2016 Infiniti QX80 Recalls & Complaints

Incident: May 31, 2026 · Filed: October 3, 2026

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) U.S. Department of Transportation 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE West Department, Washington, DC 20590 SUBJECT: SAFETY COMPLAINT – STRUCTURAL PAINT DELAMINATION AND DEBRIS HAZARD • Vehicle: 2016 Infiniti QX80 • Paint Color: Pearl White (Paint Code: QAA) • Affected Area: Roof, hood, and upper body panels To Whom It May Concern, I am filing a formal safety complaint regarding a severe manufacturing defect on my 2016 Infiniti QX80 featuring the factory Pearl White (QAA) paint finish. The factory paint and primer have experienced a complete adhesion failure, causing the paint to shear off in massive, thick chunks down to the bare, unprimed sheet metal. This issue is not a cosmetic concern; it is an active highway safety hazard. The paint layers are delaminating at highway speeds, causing hard, sharp chunks of paint debris to violently fly off my vehicle’s roof. This poses an immediate distraction and danger to trailing motorists who are forced to swerve or suffer windshield impacts from the flying debris. Furthermore, the rapid deterioration of the protective coating risks structural corrosion of the roof panel over time. This is a well-documented, widespread manufacturing defect concerning Nissan/Infiniti’s factory white paint formulations, where an improper chemical bond between the primer and the metal substrate causes a total delamination failure. I request that the NHTSA review this defect for a formal safety investigation, as the debris shedding from these large SUVs at high speeds presents an unaddressed risk to public roadway safety. Sincerely, [XXX] [XXX] [XXX] INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

Incident: June 1, 2025 · Filed: November 13, 2025

I live in a state where it is required to have both front and back plates. When I got my 2016 QX80 it did not have official front plate mounting so I bought a kit and installed the front license plate. Since then I have not had a working sensor. The front collision sensor states there’s an obstruction. I can no longer use cruise control or the front collision safety sensor because the front sensor was brilliantly placed where the plate needs to be installed. Poor design.

Incident: April 23, 2025 · Filed: April 25, 2025

The contact owns a 2016 Infiniti QX80. The contact stated that while her husband was driving 50 MPH on the interstate, there was an abnormal booming sound coming from the sunroof, and the driver discovered that the sunroof glass had shattered. The contact called the Insurance Company for assistance. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was determined that the sunroof needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired; however, the dealer was in the process of ordering the part to repair the vehicle. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 27,448.

Incident: December 31, 2024 · Filed: March 26, 2025

Vehicle will not shift pass 3rd gear. Valve body issue, diagnosed by dealership. Many of the same model have the same problem. Vehicles have very low mileage with a problem like this. Dealer refuses to replace part or compensate. Vehicle poses a potential safety issue on the road.

Incident: January 25, 2025 · Filed: February 28, 2025

Airbag light keeps coming on and we take it in to be serviced and they say hey it shows low voltage so we tighten down your battery and that fixed it. Then we drive 100 miles and it's back on. Took it to a different dealer and they said the same thing. Another few hundred miles airbag light is on again. Putting my families lives in danger. When we bought this vehicle from Carmax that the same issue and took over 6 weeks before we could pick it up.

Incident: July 14, 2021 · Filed: July 19, 2021

The contact owns a 2016 Infiniti QX80. The contact stated while the vehicle was parked in the garage, there was an abnormally strong fuel odor inside the garage. The contact stated no warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was not diagnosed nor repaired. The manufacturer was informed of the failure and informed the contact that the Vin was not under recall. The failure mileage was approximately 90,000.

Incident: November 1, 2020 · Filed: November 2, 2020

I PURCHASED A 2016 QX80 LAST WEEK. AFTER FILLING MY CAR WITH FUEL, WITHIN 10 MINUTES, MY GAS GAUGE WENT FROM FULL, TO DOWN 3/4 OF A TANK OF GAS. AFTER ONLY 50 MILES OF DRIVING, WITH NO AIR CONDITIONING ON, I'M AT 1/2 OF A TANK ACCORDING TO MY FUEL GAUGE. THERE IS ABSOLUTELY NO WAY THAT CAN BE CORRECT.

Incident: October 3, 2020 · Filed: October 7, 2020

I HAD MY INFINITY 2016 QX 80 FOR 6 MONTHS AND THE BREAKS WENT OUT TO THE FLOOR. I WAS ONLY GOING OVER A SPEED HUMP, LUCKILY. I PULLED OVER AND THE CALIPER WAS AGAINST THE INSIDE OF THE RIM. I WAS TOLD THE PIN FELL OUT. VERY DANGEROUS!

Incident: October 17, 2019 · Filed: November 20, 2019

WE HAVE HAD SEVERAL ISSUES WITH OUR VEHICLE. IT HAS BEEN TO THE DEALERSHIP 3 TIMES SINCE NOVEMBER 20, 2019. THE FIRST TIME WE TOOK THE VEHICLE INTO THE DEALERSHIP, IT WAS DUE TO IT BOGGING DOWN. THIS HAPPENED WHEN THE VEHICLE WAS IN MOTION AND IN BOTH THE CITY AND INTERSTATE. THE WORST TIME, WAS WHEN WE WERE ON THE INTERSTATE DRIVING AROUND 70 MILES AN HOUR AND WENT TO ACCELERATE TO PASS A VEHICLE. THE VEHICLE BOGGED DOWN AND WOULD NOT ACCELERATE. IT WAS TAKEN TO THE DEALERSHIP AND THEY COULD NOT DUPLICATE THE PROBLEM. THEY UPDATED THE COMPUTER SOFTWARE AND WE WERE TOLD THIS SHOULD RESOLVE THE PROBLEM. WE PICKED UP THE VEHICLE ON 9/23/19 AND THE VEHICLE IMMEDIATELY BEGAN TO DEMONSTRATE THE SAME PROBLEMS. THE VEHICLE WAS RETURNED TO THE DEALERSHIP ON 9/25/19. AT THIS TIME, MR. JUNOT RODE WITH A TECHNICIAN AND WAS ABLE TO DUPLICATE THE PROBLEM. THE REPINED THE ECM CONNECTOR AND CLEARED ALL THE CODES. WE WERE ABLE TO PICK UP THE VEHICLE ON 10/3/19. THE VEHICLE CONTINUED TO DRIVE SLUGGISH AND BOG DOWN. ON 10/15/19, THE CUSTOMER WAS DRIVING THE VEHICLE IN THE CITY, WHEN IT BEGAN ACCELERATING ON ITS OWN AND THE STEERING AND BRAKES LOCKED UP. SHE WAS ABLE TO PUT THE CAR INTO PARK AND COAST INTO A PARKING LOT. THE DEALERSHIP WAS CALLED ON 10/16/19 AND WE WERE TOLD TO BRING THE CAR IN ON 10/17/19. THEY WERE NOT ABLE TO DUPLICATE THE PROBLEM AND CALLED IN A DST SPECIALIST. WE WERE TOLD THAT HE WOULD NOT BE AT THE DEALERSHIP UNTIL MONDAY, NOVEMBER 18TH. [XXX]. MET HIM AT THE DEALERSHIP THAT MORNING. HE TALKED TO THE DST AND REVIEWED ALL THE ISSUES WE HAVE HAD. WE DID NOT RECEIVE A CALL FROM THE DST AND RECEIVED AN EMAIL FROM INFINITI STATING THAT THEY COULD NOT DUPLICATE THE PROBLEM, SO THEY REPLACED THE BATTERY. MY HUSBAND HAD TO CALL TO GET THE DETAILS OF THE REPORT. WE WERE TOLD WE COULD PICK UP THE VEHICLE ON 10/21/19. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6). *TR

Incident: April 28, 2019 · Filed: June 17, 2019

SUNROOF SPONTANEOUSLY BURST WHILE DRIVING ON A HIGHWAY. THERE DID NOT APPEAR TO BE ANY OBJECTS THAT HIT THE SUNROOF. THE GLASS LOOKED AS THOUGH IT SHATTERED FROM THE INSIDE OUT. FORTUNATELY, THE SUNROOF COVER WAS CLOSED, OTHERWISE SHARDS OF GLASS WOULD'VE ENDED UP ALL OVER DRIVER AND PASSENGERS. INFINITI DEALERSHIP WOULD NOT COVER REPAIR. DEALERSHIP STATED THIS WAS A RARE THING, BUT UPON MENTIONING SEVERAL REPORTS OF THIS HAPPENING ONLINE, DEALERSHIP STATED ,' WE SEE ABOUT 1 A MONTH'.