Chances were few and far between in a game which illustrated why both these sides are struggling at the wrong end of the table.
Jamie Mackie and Djibril Cisse both went close for Rangers, while Steven Fletcher was denied twice for Sunderland in a tense encounter.
QPR were the better side for long periods of the game, but they could not find a way past a resolute Sunderland defence.
Sunderland suffered an early blow when skipper Lee Cattermole, who was a doubt coming into the game, was forced off after just six minutes through injury with Jack Colback replacing him.
Former Sunderland striker Djibril Cisse was keen to impress on his return to the Stadium of Light and he twice went close to scoring in the first half when he saw his first shot tipped round the post by Simon Mignolet before flashing a fierce shot just wide of the target.
QPR came close to breaking the deadlock on 37 minutes when Adel Taarabt played Jamie Mackie in on goal only for Mignolet to race off his line to save his effort with his feet. The ball rebounded to Taarabt inside the box, but he saw his firstl effort blocked by Phil Bardsley before seeing his next effort again blocked by Craig Gardner.
Sunderland struggled to create too many clear goalscoring chances in a disjointed first half, but Steven Fletcher almost made the breakthrough four minutes before the break when Adam Johnson slipped him in on goal, but Julio Cesar did well to push his shot behind for a corner.
QPR were forced into a change at the start of the second half with Rob Green replacing the injured Julio Cesar in goal.
The visitors continued to call the tune early on in the second half and Stephane Mbia went close just before the hour mark with an ambitious effort from fully 30 yards whch fizzed just wide of the post past a scrambling Mignolet.
Green was called into the action for the first time on 64 minutes when he produced a superb reaction save to keep out Fletcher's powerful header from Seb Larsson's corner.
QPR almost caught Sunderland on the break in the closing minutes when Mackie found substitute Shaun Wright-Phillips inside the box and his shot was well saved by Mignolet.
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