10.0
really awful- Crashes / Fires:
- 8 / 4
- Injuries / Deaths:
- 8 / 0
- Average Mileage:
- 36,931 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.
« Read the previous 20 complaints
While slowing down for an intersection all electronics on car stopped with no warning and motor shut down. No indicator lights on dash. Car became completely malfunctioning in an instant. No power breaks or steering, dash lights, console display or ignition on indicator. Got car to a stop. Put the car in park and restarted with no errors or indications that the car mechanically and electronically just died. Clock was set to the correct time but trip odometer and many other customized settings were reset. Acted as if the ECM did a reset while driving.
- Hudson Falls , NY, USA
The problem is with the A/C compressor staying on even though I turn the defrost off. Same if I turn auto on then off. The A/C light stays off, but the A/C compressor stays on. The only way to turn the A/C off is to press the A/C button twice (once to turn the light on, next to force the A/C to go off). If the defrost is off, auto is off and the A/C light is off, the A/C compressor must turn off. It should not be a guessing game for the driver to wonder if the A/C is off. I have complained about it before and been to the dealer 3 or more times about it. There are multiple postings (complaints) about it on the internet (see one link below). www.nissanclub.com/forums/2013-Nissan-Altima-discussion-2-5-3-5/351865-defroster-turning-ac-but-not-turning-off-when-changing-different-vent-mode.html I have complained about it to Nissan and was asked to see the dealer. The dealer checks other same model cars and the problem is consistent amongst all cars, so he says "there is no problem". the dealer mechanic agrees with me that this is not how it should work, but since all other similar cars do the same thing, there is nothing they can do about it.
- Viera, FL, USA
I purchased a 2013 Nissan Altima and within 1 week the brake light came on and would not go off during the same time period the phone would ring in the car and would not stop ringing until the car was completely shut off. The car has been into the dealership over 5 times for the same 2 issues and the problem still has not been corrected, as recent as yesterday May 31, 2014 the car continues to have the same problem.
- Ocala, FL, USA
I purchased a 2013 Nissan from bill seidle's Nissan in miami Florida. When I purchased the car they told me the mileage was around 30 mpg with an average of around 26 mpg. Months after I bought the car I mentioned to the dealer that the car's computer was saying around 20 mpg and they told me that I needed it to track the mpg myself because the computer from the car is not accurate. I tracked the miles and the results were 20 mpg. I took that car in to the dealer, I was told that they checked the car and there was nothing wrong with the car and that is the mileage that I was going to get. I also have a problem with the electronic key that on multiple times "no key detected" message comes up and it takes me a while for the car to start. Eventually it turned out the battery was not good and it was changed. About a month later the same problem continued and I took the car to the dealer and they told me they could not duplicate the problem so they could not do anything about it. This problems continues to occur and sometimes when the cars turns on the message stays on for a while. This problem does not occur all the time there is no consistency. I now take pictures when the problem occurs and are taking the car back to the dealer. I'm concern about the safety of the car.
- Miami, FL, USA
The contact owns a 2013 Nissan Altima. The contact stated that the air bag and the brake lights illuminated on the instrument panel intermittently. The vehicle was taken to the dealer who repaired the vehicle under NHTSA campaign id number 14V138000 (air bags, electrical system). However, the failure recurred. The manufacturer was not notified of the defect. The approximate failure mileage was 14,000.
- Apopka, FL, USA
The contact owns a 2013 Nissan Altima. The contact stated that the passenger's side seat belt light intermittently illuminated when a passenger was in the seat and secured. The vehicle was repaired under NHTSA campaign id number 14V138000 (air bags, electrical system), however the failure was recurring. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 8,000.
- Dalycity, CA, USA
Summary: The vehicle blind spot warning & lane keep system intermittently stops working. The warning on the dash says to clean the camera lens but the lens are clean. If you stop the car & shut off the engine then restart the system will start operating again. Nissan can't find the problem.
- Corvallis, OR, USA
I have the key-less entry and many times with the key fob in my pocket I can not open the door. The door sensor does not recognize the key fob unless I take it out and press the lock unlock button. At times with the car in my garage the vehicle says no key code found and I have to either pres lock unlock on the key fob or I have to put the key next to the start button for a few seconds before it recognizes it. I've tried to see if I could think of an emi source each time it happens, and the only thing I have noted is that it only happens when close to a wall. Has not yet happened in open parking lot. Once is happened when I was parked next to an F250 and I figured maybe it has to do with being in proximity of large objects. It has happened about 15 times so far from Jan to April 2014.
- Northville, MI, USA
When I tried to turn vehicle on, radio and other system was on, but could not put car in gear, eventually car had to be towed. The dealership advised me that the BCM has an internal short and needed to be replaced. This vehicle was bought brand new and has under 52,000 miles, has not been owned for even 2 years and it breaks down with no one taking responsibility on this issue on a semi new vehicle. My sister owns the same vehicle and I am afraid that it will happen to her too. I have done some research and found numerous boards with people complaining about this issues or something similar.
- Kaufman, TX, USA
The front passenger air bag status light (passenger air bag off), illuminates intermittently with a full sized adult sitting in the right front passenger seat. Nissan claims that my vehicle is not subject to the voluntary safety recall campaign id# PC214, dated April 2, 2013. The passenger airbag status lamp is located above the instrument panel center stack. This intermittent condition has occurred twice through the month of December 2013. The warning indicator will turn off and operate correctly after I turn off my running engine and restart.
- Media, PA, USA
Car is vibrating when going 40 mph. Vibration also occurring after long drives and then coming to a stop. Car will shake. It is not happening all the time, but is nerve racking when it does. Intermittent issue with the key id not being recognized when entering the car when the doors are locked and you press the unlock button on the door handle. Or when getting into an unlocked car the key is not recognized. Lock the doors and auto start the car button on the key fob not starting the car. Happening on both key fobs. Headlights during long trip were dimming, then would brighten. This during a 6 hour drive. Gas mileage has dropped from 38.4 mpg to 33.1 mpg highway driving. Same issue with around town about 5 mpg drop. Mileage seems to differ when filling up car. Goes from over 600+ miles to around 580+ miles. Not sure why when you fill it all the way up the mileage is not the same. Tire pressure seems to differ. Not sure that is reliable reading.
- Holland, MI, USA
Re: keyless ignition systems. This was a rental car so I don't know VIN or mileage, or exact year. I rented a car last week in san diego, my first experience with keyless ignitions. I only had the car for one day and was not used to this system. Late at night I parked car, pushed the ignition to "off" started to get out of the car, when car started driving forward because I had forgotten to put it in park. I was knocked down in the middle of the street, it was pitch black outside, I had no idea what was happening, until I saw the car driving away. I managed to chase the car and jump back inside before it hit anything. However, my knee was torn up really bad, and I am still dealing with the injury more than a week later. Not having any warning/safety measure to let people know that the car is not in park, coupled with a whisper quiet engine, is a totally dangerous combination, and clearly deadly from many on line accounts I have read. Don't know how this ridiculous idea ever made it to factory, much less approved without any warning system in place. I hate these cars and think they should be recalled. At least in a regular car the keys will not come out of the ignition of the car is not in the 'park' position. I am lucky the car did not run over me, or someone innocent bystander. But I would imagine there have been many accidents like mine that ended much worse. Like I said, these cars are dangerous and should be recalled, and this system should be illegal.
- Englewood, CO, USA
Passenger air bag indicator light indicates that airbag remains off while passenger is in the seat. Nissan dealer tech claims that this is not a problem; just the way the system works. He wouldn't even look at it.
- Chardon, OH, USA
The vehicle blind spot warning & lane keep system intermittently stops working. The warning on the dash says to clean the camera lens but the lens are clean. If you stop the car & shut off the engine then restart the system will start operating again. Nissan can't find the problem.
- Prescott, AZ, USA
Vehicle jerks at stops and takes off, rpms climbed on their own, vehicle won't start and was towed in, vehicle stall in moving traffic on a major interstate, and fan blower.
- Dundee, MS, USA
When driving between 2 to 25 mph hear loud high pitch whining sound from engine. This started after about 200 miles on vehicle. Vehicle had 51 miles on it when purchased. Dealer said this is normal it is the electric power assist system. The whining noise is very disturbing and distracting while driving. Such noise is not normal. Nissan needs to come up with a fix. Just purchased from dealer on 9/13/2013.
- Blaine, MN, USA
Safety concern, proper operation of air bags (SRS light on). This is a major safety concern. One month after purchasing a brand new Nissan Altima 2013, a major light indicator came on. This light brought up concerns. Are the air bags working properly" will the air bags deploy correctly upon impact? are the air bags working at all? will the air bags deploy while driving? will the air bags implode and affect the steering process? is this an indication that there is an electronic or electrical circuit malfunction? after buying a brand new vehicle, should I even have to deal with these issues, questions or concerns? in addition to the above safety concern, the list of electronic, electrical and mechanical issues continues for the newly bought vehicle. There was an issue with the power steering, the brake system, bubbling paint and concerns with the engine compartment and interior compartment of the above mentioned vehicle. All this is reflected in each of the invoices submitted for your perusal. In addition, upon starting the vehicle, it continuously has a rough idle, a rough start at times the vehicle stalls out. He is at a loss because who should he take his vehicle with this concern" all in all, sir all these vehicle discrepancies are troubling to have with a brand new Nissan Altima 2013 and all of these issues within the last nine months. Also, there were problems with the power steering, the brake system and concerns with the engine and interior compartments. In addition, upon starting the vehicle, it continuously had a rough idle, a rough start at all times and the vehicle would stall.
- Ojai, CA, USA
The best I can do to explain the problem I am having with my 2013 Altima is to compare it to the jerking you will experience in a stick shift vehicle if you do not clutch and shift properly almost causing the vehicle to stop. Once I was entering onto the highway, the car acted as if the parking brake was applied while driving. I took my car to the dealer from which I purchased it (St.clair auto mall), the mechanic drove it and almost immediately he experienced the problem. We drove back to the dealership (service dept.). he looked up some information in the computer, said diagnostics tests were ran but the test(s) turned up nothing. And also there were no lights on the dash indicating a problem. So, for that reason nothing could be done.
- Ofallon, IL, USA
The contact owns a 2013 Nissan Altima. The contact stated that the vehicle exhibited an abnormal knocking when turning the steering wheel. In addition, there were various warning lights illuminated on the instrument panel. The faiure recurred sporadically. The vehicle was taken to the dealer but they were unable to determine the cause of failure. The failure was reported to the manufacturer. The failure mileage was 6,000. The current mileage was 17,000.
- Las Vegas , NV, USA
- Troy, IL, USA