2015 Nissan Sentra · symptom sheet
Transmission shudders, slips or shifts hard
- 63owner reports
- 80,000median miles
- 2involved a crash
Newest report Jan 23, 2026 · checked Oct 2, 2026
172 of the 351 complaints on this car are about the transmission and drivetrain. 63 of those describe transmission shudder, which makes it the most reported problem on the 2015 Sentra.
Narrower sheets: Transmission jerks, lurches or bangs into gear (35 reports)
Tick what matches of 63 reports
Transmission shudder on other Sentra years
Report counts are for each model year on its own, so a newer car has had less time to collect them. Model years with too few reports of it for a sheet: 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2026.
What this problem usually is
This is the biggest drivetrain group on the site: a transmission that shudders, slips, hesitates or bangs into gear. It's the everyday version of transmission trouble, where the car still drives but doesn't drive right, and it has three narrower sheets of its own for jerking, hesitation and slipping.
What got replaced
Owners who name the part that was replaced mention the transmission (4 reports).
Recalls and investigations
No recall on the transmission and drivetrain covers the 2015 model year as of Oct 2, 2026.
When it happens
The middle half of failures fell between 63,000 and 100,000 miles, from the 34 reports that gave a mileage.
Is this a known problem?
The manufacturer has sent NHTSA 2 service bulletins or notices for the 2015 Nissan Sentra that deal with this problem. Newest first.
Federal rules make a manufacturer send NHTSA a copy of any notice about a defect that goes to more than one dealer or owner. Most of these are service bulletins, the repair instructions manufacturers send to dealers. NHTSA generally leaves safety recall bulletins out of this file, and recalls are listed separately.
2013-2017 SENTRA; CVT JUDDER IF YOU CONFIRM The customer reports a transmission judder (shake, shudder, single or multiple bumps or vibration), hesitation on acceleration, lack of power or RPM flare. ACTION Refer to the Repair Overview on pages 2 and 3.
2015 SENTRA; ENHANCED DIAGNOSTIC LOGIC FOR CVT IF YOU CONFIRM The customer reports a transmission judder (shake, shudder, single or multiple bumps or vibration), hesitation on acceleration, lack of power or RPM flare.
What owners wrote
“Car has 72000 miles in it it has given no indication on dash except cruise control went out. The transmission is slipping and both the front passenger and drivers door handles are messed up up.”
Filed Aug 28, 2025 · 72,000 miles
“Car lost power going 70 on the freeway and started shuttering and jerking when accelerating. The rest of the 20 minute drive home, my vehicle would not stop jerking and wouldnât go over 30mph.”
Filed Apr 13, 2024
“Transmission. Up and down idling when accelerating, high RPM but not accelerating in speed, jerking, whining sounds while driving, thumping into gears, bad burning smell, no type of warning lights”
Filed Aug 16, 2023
“For a while now it jerks or pulls, and it only goes up to 1-2 gears like it doesn't want to accelerate. It doesn't shift gear properly more like transmission issues. There is no power.”
Filed Feb 13, 2023
Should you keep driving it?
This page can't tell you that. 2 of 63 reports involved a crash and 1 people were hurt. Owners who file are the ones who had a bad experience, and nobody checks their reports. If the problem affects steering, braking, power or a fire risk, treat it as a safety fault and have it inspected before a long or high-speed drive.
File your own report with NHTSA. Complaint counts are how a problem gets an investigation. How reports land on this sheet.
Guide Taking it to a shop? How to describe this problem so it gets found
Other problems on this car
- Engine stalls or loses power while driving 57 reports
- Airbag warning light or recall 44 reports
- Transmission fails or needs replacement 37 reports