2018 NISSAN ALTIMA — Owner-Reported Problems

NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation Snapshot 2026-08-22 223 complaints · 2 recalls
Most-reported system: AIR BAGS (24 complaints · 10.8%)
Safety signals:
  • Crashes 11
  • Fires 0
  • Injuries 6
  • Deaths 0
Compare with 2017 →
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 24 of 223 owner complaints (10.8%) in this vehicle snapshot. AIR BAGS: 24 complaints, 10.8% of reports AIR BAGS 24 · 10.8% · 1 crash reports ELECTRICAL SYSTEM: 24 complaints, 10.8% of reports ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 24 · 10.8% POWER TRAIN: 19 complaints, 8.5% of reports POWER TRAIN 19 · 8.5% SERVICE BRAKES: 17 complaints, 7.6% of reports SERVICE BRAKES 17 · 7.6% · 2 crash reports EXTERIOR LIGHTING: 12 complaints, 5.4% of reports EXTERIOR LIGHTING 12 · 5.4% · 1 crash reports FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: 12 complaints, 5.4% of reports FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE 12 · 5.4% VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL: 7 complaints, 3.1% of reports VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL 7 · 3.1% ENGINE: 6 complaints, 2.7% of reports ENGINE 6 · 2.7% STEERING: 6 complaints, 2.7% of reports STEERING 6 · 2.7% UNKNOWN OR OTHER: 104 complaints, 46.6% of reports UNKNOWN OR OTHER 104 · 46.6% · 4 crash 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 24 10.8% 1 crashes · 0 fires
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 24 10.8% 0 crashes · 0 fires
POWER TRAIN 19 8.5% 0 crashes · 0 fires
SERVICE BRAKES 17 7.6% 2 crashes · 0 fires
EXTERIOR LIGHTING 12 5.4% 1 crashes · 0 fires
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE 12 5.4% 0 crashes · 0 fires
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL 7 3.1% 0 crashes · 0 fires
ENGINE 6 2.7% 0 crashes · 0 fires
STEERING 6 2.7% 0 crashes · 0 fires
UNKNOWN OR OTHER 104 46.6% 4 crashes · 0 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 2018; the first recall shown was reported in Sep 2019. 2018-Q3: 1 owner reports 1 2018-Q4: 5 owner reports 5 2019-Q1: 10 owner reports 10 2019-Q2: 12 owner reports 12 2019-Q3: 12 owner reports 12 2019-Q4: 23 owner reports 23 2020-Q1: 12 owner reports 12 2020-Q2: 11 owner reports 11 2020-Q3: 19 owner reports 19 2020-Q4: 5 owner reports 5 2021-Q1: 10 owner reports 10 2021-Q2: 11 owner reports 11 2021-Q3: 8 owner reports 8 2021-Q4: 5 owner reports 5 2022-Q1: 7 owner reports 7 2022-Q2: 1 owner reports 1 2022-Q3: 4 owner reports 4 2022-Q4: 5 owner reports 5 2023-Q1: 5 owner reports 5 2023-Q2: 3 owner reports 3 2023-Q3: 4 owner reports 4 2023-Q4: 2 owner reports 2 2024-Q1: 5 owner reports 5 2024-Q2: 8 owner reports 8 2024-Q3: 4 owner reports 4 2024-Q4: 2 owner reports 2 2025-Q1: 4 owner reports 4 2025-Q2: 6 owner reports 6 2025-Q3: 5 owner reports 5 2025-Q4: 3 owner reports 3 2026-Q1: 5 owner reports 5 2026-Q2: 4 owner reports 4 2026-Q3: 2 owner reports 2 Owner reports Jul 2018 Jul 2026 Recall campaign 19V654000 ◆ Recall campaign 19V654000 Recall campaign 20V315000 ◆ Recall campaign 20V315000 Investigation PE18013 ● Investigation PE18013 Investigation EA19002 ● Investigation EA19002 Investigation EA21002 ● Investigation EA21002 Investigation AQ22003 ● Investigation AQ22003
  • Campaign 20V315000 was reported 573 days after the first earlier complaint mapped to its component.
View timeline records as a table
Date Record type Count Record identifier
2018-Q3 Owner reports 1
2018-Q4 Owner reports 5
2019-Q1 Owner reports 10
2019-Q2 Owner reports 12
2019-Q3 Owner reports 12
2019-Q4 Owner reports 23
2020-Q1 Owner reports 12
2020-Q2 Owner reports 11
2020-Q3 Owner reports 19
2020-Q4 Owner reports 5
2021-Q1 Owner reports 10
2021-Q2 Owner reports 11
2021-Q3 Owner reports 8
2021-Q4 Owner reports 5
2022-Q1 Owner reports 7
2022-Q2 Owner reports 1
2022-Q3 Owner reports 4
2022-Q4 Owner reports 5
2023-Q1 Owner reports 5
2023-Q2 Owner reports 3
2023-Q3 Owner reports 4
2023-Q4 Owner reports 2
2024-Q1 Owner reports 5
2024-Q2 Owner reports 8
2024-Q3 Owner reports 4
2024-Q4 Owner reports 2
2025-Q1 Owner reports 4
2025-Q2 Owner reports 6
2025-Q3 Owner reports 5
2025-Q4 Owner reports 3
2026-Q1 Owner reports 5
2026-Q2 Owner reports 4
2026-Q3 Owner reports 2
Recall campaign 1 19V654000
Recall campaign 1 20V315000
Defect investigation 1 PE18013
Defect investigation 1 EA19002
Defect investigation 1 EA21002
Defect investigation 1 AQ22003
NHTSA Safety Recalls Snapshot 2026-08-22 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Safety Recalls (2)

Official safety recall campaigns filed with NHTSA

  1. Manufacturer action

    Recall campaign 19V654000

    Report date
    Component:
    BACK OVER PREVENTION
    Consequence:
    The lack of an image in the back-up camera display increases the risk of a crash.
    Remedy:
    Nissan will notify owners in phases, having dealers update the back-up camera settings software, free of charge. The recall began November 11, 2019 and all affected VINs should be activated. Owners may contact Nissan customer service at 1-800-867-7669 or INFINITI customer service at 1-800-662-6200.
    View authoritative NHTSA record →

  2. Manufacturer action

    Recall campaign 20V315000

    Report date
    Component:
    LATCHES/LOCKS/LINKAGES
    Consequence:
    Corrosion to the secondary latch may cause it to bind and remain in the unlatched position when the hood is closed. If the primary latch is inadvertently released again and the secondary latch is not engaged, the hood could unexpectedly open while driving, increasing the risk of a vehicle crash.
    Remedy:
    Nissan will notify owners, and dealers will install a stronger release spring in the hood release lever, a warning label near the secondary hood latch, and an Owner’s Manual addendum card with instructions on how to lubricate and maintain the secondary hood latch mechanism, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed June 30, 2021. Owners may contact Nissan customer service at 1-800-867-7669. Note: Recall 16V-029 remains open for any unremedied 2013-2015 Altimas and this recall applies to all vehicles covered by 16V-029 even if those repairs have already been performed.
    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 223 complaints · page 1 of 9

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