CarComplaints.com Notes: The 2013 Nissan Altima has multiple problem trends including the CVT transmission, and now that this model is out of warranty, it earns our "Avoid Like The Plague" badge.

Owners complain about vibration and transmission failure related to the CVT (Continuously Variable Transmission), a whining noise from the power steering pump, and constant windshield problems that appear to be the result of poor design.

Be warned: the 2014 & 2015 Nissan Altima appears to share these same problems.

10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
28 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
34 / 0
Average Mileage:
23,833 miles

About These NHTSA Complaints:

This data is from the NHTSA — the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints are spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem.

So how do you find out what problems are occurring? For this NHTSA complaint data, the only way is to read through the comments below. Any duplicates or errors? It's not us.

2013 Nissan Altima seat belts / air bags problems

seat belts / air bags problem

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2013 Nissan Altima Owner Comments (Page 10 of 26)

« Read the previous 20 complaints

problem #326

May 192017

Altima

  • miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

We brought the car into the dealership because of the OCS recall and they reprogrammed the system but it didn't seem to fix the issue, within the year we had to replace both OCS sensors and have it reprogrammed again. I do not feel they met the intent of the recall and would love to know if this issue is/was common and what if anything can be done about it.

- Beaumont, TX, USA

problem #325

May 012017

Altima

  • 82,000 miles
Passenger airbag light does not sense passenger sitting in seat to turn air bag on (intermittently) and airbag light is constantly on on the dashboard yet no codes have been shown when mechanic tried to pull codes. Light is on constant when in motion or stationary. Passenger air bag light sometimes senses, other times it does not.

- Yarmouth, ME, USA

problem #324

May 032017

Altima

  • 38,500 miles
This incident occurred 5/3/2017. Driver and (180 lb) adult passenger entered car in front seats, clicked seatbelts, started vehicle and drove approx. 1 mile. Passenger noticed airbag defeat light was on. Driver pulled over; turned car off; restarted car; light went out. The airbag system did not detect an adult passenger upon initial travel, but did after the car was restarted. This vehicle has already had recallntb16-052 applied. On 5/5/2017 dealer could not replicate and has refused service.

- Escondido, CA, USA

problem #323

Sep 162013

Altima

  • 10 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

Purchased a new 2013 Altima for almost 40,000 and since the beginning the car air bags has worked only if you are sitting on your seat before you start the car. Big safety concern because we noticed once on the freeway when he had to brake hard that the airbags were off, I could have died. Had Nissan enginheer test it and they told me I just need to turn the car off and then on after a new person boards the car, ridiculous. I need help ad nobody will do anything. Do not buy this car save yourself! told them we did not purchase a car with a major safety problem like this and Nissan wont fix this. It has been 4 years now. We have papers that show how many times we have called and brought the car in and nothing. Hiring a lawyer is our next step

- Buckeye, AZ, USA

problem #322

Jan 112016

Altima

  • 18,000 miles
After startup with a passenger in the front seat, the passenger side airbag light stays on intermittantly. We have taken it to the dealership for repair 5 times. 4 times they "reprogrammed the PCM according to the recall" and the last time did nothing. I did call Nissan and they opened a 'case' prior to the last repair attempt (#25798531) and still no attempt at repair was done because they couldn't duplicate the problem (in 30 miles, don't know how many times they actually got out of the passenger seat and restarted the car). This has been happening almost since new; but we thought the light was supposed to be on! I know that this is not an uncommon problem via research on the internet.

- Placerville, CA, USA

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problem #321

Apr 062017

Altima

  • 32,000 miles
2013 Nissan Altima 2.5S was serviced on December 19, 2016 at planet Nissan 5850 centennial center blvd. Las vegas, nv 89149 dealer performed R1609 OCS recall & PC490 cvt reprogram recall. During these process some electrical items damage. Now cvt (continues variable transmission) is failing. On April 6, 2017 took vehicle to autonation Nissan las vegas 5800 w. sahara ave the service consultant said cvt is bad and needs to be replace but Nissan do not want to pay. Vehicle drives but when you reach 25-35 miles per hour it jerks, also 65 miles per hour it jerks then it looses power, vehicle comes to a stop and it does not move. This vehicle is not safe to be on the road. Nissan needs to correct this issue before somebody gets injured.

- Las Vegas, NV, USA

problem #320

Jan 152013

Altima

  • miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

Passenger airbag indicator light indicates airbag is "inhibited" even though my wife is riding in the passenger seat. She has no protection from the airbag in the event of an accident.

- Chardon, OH, USA

problem #319

Mar 212017

Altima

  • 64,000 miles
Despite multiple recalls and fixes to the passenger airbag (all open recalls completed), there are still times when a normal weight passenger is in the passenger seat and the airbag light indicates that it is off with no passenger present. The dealer has not been able to fix this, despite all the visits/recalls to date. It is not a permanent fault, just an occasional fault - passenger normally around adult/teenagers 200lb

- Marietta, GA, USA

problem #318

Feb 202017

Altima

  • 36,000 miles
NHTSA recall 16V-244 (R1609) was performed by dealer capitol Nissan in wilmington nc on 2/220/17 and only made the problem worse. This was the third time that the dealer had attempted to reprogram/address the problem.

- Southport, NC, USA

problem #317

Jan 012017

Altima 4-cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • 36,600 miles
The contact owns a 2013 Nissan Altima. The contact stated that the vehicle was previously repaired per NHTSA campaign number: 16V244000 (air bags). While the engine was running and the passenger seat was occupied, a warning indicator illuminated, which meant that the air bag was deactivated. The contact took the vehicle to the dealer, but the cause of the failure could not be determined. The vehicle was not repaired and the failure recurred. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 36,600. Updated 04/06/17 lj the consumer stated the vehicle was repaired under recall, twice. The failure recurred. Updated 08/29/2017

- Marietta, GA, USA

problem #316

Sep 172015

Altima

  • 15,700 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

Light on passenger side of car is still giving us trouble. We made complaints about 2 yrs. After purchasing the car. We noticed the light came coming off and on in those two years before. Co said they were waiting for an official recall. They got it and we were told to bring the car in to be fixed. We did. They said it was fixed. About two weeks later until now the light keeps coming on and off. I am worried about my wife. We are both 77 yrs. Old. I am worried about however is sitting in my car in the passenger seat. I do not know if air bag is on or if it will go off by itself. I called Nissan dealership and they said nothing could be done. They said I could bring it in only when they could see the light on. Happens when car is in motion.

- Bluffton, SC, USA

problem #315

Aug 112013

Altima

  • miles
They fix my passager airbag but my driver side came on. And my car engine sound loud went U drive it. Sound like a muffler sound but I don't have a hold on it.

- Pawtucket, RI, USA

problem #314

Jan 112017

Altima

  • miles
The OCS passenger side airbag sensor is no longer working. Nissan has refused to make any necessary repairs to ensure the safety of the vehicle. Nissan rep.quinn, first claim it was due to mileage. The second call, from yesterday, she stranded it was a warranty issue. Given the continuing issues with the sensor, the interest of public safety and the lack of assistance with repairs, it is necessary to report this defect to the nhtsha.

- Clinton, NC, USA

problem #313

Jan 122017

Altima

  • 65,000 miles
Passenger air bag not recognizing when someone is in the seat. Airbag remains off even with a passenger in the seat. The dealer has looked at the car multiple times and they state they can not find the problem. They have worked on the sensors and recalibrated them but the light continues to go on and off and airbag appears to be nonfunctional. Dealer says they can not duplicate the issue and system is operating as designed.. light continues to come on intermittently when the seat is occupied

- Pinch, WV, USA

problem #312

Jan 052017

Altima

  • 500 miles
2013 Nissan Altima S - safety system defect / malfunction problem:2 aspects (1)the OCS airbag and seatbelt system warning light "incorrectly indicates" a passenger is not in the seat when in fact the seat is occupied! this condition "turns off the air bag protection for an adult passenger!" (2)the seatbelt light 'incorrectly indicates' that a passenger is unbelted. Erroneous test results: Nissan 'tests' this safety system on equipment programmed by Nissan ' via a humanly devised algorithm. In other words, since the 'test equipment' is programmed incorrectly, the results will be wrong. Proof: Nissan has recalled to reprogram my vehicle 4 times (I think) ' a new 'test' algorithm. Additionally, Nissan refuses to acknowledge that there could be a faulty components of this safety system. If the 'test' fails to show a system fault. Nissan ignores the problem. Nissan refuses to replace components of this faulty system. 2013 ' 2017ocs system malfunction continues after multiple reprogrammings by Nissan. Nissan has never fixed this faulty system. Nissan needs to replace this safety system immediately!

- Austin, TX, USA

problem #311

Jan 032017

Altima

  • 39,900 miles
The contact owns a 2013 Nissan Altima. The contact stated that the passenger side air bag warning indicator was constantly illuminated. The failure appeared after the vehicle was repaired per NHTSA campaign number: 16V244000 (air bags). The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 39,900.

- Hoffman Estates, IL, USA

problem #310

Dec 162016

Altima

  • 52,435 miles
The contact owns a 2013 Nissan Altima. The contact stated that the passenger side air bag warning indicator illuminated on the instrument panel. The vehicle was taken to the dealer and serviced per NHTSA campaign number: 14V138000 (air bags), but the remedy failed to repair the vehicle. The contact mentioned that the air bag warning indicator remained illuminated after the recall repair. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 52,435.

- Jesup, GA, USA

problem #309

Nov 192016

Altima

  • 60,859 miles
Vehicle was moving on a city street when it was hit on the driver side door by another vehicle. Side air bags did not deploy after recent recall work regarding SRS was performed. Please see attached documentation.

- Saint Charlres, MO, USA

problem #308

Dec 032016

Altima

  • 62,000 miles
When an adult passenger sits in the front passenger seat the airbag dash light does not go off to indicate that air bag is functional! this is while in motion, stationary, and can sporadically work as it should but I am still concerned that the system is malfunctioning! !

- Hannibal, MO, USA

problem #307

Aug 072016

Altima 4-cyl

  • 45,000 miles
The orange passenger airbag light came on right after I purchased the car in 96/97/2015, with the number 1 underneath. This light would go away every once in a while based on usage. In the last 3months or more August 2016 is when the red airbag warning light starting flashing when car is turned on moving, with a passenger or without.

- Santa Rosa, CA, USA

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