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:
24,071 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 6 of 26)

« Read the previous 20 complaints

problem #401

Jan 012019

Altima

  • miles

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

Airbag indicator never goes off on dashboard. Airbag malfunction

- Memphis, TN, USA

problem #400

Jul 182019

Altima

  • 56,000 miles
Airbag light came on and passenger airbag was disabled with an adult sitting in the seat. 2 airbag sensors and the control unit need to be replaced to make the car safe to drive with a passenger. Airbag sensors are not covered under the Nissan extended warranty despite being a critical safety issue. I have been charged $930 for parts and labors for the repair although my car is still under the extended warranty that I purchased. My car was purchased used, but has no outstanding recalls, but it is possible that this is the same sensor that should have been replaced in a prior recall.

- Houston, TX, USA

problem #399

Jun 012018

Altima

  • 50,000 miles
One takata airbag was recalled and repaired. The second takata airbag has developed the same faulty readout on the dashboard and should be part of the recall. Dealer (rip-off) quoted nearly $5K to repair which is electrical, is not faulty through misuse, and should be Nissan responsibility. Please help this veteran's widow.

- Fort Walton Beach, FL, USA

problem #398

Jun 242019

Altima

  • 56,000 miles

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

Airbag light has been coming on for almost a year. Reported to dealership 3 times. First visit to dealership it was a code issue. Second time serviced it was unplugged under the seat, cost $142. A week later it came on again and dealership reports the entire driver's seat airbag needs to be replace at the tune of $1900. Extended warranty doesn't cover

- New Orleans, LA, USA

problem #397

May 222019

Altima

  • 150,327 miles
No accident or any work, driver side airbag light remained on. Reset not working. Ac compressor also gives up. 150K.

- Jonesboro, AR, USA

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problem #396

Sep 012017

Altima

  • miles
Takata recall the airbag warning light of my 2013 Nissan Altima has been on for almost two years. I have been gone to Nissan dealership two times, after their maintenance, every time the airbag light goes out for a few days, then it lights up again. The airbag must be failed, but the Nissan dealer did not replace it.

- Atlanta, GA, USA

problem #395

May 032019

Altima

  • 32,800 miles

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

My supplemental air bag light came on 7 - 10 days ago and has remained on. Visited Nissan service on 05/17 and was told diagnostic tests revealed 3 codes indicated further work was needed. The first was to replace the diagnostic unit. Second replace OCS modules 7 both sensors. I have an extended warranty which supposedly does not include air bags. My concern is tis actually is or should be a recall. My quoted price to fix airbags/codes is greater than $1500.

- Berkeley, CA, USA

problem #394

May 142019

Altima

  • miles
I took my car to the dealer to have them see why the airbag lights stay on. The seat belts were on and they just stayed on. The driver side would sometimes go off but the passenger side stayed on even when driving the vehicle. I was told that they cleared an error code but no guarantee that it will not reoccur and that this has nothing to do with the recall on the vehicle and if it happens again I will have to come out of my pocket for $1000 or so dollars even though I a extended warranty on it that somehow doesn't cover. I feel as though the issue was not fixed the first time and they did the bare minimum and passed the rest on to the customer. I am horrified at all the stories I am reading on the internet with others having the same issues, I have around 40000 miles on my car now so you see I don't do alot of hard traveling but want to know my vehicle is safe to drive.

- Corpus Christi, TX, USA

problem #393

May 132019

Altima

  • 85,184 miles
Driver air bag indicator light is on.

- Albuquerque, NM, USA

problem #392

Feb 202019

Altima

  • 6,000 miles
The airbag light stays on all the time

- San Antonio, TX, USA

problem #391

Mar 292019

Altima

  • 130,000 miles

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

Vehicle air bag system fault light is illuminated and the dealer determined the driver side air bag module to be shorted out and therefore requires replacement. The dealer advised that the air bag system is now deactivated due to the fault. Module was not currently in stock and unable to be replaced at time of service.

- Cocoa, FL, USA

problem #390

Mar 292019

Altima

  • 98,000 miles
Their has been many complains on this cvt transmission breaking down between 62,000 miles and 99000 miles it is defective Nissan will do nothing and will not acknowledge defective transmission or powertrain and will not pay to replace any it's a major problem and safety, I am a disabled veteran and was stranded many other consumers have experienced the same and also problems with airbags modules

- Roanoke, TX, USA

problem #389

Mar 292019

Altima

  • 98,000 miles
Air bag lite keeps going off was rekey by Nissan dealer want me to pay for airbag module $3700 Nissan states they would pay half month ago, this is a defective part this is not acceptable, I am a disabled veteran now power as of 3/29/19 is going out after 98,000 cvt trans many consumer complains filed for defective transmissions

- Roanoke, TX, USA

problem #388

Mar 272019

Altima

  • 69,000 miles
The airbag light for the passenger side remains off regardless of the weight of the passenger in the seat, this has been an ongoing issue for 3 years.. multiple trips to the dealer (at at $155 per diagonstic) without a resolution. The prior the dealer stated was due to a low battery. A new battery was installed with the same results. Research on the internet shows multiple complaints with this issue. The car will not pass Virginia inspection and should be deemed unsafe until there is a resolution.

- Purcellville, VA, USA

problem #387

Dec 182018

Altima

  • 103,000 miles
When some one sits in the passenger seat the seat belt notification ding does not come on and it also says the air bag is turned off. Just recently purchased no accidents reported to my knowledge.

- Wichita, KS, USA

problem #386

Feb 152019

Altima

  • 125,000 miles
My air bag light is always off and warning light is on in the dash

- Frontenac, MN, USA

problem #385

Feb 262019

Altima

  • miles
We have received several recall notices involving our Nissan Altima 2013 involving the takata airbags. The recalls have not consisted of anything significant. Throughout the process of these recalls (I believe 2 or 3) our airbag light on dashboard as well as on the center console has intermittently come on and off. We have taken our Nissan to a local Nissan approved dealer for all of our reviews/repairs. Approximately 6 months ago we again took our vehicle and the dealership indicated the light was on due to our car battery being low. This was not the case. My husband used a reader and the car's battery was perfectly fine. Just recently on Tuesday we again took our car in because the airbag light has not turned off. They have indicated that our side airbag is not working, therefore all of the airbags are off and not properly working. The estimated repair for this is $1500 (not including tax). This issue with airbags has been an ongoing issue. Nissan has not made any efforts to fix this problem other than a band-aid recall. The airbags have never been deployed. Finally, I received a class action notification that this vehicle is listed as a eligible member of this class action. www.autoairbagsettlement.com. we have also called Nissan directly and were assigned a case number - 34595466, however no one has provided us with any information. The work on this vehicle is presently being done and will be ready on Friday, however we do not have the money to pay for this repair and will be without a vehicle. Thank you for any assistance you can provide.

- Albuquerque, NM, USA

problem #384

Feb 012017

Altima

  • miles
The contact owns a 2013 Nissan Altima. The contact stated that the air bag indicator randomly flashed and then remained illuminated. The vehicle was not included in NHTSA action numbers: EA15004 (air bags) and (RQ15001) air bags along with four unknown air bag recall campaigns. The vehicle was not diagnosed. Darcars Nissan college park (9330 baltimore ave, college park, md 20740, (301) 441-8000) was notified, but an appointment was not scheduled. The vehicle was also taken to tischer Nissan (3510 fort meade rd, laurel, md 20724, (301) 498-3322) where it was determined that the vehicle was not included in any air bag recall campaigns. Neither dealer provided the guidelines to inspect and diagnose the vehicle. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was not available.

- New Carrollton, MD, USA

problem #383

Jul 302017

Altima

  • 79,000 miles
I took my vehicle in for a sensory recall for the passenger side airbag. Prior to this the airbag indicator light worked properly. The service department at the local Nissan dealership adjusted the sensors and since then the airbag indicator has not been working properly. I took the car back to have the service department readjust the sensors in the seat but that did not correct the problem. I have returned to the dealership several times to have the problem corrected but was told they could not see a problem. I have taken them pictures and videos showing a passenger in my car with the airbag light still on. I have contacted Nissan corporate with this problem as well. Nissan corporate has told me to take my car to the dealership when the light/airbag has not engaged when passenger is in the seat but the last incident happened at 7:30 in the evening when I was out of town. This problem has been ongoing now since 2017. I am reaching out to you because I don't know what else I can do to make my car safe for everyone that rides in it. Thank you... I also have a video of a passenger in the seat but can't get it to load to the document.

- Newnan, GA, USA

problem #382

Sep 012017

Altima

  • 76,000 miles
Hello, my 2013 Nissan Altima has a safety issue with the airbag. Since August 2017, the car's airbag alarm light is on。 after this happened, I went to gainesville Nissan two times, but the problem is not been solved. The first time was on 9/1/2017. They (gainesville Nissan) charged me $34.78 and told me the problem was the airbag sensor, the warning light was removed at that time. But after about two months the airbag light was on the dashboard again. So I went to gainesville Nissan the second time, on 3/5/2018. This time they charged $49.95 and still said it was a problem with the airbag sensor. Unfortunately, the airbag alarm light show on the dashboard one more time after about one month until now. After these two repairs, I have reason to believe that my 2013 Nissan Altima airbag has quality problems, and gainesville Nissan is very irresponsible. And Nissan is recalling cars on a large scale because of airbag problems, I hope my problems can be solved, thanks.

- Atlanta, GA, USA

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