8.2

pretty bad
Typical Repair Cost:
$3,340
Average Mileage:
40,750 miles
Total Complaints:
49 complaints

Most common solutions:

  1. replace transmission (29 reports)
  2. not sure (19 reports)
  3. performed cvt software update. resolved the issue (1 reports)
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This problem may be covered under warranty. Ask your Nissan dealer.

problem #49

Jun 012019

Altima S 2.5

  • Automatic transmission
  • 66,000 miles

I noticed symptoms of the defect, including frequent juddering, a whining noise, and delayed acceleration.

You get to a red light, wait a couple minutes, then slammed the pedal to the floor!! And nothing for about 3 seconds, it takes 2 seconds to creep up to 2000rpm, then it takes right off up to 6500rpm. Already replaced throttle body, all the sensor under this, yes, every single one.

- Amel B., Salt Lake City, Utah, US

problem #48

Aug 092020

Altima S 2.5L

  • CVT transmission
  • 84,820 miles

My Nissan Altima started jerking right after I received the letter from Nissan stating they were extended the warranty to 84000 miles for the CVT transmission. Of course my current mileage is 84820 so I filed a claim with headquarters and I'm waiting to hear back if they will cover the cost the dealer quoted me $3953.10. This is crazy that I have to file a claim when I'm only 820 miles over the warranty and from reading the complaints they know about this issue. And to top it off they have no loaner cars and can't give me a ride home no shuttle because of Covid-19.

Update from Aug 12, 2020: Well, I heard from the Nissan headquarters - they are going to cover my repair 100% - thank you Lord. I was so worried - I knew I did not have the money to fix it. I am so happy.

- takira3 , Toledo, US

problem #47

Oct 012019

Altima

  • CVT transmission
  • 86,000 miles

When I retired I had saved up enough money to buy a new car which I thought would last a lot longer than it did!! It began to jerk and stall and that was very upsetting to a 71 year old with 5 grandchildren.

I took the car into a Nissan dealer and they told me that it needed a new transmission and probably engine work. The price for the transmission was $3800. They offered me $350 as a trade in on a new car. I certainly could not drive it so I bought a used Toyota at another dealer and they gave me $3500 as trade in.

At no time did anyone mention a recall on the car's transmission. After I discovered it I did a little research and learned I was 2000 miles over the last recall. NOT FAIR!!!! Not fair at all.

Thank you for helping to fix this....hope they pay off my car!!!

- Bobbie M., Montour Falls, NY, US

problem #46

Jul 102019

Altima LV 2.4L

  • Automatic transmission
  • 126,000 miles

Never buy Nissan cars!!!

My daughter had a problem with transmission on her Rogue. After fighting with Nissan they finally admitted that there was a recall and they replaced her Transmission for free.

I have a Nissan Altima 2014 and problems started after three years. It happened only once in third year, so I taught it's a glitch. Next year it happened twice. This year it's happening more and more often. Dealership upgraded software, but it's still happening. So I need replacement for a transmission.

If that is "Normal" for Nissan than I will never buy Nissan again and I will tell all my friends and family to stay away from this manufacturer.

Does anybody knows about any recall on transmission on 2014 Altima?

- Nedim A., Parkville, US

problem #45

Jun 112019

Altima S 2.5L

  • CVT transmission
  • 113,716 miles

I had maintenance done on the CVT in March 2019. It drove fine before and I noticed it would try to leap when I stopped at red lights but didn't really think too much about it. So I drove to North Carolina for the weekend from Tennessee and when I came back I kept feeling the transmission slipping on the top of hills and the bottom of hills and thought it might be the cruise control going out. So when I got off the interstate I turned the cruise control off and it still did it. The closer I got to home the worse it got. It doesn't want to take off from a red light but it did finally and then it jumps and jerks all the time driving it.

I took it to Nissan to have it checked out. I have been told not to have the fluids changed but I did anyways thinking they knew what they were doing. Well now they want almost $5000 to put in a new one. I found a transmission shop that will do it for $2850 and even though it is a new one, it is only warrantied for 12 months the same as a used one. Reading all the issues other people have had, I am not a happy camper and was looking to purchase another Altima, but that is no longer!

- Sarah Y., Memphis, TN, US

problem #44

Dec 222017

Altima SL 2.5L

  • Automatic transmission
  • 84,000 miles

NISSAN KNOWS THEY HAVE A FAULTY TRANSMISSION BECAUSE THEY HAD A REPAIR RECALL FOR UP TO 120000 MILES ONLY UNTIL 2013. THERE ARE SO MANY COMPLAINTS THAT THEY DON'T WANT TO COVER THEM.

- blackthumb1, Leesburg, US

problem #43

Dec 232018

Altima SL 2.5L

  • Automatic transmission
  • 100,604 miles

THIS TRANSMISSION ONLY LASTED 11 MONTHS, BUT I HAD 16000 MILES ON IT SO NISSAN WOULD NOT COVER THE WHOLE COST AFTER I PAID $4100 DOLLARS TO HAVE THE TRANSMISSION REPLACED LESS THAN A YEAR AGO. THIS TRANSMISSION IS JUNK AND NISSAN KNOWS IT

- blackthumb1, Leesburg, US

problem #42

Jan 032019

Altima SV 2.5L

  • Automatic transmission
  • 60,000 miles

I purchased the car in 2016 with 29,000 miles on it. It is my second Nissan Altima and I loved my previous one. In January of 2019, I decided to get the airbag recall fixed and called up my local Nissan dealership and they informed me there were 3 recalls on my vehicle (Airbag, Hood Latch, and Reprogramming of CVT Transmission). At this point, my car had 60,000 miles on it and was driving normal. Once the CVT Transmission was "reprogrammed" the car started jerking and shifting oddly. When going down hills at 20-40 MPH, the car seems to want to accelerate even though my foot is not on the gas pedal. I've contacted the dealership regarding this issue and am waiting to hear back. This issue did not occur until the CVT Transmission was reprogrammed and it's extremely frustrating considering the car is only 5 years old and has pretty low miles on it. I would estimate that the car is now showing signs of an impending transmission failure and it probably will be the last Nissan I ever own depending on how this plays out. I had a 2003 Ford Explorer with 250,000 miles on it with the original transmission and engine so this is pretty shocking to me.

Update from Apr 1, 2019: April 2019: After taking the car to the dealership, an electrical issue occurred and the car broke down on me on January 23, 2019. I immediately took it back to the dealership and they "fixed it free of charge" but did a poor job explaining what exactly the issue is. They made it sound like the battery was not hooked up properly. I have not had any issues since January. The transmission seems to be working fine, however, the owner manual says the transmission fluid should be changed at 60k miles. I have not done that yet and I have 62,500 on it.

Update from Dec 6, 2019: At 68,000 miles and the car is still running fine. And a correction on my previous post: you need to change the transmission fluid every 30,000 miles. I purchased the car with 27,000 on it and believe the dealership I bought it from had done it. If you do not do this, your transmission will not last very long. I suppose I will be keeping it for the time being. Attempt to get it to 100,000 miles and then get rid of it.

- adamsc8, Cincinnati, US

problem #41

Dec 312015

Altima LX 2.5L(Vin , 4th Digit, Qr2

  • Automatic transmission
  • 91,829 miles

I purchased my car November 2015. One month later my car began to show me why I hate it today. I have replaced my struts twice, and the car hesitate to start some days. Also my air bag notification light is back to malfunctioning. No matter what kind of brake I put into the car it will grind, screech and squeal.

- Christina A., Gary, In, US

problem #40

Aug 062018

Altima S 4 cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • 68,000 miles

A year ago I had issues with my 2014 Nissan Altima's transmission as it would jerk and shudder to the point my car would turn off mid-drive. After multiple dealerships gave no help or knowledge on how to fix my car, they ended up replacing an orange pipe, and this temporarily put a hold on my transmission issue.

This August 2018 my car again jerked and shuddered to the point where my car turned off on me mid drive while I have my wife in the passenger seat and newborn in the back seat. The failing of my vehicle pissed me off because I was more worried about my families safety than my own.

I took my car into the Fresno Lithia Nissan Dealership once more, and they took three days to relay back to me that I needed a new transmission. They quoted, "pieces of metal broke off somewhere in the transmission and was being passed around in the transmission fluid which caused my car to shut off." What a bunch of bull. By this time my vehicle cost to repair became $3500.

I contacted Nissan Corporate and explained my situation to them. One week later they offered to pay 80% of the transmission replacement cost which was odd, and I figured they were trying to cover their ass instead of paying in full for my transmission due to the faulty parts they install in Altimas. Also, I notice that all Nissan Altima brakes are cheap as they continuously squeal. A dealership manager explained to me that Nissan was too cheap to buy the usual stock brakes like Infinity, so Nissan chose a crappy brand that had poor reviews just to make a quick buck.

Anyways, my car works fine now, and I paid $600+ out of pocket for a new transmission for a 4-year-old car I paid for with my deployment money from Afghanistan. My hard-working Marine Corps money gone to waste because Nissan could not manage to come forward and state they have transmission issues and would warrant a replacement on their vehicles.

- Patrick G., Selma, US

problem #39

Aug 162017

Altima S 4 cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • 62,000 miles

I took my 2014 Nissan Altima to the Selma California dealership where I purchased my vehicle. I never trusted the Selma Dealership as they would never properly perform multi-point inspections correctly. They would forget to replace my cabin filter, put air in my tires, and even vacuum. My Nissan was nearing 60,000 miles, and I noticed the car jerk and shudder on a few occasions until it became a daily pattern. At one point I was driving on the freeway when my car shut off on me mid drive forcing me to pull over quickly.

I took the vehicle in to get it inspected, and the service techs said they couldn't find anything wrong with it. I let them test drive the car for over a week and still they couldn't find anything wrong with it. When I picked up my vehicle, I checked the mileage and they only test drove my car for 15 miles.

I then tried the Selma California Toyota Dealership, and they couldn't figure out what was wrong with it. I then tried Fresno's Lithia Nissan Dealership, and they quickly replaced an orange looking pipe under my car and said that was the cause of my vehicle jerking and shuddering. As soon as I drove off the lot, it jerked slightly but stopped for several months.

- Patrick G., Selma, US

problem #38

Nov 052016

Altima S

  • CVT transmission
  • 50,000 miles

This transmissions feels so jerky and unnatural to drive. Nissan dealership is not helping and says nothing is wrong with it. Yesterday I filed a complaint with their Consumer Services online, and got an automated e-mail saying that someone should be in contact with me by the end of tomorrow. I will update here on whether they actually help or not... I've seen mixed responses on their Consumer services specialists.

This all started when my ORIGINAL transmission died at 50,000 miles and they put in a "new" one under warranty (I'm guessing refurbished, who knows). This replaced transmission has been crap since Day 1. A few days after they gave it back to me, I called the dealership to explain the issues I was feeling with how it drove. They said "Well all the settings are system programmed, and it was installed properly, so I don't know what we'd do". So I've been driving it like this.

Car continues to have symptoms of: 1) Revving up to high RPMs, even on side streets and going 10 MPH. 2) The car constantly feels like it's always 'pushing and pulling' the engine- I will be braking at a red light, and the engine is still revved up and wanting to go. It will brake properly, but I can feel a "push and pull" like it doesn't want to 3) There have been a few times that I will be driving and the RPM's will shoot up to 4-5K on it's own (this happens ALL the time while accelerating - however these times, it'll happen when I am just cruising on side streets). When this happens I will take my foot completely off the gas, and it will still stay up at 4-5 RPMs for another few seconds. It will then go down on its own. 4) After the first 3 years of driving the car, the MPG average was around 32-33 mpg. After getting the transmission replaced, it's consistently been at 26mpg (Another sign the car is over-working itself) 5) There have been a couple instances where the car will not accelerate after waiting at a red light - it eventually will after maybe 3-5 seconds. It seems to stall for a moment

The main issue is that the car is over-working itself, shooting up at high RPM's, and feels so jerky and unnatural - as if it is going to break at any moment. This happens on every single drive I make.

I get a call earlier this month that there is a recall on the Transmission settings - so I took it into AutoNation Nissan Tempe on 10/14/17, hoping this would fix the problem finally. They performed the recall, and my car was working great for the next day or two. However, the car slowly began performing like it used to - and is now completely back to how it was running prior.

So I called and told them right away, again. And I brought it in yesterday, 10/23/17. They told me they took my car for a test drive and everything was performing perfectly, and they could not see the symptoms I have described. And they gave me back my car and I drove it home with it's still acting up, as it always does. Do they think how jerky Altima's are driving is normal? Because that is not okay. I had my Altima for the first 3 years with no issues, and I know what smooth is supposed to feel like.

At this point, I am concerned for my safety. There is obviously something wrong with my current transmission - I guess Nissan is waiting for it to die in the middle of a left hand turn at an intersection, and I get T-boned until they'll actually acknowledge the problem and do something to help it. NEVER A NISSAN AGAIN. EVER. I will tell all my friends for the rest of my life to stay away. They will not stand by their product, and will not help you until it's a huge problem that they can't deny anymore.

- kaa622, Phoenix, US

problem #37

Sep 112017

Altima SL 2.5L

  • Automatic transmission
  • 64,215 miles

My car wasn't acting up before Hurricane Harvey. I had my car placed on the 3 floor of the Parking Garage. When I drove it out of the garage I noticed the Jerky feeling. As I was driving it stalled on the freeway and also on the street. I got it jumped twice. Then I cleaned the battery. I took it to Sam's Club they checked my battery and said it failed 1 time but passed 4 times.

I then took it to AutoZone to see if they could test my battery and Alternator. They did both. They said the battery was low and they changed it. Then they checked the Alternator and said it was fine. I explained to them what was going on and they said its not your alternator.

Now when I place my car into Drive or Reverse it jerks and then cut off.

No Engine Light came on.

Have brand new Battery in it.

- Dana G., Houston, TX, US

problem #36

Aug 152017

Altima S

  • CVT transmission
  • 68,000 miles

Car was bought brand new at dealer.

Transmission Only after 68000 miles?

Must be a lemon.

I own a Toyota Corolla at 125K and a Toyota 4 runner at 170K. Never had transmission problem.

- wisdompool, San Diego, US

problem #35

Jun 302017

Altima s 2.5L

  • CVT transmission
  • 92,774 miles

Initial shudder, jerking and stalling occurred in JUNE 2016. Took vehicle to dealer and dealer indicated that an idle reset was performed and the problem did not return for a year. In JUNE 2017 the car again would shudder, jerk, and stall when at lights. Would do this randomly and did not matter if car was cold or running for an hour. Would also randomly shudder and jerk when going from park to reverse or park to drive. Dealer indicated an internal failure occurred causing the torque converter to lock up. Disappointed that Nissan only offers a 12 month/12,000 mile warranty. For the amount of miles I currently drive this would give me a 5 to 6 month warranty (not near enough for almost $5000 replacement cost). Doubtful that I will ever buy a Nissan vehicle again.

Update from Sep 21, 2017: The transmission offered by the dealer was only a 12 month 12,000 mile warranty. Took vehicle to Certified Transmission in which bid to replace was approximately $200 more than dealer but was for a 36 month 100,000 mile warranty. Needless to say I picked the better warranty.

I made a call to Nissan Consumer Care to complain and provide information of my problem and that this was the second time this issue had occurred (although the first did not require transmission replacement). Within a couple of days Nissan Consumer Care got back to me and offered to cover the complete cost of the transmission. I had to pay for labor and misc. costs. Within a week I received a reimbursement check for $3350 from Nissan.

- doublenickel, Omaha, NE, US

problem #34

Oct 132016

Altima S 2.5L

  • CVT transmission
  • 30,490 miles

We got this car Sept 2016 and the first week it was acting like it didn't want to accelerate when I went down a hill like road, so I took it back and told them what it was doing and they told me about a some CVT and that it wasn't nothing but the car was just getting it's speed back up.

In Oct. 2016 I took it back to tell them about the same problem and they said they road tested and didn't find anything. So I went away from Oct to Jan 2016 and while I was home and I called my home to let him no the car wouldn't start and then when it did start I drove it and every once in a while it would jerk but I didn't think anything about it i thought it was just shifting gears are something. When we got back home I drove it for a while and the breaks were started squeaking and they told me I needed rear breaks. I took it in in Jun 28, 2017 for the stuttering and jerking they kept it for 3 days and said they couldn't find the problem and I asked them were we going to be okay driving it to Maryland and they said yes we drove as far as NC and it started doing the same thing.

When we got to Maryland we waited to see if the problem would stopped but my husband took it to the Nissan dealer and had a mechanic ride with him to see what we were talking about but they said because the check engine was on and they couldn't get a code it was nothing they could do so we riding back to Sc on 7/10/17 and the car shut off on us and we sat for a few minutes and then it started back up and when we got back on the highway the whole while it kept jerking and when we had to stop for a light it seem like you had to push real hard to get it to go. I like my car but its is starting to scare me. I just got that car in 2016 of Sept. I just want them to fix the problem are try and solve it..

- Gwendolyn R., Columbia, SC, US

problem #33

Feb 122016

Altima SL 3.5L

  • Automatic transmission
  • 50,350 miles

I purchased this car "certified" used with 26,000 miles on it because of the great "professional" reviews and comfort. A few months later, the transmission started jerking at slow acceleration- around 20 mph especially during traffic. I took the car to the dealership and after keeping the car for almost a week they "weren't able to recreate the issue". Over the next year, the issue escalated to where it was doing it every time the car accelerated over 20 mph. I took it back 2/12/16 with a little over 50,000 miles on the car and on 2/19/16 the dealer called to tell me Nissan approved the transmission replacement under warranty and didn't receive the car back until 2/27/16. Luckily we purchased the extended warranty that covers the car until 100,000 miles. We are already planning on getting rid of it before the extended warranty runs out because the cost of this repair would have been over $3,500 and based on other peoples experiences, this won't be the end of the issues. The only reason we aren't getting rid of it right now because of how fast it has dropped in value vs how much we owe. You shouldn't have these issues in a car that is only 2 years old and you shouldn't have to worry if you are going to be stranded if you go out of town. I think the "professional" car reviewers should take into account real owners experiences before recommending a car, especially if there are hundreds of people having issues across multiple websites. I completely regret buying this car but I am stuck with it for at least another year unfortunately.

- Sarah B., Mansfield, TX, US

problem #32

May 012017

Altima SV 2.5L

  • Automatic transmission
  • 51,000 miles

I bought a brand new Nissan Altima in 2014 from the local Nissan dealership. From day 1 I lovee my Nissan. I spent a lot of money to add more stuff to increased the power which I enjoy everyday, but the beginning of this month I am having a problem with my Nissan. I feel my Nissan is jerking a little once a while. Now it's happening 3 or 4 times a day.

I took my Nissan to the Dealer where I bought the vehicle & put this problem in front of the service dept manager & request her to take a test drive. She told one of her employees to take my Nissan for test drive. This employee informed me that this IS NOT A PROBLEM & THAT'S A NORMAL THING. He also told me that's the same thing happens to his Nissan Altima, so I believed him & drove back home.

Last Sunday heading back home from Orange County my Nissan STALLED in the middle of the freeway during heavy rain. It took 3 hours to get back home with AAA tow truck towing my Nissan. Next day I took my Nissan to the same dealer & I JUMP ON TO SERVICE DEPT MANAGER & DEMANDING HER TO FIX THAT PROBLEM. She apologized to me & ordered her employee to FIX MY problem. I got 2017 LOANER NISSAN ALTIMA while the dealer is fixing the CVT TRANSMISSION problem.

My Nissan Altima is under warranty ( 60000 or 5 years whichever comes first ) the service dept told me that that happens a lot to 2014 Nissan Altima & I am not the first ANGRY OWNER they are facing. I HOPE THEY FIX MY NISSAN BECAUSE I MISS MY NISSAN VERY MUCH.

- ahmedsheikh, Santa Clarita, US

problem #31

Jan 232017

Altima S 3.2L

  • CVT transmission
  • 43,981 miles

This car started showing signs of transmission issues a few months ago and I took in to the dealership twice.. Both times I was blown off and the service guys even said that it's not normal and nothing seemed wrong.. yesterday 3/27/17 it was so bad I was afraid to even drive it! As soon as I googled 2014 Nissan Altima transmission issues I was surprised by how many complaints there were and an alarming amount of cars this was failing in under 60,000 miles.. Both of my ford cars lasted 3 times that. Ford that has been known for really bad car issues. My warranty was up at 60,000 miles and the dealership said they would try to help with getting this covered but the cost for the replacement and labor was 4,500. For this to be an ongoing issue that Nissan is aware of should be covered this isn't a lemon law issue but a car that last 45,000 before needing major repairs is ridiculous and I would never bought from nissan had I know this major transmission flaw I would have bought a Ford.

- Tara D., Morrisville, PA, US

problem #30

Dec 012016

Altima 2.5 S 2.5L

  • Automatic transmission
  • 45,000 miles

My car is very new and I maintained with all kind of requirements in timely manner. At 45k miles my car (Nissan Altima 2014 2.5S) i started facing issue regarding tranmission.

Car starts normally and when you change the gear to DRIVING or REVERSE it makes some kind of engine noise (vibrates and ROAR) and then engine shuts off with jerks...

I took my car to dealership they could not find the issue since they did not find any error code in their diagnosis system. so they cant do anything. Later i took my car home and two days car worked fine and again problem started. I took my car to dealership again and ask to replicate the issue. they were not. Finally I took them with me in the car and luckily we were able to re-generate the problem. They talked to Nissan Corporate and explain the issue and approved for Transmission replacement. They did for FREE because it was covered in powertrain warranty but they showed me the bill that they are going to send to Nissan Corporate for their labor it is $4800. oh my god....so in the future if same issue comes up and my car crosses 60k power train warranty then i have to pay same amount in the future...

My brother had same issue in 2009 Nissan Altima and they replaced it for free event 60k power train warranty was crossed because there was a recall in that model between 2007 to 2010 Altima due to transmission issue and they have extended warranty to 100k for all these years model.

PEOPLE come and file complaint here so in the future any recall comes for 2014 Altima then we will be covered. There is no any recall such now.

Thanks

- AMIT V., Mission Viejo, CA, US

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