Brakes, vehicle speed control, electrical and engine issues among the top complaints received by the NHTSA from vehicle owners
The 2019 Infiniti QX80 is a high-end SUV that is supposed to make travel more enjoyable. The newer models are hailed as providing “commanding luxury” to customers, but not everyone agrees with this assessment. In fact, customers are complaining about the electrical system, service brakes, engine and vehicle speed control.
The electrical system is responsible for running everything from the battery to the power windows and radio. When this system has a fault, it can create quite the inconvenience.
This is noted in a recent NHTSA complaint. “My wife is in quarantine with our daughter in Oregon. Drives the QX80 every 2 or 3 days to go to the store for food. QX80 started up just fine, drove it to the store and parked it. 35 minutes later, came out of the store with perishable groceries, the battery was too weak to start it. Had to be jump started. Seeing that others are having the same issue. Called the dealership about the issue. They claimed there is a recent recall that may help with the issue. No recall in the system, but noticed from Infiniti Service on this possible fix or reprogramming an electric module. Per the last complaint, it doesn’t fix it.”
While there is nothing about this recall in the database, there is another electrical system issue noted. NHTSA Campaign Number 19V654000 talks about more than one million vehicles with a defective backup system. It appears that the backup camera can be adjusted in a way that makes the image no longer visible, making it impossible to see what’s behind the SUV. With this in mind, it becomes very difficult to “command” anything without being able to see what’s going on behind the vehicle. It’s like driving blind.
| Complaint Category | Number of Complaints |
|---|---|
| Electrical System | |
| Unknown Or Other | |
| Back Over Prevention: Camera System | |
| Service Brakes | |
| Visibility/wiper | |
| Engine | |
| Exterior Lighting | |
| Fuel/propulsion System | |
| Lane Departure: Blind Spot Detection | |
| Vehicle Speed Control |
For decades, service brakes have been responsible for stopping a vehicle before a crash occurs. With more advanced technology recently, there’s so much more than can go wrong.
That’s shown in this NHTSA complaint. “The 2019 QX80 Forward Emergency Braking System (FEB) continuously engages the brakes without warning or an obstruction. Always while a railroad crossing is in sight, sometimes when a red light is near but green with no vehicles stopped at it. It has also done it on an open highway and interstate at speeds of 70 mph with nothing around. This causes a very real chance of being rear ended or startling the driver into crashing.”
There’s nothing talked about in the communications about these issues. Instead Infiniti has chosen to remain quiet about why the SUV is stopping itself for no reason. This premium vehicle operates like a dog noticing a squirrel, which doesn’t pan out well for drivers with cars behind them.
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As a luxury SUV, the Infiniti model does come with a potent powertrain. However, there have been complaints about how well the engine works.
Here’s one Edmunds review to read. “When starts to pullout of garage in am motor revs up before pulling out! Dealer says that is standard for this car! When turning the steering wheel either way you feel it shudder when turning! Dealer says the tire tread is causing that and they don’t warranty tires! Car has 2200miles on it! And last the rear axle [assembly] started to howl and they say they can’t tell where the noise is coming from and won’t repair any of these issues. No wonder their sales are down 50%.”
Infiniti does recognize some engine issues, but not with the performance, just some strange noises. Service Bulletin #ITB20-020 states that there is a rattling noise coming from the right front of the SUV while the engine runs. It also occurs while driving at slow speeds or during turns. To repair the problem, the technicians need to adjust the clearance found between the frame and heat shield located on the exhaust front tube. These noises ensure everyone knows that the Infiniti SUV is coming down the road. It’s like a band, announcing the arrival of the driver. Maybe the red carpet should be rolled out as well.
Additionally, the vehicle speed control systems are meant to keep occupants safe, but that doesn’t seem to be the case with this Infiniti model.
Here’s another Edmunds review discussing trouble. “We have owned this vehicle for 5 months now due to Covid only driven about 5000 miles. We have noticed that issue with the cruise control as described by others here. You’ll be cruising at -say- 70 mph and the engine is just purring along at under 2000RPM. Then there is a slight incline in the road, and the gearbox kicks down two gears, the engine revs up to over 5000RPM! Only when the incline has passed will it return to normal. This is very odd and disconcerting, and the mechanic at the dealer felt the same. However, they were issued a directive by Infiniti stating: ‘This is normal operating characteristic of the vehicle that has been reported in multiple cases. No further diagnosis should be performed.’”
There are other concerns with the advanced safety equipment. Service Bulletin #ITB19-013 discusses how the AEB warning light continues to blink for some drivers. It appears that this situation can occur when there is contamination of the lane camera viewing window, while driving in the snow or when the lane camera window becomes fogged. Basically, drivers can count on the safety of this SUV unless driving in less than perfect weather.
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Brian Jones spent more than 30 years working as an ASE Certified Master Tech and Parts Specialist at multiple dealerships. Brian has become an authority in the industry, traveling across the country to consult for car dealerships and contributing his expertise as a writer for several major automotive publications. In his spare time, Brian enjoys working on pickup trucks, muscle cars, Jeeps and anything related to motorsports.
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Jennifer take car to dealer and tell them to disconnect wire from alternator to battery. The way it’s set up is that the alternator doesn’t always fully charge the battery as older models did for more efficiency. The problem is that if the car is driven for short distances only, it doesn’t give the battery a proper charge, hence your problem. The dealer should NOT CHARGE YOU AT ALL, since it’s a huge issue they’ve had with many of their clients. They should actually do a recall on this considering. Hope this helps.
I have a 2019 QX80 Infinity- Has left me stranded over 8 times, I called the dealership no recalls, so I replaced the battery, did not help. I work at a local hospital and take call for my job. Constantly having to have my car jumped to start is ridiculous.
I have an older one of these and the cruise control acts just like that and the transmission acts totally stupid and inefficient if you’re driving under 45mph.
I don’t know if I’d have bought it had I noticed it on the test drive
I’m thankful I don’t have that stupid braking system that brakes for shadows.