Model Year Index

Which Infiniti QX50 years to avoid

Across 3 scored model years, the 2019 model year carries the highest severity-weighted complaint rates.

Ownership label · Infiniti QX50 Full report
F
Grade 2019–2021
2019 vs model median 2.4×
Model median3× median
Driver Assist 15
Brakes 9
Electrical 6
Avoid

2019

Best

2020 · 2021

What the record shows

Written from this model’s own complaint and recall history.

Three QX50 model years have completed the 60-month window, and all three are small files: 60, 19 and 26 complaints. Read the grades with that in mind — at these counts a dozen reports is the difference between a B and an F, and the 2019 car’s F rests on 60 reports rather than on a large body of evidence.

What the record does show is consistent. Driver assistance leads the 2019 car at 15 reports and the 2020 car at 9, and the accounts describe automatic emergency braking applying itself with nothing ahead — several owners report it happening more than once, on open road. Braking sits second on the 2019 car with more of the same accounts filed under a different heading, so the group is larger than either category alone.

2019 opens the second generation of this model. Its median odometer reading at complaint is 7,400 miles, and the 2020 car’s is 2,000, so these arrive early rather than through wear.

The direction afterwards is good. The 2020 car sits at 0.71 times the model’s own median with no crash or fire allegations, and the 2021 car records 26 complaints with engine leading rather than driver assistance.

Seven recall campaigns across the model, and the QX50 carries an overall B.

Reviewed Claude, 13 August 2026, against the model's own record and NHTSA campaign filings

Year by year

Severity-weighted complaints filed in each model year’s first 60 months on the road, so every year is measured over an identical window.

Year Complaint volume vs median Reports Grade
2019
2.40× 60 F
2020
0.71× 19 B
2021
1.00× 26 B
2022 P
0.84× 22 B
2024 P
0.50× 10 A

P — provisional. These years have not completed 60 months on the road, so their totals are incomplete and they are excluded from the verdict.

What owners report

The component groups most often named, with one representative report. These are unverified — allegations, not findings.

2019 F 60 reports · median 7,400 mi

  1. Driver Assist 15

    Dating back to november 2019, my vehicle's automatic emergency braking have engaged 3 times without reasonable cause at speeds that vary from 40-70 MPH. owner complaint filed with NHTSA

  2. Brakes 9

    This is now the 2nd time this happened!! The car slams on the brakes as if someone is right in front of the car randomly. owner complaint filed with NHTSA

  3. Electrical 6

    My wife opened the rear liftgate using the outside electronic door switch on the liftgate. The liftgate electrically fully opened. My wife started to load items into the rear of the SUV. owner complaint filed with NHTSA

7 crash · 3 injuries

2021 B 26 reports · median 32,059 mi

  1. Engine 8

    I purchased this 2021 QX50 infiniti on [xxx] and have experienced consistent engine knocking. In checking out this problem, I have found that it is apparently a widespread problem with the engine in 2021 QX50 vehicles… owner complaint filed with NHTSA

  2. Driver Assist 5

    While driving on a clear day with no traffic in front of me or debris on the road at approximately 45 MPH, a master warning light appeared on my dash with an accompanying warning signal and simultaneously the emergency… owner complaint filed with NHTSA

  3. Brakes 4

    Picked up the car on 5/25, on 6/4 sitting at a red light, forward collision warning and lane assist malfunctions showed up on dashboard. owner complaint filed with NHTSA

1 crash · 1 injuries

The best year for the QX50

Ranked by overall score among years with a full 60 months on the road.

2020 is the best-scoring QX50 model year with a full 60 months on the road, at 77.2 out of 100 — a score that combines complaint rate, recall campaigns and open investigations.

Yearvs medianReportsGrade
2020 0.71× 19 B
2021 1.00× 26 B
2019 2.40× 60 F

Recalls

7 campaigns on record.

Campaign Component Model years Units affected
19V654000 BACK OVER PREVENTION: SENSING SYSTEM: CAMERA 2019 1,228,830
25V437000 ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:ENGINE:HARD PARTS INTERNAL/MECHANICAL 2019–2022 443,899
21V402000 SUSPENSION:REAR:AXLE:SPINDLE 2021 14,276
21V025000 TIRES 2020 8,291
18V593000 AIR BAGS:KNEE BOLSTER 2019 1,671
24V154000 AIR BAGS:FRONTAL:DRIVER SIDE:INFLATOR MODULE 2024 351
23V187000 LATCHES/LOCKS/LINKAGES:DOORS:LOCK 2022 48

Recall work is free at any franchised dealer, whoever owns the car and however old it is. Check a specific car’s VIN on NHTSA’s register before you buy — an unrepaired campaign is among the most commonly missed items on a used vehicle.

How long do they last?

Complaint records show when problems get reported, not how long a car survives. Where owners gave an odometer reading, faults on the 2019 were reported at a median of 7,400 miles. Treat that as the point problems start being noticed, not a lifespan.

Common questions

Answered directly from this model’s record.

Which Infiniti QX50 years should you avoid?
2019 carry the highest severity-weighted complaint rates of any Infiniti QX50 model year measured over an identical 60-month window.
What is the best year for the Infiniti QX50?
2020 is the best-scoring Infiniti QX50 model year with a full 60 months on the road, at 77.2 out of 100. The score combines complaint rate, recall campaigns and open investigations.
How many recalls does the Infiniti QX50 have?
7 distinct recall campaigns are on record across all scored Infiniti QX50 model years. A recall is a matter of record: the manufacturer filed a defect report with NHTSA.

How this was calculated

Every model year is scored over an identical window: complaints filed with NHTSA during the first 60 months after that model year went on sale. Without this, older cars look worse purely because they have had longer to accumulate reports.

Limitations. Complaints are unverified reports submitted voluntarily by owners; they are allegations, not findings, and reporting rates vary between models. Model years with fewer than 60 months on the road are marked provisional and excluded from verdicts. Cross-model comparison is withheld pending production-volume data.

Full methodology · Sources · Data vintage August 9, 2026

Working 2019 QX50
Complaints in window
60
Severity-weighted
84
Model median (weighted)
35
vs model median
2.40×
Recall campaigns (weighted)
3
Open investigations
0
Score 32.5 F