Complaint volume
174 consumer-submitted complaints are matched to this model year. Treat the count as a research signal, then read the actual summaries for repeated symptoms.
Complaint records
2020 Nissan Altima Complaints
174 consumer-submitted complaints on record for the 2020 Nissan Altima, grouped by component category.
174 Total complaints
16 Crash reports
7 Fire reports
10 Injury reports
Complaint data reflects consumer-submitted reports. A complaint is not proof
of a defect, recall, or manufacturer fault. Enriched severity fields come
from official bulk records when the complaint can be matched by ODI number.
Buyer interpretation
How to use these complaints before buying
Complaint records are most useful when they turn into inspection points, seller questions, and comparison checks against nearby model years.
Pattern to inspect
The most common categories are unknown or other, electrical system, engine. Use those categories as a test-drive checklist instead of judging the vehicle from the total count alone.
Severity flags
Enriched records include 16 crash reports, 7 fire reports, 10 injury reports, and 1 fatality report. These fields come from complaint records and should be read in context.
Mileage clue
Mileage is available on 47 complaints, with an average reported failure mileage of 42,742 miles. Compare that with the mileage on the listing.
Questions to ask the seller
- Have you had any problems related to unknown or other, electrical system, engine?
- Can I see recent maintenance and repair records?
- Has the vehicle ever been towed, involved in a crash, or repaired for the same issue twice?
- Can we also check the recall record for this 2020 Nissan Altima?
Used-car checklist
Use these complaints before the test drive.
Build a buyer checklist to turn these issues into questions and inspection points.
2020 Nissan Altima
Build buyer checklist Compare with other years Sends year, make, and model to pre-fill your checklist.
How severe are the 2020 Nissan Altima complaints?
16 Crash
7 Fire
10 Injury
1 Fatality
15 Towed
6 Medical attention
What are the most common 2020 Nissan Altima complaint categories?
UNKNOWN OR OTHER 24
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 22
ENGINE 18
POWER TRAIN 10
STEERING 10
SERVICE BRAKES 7
AIR BAGS 6
VISIBILITY/WIPER 6
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE 5
STRUCTURE 4
174 total complaints on record
Latest complaints
| Date | Component | Summary | Severity | Mileage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oct 2025 | AIR BAGS | 2020 Nissan Altima involved in a 3 car collision. Altima was rear ended by a vehicle travelling approximately 50 MPH and forced Altima to rear end the vehicle in front of it. Vehicle is a total loss. No air bags deployed. | Crash: Yes Fire: No Towed Medical attention | Unknown |
| Sep 2025 | ELECTRICAL SYSTEM | My driver door does not lock and unlock automatically. This poses a risk because my door remains unlocked when I think that it is locked. Also, I have to go in through the backseat of the passenger seat in order to get in my car posing risk of someone coming up behind me. I had the back actuators replaced a couple of years ago, I asked about the front since the car was still under warranty and I was told they would not replace them since they were not acting up at the time. I was told at one point it would be around $800 to have the front ones repaired. The lock has been working intermittently probably for the last year and a half, but have now completely quit working. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Sep 2025 | SERVICE BRAKES,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | THE VEHICLE HAS ACTIVATED A FALSE AEB ON SEVERAL OCASSIONS SINCE I PURCHASED THE VEHICLE. I IMMEDIATELY TOOK IT BACK TO NISSAN AND THEY STATED THERE WERE NO RECALLS AND THE VEHICLE SEEMED TO HAVE NO ISSUES. I'VE HAD THE VEHICLE FOR 5 YEARS AND IT CONTINUES TO OCCUR, NEARLY CAUSING A TRAFFIC COLLISION. TWICE THIS YEAR, THE VEHICLE MADE A COMPLETE STOP ON THE HWY AND TOOK A MINUTE BEFORE I COULD RESUME DRIVING. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Sep 2025 | POWER TRAIN | Many times while I'm driving, I feel a jerky motion. when I am at a stop light, and proceed to hit the accelerator, it will not pick up. I have lost power, the car will jerk while I'm driving. The RPM will rave go up. It's very dangerous because I can be driving and the engine will lose or reduced power. I get a whining sound, like my transmission, is gonna go out. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Sep 2025 | ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING | The contact owns a 2020 Nissan Altima. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 25V437000 (Engine and Engine Cooling); however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The local dealer was contacted. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue and a case was filed. The contact had not experienced a failure. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Sep 2025 | SUSPENSION,ENGINE,FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM | I been having issues with my car stalling out and not wanting to start I got the spark plugs replaced by a mechanic and then my car starts over heating I have my car looked at by a mechanic again and I’m told the engine is corrupt by oil and the fuel pump is bad my car can be inspected for this issue as it is having a lot more issues due to the Nissan recalls but my vin doesn’t cover it | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Sep 2025 | ENGINE | I’ve received notice that my car is subject to engine failure. I’m afraid to drive it and I need this issue fixed ASAP. What should I do? | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Aug 2025 | UNKNOWN OR OTHER | All 4 door lock actuators prematurely fail, causing doors to remain unlocked or locked even after numerous times of locking/unlocking, posing a safety risk. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jul 2025 | ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING | The contact owns a 2020 Nissan Altima. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 25V437000 (ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING). The local dealers were contacted; however, the recall information failed to show while entering the VIN information. The manufacturer was not made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure. Parts distribution disconnect. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jul 2025 | UNKNOWN OR OTHER | My back up camera was pink this morning went to work then noticed next time I backed up it was a static picture and then backed up again and its blue and now it's back to the static picture | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jul 2025 | UNKNOWN OR OTHER | Driver side front and passenger rear doors locks stopped working when trying to lock doors. Stopped working a few months ago. Door doesn't lock when put into gear to drive. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jul 2025 | ENGINE | I am the owner of a 2020 Nissan Altima (VIN: [XXX] ), and I am reaching out to formally report a serious, ongoing issue with the vehicle’s engine performance. I have paid out of pocket for repairs, yet the issue persists, resulting in continuous inconvenience, emotional distress, missed work, and significant financial strain. After researching, I believed my vehicle might have been subject to a recent recall due to widespread reports of engine failure and related concerns in this model. However, the dealership denied any open recalls related to my VIN. The conflicting information, combined with the unresolved mechanical failure, has caused immense frustration. I am requesting a full review of this matter, including whether this issue qualifies under any known recalls, customer service campaigns, or warranty extensions. I am prepared to escalate this issue legally if necessary. Please acknowledge this complaint and inform me of next steps. Sincerely, [XXX] [XXX] [XXX] [XXX] INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6) | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jul 2025 | FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | The contact owns a 2020 Nissan Altima. The contact stated while driving approximately 50 MPH, the vehicle lost motive power. The contact stated that the message "Engine Malfunction" was displayed, and the check engine, traction control, and Forward Collision Avoidance warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed and determined that the mass air flow sensor needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired but the failure reoccurred days later. The vehicle was then taken to an independent machinic where it was diagnosed and determined that the battery needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired but the failure persisted. The contact stated that the battery was replaced three additional times by several independent mechanics; however, the failure reoccurred. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 60,000. | Crash: No Fire: No | 60,000 |
| Jul 2025 | ENGINE | My check engine light comes on & the it will go off then back on again… | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jul 2025 | ENGINE | My car is said malfunction Loss of engine power | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jul 2025 | ENGINE | Since August of 2024 I noticed that my vehicle had strange noises coming from the engine and I was having a coolant loss but did not see anything on the ground. I then took my car to Nissan in New Orleans and they were recommending that I replace my entire engine. I’m not sure of their findings but still to this moment my vehicle still makes the same noise from the engine and still is having a coolant loss. I did notice that the coolant is overfilling in the reservoir tank and leaks out. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jun 2025 | ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,VISIBILITY/WIPER | Windshield Wiper Fluid Reservoir sensor going on even when reservoir is full. Gives drivers a warning light which is very distracting. If you go on line, this appears to be an extremely common problem that Nissan has not addressed. This can lead people to not know if they have fluid in reservoir as they will eventually ignore warning light or disconnect sensor (the two most common solutions in Nissan Altima forum). | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jun 2025 | ELECTRICAL SYSTEM | My 2020 Nissan Altima Door actuators are all currently broken. The doors will not unlock with the fob and have to be manually unlocked. This can cause a huge safety issue if they are unable to be unlocked. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jun 2025 | FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | This car is going to kill me! It randomly hits the brakes on the highways! I am literally driving a deadly weapon. I turn the emergency brakes off and had it checked and STILL brakes. It break everytime I pass a shade spot on the road and even highway going over 60 miles per hour! It hits the breaks while I am in traffic making the driver behind me almost hit my car. It breaks whenever I go under a tree. It breaks when I am in a parking garage when there are NO cars around. It breaks randomly in traffic with no cars too close by to create a collision. It breaks in front of a school bus that was driving close behind me. It hit the breaks going 30 miles per hour. If the school bus would have hit me then that would be child endangerment. The bus driver thought I would break checking him but it was hard to explain it was my emergency breaks. It’s been getting so bad that I am writing a complaint until something can be fixed or changed. It’s ruined my breaks in general from always setting off the emergency breaks. It is not even emergency breaking, it’s breaking to kill at given moment. It’s ruining my car and my ability to drive! This is not correct and it’s keeps going off even more. I am scared to even drive it. This has been happening since I got the car but for the past year since I turned off the sensor, it’s gotten SO much worse. It can turn deadly on my end or someone else’s. This was not properly designed for safety. It’s doing the exact opposite. This happens literally every week! So there is not way of giving you every single date nor do I have the time to wipe my phone out to take a video during those moments because it’s random. | Crash: Yes Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jun 2025 | LATCHES/LOCKS/LINKAGES,ELECTRICAL SYSTEM | The contact owns a 2020 Nissan Altima. The contact stated while using the key fob to unlock the doors, the rear driver’s and rear passenger’s side doors failed to unlock as needed. The contact also stated that over time, the front driver’s, and passenger’s side doors failed to open while using the key fob. In addition, it was difficult to unlock the front driver’s door manually with the key. The local dealer was notified of the failure and the contact was provided an estimate for the repair. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 45,000. | Crash: No Fire: No | 45,000 |
| May 2025 | STRUCTURE | HOOD UNLATCHED WHILE DRIVING ON EXPRESSWAY AND SMASHED INTO WINDSHIELD. EXTREME SAFETY ISSUE. VIEWED BY MECHANIC AND TOW TRUCK. NO WARNINGS BEFORE UNLATCHING | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| May 2025 | STEERING | The tire rod assembly disconnected and caused a near miss accident. The steering was no longer intact. The car had to be towed and repaired to the nearest auto repair shop. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Apr 2025 | AIR BAGS,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | The contact owns a 2020 Nissan Altima. The contact stated that while driving approximately 30 MPH, the collision avoidance system failed to activate, and the vehicle crashed into the rear of a second vehicle. During the crash, the front end of the vehicle was severely damaged, but no air bags deployed. No injuries were reported. A police report was taken at the scene. The vehicle was driven to the home and later to the body shop. The cause of the failure was not determined. The manufacturer and local dealer have not yet contacted. The VIN was not available. The failure mileage was 67,000. | Crash: Yes Fire: No | 67,000 |
| Apr 2025 | POWER TRAIN | Description of the Problem: For the past three years, my vehicle has experienced intermittent and sudden loss of power while driving, including on the highway. The issue is ongoing and has not been resolved despite having the throttle body replaced three separate times, totaling approximately $4,500 in repairs. Each replacement has resulted in the exact same malfunction: the car enters limp mode, drastically reducing power, which is especially dangerous when my children are in the vehicle. Component/Inspection: The issue appears to involve the throttle body and possibly the CVT transmission or related electrical system. The component has been replaced multiple times and is available for inspection if needed. Safety Risk: This malfunction puts my safety and the safety of my passengers at significant risk, particularly when driving at high speeds or in heavy traffic. The car's sudden loss of power makes it difficult to accelerate or maintain speed, which could easily lead to a collision/serious injury. Problem Reproduced/Confirmed: Yes. The problem has been witnessed and confirmed by Midas of Palm Bay, FL and Nissan of Melbourne, FL. Manufacturer Involvement: I reached out to Nissan, but they refused to assist with the repairs or offer any support. Warning Signs/Symptoms: Before the failure, the check engine light comes on, followed by a warning message that reads “Engine Malfunction.” Immediately after, the vehicle loses power and cannot accelerate normally. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Apr 2025 | ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,UNKNOWN OR OTHER,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | The forward collision warning sensor,the rear collision sensor and the traction lights turns on and off from time to time . The transmission seems like its been force to accelerate | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |