10.0
really awful- Crashes / Fires:
- 3 / 4
- Injuries / Deaths:
- 0 / 0
- Average Mileage:
- 67,635 miles
About These NHTSA Complaints:
The NHTSA is the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints can be spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem. See the Back button — blue bar at the very top of the page — to explore more.
I went to Autoworx on February 9, 2023 to purchase a 2009 Nissan Altima. The vehicle was very nice, looked good, no warning lights or anything. Drove great for about a week or 2. Then the car started breaking without me pressing the breaks. So I returned the car to Autoworx to have them check it out. The mechanic was assuring that the problem had been taking care of. After making another large payment that day, I left drove the car about a week. That's when the car started shaking. I mean shaking hard too and the SERVICE ENGINE SOON light comes on the dash board. So I take the car back to them on Monday March 13, 2023. The mechanic says "oh, make an appointment for Friday and I'll take the car to the shop so I can see what is going on". I made the appointment & continued to drive the car. In the days between Monday to Friday, the car began shaking harder. Suddenly, on Thursday March 16, 2023, while driving home the car stops accelerating. I had to keep turning the car off and on to get it going. On Friday, March 17, 2023 I arrived at the Autoworx location at 10:30am (the appointment time). When I arrived no one was there. We sat and waited for nearly an hr and a half. Once they arrived they looked at the car, drove it away and came back. After sitting there for 2/3 hours, the Owner [XXX] called me outside to inform me that the Catalytic Converter was bad (which they knew on Monday when I came in) and by me driving the car longer, the Transmission has went out. At this point I am FURIOUS! Because at NO point did they tell me that the car needed a Catalytic Converter. So we sat there a little longer with no way to go home. [XXX] then comes and mentions "I'll get you all an UBER". He ordered the Uber (just to get us away). I have looked into the Carfax on the 2009 Nissan Altima and found that the Odometer had been rolled back SEVERAL times. I bought the car at 121,000 miles. After, looking at the Carfax the car has darn near 300,000 miles on it. I got ripped off -?? INFORMATION Redacted PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF I
- Atlanta , GA, USA
2009 Nissan Altima. Consumer writes in regard to engine failure.
- West Nyack, NY, USA
The vehicle was working just fine when I went to the grocery store and came out. I unlocked the car using the key fob, sat inside and the car stopped detected my key. The steering was locked, I tried to place it near the start push button, tried putting it in the slot but nothing happened. And I tried unlock button couple of times on the key fob and the mirrors went down. And there was no way to pull them up and I was stranded in the parking lot for no reason. I got it towed to the dealership and they told me Steering Lock Module went bad which is a common issue in 2009 Nissan Altima. Its a safety issue as I can get stranded anywhere anytime! And they are fixing it for 1300$ bucks! Please recall all 2009 Nissan Altima and change this part in them!
- Greenville, SC, USA
The contact owns a 2009 Nissan Altima. The contact stated that upon pressing the start button to start the vehicle, the vehicle failed to start after several attempts. The contact stated that he was able to open the trunk and activate the alarm using the key fob, but the vehicle would not start. There was no warning light illuminated. The dealer was not notified of the failure. The contact referenced NHTSA ID Number: 10119195 (Wheels, Steering). The manufacturer was notified of the failure and advised that they could not assist because the VIN was not included in a recall related to the failure. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 60,000.
- Corona, NY, USA
1. the airbag is keep blinking at all times. 2. load noise from exhaust manifold when start the engine and engine is cold. 3. a few weeks after a rainy day, when the weather gets hot, inside the car smell very bad as if there is a rotten or dead animal in the car.
- El Sobrante, CA, USA
The contact owns a 2009 Nissan Altima. The contact stated that after purchasing the vehicle and driving the vehicle, the contact became nauseated while operating the vehicle. The contact stated that a carbon monoxide test was performed on the vehicle which confirmed a carbon monoxide leak from the exhaust manifold and the exhaust pipe. The vehicle was taken to a police department who alerted the fire department do an inspection on the vehicle. The fire department confirmed that there was carbon monoxide leaking from the exhaust manifold. A fire report was filed. Neither the dealer nor the manufacturer had been notified of the failure. The failure mileage was unknown. Information redacted pursuant to the Freedom Of Information Act (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6).
- Dover, NH, USA
My wife drives our 2009 Nissan Altima 2.5S to work on 3rd shift and on her lunch break goes to her car and takes a nap with the car running and was complaining to me for a month or more that she has this smell in her car like a "gas smell" and also was complaining of being tired and nauseous when I spoke with her about it. I noticed her car was abnormally louder when she started it at home and it had not been run that day. I have determined that this is from a cracked exhaust manifold and my wife and I are very lucky she was not killed from the carbon monoxide poisoning she was receiving while sitting in her car while it was idling on her break. The exhaust fumes were being brought into the cab of her car from the cracked exhaust manifold, thru the vents from the outside HVAC air ducts under the hood in the engine compartment. I never could smell a "gas smell" which I assumed she meant gasoline or possibly a coolant smell from a leaking heater core and so I blew it off until I myself had to use the car and I quickly realized it was an exhaust gas smell she was smelling and it nearly caused me to become unconscious while driving at which time I immediately pulled over and returned home with the car. I researched this same exhaust gas leak with this car and it is not uncommon but has yet to trigger a recall. Most likely due to no one being killed from the carbon monoxide poisoning and thank god my wife was not the first. I will be ordering a complete exhaust system new for repairs as to not miss any unseen issues with the car having 101,000 miles. I do expect complete reimbursement for the bill from Nissan.
- Belton, SC, USA
This vehicle will not operate if it's driven for more than 45 minutes at highway speeds. The power train goes into a neutral mode. It then requires a pull over onto a freeway to allow it to cool down for at least 30 minutes before the vehicle will work. It does not matter what the ambient temperature is outside. When driving at speeds lower than 50 miles per hour it does not have this problem. Per the Nissan mechanics this is a known problem with the cvt and the only way to fix it is to completely replace the cvt. We have tried a transmission cooler but that does not work. This is very dangerous as it requires the vehicle to be stopped and turned off for 20 minutes which can be a big safety problem as it would require sitting on the side of the freeway or, if able, sitting in the vehicle in an unsafe neighborhood.
- Surprise, AZ, USA
The contact owns a 2009 Nissan Altima. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic for an oil change and the contact was informed that the intake manifold was fractured. The vehicle was taken to eden prairie Nissan (12790 plaza dr, eden prairie, mn 55344, (952) 567-2100) and the contact was informed that the VIN was not included in an unknown recall regarding the engine and engine cooling. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and informed the contact that there were no recalls associated with the VIN. The failure mileage was 171,000.
- Shakopee, MN, USA
Nothing but problems with this car since I purchased it. Had to replace all tire sensors, speed sensors, coils, front passenger tire rod, the ctv transmission, and the trunk leaks into the trunk and the tail light's. I have repaired all these things out of my own pocket.I have been stranded several times, I have almost been hit, and have had the car towed. The dash has become sticky and everything sticks to it. It produces a glare on the wondow which makes it hard to see.the engine experiences loss of power and no mechanic can pinpoint the problem. I do not drive it much since I have purchased it. This car should be a lemon or recalled. The problems keep coming.
- Dacula, GA, USA
It won't start most of the time and when it does it'll only let me get up to maybe 20mph and that's
- Russellville, AR, USA
My wife and two young daughters were stranded for a time due to a sudden issue with the steering lock mechanism. This suddenly made the car inoperable and left them out in 102 Texas summer heat. After much research this seems to be a fairly common and known issue. We bought our car from a dealership in 2014 and we not made aware of this issue or any potential warranty extension. This is a $500 part (excluding labor and towing fees) that can and has stranded people with little to no notice. How is this acceptable?
- Richardson, TX, USA
Carbon build-up on valves causing misfire and the break down of the catalyst. Codes P0300 and P0303 stored in ECM. Required replacement of long engine assembly and exhaust manifold. Initially, dealership cited need to replace ignition coil, software update, fuel line flush. Picked up car and immediately the service light came back on and car began to misfire. Returned to dealership who surmised that there might be a loose wire. Not the issue. Dealer contacted Nissan corporate for direction with diagnostics. Car mileage 59,802.
- Akron, OH, USA
2009 Nissan Altima. Consumer writes seeking reimbursement for vehicle repairs.
- New Rochelle, NY, USA
The contact owns a 2009 Nissan Altima. The contact stated that when the vehicle was turned on, a loud humming noise and a ticking noise was heard as well as a strong odor of fuel was present. The contact stated that the failure had been progressively getting worse for the past six months. The contact drove the vehicle to the dealer le blanc Nissan of gonzales Louisiana in the month of June 2017, they determined it was a bad ignition coil. The vehicle was repaired then. The vehicle was now taken to an independent mechanic that diagnosed the vehicle as having a catalytic converter fractured. The vehicle catalytic converter was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 150,000.
- Prairieville, LA, USA
The contact owns a 2009 Nissan Altima. While driving various speeds, the check engine warning indicator illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer (ron marhofer Nissan, 247 howe ave, cuyahoga falls, oh, 44221) where it was diagnosed that there was damage to the front exhaust pipe manifold, which needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The Nissan manufacturer was contacted and provided case number: 28754357. The manufacturer also stated that there was a voluntary recall (PC130), but the VIN was excluded. On two previous occasions, the vehicle stalled and was towed. The 02 sensor and mass air flow sensor were replaced. The failure mileage was approximately 103,000.
- Akron, OH, USA
Burning too much oil, had to add 3 to 4 quarts of oil between oil change...piston ring problem causing misfire while on the highway every 2 months causing spark plugs burnt out.
- York, PA, USA
Starting in April 2016 we had a problem with the vehicle when my wife while driving the car suddenly lost the ability to drive, the engine had shut down entirely. At the time the vehicle had just over 100,000 miles and she was driving on a busy express way between cleveland and akron I-77. She costed into a rest area and we had to leave the car there over night until we could get it towed to the dealership. They told us it was the O2 sensor and it cost us almost 1,200 $ to repair. A few months later in June of 2016 on fathers day with our almost 2 year old daughter in the car, my family and I were driving down to Virginia to spend some time with friends. We had another incident. While driving in the DC area on another busy express way I-70 in Maryland our car again lost power in the engine. We couldn't drive it any where. We had it woed by aaa to frederick Maryland, rented a car, and drove the 5 hours home. A few days later I drove back down to pick the car up. This time it was the mass air flow sensor. It cost us almost 500$ to have it repaired. To my understanding both sensors belong to the exhaust system of a car. On Monday of this week October 30th 2017 the check engine light came on while my wife was driving to work on back roads. When we brought it to the dealer and it was diagnosed with a damaged front exhaust pipe and manifold. The price to fix it is 2,132.74$. I felt that to have 3 major costs associated with the exhaust system in our car in a year and a half was excessive so I investigated it and discovered that the 2009 Nissan Altima was recalled for the exact problem we have now. For some reason our vehicle wasn't included in that recall. I have spoken with Nissan and they have told me there is nothing they will do to help us out with these repairs. In all 3 situations we were driving.
- Akron, OH, USA
Catalytic converter not working causing the car to drive ineffectively, car speed declines and sometimes the car rpms stay at 3000 and won't accelerate.
- Miami, FL, USA
- Port Richey, FL, USA