted vehicle was traveling at approximately 35mph when the FEB system unexpectedly activated, bringing the vehicle to a screeching halt in the middle of a multi-lane road.

Another customer complaint indicates that on December 22, 2017, she was slowly approaching an intersection in an impacted vehicle when the AEB activated suddenly causing the vehicle to jerk her forward. The customer states that while decompressing the brake the car jolted forward colliding with the vehicle in front of her.

Plaintiffs claim Nissan has been aware of the sensor failure incidents since pre-production, and subsequently received more than 90 consumer complaints, warranty claims, and dealership repair orders indicating similar problems stemming from the collision avoidance systems.

However, rather than issuing a recall and offering a suitable repair to customers, Nissan intentionally concealed and suppressed FEB defects knowing they would be able to sell more vehicles and avoid a costly repair process, the lawsuit states.

The group of plaintiff’s from Tennessee are seeking class action status to pursue damages on behalf of similarly situated owners of 2019 through 2021 Maxima, 2020 through 2021 Sentra, 2019 through 2021 Altima, 2020 through 2021 Versa, 2017 through 2021 Rogue Sport, 2020 through 2021 Kicks, 2017 through 2020 Rogue, 2021 Armada, 2018 through 2021 Leaf, 2019 through 2021 Murano, and 2020 through 2021 Titan, equipped with Continental ARS-410 radar systems.

The lawsuit states that had consumers known of the sensor defects in Nissan vehicles they would have chosen a different vehicle, or paid substantially less, or would not have paid a premium for the upgradable feature, in some cases.

Plaintiffs state that as a direct and proximate result of Nissan’s failure to warn and deceptive sales practices, consumers have been left liable for costly repairs and a vehicle with a diminished value due to the defect.

The class action lawsuit brings forth claims of fraudulent omission, unjust enrichment, unfair and deceptive trade practice violations, and others, seeking an order from the court to award compensatory and punitive damages exceeding $5,000,000.