1998 NISSAN ALTIMA — Owner-Reported Problems

NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation Snapshot 2026-08-22 116 complaints · 4 recalls
Most-reported system: FUEL SYSTEM (17 complaints · 14.7%)
Safety signals:
  • Crashes 17
  • Fires 2
  • Injuries 9
  • Deaths 0
Compare with 1997 →
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 FUEL SYSTEM appears in 17 of 116 owner complaints (14.7%) in this vehicle snapshot. FUEL SYSTEM: 17 complaints, 14.7% of reports FUEL SYSTEM 17 · 14.7% · 1 fire reports AIR BAGS: 14 complaints, 12.1% of reports AIR BAGS 14 · 12.1% · 10 crash reports ELECTRICAL SYSTEM: 13 complaints, 11.2% of reports ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 13 · 11.2% · 1 fire reports ENGINE: 12 complaints, 10.3% of reports ENGINE 12 · 10.3% SERVICE BRAKES: 12 complaints, 10.3% of reports SERVICE BRAKES 12 · 10.3% · 4 crash reports VISIBILITY: 10 complaints, 8.6% of reports VISIBILITY 10 · 8.6% SUSPENSION: 8 complaints, 6.9% of reports SUSPENSION 8 · 6.9% POWER TRAIN: 5 complaints, 4.3% of reports POWER TRAIN 5 · 4.3% STRUCTURE: 5 complaints, 4.3% of reports STRUCTURE 5 · 4.3% UNKNOWN OR OTHER: 87 complaints, 75.0% of reports UNKNOWN OR OTHER 87 · 75.0% · 13 crash reports 1 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)
FUEL SYSTEM 17 14.7% 0 crashes · 1 fires
AIR BAGS 14 12.1% 10 crashes · 0 fires
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 13 11.2% 0 crashes · 1 fires
ENGINE 12 10.3% 0 crashes · 0 fires
SERVICE BRAKES 12 10.3% 4 crashes · 0 fires
VISIBILITY 10 8.6% 0 crashes · 0 fires
SUSPENSION 8 6.9% 0 crashes · 0 fires
POWER TRAIN 5 4.3% 0 crashes · 0 fires
STRUCTURE 5 4.3% 0 crashes · 0 fires
UNKNOWN OR OTHER 87 75.0% 13 crashes · 1 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 Oct 1997; the first recall shown was reported in Mar 2006. 1997-Q4: 1 owner reports 1 1998-Q1: 2 owner reports 2 1998-Q2: 3 owner reports 3 1998-Q3: 5 owner reports 5 1999-Q1: 17 owner reports 17 1999-Q2: 2 owner reports 2 1999-Q3: 4 owner reports 4 1999-Q4: 4 owner reports 4 2000-Q1: 6 owner reports 6 2000-Q2: 1 owner reports 1 2000-Q3: 2 owner reports 2 2000-Q4: 2 owner reports 2 2001-Q1: 3 owner reports 3 2001-Q2: 3 owner reports 3 2001-Q3: 2 owner reports 2 2001-Q4: 3 owner reports 3 2002-Q1: 5 owner reports 5 2002-Q2: 1 owner reports 1 2002-Q3: 5 owner reports 5 2003-Q1: 4 owner reports 4 2003-Q2: 6 owner reports 6 2003-Q3: 1 owner reports 1 2003-Q4: 7 owner reports 7 2004-Q1: 2 owner reports 2 2004-Q2: 1 owner reports 1 2004-Q3: 3 owner reports 3 2004-Q4: 1 owner reports 1 2005-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 2005-Q2: 1 owner reports 1 2005-Q3: 1 owner reports 1 2006-Q2: 1 owner reports 1 2006-Q3: 1 owner reports 1 2006-Q4: 1 owner reports 1 2007-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 2008-Q2: 1 owner reports 1 2009-Q4: 2 owner reports 2 2010-Q2: 1 owner reports 1 2010-Q3: 1 owner reports 1 2013-Q1: 3 owner reports 3 2016-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 2016-Q2: 2 owner reports 2 2017-Q4: 2 owner reports 2 Owner reports Oct 1997 Oct 2017 Recall campaign 06E026000 ◆ Recall campaign 06E026000 Recall campaign 09E012000 ◆ Recall campaign 09E012000 Recall campaign 09E025000 ◆ Recall campaign 09E025000 Recall campaign 10E002000 ◆ Recall campaign 10E002000
  • Campaign 09E025000 was reported 3,752 days after the first earlier complaint mapped to its component.
View timeline records as a table
Date Record type Count Record identifier
1997-Q4 Owner reports 1
1998-Q1 Owner reports 2
1998-Q2 Owner reports 3
1998-Q3 Owner reports 5
1999-Q1 Owner reports 17
1999-Q2 Owner reports 2
1999-Q3 Owner reports 4
1999-Q4 Owner reports 4
2000-Q1 Owner reports 6
2000-Q2 Owner reports 1
2000-Q3 Owner reports 2
2000-Q4 Owner reports 2
2001-Q1 Owner reports 3
2001-Q2 Owner reports 3
2001-Q3 Owner reports 2
2001-Q4 Owner reports 3
2002-Q1 Owner reports 5
2002-Q2 Owner reports 1
2002-Q3 Owner reports 5
2003-Q1 Owner reports 4
2003-Q2 Owner reports 6
2003-Q3 Owner reports 1
2003-Q4 Owner reports 7
2004-Q1 Owner reports 2
2004-Q2 Owner reports 1
2004-Q3 Owner reports 3
2004-Q4 Owner reports 1
2005-Q1 Owner reports 1
2005-Q2 Owner reports 1
2005-Q3 Owner reports 1
2006-Q2 Owner reports 1
2006-Q3 Owner reports 1
2006-Q4 Owner reports 1
2007-Q1 Owner reports 1
2008-Q2 Owner reports 1
2009-Q4 Owner reports 2
2010-Q2 Owner reports 1
2010-Q3 Owner reports 1
2013-Q1 Owner reports 3
2016-Q1 Owner reports 1
2016-Q2 Owner reports 2
2017-Q4 Owner reports 2
Recall campaign 1 06E026000
Recall campaign 1 09E012000
Recall campaign 1 09E025000
Recall campaign 1 10E002000
NHTSA Safety Recalls Snapshot 2026-08-22 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Safety Recalls (4)

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 09E012000

    Report date
    Component:
    Not available in the source record
    Consequence:
    DECREASED LIGHTING VISIBILITY MAY RESULT IN A VEHICLE CRASH.
    Remedy:
    SABERSPORT WILL NOTIFY OWNERS AND OFFER A FULL REFUND FOR THE NONCOMPLIANT COMBINATION LAMPS. THE SAFETY RECALL BEGAN ON MAY 11, 2009. OWNERS MAY CONTACT SABERSPORT AT 1-909-598-7589.
    View authoritative NHTSA record →

  3. Manufacturer action

    Recall campaign 09E025000

    Report date
    Component:
    EXTERIOR LIGHTING
    Consequence:
    DECREASED LIGHTING VISIBILITY MAY RESULT IN A VEHICLE CRASH.
    Remedy:
    DOPE, INC. WILL NOTIFY OWNERS AND OFFER A FULL REFUND FOR THE NONCOMPLIANT COMBINATION LAMPS. THE SAFETY RECALL BEGAN ON JULY 28, 2009. OWNERS MAY CONTACT DOPE, INC. AT 1-626-272-1798.
    View authoritative NHTSA record →

  4. 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 →
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 116 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