2003 NISSAN ALTIMA Complaints

I WAS SOLD MY CAR FROM A DEALERSHIP AND IT HAS HAD PROBLEM SINCE DAY ONE AND I KEEP UP WITH MY MAINTENANCE AND A MONTH AFTER I GOT THE VEHICLE I SPENT OVER 2500 IN REPAIRS NOW I AM HAVING A PROBLEM WITH CATALYST AND THE EXHAUST PIPE WHICH IS ON THE RECALL LIST FROM 7-30-2003 WHEN I START THE CAR IT DOESN'T WANT TO START AND IT IS A TAPPING SOUND THAT IS HEARD ALL THE TIME I HAVE TRIED TO GET IN TOUCH WHERE I GOT THE CAR FROM BUT THEY ARE OUT OF BUSINESS AND I AM STILL PAYING ON THIS CAR I HAVE A PROBLEM WITH THE STRUTS ,SHOCKS, BRAKES, AND AIR CONDITIONER JUST ALOT OF STUFF AND NOW THE TAPPING NOISE IS SO BAD ITS SCARING ME AND I HAVE FOUR CHILDREN THAT RIDES WITH ME IN THAT CAR. *TR

1. A BOLT FALLS OUT OF THE MIDDLE OF THE ENGINE. CAUSES GREATER OIL CONSUMPTION AND IN TIME CAUSE CATASTROPHIC ENGINE FAILURE. 2. HOW OFTEN? DON'T KNOW,CHECKING THE INTERNET IT WAS EASY TO FIND. 3. REPLACED THE ENGINE, AMAZING FOR AN ENGINE WITH 55,000 MILES. *TR

I WAS DRIVING MY CAR AND IT SHUT DOWN ON ME WHILE I WAS DRIVING DURING RUSH HOUR TRAFFIC. MY BRAKES LOCKED UP AND STEERING BECAME HARD. I WAS AFRAID FOR MY LIFE BECAUSE I WAS CLOSE TO CAUSING A CRASH. I FOUND OUT THERE WAS AN ISSUE WITH THE SENSORS ON NISSAN ALTIMAS, INCLUDING MINE. I CALLED THE DEALERSHIP TO SPEAK TO THEM ON HAVING THE ISSUE FIXED. I WAS TOLD BY THE MECHANIC IN THE SERVICE DEPARTMENT (AFTER PULLING MY CAR'S INFORMATION UP) THAT THERE WAS NO SUCH RECALL ON MY CAR FOR THE SENSORS. I'M LOOKING ON /WWW-ODI.NHTSA.DOT.GOV FOR RECALLS, AND IT'S CLEARLY LISTED ON THERE ACCORDING TO MY SPECIFIC MAKE AND MODEL. I ENDED UP HAVING TO BUY THE PARTS AND HAD TO GET THE SERVICE DONE SOMEWHERE ELSE. *TR

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2003 NISSAN ALTIMA. THE CONTACT STATED THAT INTERMITTENTLY THE ENGINE WARING LIGHT WILL ILLUMINATE ON THE INSTRUMENT CONTROL PANEL, AND THEN THE VEHICLE WILL STALL. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO THE DEALER, IN WHICH THE TECHNICIAN CONCLUDED THAT SHE WOULD HAVE TO PAY $200.00 TO REPLACE THE CRANKSHAFT POSITION SENSOR. SHE CONTACTED THE MANUFACTURER IN REFERENCE TO RECALL# 06V242000 (ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING). UPON CONTACT A REPRESENTATIVE STATED THAT BECAUSE THE VIN NUMBER WAS EXCLUDED FROM THE VIN RANGE, SHE WAS INELIGIBLE FOR A FREE REMEDY. NO REPAIRS WERE MADE. THE FAILURE AND CURRENT MILEAGES WERE 60,000. BL

THE CAR STARTED USING OIL AROUND 30K. I NOTICED THAT I HAD TO ADD SOME BETWEEN OIL CHANGES THIS BECAME WORSE OVER TIME AND AROUND 79K IT BECAME BAD AS IN MY WIFE CALLED ME ABOUT THE ENGINE OIL WARNING LIGHT COMING ON WHEN SHE WAS FAR AWAY FROM HOME, WE HAD TO START CHECKING THE OIL EVERY DAY. THE VEHICLE HAD ALWAYS BEEN WELL MAINTAINED AND WE GOT OVER 170K OUT OF OUR LAST ALTIMA BEFORE WE BOUGHT THIS ONE, THAT ONE NEVER USED OIL? I DID SOME RESEARCH ON-LINE AND FOUND THAT THERE WAS A PROBLEM WITH THE PRE-CAT BREAKING DOWN AND BEING DRAWN IN THROUGH THE EGR CAUSING FAILURE OF THE ENGINE. WE TOOK THE CAR TO NISSAN AND HAD IT CHECKED AND SURE ENOUGH THAT IS WHAT WAS WRONG WITH OURS ALSO. WE HAD EXCEEDED THE MILEAGE FOR REPLACEMENT BY A FEW THOUSAND MILES. HAD WE'D BEEN NOTIFIED OF THIS POSSIBLE PROBLEM YEARS AGO, THAT WOULD HAVE EXPLAINED OUR OIL CONSUMPTION AND WE COULD HAVE HAD THE PROBLEM RESOLVED BY NISSAN. WE FULLY INTENDED TO PURCHASE ANOTHER NEW ALTIMA IN THE NEAR FUTURE THAT WOULD HAVE BEEN OUR THIRD. I RELY ON THE VEHICLE MY WIFE DRIVES AS SHE ALSO TRANSPORTS OUR CHILDREN AND GRANDCHILDREN AND IF SHE HADN'T CALLED AND ASKED ABOUT THE RED LIGHT ON THE DASH, I BELIEVE THE ENGINE WOULD HAVE SEIZED AND LEFT HER STRANDED WITH MY FAMILY SEVERAL HOURS AWAY FROM HOME POSSIBLY PUTTING THEM IN DANGER. HOW MANY COMPLAINTS, OR WORSE, ARE NEEDED TO ADMIT THERE IS A PROBLEM?? IS NISSAN HOPING THIS WILL JUST GO AWAY??. IF AN EMISSIONS COMPONENT FAILURE IS PROVEN TO CAUSE PREMATURE ENGINE FAILURE ISN'T IT THE MANUFACTURERS RESPONSIBILITY TO CORRECT IT OTHER THAN REDUCING THE TIME THE EGR IS OPEN TO LESSEN THE AMOUNT OF DEFECTIVE CATALYST DRAWN IN THE ENGINE. IN MY OPINION A WAY TO DELAY FAILURE OF THE ENGINE UNTIL THE FED 80K WARRANTY EXPIRES FOR THE CAT, THAT?S ALL THE PREVIOUS RECALL DID. ALSO THE TSB IS DECEPTIVE IT STARTS WITH THE EXTERNAL CONVERTER SHIELD THEN MUCH LATER MENTIONS INTERNAL CAT FAILURE, WERE THEY HIDING IT? SOUNDS LIKE TWO SEPARATE ISSUES TO ME. *TR

2003 NISSAN ALTIMA I'VE HAD TWO DIFFERENT PROBLEMS THAT ARE SAFETY ISSUES THAT I'VE NOTICED MANY OTHER ALTIMA OWNERS HAVE EXPERIENCED. FIRST, I'VE HAD TWO IGNITION COILS GO BAD. EACH TIME IT OCCURRED THE ENGINE WOULD MISFIRE AND STALLED OUT IN THE MIDDLE OF INTERSECTIONS WHEN TRAVELING AT LOW SPEEDS. AFTER THE SECOND IGNITION COIL FAILED THE MECHANIC RECOMMENDED REPLACING OF THE REMAINING TWO ORIGINAL COILS DUE TO THE LIKELIHOOD OF FUTURE FAILURE. THE SECOND PROBLEM WAS THE FAILURE OF THE CAMSHAFT AND CRANKSHAFT POSITION SENSORS. THIS PREVENTED THE CAR FROM STARTING ALTOGETHER AND STRANDED MY DAUGHTER AND MYSELF LATE AT NIGHT. BOTH SENSORS WERE REPLACED. FORTUNATELY THIS FAILURE DID NOT OCCUR WHEN I WAS DRIVING THE CAR ON THE HIGHWAY. I'VE SEEN THAT OTHER PEOPLE HAVE HAD THIS FAILURE OCCUR WHEN DRIVING. OBVIOUSLY AN EXTREME SAFETY HAZARD. THESE PROBLEMS WERE READILY AND QUICKLY DIAGNOSED BY THE NISSAN MECHANIC, WHICH LED ME TO BELIEVE THAT HE KNEW THAT MY CAR WAS PRONE TO THESE PROBLEMS AND THAT HE HAS SEEN THEM MANY TIMES BEFORE. *TR

I OWN A 2003 NISSAN ALTIMA 2.5.THE CAR SHUT DOWN AS I WAS ON I-85 N WITHOUT WARNING. IT TOOK ABOUT 5 MINUTES TO START. THE SERVICE ENGINE CAME ON AND I TOOK IT TO THE SHOP. I WAS TOLD IT'S THE CAM SHAFT POSITIONING SENSOR. I DID SOME RESEARCH AND THIS IS A CONTINUOUS PROBLEM. I CONTACTED NISSAN THEY TOLD ME MY CAR WAS NOT PART OF THE RECALL. THIS ISSUE STARTED 9-1-09 AND HAS STALLED TWICE ALREADY. *TR

I BOUGHT A 2003 NISSAN ALTIMA IN JAN, 2008. IT HAD 53,000 MI. AT 78,000 MI THE SERVICE ENGINE SOON LIGHT CAME ON. I TOOK IT TO MY MECHANIC IT WAS DIAGNOSED THAT THERE WAS A BLOWN HEAD GASKET. I HAD HIM REPLACE THE GASKET. AT ABOUT 79,000 MI. THERE WAS A BURNING SMELL COMING FROM UNDER THE CAR. I THOUGHT IT WAS ON FIRE SO I PULLED OVER BUT THERE WAS NO FIRE. WHEN I WENT TO ACCELERATE THERE WAS NO POWER. THE SES LIGHT WAS ON SO I TOOK IT TO THE DEALER IN ONTARIO, CA IT WAS THE CATALYTIC CONVERTER(IT WAS CLOGGED) THEY REPLACED IT FREE BECAUSE OF THE FEDERAL EMISSION WARRANTY. THEN THEY TOLD ME THAT I WAS BURNING OIL AND THAT THE PROBABLE CAUSE WAS THE CONVERTER, BUT TOLD ME THAT THEY WOULD NOT REPLACE THE ENGINE BECAUSE SOMEONE ELSE HAD WORKED ON IT. THEY SAID THAT IF I HAD BROUGHT THE CAR TO THEM THEY WOULD HAVE REPLACED IT. THERE WAS NO NOTICE ABOUT ENGINE REPLACEMENT WHEN THE GASKET GOES BAD (WHICH THEY SAID WAS ALSO CAUSED BY THE CONVERTER GETTING CLOGGED UP) SOME ONE NEEDS TO FORCE NISSAN OF NORTH AMERICA TO RECALL THE 2003 ALTIMA AND FIX THE ENGINE AND CONVERTER DESIGN. THERE COULD BE A CATASTROPHIC ENGINE FAILURE THAT COULD CAUSE AN ACCIDENT AT HIGH SPEEDS. *TR

I OWN A 2003 NISSAN ALTIMA THAT WAS PURCHASED BRAND NEW. THE CAR HAS NEVER BEEN IN AN ACCIDENT AND HAS ALWAYS BEEN WELL MAINTAINED...WASHED AND WAXED REGULARLY. I WAS CHANGING THE OIL ON 7/28/09 AND NOTICED SOMETHING HANGING FROM THE PASSENGER SIDE FLOOR WHICH TURNED OUT TO BE THE REMAINS OF SAID FLOOR. THERE IS A RUST HOLE APPROXIMATELY 2 FOOT LONG AND 6 INCHES WIDE IN THE PASSENGER SIDE OF THIS 6 YEAR OLD CAR. AFTER DOING SOME RESEARCH ONLINE I SEE THIS IS A FAIRLY COMMON FAILURE FOR THIS GENERATION ALTIMA AND NISSAN WILL DO ABSOLUTELY NOTHING TO HELP WITH THE REPAIR SINCE THE PERFORATION WARRANTY IS OVER AS OF 10/08. I HAVE HAD THE CAR INTO THE DEALERSHIP FOR RECALL WORK AND NOBODY FROM THE DEALERSHIP EVER MENTIONED THE HOLE IN THIS VEHICLE WHICH AT THAT TIME WOULD HAVE BEEN COVERED BY WARRANTY. NISSAN FLAT OUT DENIES TO DO ANYTHING TO HELP WITH THE REPAIR REGARDLESS OF THE FACT THAT THIS SHOULDN'T BE HAPPENING TO A 6 YEAR OLD CAR IN THE FIRST PLACE. IT'S AN OBVIOUS SAFETY ISSUE WITH A GIANT HOLE IN THE FLOOR THAT EXHAUST FUMES CAN ENTER BUT NISSAN REFUSES TO ACKNOWLEDGE THE DESIGN FLAW IN THIS VEHICLE. PLEASE HELP ME TO FORCE NISSAN TO ADMIT THE PROBLEM EXISTS AND GET IT FIXED AT THEIR COST. *TR

I TOOK MY CAR TO A MECHANIC BECAUSE I HAD AN ENGINE SERVICE LIGHT ON AND I FELT THAT SOMETHING WAS WRONG WITH THE WAY MY CAR WAS BEHAVING. AFTER INSPECTING MY CAR, THE MECHANIC FOUND THAT A CATALYTIC CONVERTER HAS FAILED, WHICH CREATED POTENTIAL FOR A FIRE. THE MECHANIC TOLD ME THAT THERE WAS A RECALL FOR CATALYTIC CONVERTERS FOR ALTIMAS 2002/2003 AND THAT MY CAR SHOULD QUALIFY FOR IT BASED ON ITS VIN NUMBER ( I HAVE A PRINTOUT FROM MY MECHANIC THAT INCLUDES ELIGIBILITY OF MY CAR BASED ON VIN#). HOWEVER, WHEN I CALLED NISSAN MANUFACTURE I WAS TOLD THAT MY CAR NO LONGER HAS WARRANTY AND THAT THERE WERE NO OPEN RECALLS ON MY CAR AT THAT TIME. I TOOK MY CAR TO A NISSAN DEALERSHIP AND RECEIVED THE SAME INFORMATION. MY ON-LINE RESEARCH SHOWED THAT THERE WAS A RECALL ON CATALYTIC CONVERTERS IN CANADA AND USA AND ALSO A LOT OF PEOPLE HERE IN US HAD EXPERIENCED THE SAME PROBLEM AS I DID AFTER THE WARRANTY EXPIRATION AND NISSAN WAS NOT HELPFUL. ALSO, I FOUND OUT THAT IT IS HARD TO DIAGNOSE THIS PROBLEM AT THE VERY BEGINNING AS ENGINE SERVICE LIGHT CAN BE ON FOR A LOT OF REASONS. MY MECHANIC WAS ABLE TO DIAGNOSE THIS PROBLEM, AS HE WAS FAMILIAR WITH CATALYTIC CONVERTERS' FAILURES IN ALTIMAS BECAUSE A LOT OF HIS CUSTOMERS WHO OWN ALTIMAS TOOK THEIR CARS TO HIM TO BE FIXED. I DID TAKE MY CAR TO A NISSAN DEALERSHIP, BUT I COULDN'T AFFORD THEIR PRICES, SO I ENDED UP GOING BACK TO MY MECHANIC. A REPRESENTATIVE FROM NISSAN MANUFACTURE ASKED ME IF I RECEIVED ANY LETTER FROM THEM CONFIRMING MY ELIGIBILITY FOR A CATALYTIC CONVERTER RECALL, BUT I AM NOT THE FIRST OWNER OF MY CAR, SO THERE WAS NO WAY FOR ME TO RECEIVE IT. PERHAPS I BOUGHT THIS CAR WITH A DAMAGED CONVERTER AND HAD NO IDEA ABOUT IT. *TR