INFINITI QX50 · model year

2016 INFINITI QX50

29 NHTSA complaints, 6 crash reports for this specific cohort.

NHTSA overall rating

Not crash-tested

New Car Assessment Program

The 2016INFINITIQX50 carries 29 consumer safety complaints in NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation database for this specific model-year cohort. Within that volume, owners reported 6 crashes, 6 fires, 6 injuries, and 0 fatalities. For crash performance, NHTSA's New Car Assessment Program gave this cohort an overall Not Rated/5 rating, with Not Rated/5 front crash, Not Rated/5 side crash, and 4/5 rollover scores derived from standardized barrier and dynamic tests.

Component-level analysis is where model-year complaints become actionable: the top complaint category for the 2016 QX50 is unknown or other with 6 filings, followed by engine (5) and electrical system (4). Concentration in one or two component groups is the classic signature of a systemic defect; a flat distribution usually reflects normal aging, warranty complaints, or isolated build-plant variability.

NHTSA currently has 7 investigation files overlapping the 2016 QX50. Owners comparing this cohort against neighboring years should pair the counters above with the complaint-by-year trend on the parent model page — a spike in a single year often tracks to a platform refresh, a new transmission supplier, or an updated ECU calibration. Use the related-complaint feed below to read raw owner narratives before deciding whether any pattern here affects your specific use case.

29
Complaints
6
Crashes
6
Fires
6
Injuries
0
Deaths

Total Complaints

29 filings

Crashes Reported

6 reports

Source

NHTSA ODI

Federal complaints database

Complaints vs. fleet median (215)

At or below the fleet median complaint volume.

NHTSA NCAP overall: Not Rated/5 — Not rated · Front: Not Rated/5 · Side: Not Rated/5 · Rollover: 4/5

Complaints by Component

ComponentCount
UNKNOWN OR OTHER6
ENGINE5
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM4
FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM3
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL3
POWER TRAIN3
AIR BAGS2
SEATS1
SERVICE BRAKES1
AIR BAGS:FRONTAL:DRIVER CLOCKSPRING/SPIRAL CASSETTE1

Recent Complaints

20250318POWER TRAIN

My qx50 is currently back in the shop. So far I’ve spent about $12,000 on engine and transmission repairs and the NHTSA doesn’t seem to be doing anything about it. Now it needs a new “ignition coil” for another $1,000. I’m just at a loss for words!! I’m attaching the “Review of services” that was conducted earlier this month, when my Infiniti was in the shop and the diagnostic codes that came up when I had to have the vehicle towed there, less than a week later.

20250318ENGINE

My qx50 is currently back in the shop. So far I’ve spent about $12,000 on engine and transmission repairs and the NHTSA doesn’t seem to be doing anything about it. Now it needs a new “ignition coil” for another $1,000. I’m just at a loss for words!! I’m attaching the “Review of services” that was conducted earlier this month, when my Infiniti was in the shop and the diagnostic codes that came up when I had to have the vehicle towed there, less than a week later.

20250213CrashAIR BAGS

On December 24, 2024 I was in a car accident where my car did make impact twice after spinning out of control due to black ice. The first impact occurred hitting a car then the final impact occurred when the car was flung into the metal barricade after spinning. The air bags did NOT deploy during this accident and I was very concerned for my safety and my life.

20240704VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL

I was driving and came to a red light behind other cars. I was completely stopped with brakes applied and vehicle suddenly lurched forward, RPM’s reved up over 3,000 without me accelerating. I was about two blocks from home and was able to make it by slowly driving and jerking all the way. Mechanic codes were 720 output speed sensor. Very alarming situation! I could have easily hit the car in front of me if I would have been any closer, or worst yet a pedestrian! Appears to be critical safety issue and something that may need to be recalled.

20240613FireENGINE

so after my initial report about my engine catching fire on the highway, I received an invoice for $5,000 for a used engine with 80k miles on it; plus another $2800 for the service fee. I already put down about $3900 for the engine repair. The mechanic sent me pictures of the engine with the holes on it that caused the damage (or the holes might have happened during the fire). I’m attaching photos sent to me, from my mechanic, showing the holes/damage on the engine, for your consideration and a photo of the initial repair bill (including receipt of my deposit) for your review … also, I still need to pay another $4300 to pick it up, but he said my check engine light is still on due to a transmission, that may be related to the valve body failing. What are these qx50s still being sold?? On the car forums and YouTube, there are so many issues with the engines and the transmissions (including the 450k that are currently under investigation). And their consumer affairs dept is extremely

20240613FireFUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM

so after my initial report about my engine catching fire on the highway, I received an invoice for $5,000 for a used engine with 80k miles on it; plus another $2800 for the service fee. I already put down about $3900 for the engine repair. The mechanic sent me pictures of the engine with the holes on it that caused the damage (or the holes might have happened during the fire). I’m attaching photos sent to me, from my mechanic, showing the holes/damage on the engine, for your consideration and a photo of the initial repair bill (including receipt of my deposit) for your review … also, I still need to pay another $4300 to pick it up, but he said my check engine light is still on due to a transmission, that may be related to the valve body failing. What are these qx50s still being sold?? On the car forums and YouTube, there are so many issues with the engines and the transmissions (including the 450k that are currently under investigation). And their consumer affairs dept is extremely

20240613FirePOWER TRAIN

so after my initial report about my engine catching fire on the highway, I received an invoice for $5,000 for a used engine with 80k miles on it; plus another $2800 for the service fee. I already put down about $3900 for the engine repair. The mechanic sent me pictures of the engine with the holes on it that caused the damage (or the holes might have happened during the fire). I’m attaching photos sent to me, from my mechanic, showing the holes/damage on the engine, for your consideration and a photo of the initial repair bill (including receipt of my deposit) for your review … also, I still need to pay another $4300 to pick it up, but he said my check engine light is still on due to a transmission, that may be related to the valve body failing. What are these qx50s still being sold?? On the car forums and YouTube, there are so many issues with the engines and the transmissions (including the 450k that are currently under investigation). And their consumer affairs dept is extremely

20240531AIR BAGS

The contact owns a 2016 Infiniti QX50. The contact stated that while driving or parked, the “Air Bags Deactivated” and “Seat Belt Detached” warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic and a local dealer. The independent mechanic performed an electronic reset on the vehicle and the lights were off for one day; however, the failure reoccurred. The independent mechanic related the failure with the NHTSA Campaign Number: 16V244000 (Air Bags) however, the vehicle was not included in the recall. The local dealer diagnosed the vehicle and confirmed a failure with the sensor module for the air bags. The contact approved the repair; however, the vehicle was not yet repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 54,000.

Mileage: 54,000

20240522POWER TRAIN

The contact owns a 2016 Infiniti QX50. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the check engine warning light illuminated. The contact stated that following the warning light illumination the vehicle hesitated to accelerate. The vehicle was taken to the mechanic and diagnosed as a speed sensor module located inside the transmission. The contact was advised the module being in the transmission caused the transmission to overheat requiring valve body replacement. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 110,000.

Mileage: 110,000

20240522FireENGINE

The engine blew up on the expressway. And this has happened for many other qx50 drivers.

20240513FireENGINE

There are 2 check engine codes that came up as an issue for my vehicle, out of the blue: P0720 and P0500. I reached out to my mechanic and he couldn't fix it. So my plan was to take it to the dealership at the end of this month; however, while driving the vehicle back from my sister's house, the bottom of the car caught on fire and I had to pull over to jump out the car with my children. Called 911. The police and fire dept came, but the fire had gone out by that time, so the officer had the vehicle towed off the highway. Looked into the issue online and apparently it's very common. One Infiniti dealership said that he fixes about 30 per month. Why didn't Infiniti issue a recall for this very serious, hazardous situation? Where is their due diligence to fix this problem for their customers? Why are they letting so many vehicles fail? What happened to reasonable due care? Is it not enough that they are aware of this issue and won’t recall it, but what about the physical danger that th

20240513FireFUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM

There are 2 check engine codes that came up as an issue for my vehicle, out of the blue: P0720 and P0500. I reached out to my mechanic and he couldn't fix it. So my plan was to take it to the dealership at the end of this month; however, while driving the vehicle back from my sister's house, the bottom of the car caught on fire and I had to pull over to jump out the car with my children. Called 911. The police and fire dept came, but the fire had gone out by that time, so the officer had the vehicle towed off the highway. Looked into the issue online and apparently it's very common. One Infiniti dealership said that he fixes about 30 per month. Why didn't Infiniti issue a recall for this very serious, hazardous situation? Where is their due diligence to fix this problem for their customers? Why are they letting so many vehicles fail? What happened to reasonable due care? Is it not enough that they are aware of this issue and won’t recall it, but what about the physical danger that th

20240306UNKNOWN OR OTHER

Driver door locked and will not unlock or open, but all other doors open.

20230725ELECTRICAL SYSTEM

The contact owns a 2016 Infiniti QX50. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, she attempted to engage the horn to prevent a collision; however, the horn was inoperable. There was no warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, where it was diagnosed and determined that the clockspring had melted onto the horn relay. The vehicle was not repaired. An unknown dealer was notified of the failure. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 118,274.

Mileage: 118,274

20230725AIR BAGS:FRONTAL:DRIVER CLOCKSPRING/SPIRAL CASSETTE

The contact owns a 2016 Infiniti QX50. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, she attempted to engage the horn to prevent a collision; however, the horn was inoperable. There was no warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, where it was diagnosed and determined that the clockspring had melted onto the horn relay. The vehicle was not repaired. An unknown dealer was notified of the failure. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 118,274.

Mileage: 118,274

20230718UNKNOWN OR OTHER

Purchased vehicle on 4/23/23 from Carmax. Discovered horn was not working 5/10 when a truck swerved into my lane on the freeway. Carmax refused to refund money under 30 day guarantee stating I drove over 1500 miles. Prior to purchasing I signed documents stating the car was in perfect condition after 3 point inspection , horn included . They scheduled a appointment at the end of the month leaving me with no transportation to get to work . After complaining to the BBB they denied anything was wrong with the car, even after doing a appraisal on 6/10 where I stated the horn was not functioning. I took the car for a third party diagnostic and the mechanic determined a defective horn relay and spiral cable . I have not driven this car at all since 5/13 except 6/10 when I attempted to sell it back to the dealership twice.

20230718ELECTRICAL SYSTEM

Purchased vehicle on 4/23/23 from Carmax. Discovered horn was not working 5/10 when a truck swerved into my lane on the freeway. Carmax refused to refund money under 30 day guarantee stating I drove over 1500 miles. Prior to purchasing I signed documents stating the car was in perfect condition after 3 point inspection , horn included . They scheduled a appointment at the end of the month leaving me with no transportation to get to work . After complaining to the BBB they denied anything was wrong with the car, even after doing a appraisal on 6/10 where I stated the horn was not functioning. I took the car for a third party diagnostic and the mechanic determined a defective horn relay and spiral cable . I have not driven this car at all since 5/13 except 6/10 when I attempted to sell it back to the dealership twice.

20221202CrashSERVICE BRAKES

This is the 3rd instance of my car rolling backwards down the driveway. Both the first and second instances of uncontrolled rolling happened in 2016. Only the second instance was caught on camera. I shared the video with Infiniti and was instructed to bring the car in for an inspection. I went in for the inspection in December 2016 and they reported that there were no issues (despite video evidence). Today, December 2, 2022, the car (while gear shifted into park) again rolled down the driveway, across a street and hit my neighbor's house. This was all caught on video as well. I posted the video on the manufacturers social media site. See below for the email I sent to the dealership after they contacted me. I've also uploaded the videos to YouTube because they're in MP4 format and I'm unaware of how to convert them to the format required for this submission. The titles of the videos are: Infiniti QX50 Rolling Backwards December 2016 and Infiniti QX50 Rolling Backwards December 2022. Bot

20221202CrashELECTRICAL SYSTEM

This is the 3rd instance of my car rolling backwards down the driveway. Both the first and second instances of uncontrolled rolling happened in 2016. Only the second instance was caught on camera. I shared the video with Infiniti and was instructed to bring the car in for an inspection. I went in for the inspection in December 2016 and they reported that there were no issues (despite video evidence). Today, December 2, 2022, the car (while gear shifted into park) again rolled down the driveway, across a street and hit my neighbor's house. This was all caught on video as well. I posted the video on the manufacturers social media site. See below for the email I sent to the dealership after they contacted me. I've also uploaded the videos to YouTube because they're in MP4 format and I'm unaware of how to convert them to the format required for this submission. The titles of the videos are: Infiniti QX50 Rolling Backwards December 2016 and Infiniti QX50 Rolling Backwards December 2022. Bot

20221202CrashUNKNOWN OR OTHER

This is the 3rd instance of my car rolling backwards down the driveway. Both the first and second instances of uncontrolled rolling happened in 2016. Only the second instance was caught on camera. I shared the video with Infiniti and was instructed to bring the car in for an inspection. I went in for the inspection in December 2016 and they reported that there were no issues (despite video evidence). Today, December 2, 2022, the car (while gear shifted into park) again rolled down the driveway, across a street and hit my neighbor's house. This was all caught on video as well. I posted the video on the manufacturers social media site. See below for the email I sent to the dealership after they contacted me. I've also uploaded the videos to YouTube because they're in MP4 format and I'm unaware of how to convert them to the format required for this submission. The titles of the videos are: Infiniti QX50 Rolling Backwards December 2016 and Infiniti QX50 Rolling Backwards December 2022. Bot

Compare 2016INFINITIQX50 to Similar Vehicles

NHTSA Investigations

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Frequently Asked Questions

How many complaints does the 2016 INFINITI QX50 have?
The 2016 INFINITI QX50 has 29 NHTSA complaints, 6 crashes, 6 fires, 6 injuries, and 0 deaths reported.
What is the safety rating for the 2016 INFINITI QX50?
The 2016 INFINITI QX50 received an overall NHTSA safety rating of Not Rated/5, front crash rating of Not Rated/5, side crash rating of Not Rated/5, and rollover rating of 4/5.
What are the most common problems with the 2016 INFINITI QX50?
The most-complained component for the 2016 INFINITI QX50 is UNKNOWN OR OTHER with 6 complaints. Other frequently reported areas include ENGINE and ELECTRICAL SYSTEM.
Is the 2016 INFINITI QX50 safe to buy?
Review the complaint history, crash and fire reports, safety ratings, and recall status on this page to make an informed decision. The 2016 INFINITI QX50 has an NHTSA safety rating of Not Rated/5. Compare with other model years using the links above.
Where does this data come from?
All complaint, recall, and safety rating data is sourced from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). Complaints are filed by vehicle owners through NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation.

Vehicle Safety Guides

Data as of 2025. Sources: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) complaints database, NHTSA recall campaign API, NHTSA NCAP crash-test ratings, and NHTSA FARS for fatality cross-reference.