2013 Nissan Altima problems
NHTSA has received 2,986 complaints about the 2013 Nissan Altima, and 17% of them involve air bags. After that come drivetrain & axles (17%) and lighting (15%).
At a glance
- Complaints
- 2,986 filed with NHTSA
- Most reported
- Air bags 17% of complaints
- Crashes and fires
- 104 and 19
- Injuries and deaths
- 92 and 2
- Typical mileage
- 62,000 miles 2,155 complaints with mileage
Source: NHTSA owner complaints
Where the complaints are
Share of this model year's complaints by the part of the car involved. One complaint can name more than one part, so the shares can add up to more than 100%.
When problems show up
View the numbers
| Mileage | Complaints |
|---|---|
| 0k to 20k miles | 529 |
| 20k to 40k miles | 238 |
| 40k to 60k miles | 245 |
| 60k to 80k miles | 362 |
| 80k to 100k miles | 342 |
| 100k to 120k miles | 175 |
| 120k to 140k miles | 146 |
| 140k to 160k miles | 66 |
| 160k to 180k miles | 26 |
| 180k to 200k miles | 16 |
| 200k+ miles | 10 |
What the data shows
Among the 2,155 complaints that report mileage, the typical (median) problem appeared at about 62,000 miles. For air bags specifically, the median reported mileage is about 14,000 miles (351 complaints with mileage).
Safety-related details: 104 complaints mention a crash; 19 complaints mention a fire; 92 injuries reported; 2 deaths reported.
Looking only at complaints filed within five years of the model year (so older and newer years are comparable), the 2013 ranks 1st most-complained-about out of 32 model years of the Nissan Altima with enough data (1,759 complaints in that window). It is also covered by 12 safety recall campaigns.
What owners wrote
A few complaints as filed, shortened and with personal details removed. The first ones are among the most serious reports for this model year; the rest are typical.
Vehicle struck tree, engulfed in flames. Driver, sole occupant, also engulfed in flames inside car. Vehicle was on city street, no other vehicles involved in crash.
I was in an accident and the air bags did not deploy. My children and I were injured. I serviced my car at nissan for the airbag recall twice. I received a recall from NHTSA and nissan wouldn't comply. Every time I've taken my car for the brake pads to be serviced I only need rotors never brake pads! The driver side door handle broke for no reason what so ever this car is a clunker!
I was exiting the highway at 30MPH when I suddenly lost control of the car. I was able to pull over safety thank god. I got out and that's when I noticed that the control arm on the rear driver side had snapped off due to rust.
Tl* the contact owns a 2013 nissan altima. While driving approximately 75 MPH, an abnormal banging noise was heard and the vehicle vibrated and rattled. In addition, the contact mentioned that the steering wheel was difficult to steer. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed that the rear lower control arm fractured and needed to be replaced. An independent mechanic repaired the vehicle. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 130,000.