2004 NISSAN ALTIMA — Owner-Reported Problems

NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation Snapshot 2026-08-22 269 complaints · 5 recalls
Most-reported system: ENGINE (121 complaints · 45.0%)
Safety signals:
  • Crashes 14
  • Fires 3
  • Injuries 10
  • Deaths 0
Compare with 2003 →
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 ENGINE appears in 121 of 269 owner complaints (45.0%) in this vehicle snapshot. ENGINE: 121 complaints, 45.0% of reports ENGINE 121 · 45.0% · 1 fire reports STRUCTURE: 39 complaints, 14.5% of reports STRUCTURE 39 · 14.5% ELECTRICAL SYSTEM: 23 complaints, 8.6% of reports ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 23 · 8.6% · 2 crash reports 1 fire reports POWER TRAIN: 15 complaints, 5.6% of reports POWER TRAIN 15 · 5.6% AIR BAGS: 10 complaints, 3.7% of reports AIR BAGS 10 · 3.7% · 7 crash reports 1 fire reports STEERING: 10 complaints, 3.7% of reports STEERING 10 · 3.7% SERVICE BRAKES: 8 complaints, 3.0% of reports SERVICE BRAKES 8 · 3.0% · 1 crash reports SUSPENSION: 7 complaints, 2.6% of reports SUSPENSION 7 · 2.6% · 1 crash reports EXTERIOR LIGHTING: 6 complaints, 2.2% of reports EXTERIOR LIGHTING 6 · 2.2% · 1 crash reports UNKNOWN OR OTHER: 106 complaints, 39.4% of reports UNKNOWN OR OTHER 106 · 39.4% · 8 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)
ENGINE 121 45.0% 0 crashes · 1 fires
STRUCTURE 39 14.5% 0 crashes · 0 fires
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 23 8.6% 2 crashes · 1 fires
POWER TRAIN 15 5.6% 0 crashes · 0 fires
AIR BAGS 10 3.7% 7 crashes · 1 fires
STEERING 10 3.7% 0 crashes · 0 fires
SERVICE BRAKES 8 3.0% 1 crashes · 0 fires
SUSPENSION 7 2.6% 1 crashes · 0 fires
EXTERIOR LIGHTING 6 2.2% 1 crashes · 0 fires
UNKNOWN OR OTHER 106 39.4% 8 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 Jan 2004; the first recall shown was reported in Mar 2006. 2004-Q1: 8 owner reports 8 2004-Q2: 2 owner reports 2 2004-Q3: 3 owner reports 3 2004-Q4: 2 owner reports 2 2005-Q1: 2 owner reports 2 2005-Q2: 3 owner reports 3 2005-Q3: 4 owner reports 4 2006-Q1: 2 owner reports 2 2006-Q2: 1 owner reports 1 2006-Q3: 3 owner reports 3 2006-Q4: 5 owner reports 5 2007-Q1: 10 owner reports 10 2007-Q2: 8 owner reports 8 2007-Q3: 5 owner reports 5 2007-Q4: 11 owner reports 11 2008-Q1: 11 owner reports 11 2008-Q2: 8 owner reports 8 2008-Q3: 9 owner reports 9 2008-Q4: 8 owner reports 8 2009-Q1: 5 owner reports 5 2009-Q2: 8 owner reports 8 2009-Q3: 10 owner reports 10 2009-Q4: 2 owner reports 2 2010-Q1: 5 owner reports 5 2010-Q2: 8 owner reports 8 2010-Q3: 6 owner reports 6 2010-Q4: 5 owner reports 5 2011-Q1: 3 owner reports 3 2011-Q2: 6 owner reports 6 2011-Q3: 6 owner reports 6 2011-Q4: 4 owner reports 4 2012-Q1: 4 owner reports 4 2012-Q2: 1 owner reports 1 2012-Q3: 6 owner reports 6 2012-Q4: 5 owner reports 5 2013-Q1: 3 owner reports 3 2013-Q2: 5 owner reports 5 2013-Q3: 7 owner reports 7 2013-Q4: 2 owner reports 2 2014-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 2014-Q2: 6 owner reports 6 2014-Q3: 7 owner reports 7 2014-Q4: 6 owner reports 6 2015-Q1: 6 owner reports 6 2015-Q2: 7 owner reports 7 2015-Q3: 2 owner reports 2 2015-Q4: 2 owner reports 2 2016-Q1: 4 owner reports 4 2016-Q2: 4 owner reports 4 2016-Q3: 3 owner reports 3 2016-Q4: 1 owner reports 1 2017-Q1: 2 owner reports 2 2017-Q2: 2 owner reports 2 2017-Q3: 2 owner reports 2 2018-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 2018-Q2: 3 owner reports 3 2019-Q3: 1 owner reports 1 2023-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 2023-Q2: 1 owner reports 1 2023-Q3: 1 owner reports 1 Owner reports Jan 2004 Jul 2023 Recall campaign 06E023000 ◆ Recall campaign 06E023000 Recall campaign 06V242000 ◆ Recall campaign 06V242000 Recall campaign 07E054000 ◆ Recall campaign 07E054000 Recall campaign 07E063000 ◆ Recall campaign 07E063000 Recall campaign 07E074000 ◆ Recall campaign 07E074000
  • Campaign 07E054000 was reported 315 days after the first earlier complaint mapped to its component.
  • Campaign 07E063000 was reported 342 days after the first earlier complaint mapped to its component.
  • Campaign 07E074000 was reported 366 days after the first earlier complaint mapped to its component.
View timeline records as a table
Date Record type Count Record identifier
2004-Q1 Owner reports 8
2004-Q2 Owner reports 2
2004-Q3 Owner reports 3
2004-Q4 Owner reports 2
2005-Q1 Owner reports 2
2005-Q2 Owner reports 3
2005-Q3 Owner reports 4
2006-Q1 Owner reports 2
2006-Q2 Owner reports 1
2006-Q3 Owner reports 3
2006-Q4 Owner reports 5
2007-Q1 Owner reports 10
2007-Q2 Owner reports 8
2007-Q3 Owner reports 5
2007-Q4 Owner reports 11
2008-Q1 Owner reports 11
2008-Q2 Owner reports 8
2008-Q3 Owner reports 9
2008-Q4 Owner reports 8
2009-Q1 Owner reports 5
2009-Q2 Owner reports 8
2009-Q3 Owner reports 10
2009-Q4 Owner reports 2
2010-Q1 Owner reports 5
2010-Q2 Owner reports 8
2010-Q3 Owner reports 6
2010-Q4 Owner reports 5
2011-Q1 Owner reports 3
2011-Q2 Owner reports 6
2011-Q3 Owner reports 6
2011-Q4 Owner reports 4
2012-Q1 Owner reports 4
2012-Q2 Owner reports 1
2012-Q3 Owner reports 6
2012-Q4 Owner reports 5
2013-Q1 Owner reports 3
2013-Q2 Owner reports 5
2013-Q3 Owner reports 7
2013-Q4 Owner reports 2
2014-Q1 Owner reports 1
2014-Q2 Owner reports 6
2014-Q3 Owner reports 7
2014-Q4 Owner reports 6
2015-Q1 Owner reports 6
2015-Q2 Owner reports 7
2015-Q3 Owner reports 2
2015-Q4 Owner reports 2
2016-Q1 Owner reports 4
2016-Q2 Owner reports 4
2016-Q3 Owner reports 3
2016-Q4 Owner reports 1
2017-Q1 Owner reports 2
2017-Q2 Owner reports 2
2017-Q3 Owner reports 2
2018-Q1 Owner reports 1
2018-Q2 Owner reports 3
2019-Q3 Owner reports 1
2023-Q1 Owner reports 1
2023-Q2 Owner reports 1
2023-Q3 Owner reports 1
Recall campaign 1 06E023000
Recall campaign 1 06V242000
Recall campaign 1 07E054000
Recall campaign 1 07E063000
Recall campaign 1 07E074000
NHTSA Safety Recalls Snapshot 2026-08-22 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Safety Recalls (5)

Official safety recall campaigns filed with NHTSA

  1. Manufacturer action

    Recall campaign 06E023000

    Report date
    Component:
    EXTERIOR LIGHTING
    Consequence:
    WITHOUT THE AMBER REFLECTORS, THE VEHICLE WILL BE POORLY ILLUMINATED, POSSIBLY RESULTING IN A VEHICLE CRASH.
    Remedy:
    ANZO WILL NOTIFY OWNERS AND REPLACE THE HEADLAMPS FREE OF CHARGE. THE RECALL BEGAN MAY 9, 2006. OWNERS MAY CONTACT ANZO USA AT 909-468-3688.
    View authoritative NHTSA record →

  2. Manufacturer action

    Recall campaign 06V242000

    Report date
    Component:
    Not available in the source record
    Consequence:
    IF THE INTERRUPTION IN THE SIGNAL FROM THE SENSOR IS SO BRIEF THAT THE ELECTRONIC CONTROL MODULE (ECM) LOGIC DOES NOT HAVE TIME TO DIAGNOSE THE CONDITION, THE ENGINE MAY STOP RUNNING WITHOUT WARNING WHILE THE VEHICLE IS DRIVEN AT A LOW SPEED INCREASING THE RISK OF A CRASH.
    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.
    View authoritative NHTSA record →

  3. Manufacturer action

    Recall campaign 07E054000

    Report date
    Component:
    EXTERIOR LIGHTING
    Consequence:
    DECREASED LIGHTING VISIBILITY MAY RESULT IN A VEHICLE CRASH.
    Remedy:
    MAXZONE WILL NOTIFY OWNERS AND OFFER REIMBURSEMENT FOR ANY NONCOMPLIANT HEADLIGHTS. THE RECALL BEGAN ON JULY 16, 2007. OWNERS MAY CONTACT MAXZONE AT 909-822-3288.
    View authoritative NHTSA record →

  4. Manufacturer action

    Recall campaign 07E063000

    Report date
    Component:
    EXTERIOR LIGHTING
    Consequence:
    DECREASED LIGHTING VISIBILITY MAY RESULT IN A VEHICLE CRASH.
    Remedy:
    ANZO WILL NOTIFY OWNERS AND OFFER A FULL REFUND FOR THE NONCOMPLIANT LAMPS. THE RECALL BEGAN ON SEPTEMBER 10, 2007. OWNERS CAN CONTACT ANZO AT 909-628-1440.
    View authoritative NHTSA record →

  5. Manufacturer action

    Recall campaign 07E074000

    Report date
    Component:
    EXTERIOR LIGHTING
    Consequence:
    DECREASED LIGHTING VISIBILITY MAY RESULT IN A VEHICLE CRASH.
    Remedy:
    EAGLE EYES WILL NOTIFY OWNERS AND OFFER REIMBURSEMENT FOR ANY NONCOMPLIANT HEADLIGHTS. THE RECALL BEGAN ON DECEMBER 11, 2007. OWNERS MAY CONTACT EAGLE EYES AT 1-800-568-1098.
    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 269 complaints · page 1 of 11

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