1997 NISSAN ALTIMA — Owner-Reported Problems

NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation Snapshot 2026-08-22 106 complaints · 3 recalls
Most-reported system: AIR BAGS (30 complaints · 28.3%)
Safety signals:
  • Crashes 30
  • Fires 5
  • Injuries 23
  • Deaths 0
Compare with 1996 →
NHTSA Consumer Complaints Snapshot 2026-08-21 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.

Component Problem Distribution

Share of owner complaints filed for each vehicle system (unaffected by sales volume)

Component Problem Distribution AIR BAGS appears in 30 of 106 owner complaints (28.3%) in this vehicle snapshot. AIR BAGS: 30 complaints, 28.3% of reports AIR BAGS 30 · 28.3% · 19 crash reports ELECTRICAL SYSTEM: 7 complaints, 6.6% of reports ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 7 · 6.6% POWER TRAIN: 7 complaints, 6.6% of reports POWER TRAIN 7 · 6.6% SEAT BELTS: 7 complaints, 6.6% of reports SEAT BELTS 7 · 6.6% · 1 crash reports SERVICE BRAKES: 7 complaints, 6.6% of reports SERVICE BRAKES 7 · 6.6% · 5 crash reports STRUCTURE: 7 complaints, 6.6% of reports STRUCTURE 7 · 6.6% · 2 fire reports ENGINE: 6 complaints, 5.7% of reports ENGINE 6 · 5.7% · 2 fire reports SUSPENSION: 6 complaints, 5.7% of reports SUSPENSION 6 · 5.7% · 1 crash reports VISIBILITY: 6 complaints, 5.7% of reports VISIBILITY 6 · 5.7% UNKNOWN OR OTHER: 70 complaints, 66.0% of reports UNKNOWN OR OTHER 70 · 66.0% · 16 crash reports 5 fire reports 0% 25% 50% 75% 100%

UNKNOWN OR OTHER is an NHTSA classification artifact and is always listed last.

View component data as a table
System / Component Complaints Share of Reports Safety Reports (Crashes / Fires)
AIR BAGS 30 28.3% 19 crashes · 0 fires
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 7 6.6% 0 crashes · 0 fires
POWER TRAIN 7 6.6% 0 crashes · 0 fires
SEAT BELTS 7 6.6% 1 crashes · 0 fires
SERVICE BRAKES 7 6.6% 5 crashes · 0 fires
STRUCTURE 7 6.6% 0 crashes · 2 fires
ENGINE 6 5.7% 0 crashes · 2 fires
SUSPENSION 6 5.7% 1 crashes · 0 fires
VISIBILITY 6 5.7% 0 crashes · 0 fires
UNKNOWN OR OTHER 70 66.0% 16 crashes · 5 fires
NHTSA Consumer Complaints, NHTSA Safety Recalls, and NHTSA Defect Investigations Snapshot 2026-08-22 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.

Problem & Recall Timeline

Observed complaint volume and manufacturer recall actions over time

Problem & Recall Timeline Owner reports in this snapshot begin in Jul 1996; the first recall shown was reported in Oct 1996. 1996-Q3: 1 owner reports 1 1996-Q4: 2 owner reports 2 1997-Q1: 4 owner reports 4 1997-Q2: 3 owner reports 3 1997-Q3: 4 owner reports 4 1997-Q4: 3 owner reports 3 1998-Q2: 2 owner reports 2 1998-Q3: 4 owner reports 4 1998-Q4: 7 owner reports 7 1999-Q1: 5 owner reports 5 1999-Q2: 1 owner reports 1 1999-Q3: 5 owner reports 5 1999-Q4: 1 owner reports 1 2000-Q1: 2 owner reports 2 2000-Q2: 4 owner reports 4 2000-Q3: 4 owner reports 4 2000-Q4: 1 owner reports 1 2001-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 2001-Q2: 5 owner reports 5 2001-Q3: 1 owner reports 1 2002-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 2002-Q2: 2 owner reports 2 2002-Q3: 2 owner reports 2 2002-Q4: 7 owner reports 7 2003-Q1: 2 owner reports 2 2003-Q2: 2 owner reports 2 2003-Q3: 5 owner reports 5 2003-Q4: 4 owner reports 4 2004-Q1: 2 owner reports 2 2004-Q4: 2 owner reports 2 2005-Q1: 3 owner reports 3 2005-Q2: 1 owner reports 1 2006-Q2: 1 owner reports 1 2006-Q3: 1 owner reports 1 2008-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 2009-Q2: 2 owner reports 2 2009-Q3: 1 owner reports 1 2010-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 2013-Q3: 1 owner reports 1 2016-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 2016-Q3: 1 owner reports 1 2016-Q4: 2 owner reports 2 2020-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 Owner reports Jul 1996 Jan 2020 Recall campaign 96V185000 ◆ Recall campaign 96V185000 Recall campaign 06E026000 ◆ Recall campaign 06E026000 Recall campaign 10E002000 ◆ Recall campaign 10E002000
View timeline records as a table
Date Record type Count Record identifier
1996-Q3 Owner reports 1
1996-Q4 Owner reports 2
1997-Q1 Owner reports 4
1997-Q2 Owner reports 3
1997-Q3 Owner reports 4
1997-Q4 Owner reports 3
1998-Q2 Owner reports 2
1998-Q3 Owner reports 4
1998-Q4 Owner reports 7
1999-Q1 Owner reports 5
1999-Q2 Owner reports 1
1999-Q3 Owner reports 5
1999-Q4 Owner reports 1
2000-Q1 Owner reports 2
2000-Q2 Owner reports 4
2000-Q3 Owner reports 4
2000-Q4 Owner reports 1
2001-Q1 Owner reports 1
2001-Q2 Owner reports 5
2001-Q3 Owner reports 1
2002-Q1 Owner reports 1
2002-Q2 Owner reports 2
2002-Q3 Owner reports 2
2002-Q4 Owner reports 7
2003-Q1 Owner reports 2
2003-Q2 Owner reports 2
2003-Q3 Owner reports 5
2003-Q4 Owner reports 4
2004-Q1 Owner reports 2
2004-Q4 Owner reports 2
2005-Q1 Owner reports 3
2005-Q2 Owner reports 1
2006-Q2 Owner reports 1
2006-Q3 Owner reports 1
2008-Q1 Owner reports 1
2009-Q2 Owner reports 2
2009-Q3 Owner reports 1
2010-Q1 Owner reports 1
2013-Q3 Owner reports 1
2016-Q1 Owner reports 1
2016-Q3 Owner reports 1
2016-Q4 Owner reports 2
2020-Q1 Owner reports 1
Recall campaign 1 96V185000
Recall campaign 1 06E026000
Recall campaign 1 10E002000
NHTSA Safety Recalls Snapshot 2026-08-22 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Safety Recalls (3)

Official safety recall campaigns filed with NHTSA

  1. Manufacturer action

    Recall campaign 06E026000

    Report date
    Component:
    Not available in the source record
    Consequence:
    WITHOUT THE AMBER REFLECTORS, THE VEHICLE WILL BE POORLY ILLUMINATED, POSSIBLY RESULTING IN A VEHICLE CRASH WITHOUT WARNING.
    Remedy:
    PRO-A MOTORS WILL NOTIFY OWNERS AND OFFER TO REPURCHASE THE LAMPS. THE RECALL BEGAN ON APRIL 3, 2006. OWNERS MAY CONTACT PRO-A MOTORS AT 323-838-2988.
    View authoritative NHTSA record →

  2. Manufacturer action

    Recall campaign 10E002000

    Report date
    Component:
    Not available in the source record
    Consequence:
    THE ABSENCE OF THE WELD CAN ALLOW THE STRUT TO COME OUT OF ITS MOUNTING POSITION UNDER CERTAIN EXTREME DRIVING CONDITIONS WHICH COULD CAUSE DAMAGE TO SURROUNDING VEHICLE COMPONENTS INCREASING THE RISK OF A CRASH.
    Remedy:
    RIDE CONTROL WILL NOTIFY OWNERS OF RECORD AND REPLACE THE AFFECTED PARTS FREE OF CHARGE. THE SAFETY RECALL BEGAN ON MARCH 15, 2010. OWNERS MAY CONTACT RIDE CONTROL AT 1-248-458-1396.
    View authoritative NHTSA record →

  3. Manufacturer action

    Recall campaign 96V185000

    Report date
    Component:
    SEAT BELTS
    Consequence:
    IN THE EVENT OF A COLLISION, THESE SEAT BELTS MAY NOT RESTRAIN AN OCCUPANT INCREASING THE RISK OF INJURY.
    Remedy:
    DEALERS WILL INSPECT THE BUCKLE ASSEMBLIES AND REPLACE THEM IF NECESSARY.
    View authoritative NHTSA record →
NHTSA Consumer Complaints Snapshot 2026-08-21 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.

Complaint Narrative Explorer

Verbatim owner-reported defect narratives from NHTSA public records

Data: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation · snapshot 2026-08-21
Safety incident filters
Showing 0 of 106 complaints · page 1 of 5

No complaints match the current filters.
EPA Fuel Economy Database Snapshot 2026-08-21 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Estimated Ownership Cost

EPA fuel economy ratings and annual operating cost estimates

Data: US EPA Fuel Economy Guide · snapshot 2026-08-21
Supported range: 1,000–60,000 miles per year
Supported range: $1.50–$10.00 per gallon
55% city45% highway
Estimate unavailable

EPA fuel-economy data is unavailable for this vehicle.

No estimate is shown when required EPA values are unavailable.

 Open Ownership Cost Calculator →

Adjacent Model Years

Immediate preceding and succeeding model year records

NHTSA Consumer Complaints Snapshot 2026-08-21 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.

Methodology & Data Integrity

Data sourced from NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation. Snapshot date: 2026-08-21.

Read our complete data methodology → Sources