Nissan / Infiniti South Carolina Lemon Law Cases

Nissan has no SC plant. Nissan Smyrna TN (the largest Nissan plant in North America) ships into the SC market. Common SC-market Nissan vehicles include Altima, Rogue, Pathfinder, Leaf, Frontier — all subject to the well-documented Nissan CVT failure pattern. See Tennessee Nissan coverage for TN home-state perspective.

Nissan Smyrna TN — SC-adjacent

Smyrna TN is approximately 6 hours from Charleston, 4.5 hours from Spartanburg.

Production:

Nissan Altima — midsize sedan.
Nissan Rogue — compact SUV.
Nissan Pathfinder — midsize 3-row SUV.
Nissan Leaf — compact EV.
Nissan Frontier — midsize pickup.

Common Nissan defect categories

CVT (Continuously Variable Transmission) — flagship defect category

The Jatco CVT used in many Nissan vehicles has documented failure patterns:

CVT shudder.
Slipping under acceleration.
Overheating — transmission goes into limp mode.
Complete failure.
Whine or hum from transmission.

Affected models:

Nissan Altima (CVT-equipped multiple years).
Nissan Rogue (CVT-equipped).
Nissan Maxima.
Nissan Murano.
Nissan Pathfinder (some years).
Nissan Sentra.
Nissan Versa.
Infiniti QX60 (Pathfinder platform).

Class action history:

Multiple Nissan CVT class-action settlements.
Warranty extensions provided (extending to 84/84K or 120/120K mi).
Pattern persists despite extensions.

Other common Nissan defects

Frontier

5-speed automatic failures (older years).
Radiator-to-transmission cross-contamination (“Strawberry milkshake”).
9-speed (newer) shifting issues.

Pathfinder

CVT issues.
3.5L V6 issues in some years.
Infotainment.

Leaf (EV)

Battery degradation — older Leaf had no thermal management.
Newer Leaf with thermal management performs better.

Titan / Titan XD (full-size pickup)

Various mechanical issues.
Cummins 5.0L diesel (Titan XD — discontinued) — DEF, fuel system.

Rogue / Rogue Sport / Murano

CVT issues.
Infotainment.
A/C in heat.

Infiniti — Nissan’s luxury brand

QX60 (Pathfinder platform)

CVT issues.
Infotainment.

QX80 (Patrol platform)

Air suspension issues.

Q50 / Q60

3.0L twin-turbo V6 (VR30) issues.
7-speed automatic.

QX55 / QX50

CVT (the only CVT-equipped Infiniti SUVs).

Recall and TSB history

NHTSA recall search by VIN.
Nissan service portal for TSBs.

Documented patterns include:

Multi-year Takata airbag remediation.
CVT-related TSBs and warranty extensions.
Frontier 5-speed transmission warranty extensions.
Pathfinder various recalls.

Procedural considerations

BBB Auto Line is Nissan’s certified IDS — mandatory under § 56-28-60.
Written notice to Nissan North America Consumer Affairs triggers customer-relations engagement.

SCUTPA exposure

Nissan cases have SCUTPA exposure for:

CVT “fixed” representations — when warranty extensions or settlements don’t cure recurrence (strong public-interest pleading from class-action history).
CVT durability representations — when failures occur within warranty.
Leaf battery longevity representations.
Frontier “strawberry milkshake” representations.

Bottom line

Nissan cases in SC center on the CVT failure pattern — extensive class-action history, multiple warranty extensions, but persistent recurrence. Nissan Smyrna TN proximity makes discovery straightforward. SCUTPA public-interest pleading typically strong from class-action history.

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