Engine complaints by model year
| Year | Complaints | Share of year's complaints | Typical mileage |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 5 | 12% | — |
| 2023 | 6 | 20% | — |
| 2022 | 7 | 23% | — |
| 2021 | 7 | 10% | 118,000 miles |
| 2020 | 39 | 24% | 15,000 miles |
| 2019 | 57 | 24% | 68,000 miles |
| 2018 | 14 | 6% | 34,000 miles |
| 2017 | 40 | 10% | 57,000 miles |
| 2016 | 86 | 16% | 53,000 miles |
| 2015 | 66 | 7% | 55,000 miles |
| 2014 | 80 | 7% | 65,000 miles |
| 2013 | 166 | 7% | 60,000 miles |
| 2012 | 72 | 17% | 78,000 miles |
| 2011 | 42 | 17% | 88,000 miles |
| 2010 | 54 | 14% | 61,000 miles |
| 2009 | 117 | 8% | 80,000 miles |
| 2008 | 74 | 7% | 90,000 miles |
| 2007 | 75 | 16% | 65,000 miles |
| 2006 | 352 | 43% | 84,000 miles |
| 2005 | 395 | 36% | 78,000 miles |
| 2004 | 138 | 50% | 70,000 miles |
| 2003 | 559 | 63% | 85,000 miles |
| 2002 | 682 | 65% | 90,000 miles |
| 2001 | 66 | 42% | 74,000 miles |
| 2000 | 53 | 33% | 85,000 miles |
| 1999 | 8 | 9% | 104,000 miles |
| 1998 | 14 | 11% | 125,000 miles |
| 1997 | 8 | 7% | 131,000 miles |
| 1996 | 8 | 9% | 84,000 miles |
| 1995 | 28 | 16% | 40,000 miles |
Which parts fail
Components named in complaints (engine, cooling system, oil leaks, timing chain, exhaust).
Mileage when the problem started
What owners report
This incident happened twice in one week first with 2023 Nissan Sentra then replaced with a 2024 Nissan Altima both rented from Enterprise. I was traveling down the street from my house, a two-lane, steep hillside road, which I've traveled up and down for 30 years. I stopped behind a parked car on the right side of the road to let another car come up the hill and pass by before I continued down. As I continued down the hill, the car just began to accelerate and I could not stop it, I tried to break, but no response and the car kept accelerating for about 50 feet before crashing into. the granite hillside, lifting the car so it landed perpendicular to the road, setting off all airbags and blocking all traffic completely. …
MY 2024 Nissan Altima, with approximately 13,000 miles stalled while driving in 10 degree Fahrenheit weather with snow on the road. My speed was around 45 MPH. The vehicle immediately stalled and all the lights on the dashboard went on. The warning flashed something about an engine error. The brakes seized up while in snowy weather and with cars very close behind me. Easily could have caused an accident and was a pretty scary event. The car is maintained well and have very low mileage and is taken care of well. I slowed down and then another error screen popped up saying to immediately take care for service. While I was attempted to slow down with brake pedal super hard to push; I attempted to put car in neutral with my hazard lights on by now. Car started again while I was coasting about 20 mph, with engine light showing. …
I was driving down the freeway at about 70 miles an hour. When a warning came up, saying engine malfunction power reduced, the car then started the shaking a bit and not getting any power. Smoke started pouring out of the hood. I then pulled over open the hood. It was then on fire(small).I put it out with some water. And then the car was unable to start. I then towed it to my house and i'm waiting here on inspection.
The engine mounted high pressure fuel pump became loose and unseated because the engine-side mounting threads failed. The pump lifted off its mounting surface, the head of the engine, and oil came out around the top of the engine. This failure caused sudden loss of engine power and created a potential safety hazard because the vehicle could lose power unexpectedly in traffic and there was fluid leakage in the engine compartment near hot engine components. The problem was confirmed by a Nissan dealer. The dealer inspected the vehicle, documented the failed mounting area on the engine head, and submitted a goodwill warranty claim to Nissan, which was denied. Prior to the failure, there were no 18repairs or service in this area from the factory. Symptoms at the time of failure were loss of power and visible oil leakage from the top/right side of the engine. …
I was driving along I55 at 65-70 mph when my car had multiple lights come on the dash w d started ringing. My car then shot left into the median wall. It spun at least twice hitting the wall and stopping facing southbound in the northbound lanes. The vehicle is currently at the ins inspection lot. The code was u0100. ECM/PCM 'A" DTC. I was injured in the accident and concerned about safety of others
The issues began in June 2022. Since then the automatic emergency brake has stopped my car 6 times on the highway. I was scared to death. Transmission will not go into drive all of the time. This vehicle is dangerous. Has been in for repairs 3 times and out of service for over 30 days. I have been in touch with 2 Nissan representatives since the beginning. Other Nissan vehicles have had the emergency brake issues before. I really am praying maybe it's just my vehicle that is affected. These things do happen. I have asked Nissan to buy the car back. Praying they will. I can not drive a death trap.
The contact owns a 2021 Nissan Altima. The contact stated that after stopping at a traffic light, the accelerator pedal was depressed, and the vehicle went into LIMP Mode. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to a local independent mechanic, where it was determined that there was debris in the engine oil pan. The vehicle was taken to a local dealer, and debris was found in the engine oil pan. Upon further investigation, the contact related the failure to NHSTA Campaign: 26V080000 (Engine and Engine Cooling); however, the VIN was not included. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure, and a case was filed. The failure mileage was approximately 118,000.
The contact owns a 2021 Nissan Altima. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds on several occasions, there were abnormal sounds coming from the engine compartment. The contact inspected the vehicle and sent off an oil sample. The contact stated that a metal fragment was found in the engine oil. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 51,000.
Related recalls (7)
Engine and engine cooling › Engine › Hard parts internal/mechanical
Nissan North America, Inc. (Nissan) is recalling certain 2021-2024 Rogue, 2019-2020 Altima, 2019-2022 Infiniti QX50, and 2022 Infiniti QX55 vehicles equipped with 3-cylinder 1.5L or 4-cylinder 2.0L variable compression turbo (VC-Turbo) engines. The engine bearings may have manufacturing defects that can lead to engine failure.
Remedy: Dealers will reprogram the engine control module (ECM) software, free of charge. Owner letters were mailed April 8, 2026. Owners may contact Nissan's customer service at 800-647-7261 or Infiniti's customer service at…
Engine and engine cooling
On certain passenger vehicles equipped with a 2.5l engine, the crankshaft position sensor can overheat causing a brief interruption in the signal output from the sensor.
Remedy: Dealers will reprogram the ECM free of charge. Certain my 2006 altimas which have been previously remedied under recall campaign 06V223 (Nissan r0606) are not included in this recall since the reprogramming for 06V223…
Engine and engine cooling
On certain vehicles, if a sufficiently hot object enters the air filter housing through the engine fresh air intake system and contacts the engine air filter, the flammability characteristics of the air filter material are such that the filter May ignite.
Remedy: Dealers will replace the air filter with a new one that has improved anti-flammability material characteristics. The recall began on July 3, 2007, and will continue through October 1, 2007.
Engine and engine cooling
On certain passenger vehicles equipped with a 2.5l engine, the crank angle sensor is affected by temperature variations. Under certain driving conditions, these variations in temperature can be large enough to cause a brief interruption in the signal output from the sensor.
Remedy: Dealers will reprogram the ECM free of charge. The recall began on August 21, 2006. Owners May contact Nissan at 1-800-647-7261.
Engine and engine cooling
Certain passenger vehicles equipped with 2.5l engines May experience excessive engine oil consumption as a result of improper performance of the piston rings.
Remedy: Dealers will reprogram the electronic control module (ECM or engine computer). Your vehicle will also be inspected to determine if it has been consuming engine oil at a higher than normal rate.
Show 2 more recalls
Engine and engine cooling
On certain passenger vehicles, the circuit board for the crank position sensor or cam position sensor May have an improper solder joint due to solder deformation caused by heat stress accelerated by the existence of flux residue during the soldering process.
Remedy: Dealers will replace the crank position sensors. Camshaft position sensor(s), and in some cases, the variable timing control sensor(s).
Engine and engine cooling › Exhaust system › Manifold/header/muffler/tail pipe
On certain vehicles equipped with the 2.5 liter engine, the exhaust pipe hanger pin May catch debris from the road that could be ignited by contact with the main catalyst. Also on 2002 altima and sentra vehicles, certain engine operating conditions May cause the pre-catalyst to overheat and damage the catalyst substrate.
Remedy: Dealers will remove the protruding portion of the exhaust pipe hanger pin. In addition to the corrective action, in order to reduce the risk of fire in the event of poor or improper maintenance that could result in oil…
NHTSA investigations
Engine compartment fires
The office of defects investigation (odi) opened this investigation on October 18, 2002 based on three reports indicating that the engine compartment in model year (my) 2002 Nissan altima vehicles equipped with the 2.5 liter engine caught on fire without any warning to the driver while the vehicle was driven at highway speeds.one non-burn related injury was reported as a result of the complainant exiting the vehicle…
Engine stall - crank position sensor
On June 28, 2006 Nissan submitted to the national highway traffic safety administration (NHTSA) a part 573 report advising that certain model year 2003 Nissan sentra and Nissan altima sedans equipped with 2.5l engines would be recalled to reprogram the electronic control module (ECM). The recall is identified by NHTSA recall no. 06V242.
Engine compartment fire
Nissan notified the agency on June 18, 2007 that it will recall (recall # 07V267) all my 2007 altima vehicles with 2.5 liter engine built at the smyrna, tennessee plant from September 25, 2006 to May 11, 2007 and at the canton, mississippi plant from October 30, 2006 to May 11, 2007.Nissan determined that if a sufficiently hot object (for example, a cigarette ash or other ignition source) enters the air filter…
Complete loss of motive power due to engine failure
On December 13, 2023, the Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) opened PE23-023 to investigate allegations of engine failures leading to loss of motive power in model year (MY) 2021-2023 Nissan Rogue; MY 2019-2021 Nissan Altima; and MY 2019-2021 Infiniti QX50 vehicles.
Frequently asked questions
Which Nissan Altima years have engine problems?
By NHTSA complaints, the 2002 (682), 2003 (559), 2005 (395), 2006 (352) and 2013 (166) model years. Engine complaints make up 65% of all complaints for the 2002.
Is there a recall for Nissan Altima engine problems?
Yes — 7 recalls, including 25V-437 (hard parts internal/mechanical, Jun 27, 2025); 07V-527 (engine and engine cooling, Nov 14, 2007); 07V-267 (engine and engine cooling, Jun 21, 2007). Recall repairs are free at authorized dealers; check a specific car with the VIN recall check.
At what mileage do Nissan Altima engine problems start?
Across all years, half of the complaints with a recorded mileage happened before about 80,000 miles; 23% happened before 50,000 miles.
What part fails most often?
Owners most often name the engine (419 mentions), followed by the exhaust system (177).
Source: U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) — owner complaints through October 20, 2026, recalls and defect investigations; fuel economy from the EPA. Complaints are unverified reports and are not proof of a defect. How we rate model years.