CarComplaints.com Notes: The 2016 Nissan Altima shows multiple problem trends, continuing the poor reputation of the 2013-2015 Altima, prompting us to give it our "Beware of the Clunker" badge.
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.
Vehicle unexpectedly stalls WITHOUT illuminating brake lights! MAJOR SAFETY ISSUE with AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION FAULTY CVT. (Potential causes to unexpected Collisions) It unexpectedly Shakes, hesitates while shifting, struggles to change gear, wont change gear, stalls, and makes noise such as whining and/or grinding. These problems happen WHILE DRIVING HIGHWAY SPEEDS. It also happens coming from a stop. Completely dangerous happen once to me crossing an intersection car dodged me preventing a MAJOR accident/collision. This is a KNOWN ISSUE FOR THIS MODEL AND MANY OTHER NISSANS. NEED TO BE A RECALL ON TRANSMISSION ASAP. MANUFACTURE SHOULD BE ACCOUNTABLE FOR THIS SAFETY ISSUE NOT CONSUMER!! NOT a the weak manufacturer extended warranty from class action lawsuit. Nissan requires this $5k repair on these defective transmissions over 84k miles to be at owner expense. That repair cost extends well above what the average owner can immediately cover. Putting that owner/family and millions of others on highway/roads at risk of major accidents/collisions due to the unexpected failure of the transmission stalling, hesitating, shuddering, & distracting noises without brakes illuminating making cars around aware of an immediate unexpected speed decrease.
The contact owns a 2016 Nissan Altima. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle lost motive power. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was towed to the local dealer where the transmission was replaced. However, the failure reoccurred two years later. The contact stated while driving 15 MPH, the RPM revved up however, the vehicle lost motive power and started jerking while depressing the accelerator pedal. The contact stated that upon depressing the accelerator pedal, the vehicle remained stuck in first gear. The contact was able to drive to her residence at a slower speed while still experiencing the failure. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed that the transmission needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The vehicle was then towed to the dealer who informed the contact that the vehicle could not be repaired under warranty due to the mileage. The contact referenced Nissan Technical Service Number: 15-084A. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 80,000.
VEHICLE: 2016 Nissan Altima SL. I have a Nissan Altima, which is known to have CVT transmission issues. My issues started all of a sudden when my car immediately lost acceleration in the middle of moving traffic, resulting in my car almost being rear-ended on the highway. I had to quickly put the car in park, turn the car off and on and exit onto shoulder lane with a lot of shuddering and stalling coming from engine.I turned the car off again and waited for engine to cool down before attempting to drive again. I had to park my car somewhere overnight as the car was not making it home. The next day I took it to Nissan dealership (with much difficulty), almost resulting in another accident due to random and sporadic loss of acceleration. Nissan confirmed that it was transmission related (I have paperwork). Nissan has known CVT failures for 2013-2016 models and this should be covered under extended powertrain warranty. I am writing this because I have kept up with maintenance for my car and this issue had randomly appeared, often no tell signs until it happens, which Nissan then says is too late. The safety of myself and others is affected because this issue literally results in a loss of control over the car and in cities during traffic hours could be deadly. My vehicle is available for inspection upon request.
I have intermittent acceleration issues and high RPM revving on my car, which causes safety issues especially when making left turns across traffic. This seems to be a common problem. I have not taken to a Nissan dealer yet, but have talked to one and they say I need a new transmission probably for $6,000. I also took it to my local mechanic a few months ago but he could not diagnose anything because it was intermittent. But anyway its frustrating to have a car with known issues and well documented. I don't mind spending the $6,000 if it actually fixes the problem but based upon my research it could be many different things.
- Fenton, MO, USA
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My 2016 Altima is experiencing hesitation when accelerating, jerking and shuddering while driving. The RPMs go up but the car doesn't respond. Yes, the vehicle is available for inspection. The car doesn't respond as it should when entering traffic (feels like the transmission is slipping) which means I have to slow down while merging into traffic on the freeway rather than accelerate. It puts myself and passengers at risk as well as other drivers. The vehicle has not been inspected by the manufacturer or dealer for this issue. This vehicle only has 33,000 miles on the car but the symptom's were apparent obvious around 25,000 miles.
The contact owns a 2016 Nissan Altima. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle stalled with the check engine warning light illuminated. The contact had taken the vehicle to several dealers and independent mechanics; however, no codes were retrieved while performing the diagnostic tests. The contact then took the vehicle to another independent mechanic where she was informed that there was a power train recall for similar vehicles. The vehicle was taken to a dealer where she was informed that the vehicle was under warranty however, the vehicle no longer qualified for the warranty. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was unknown.
The contact owns a 2016 Nissan Altima. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle stalled. The check engine and traction control warning light were illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer where it was diagnosed that the battery terminal connector was too small for the battery. A connector was added. The contact called another dealer, King Windward Nissan (45-568 Kamehameha Hwy, Kaneohe, HI 96544) and was informed that the vehicle was not covered under warranty. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic and the contact was informed that the failure was due to the transmission. The manufacturer was not notified. The failure mileage was approximately 104,000.
The contact owns a 2016 Nissan Altima. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle failed to accelerate and instead decelerated. On another occasion while driving approximately 20-30 MPH, the vehicle was jerking with an abnormal ticking sound. The check engine warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer but the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic and diagnosed with transmission failure. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 84,000.
My car only have 85000 mile on it and it jerks sometimes and was told it was a Transmission Fluid Pressure Sensor/Switch A Circuit Range/Performance and after doing research a lot of people transmission are doing the same thing. Nissan should be made to fix the problem
While trying to pull out of a intersection, car will not move or will move very slowly. I have almost been t-boned twice with my family in the car. This happens intermittently, 4 times in the past year. After car is turned off and restarted the issue seems to go away until the next time. The needs to be a safety recall before someone gets seriously hurt.
I just purchased this vehicle with 93,000 miles and good condition. A warning or indicator light never comes on but sporadically I will be driving around 40-50mph & if I let off of the gas something happens where no matter how hard or fast I press the accelerator the car looses power. I can press the accelerator all the way to the floor & still not speed up. The car will slowly decrease speed until about 30mph or either I have to take my foot off of the accelerator totally & press hard about 1/4 on the accelerator to regain power. It feels like the pressure behind the accelerator disappears when all of this happens. There is no dimming of lights or anything obvious. It happens when my Mom drives also. I have lost power trying to pass a car or turn with oncoming traffic ahead. It scares me.
Acceleration from stand still occasionally does not occur. This causes us to press harder on the acceleration pedal and suddenly the car accelerates with high RPM. There is no check engine light. This is particularly at risky when left side turns at traffic signals are made. The problem has not been reproduced but has happened occasionally and usually turning off the engine completely and restarting the car results in the resolution of the issue temporarily. Car has not been inspected by anyone so far.
I was on the highway taking my newborn and my 2 year old home when the car was not going very fast when I went up a hill. I wasn-??t sure what the issue was so I proceeded to drive my car the next day. I was driving at towards and intersection and my car did not stop at a red light, at a 4 way intersection. At this point my car did not signal a check engine light so I had no idea what the issue was. I put my car in park at the nearest parking lot and my check engine light came on. My check engine light is on at only 99,000 miles. I had my transmission fluid flushed and changed, the vehicle was running completely fine with no issues, 2 days later it was running as if the transmission had no fluid in it. The Nissan dealership said that the vehicle had internal damage to the transmission.
Delayed acceleration issue. I am stopped at a light or in traffic and I press on the gas to go and it does nothing at all. This is occurring at various intervals...it just happens. I have been stopped to cross intersection and when light turns green, the car does not go at all for several seconds, 6-10 seconds. No warning lights are on. I have read this is a known problem for Nissan and there is no recall or action taken on their part. How many people have to be hurt or potentially killed before action is taken. I have taken it to the dealer and they cannot reproduce problem because it does not happen all the time and their is not error or warning code.
Starting at around 80k miles I noticed a bit of jerking and stalling while driving with no warning indicator and got it checked out 2 times and was told it was a battery issue and bought a new battery. After the battery replacement I noticed it was still continuing but I was not getting the transmission issue on the reader until one day I was completely stalled in traffic with my newborn baby and tried to floor the accelerator but was slowly moving that it triggered the check engine light and finally the transmission error came up on the reader. Nissan is fully aware of the ongoing issues with the CVT transmission and will not extend the warranty to cover their defective CVTs. The transmission has been replaced by my own extended warranty at the Nissan dealership but I am still experiencing the same jerking and slight stall when I accelerate.
I have had this 2016 Nissan Altima SR for the past 5 years (1st owner) and it just began giving me acceleration issues about 2 months ago. At random times, while at a stop, reversing, doing a u-turn or changing gears, I step on the accelerator and it will not move. I have pushed all the way down on the accelerator and it won't budge for about 10 seconds, until then, it will just throw itself at a really high speed. There is no warning or light on the dashboard stating something is wrong. It does it at random times. There have been numerous times were I have been put at risk of a car accident because of this issue. Once, I was at a green light waiting to make a left, and when I had a chance to turn before the oncoming cars, I went for it, only to have the accelerator not work and go REALLY slowly (as if it was on neutral). At that speed, I was midway and the oncoming car was honking at me as it was getting closer. I kept stepping on the accelerator and nothing would happen. Luckily, a few seconds later it threw itself to a really high speed and I was able to make it before the oncoming car hit me. I have taken it to the dealer, only to find out I would be charged $169 for a diagnostics test and even then they wouldn't guarantee anything because it doesn't have any kind of warning light on the dashboard. The dealer then stated it could possibly be the transmission or throttle body. How is it possible for me to waste so much money on something the dealer itself is so unsure of the results" How can they guarantee they can fix the issue without happening again and possibly getting into an accident" I have heard of other Altima owners who have been told it is the transmission and they change it, only to have the same problems all over again. This issue really needs to be looked at before it gets more serious and cause devastating accidents. Thankfully it has not done that to me on the fwy yet.
For the past two years I have been experiencing dim headlights. I have had them change twice and still cannot see 5 feet ahead of me. I was unaware that this could be a common problem with this model. Also, the passenger air light stays on even when no one is sitting in the seat. this problem started about six months ago. Now I think the transmission maybe starting to slip.
Transmission seems to get stuck and not want to move at times. Airbag light on dash and some times shows pass air bag light off when there is a passenger in the seat.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Birmingham, AL, USA