The Basics of the Nissan Warranty | Autance

What IS Included

Nissan takes a fairly standard approach of structuring its factory warranty. Like most automakers, it has a typical bumper-to-bumper and powertrain warranty setup that lasts as long as the competition. 

Bumper-to-Bumper

The main coverage in the Nissan factory warranty is the bumper-to-bumper warranty that’s designed to address issues all over the vehicle. Covering components from the tail to the front of the vehicle, this comprehensive coverage is the one that’s most likely to save you money if something unexpected comes up.

Lasting three years and 36,000 miles, the warranty matches the terms and lengths of many factory warranties from other automakers. Parts covered include almost anything that isn’t considered a normal wear item (something that is meant or expected to degrade by design).

Powertrain

The other portion of the Nissan factory coverage is the five-year, 60,000-mile powertrain warranty that lasts longer than the comprehensive coverage. This warranty is focused on a smaller portion of a vehicle’s major components and systems. Instead of covering everything, it only includes important parts found in the engine, transmission, and drivetrain (i.e. driveshaft).

Since the powertrain warranty lasts longer than the bumper-to-bumper coverage, this portion is more likely to kick in when the comprehensive coverage has expired. Specific parts include things like the oil pumps, fuel pump, water pump, cylinder blocks, timing tensioner, and chain.

Other

Nissan has a standard set of extra perks that compares to most other automakers’ offerings these days. There is an EPA emission warranty and California emission warranty that address issues related to faulty parts in the exhaust system. 

All new Nissan models also come with a one-year, 12,000-mile adjustment period at a Nissan dealership that covers basic services, like wheel alignments and tire balancing, once during the timeframe. This coverage helps address the costs of fine-tuning the new vehicle as it hits the road during that first year. 

What’s NOT Included

Given Nissan’s standard approach to its factory warranty, the coverage’s limitations tend to match the competition’s as well.

Mechanical Breakdown Damage

Unlike some auto repair insurance protection plans and third-party warranty options, the main coverage of the Nissan factory warranty is focused on factory defects. This means that the warranty will cover the costs of repairs and services to fix a problem caused by the factory itself (due to poor workmanship or materials).

This leaves out a lot of other types of issues caused by accidental or incidental damage. If a vehicle gets damaged in bad weather or a fender bender, you’ll most likely be left with covering the costs out-of-pocket instead of receiving help from the factory warranty.

Maintenance Coverage

The most expensive part of owning and operating a vehicle is often the maintenance required to keep the components and systems running. Individual services or part swaps may not be too expensive, but costs can quickly add up if you are trying to stick to the factory-recommended schedule all new vehicles often have. 

The Nissan factory warranty doesn’t offer much extra protection to address these costs. While there is a one-year adjustment period, this is focused on just a couple of components. Otherwise, the vehicle owner will need to sign up for the Nissan Security+ Plan for a degree of assistance with these costs. 

The Good

Taking a standard approach with its factory warranty means Nissan’s coverage remains fairly competitive with other automakers, making differences small and usually insignificant. This can be a drawback for customers looking for extensive or unique warranty coverage, but if you want to take the warranty details out of the equation, Nissan’s approach works. 

The coverage is enough, between the bumper-to-bumper and powertrain warranties, to address most factory defects that are likely to come up in the five years of the overall coverage period. Combined with the extra and optional perks Nissan customers can get (like basic towing), it’s clear that the factory warranty offers the basics of most good factory coverage. 

The Bad

Nissan’s basic coverage is also limited in virtually every single way as any other automaker’s coverage with the same terms and lengths. The limitation of issues, for example, is understandable but reduces the money-saving benefits Nissan drivers should expect. In other words, don’t count on getting any assistance from the warranty if the issue isn’t from a factory defect. 

More than anything else, we’d like to see more coverage of maintenance costs and services. Arguably, a proper maintenance schedule helps avoid major wear and tear issues (and even some minor issues from defects), so it can help to have these expenses reduced or eliminated altogether. While this is available to a degree, Nissan has plenty of room to expand on maintenance costs coverage.

Takeaway Value

Nissan’s limited warranty is good for a basic, no-frills type of vehicle coverage. It doesn’t go far in offering the length or terms as what some automakers have, but it gets the job done if you just want some peace of mind on factory defect costs.