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:
4 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
1 / 0
Average Mileage:
91,199 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 suspension problems

suspension problem

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2013 Nissan Altima Owner Comments (Page 1 of 14)

problem #264

Feb 112024

Altima

  • miles

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

The contact owns a 2013 Nissan Altima. The contact stated while driving 50 MPH, the passenger-??s side rear wheel started wobbling, causing the contact to lose control of the vehicle. The contact stated that there was an abnormal sound while experiencing the failure. The contact pulled over and waited for a tow - lucky he moved tow lanes to the shoulder without issue. There was no warning light illuminated. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic to be diagnosed. The contact was informed that the passenger-??s side rear upper control arm had fractured. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and the contact was informed that the VIN was not under recall. The failure mileage was 118,000.

- Buffalo, NY, USA

problem #263

Nov 202023

Altima

  • 158,000 miles
The contact owns a 2013 Nissan Altima. The contact stated that while reversing, there was a banging sound coming from the rear of the vehicle. Later, while driving the traction control warning light illuminated, and the rear of the vehicle became unstable. After parking the vehicle, the contact discovered that the vehicle was tilted towards the driver's side. The vehicle was towed to the local mechanic who determined that the rear control arm had fractured and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not yet repaired. The local dealer was not contacted. The failure mileage was 158,000.

- Sterling, MA, USA

problem #262

Jul 262023

Altima

  • 143,000 miles
The contact owns a 2013 Nissan Altima. The contact stated while driving 30 MPH, the passenger-??s side rear wheel started wobbling, causing the contact to lose control of the vehicle. The contact stated that there was an abnormal sound while experiencing the failure. The contact pulled over safely and then drove back to the residence. There was no warning light illuminated. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic to be diagnosed. The contact was informed that the passenger-??s side rear toe link had fractured. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and the contact was informed that the VIN was not under recall. The failure mileage was 143,000.

- Fuquay-Varina, NC, USA

problem #261

Jul 272023

Altima

  • miles

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

The rear sub frame is broken (rusted completely) on the passenger side rear. I had a sudden flat tire and took it in to have a new tire put on and the tire company showed me that the tire issue was due to the sub frame being broken.

- Dawes, WV, USA

problem #260

Jun 182023

Altima

  • miles
Rear lower control arm broke as was backing into the garage. Traction control light was turned on on the dash.

- Bartlett, IL, USA

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problem #259

Jun 152021

Altima

  • 90,000 miles
The contact owns a 2013 Nissan Altima. The contact stated while driving approximately 15 MPH, the vehicle veered to the right. The contact steered to the left and kept turning the steering wheel to the left in to bring the vehicle back into a straight lane. The contact stated that the traction control warning light was illuminated. The contact was able to drive back to the residence and had the vehicle towed to an independent mechanic. The mechanic diagnosed that the passenger-??s side rear lower control arm had sheared off and needed to be replaced. The vehicle had not been repaired. The contact researched online and related the failure to NHTSA Action Number: EA19002 (Suspension). The manufacturer had been informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 90,000.

- Oak Park, IL, USA

problem #258

May 062023

Altima

  • miles

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

The Passenger side Rear Lower Control Arm broke in half while driving down the road. There were no potholes or rough road conditions present when failure occurred. The failure caused instant loss of stability of the vehicle, but luckily did not result in an accident. Where was no warning before the failure occurred. The event occurred in Iowa. There is currently a Nissan Service Campaign (P9324) to replace this component. It is the correct vehicle, a 2013 Nissan Altima, and occurred in a covered state (Iowa). I opened an inquiry with Nissan Customer Care (Case 48827935), but was told my vehicle was not covered. The explanation given was that not all 2013 Nissan Altimas are covered, and it was likely the lower control arm date code or vehicle build location was outside the scope of the Service Campaign. I would ask that the NTHSB and Nissan review the data for failed units and consider if this service campaign should be expanded.

- Ames, IA, USA

problem #257

Apr 222023

Altima

  • miles
While driving on a highway at approximately 65 mph the car seemed to lose traction and the slip indicator light appeared. Once able to safely look at the vehicle it was noticed the rear wheels were not aligned and the lower rear control arm had snapped.

- Big Lake, MN, USA

problem #256

Apr 142023

Altima

  • miles
.

- Southfield, MI, USA

problem #255

Apr 112023

Altima

  • miles
Rear passenger suspension arm broke while driving from what looks to be corrosion. Was able to make it safely due to 1 bolt holding in place the car is not drivable. Had I kept driving the whole wheel would have came off causing an accident.

- Hopewell , VA, USA

problem #254

Jan 102023

Altima

  • miles

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

While driving on the highway the car started to lose control. Car shop said control link on driver side broke and the one on the passenger side was cracked and they replace both. I took the old parts e Incident (0)to the dealership they said it was a recall.

- Maywood, IL, USA

problem #253

Mar 192023

Altima

  • miles
While driving my 2013 Nissan Altima on the highway I heard a real loud bang so I got off the nearest exit to check out the car. Upon looking under the rear passenger side of the car I noticed that the lower control arm broke off. I was able to get the car home, but cannot drive it. Doing a little research, I found this is common on 2013-2019 Altima models. I feel this is a major safety concern and should be looked into further.

- Troy, NY, USA

problem #252

Feb 162023

Altima

  • miles
With only 99 k miles my lower rear control arm broke while I was driving the vehicle and the rear tire began flopping around. Had I been driving faster at the time it's possible that my spouse and I could have died in an accident or have be extremely injured. Dealer lied and said that there was a recall and that I should have received a letter in the mail. I never received a letter. And it looks like there is only a service campaign for the issue.

- Fridley, MN, USA

problem #251

Jan 232023

Altima

  • miles
What component or system failed or malfunctioned, and is it available for inspection upon request" Rear subframe is rusted out and has holes in it. Yes it is avaialble for inspection. How was your safety or the safety of others put at risk? Loss of control and not safe to drive with a broken rear subframe. Has the vehicle or component been inspected by the manufacturer, police, insurance representatives or others? Gandrud Nissan in Green Bay, WI has inspected it. Were there any warning lamps, messages or other symptoms of the problem prior to the failure, and when did they first appear" No symptoms prior to the failure and then top of driver side rear tire pointing inward to the car. This seems to be a common issue from others with the same 2013 Nissan Altima in areas with road salt usage. The vehicle is 9 years old and has 106,800 miles on it. Rest of the car appears rust free and solid. I am the original owner of the vehicle and it gets washed regularly. I will be getting additional pictures from Gandrud Nissan, as now I only have the 1 picture which is not ideal. Gandrud should have the car repaired before February 3, 2023.

- De Pere, WI, USA

problem #250

Nov 012022

Altima 4-cyl

  • 119,393 miles
The contact owns a 2013 Nissan Altima. The contact stated that while his son was driving at 35 MPH, he noticed that the rear passenger's side tire was not rolling smoothly. The contact stated that upon arriving at his destination and parking the vehicle, his son noticed that the rear passenger's side tire was pushed in. The contact's son was able to drive the vehicle to his residence. The contact stated upon inspecting the subframe, he noticed that the subframe was severely corroded and an unknown part had detached. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed that the rear passenger's side lower control arm assembly was fractured due to severe corrosion and the rear driver's side lower control arm was severely corroded. The independent mechanic replaced the rear passenger's side lower control arm. The dealer was notified of the failure and informed the contact that the vehicle could not be repaired under Nissan Technical Service Bulletin Number: P9324 as the VIN was not included. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and a case was opened. The failure mileage was approximately 119,393. The contact stated that they also had the driver side rear suspension control arm repaired. A request to Nissan for a reimbursement of both repairs was requested.

- Elmhurst, IL, USA

problem #249

Jul 092022

Altima

  • miles
The rear suspension lower links on my 2013 Nissan Altima corroded and broke away from the joints on both sides. The rear passenger was affected in July 2022 and the rear driver side was affected in October 2022. Both incidents happened as I was backing out of my drive-way and the rear lower links literally snapped and broke away from the vehicle. After my Altima was at the body shop for the second time to replace the driver rear suspension lower link, we discovered a Campaign by Nissan that was entitled "Altima Rear Lower Link" and it affected 2013 Nissan Altima's (which we had) and the campaign went on to indicate that this was in states with high road salt usage. We live in Iowa so that covered our state for high road salt usage and the campaign went on to say that under severe corrosion conditions, one of the rear lower suspension links may corrode and separate at the bushing joint area. This happened to both sides of my Altima's rear lower link suspension as there was severe corrosion. We tried to file a claim with Nissan to get reimbursed for our towing expense and expense of having my Altima repaired but were denied reimbursement stating our VIN # didn't match any listed on this campaign even though we had the exact same make, model, year and conditions surrounding the campaign that caused the rear suspension lower link to snap away from the joint area. This isn't just something common to happen to vehicles and with Nissan refusing to reimburse us for a known issue on the exact same make, model and year of the car is frustrating. There could have easily been human error in not including our VIN# in this campaign. Way too many coincidences for Nissan to not even consider looking into our issue and including our VIN# in this campaign.

- Spencer, IA, USA

problem #248

Aug 292022

Altima

  • miles
The steering wheel was pulling to one side as I drove to work. After I parked my car I put it in reverse and something fell out of the bottom of the car. The rear lower link had broken in half and the car was not drivable. The tires bent in. The car was then towed to universal Nissan. This was a recall and Nissan wants to charge me for parts and labor.

- Orlando, FL, USA

problem #247

Jul 062022

Altima

  • miles
Rear Suspension Control Arm Failed while operating the vehicle, resulting in the car swerving and becoming temporarily uncontrollable. No accident resulted, but had a car been in the lane adjacent to mine, there certainly would have been a collision. I am grateful this did not occur on the highway at higher speeds. Mechanics found that the right rear suspension control arm failed and was heavily corroded. The left rear suspension control arm was also highly corroded and had stress fractures, requiring replacement. See attached photos. I will request that the mechanics save the parts for inspection by the NHTSA. No potholes or curbs were hit, and this suddenly happened while driving on a well paved road in Virginia. The car has 95,430 miles on it, and has been parked indoors for the past 5 years, and largely driven in the Northern Virginia and D.C. Metro Area. There were no warnings before this occurred.

- Arlington, VA, USA

problem #246

Jun 082022

Altima

  • miles
Please include with our complaint: ODI 11469244 On June 8, 2022 one of our rear lower suspension links broke and left my husband on the side of the road two weeks ago. After having it towed home we learned about service campaign P9324. Sevice campaign P9324 states -€œcertain Nissan Altima vehicles currently or previously registered in specific U.S. states with high road salt usage for model year 2013 and model years 2013-2014 in Canada are potentially affected-€. Illinois is considered high-users of road salt. Called the dealership and he confirmed that all parts and labor would be covered. We then had our vehicle towed to the dealership on June 9, 2022. Within an hour, the service department called and stated our VIN was not covered. Brad Brees, the service manager can be reached at (815) 633- 3460. He will be able to confirm our situation and he agreed that this should not be happening with a vehicle that has been owned and driven in Illinois for 7+ years. We immediately filed a claim with Nissan North America consumer affairs department. After waiting four business days we learned that our claim was denied. When my husband asked if the representative had read the service bulletin, she stated that she had not. When my husband asked for the denial to be put in writing, the consumer affair representative hung up on him. We went ahead and got our car fixed by the dealer. It was at that time, we learned about the extended warranty on this problem, . We filed the extended warranty claim form and included our receipts for the repair and the tows. We asked that all correspondence be made in WRITING, either by mail or email. A representative called and notified us that again our claim was denied. They will not put in writing a reason for our denial. As customer's we want a valid reason. While we don-€™t understand why our vehicle is not included we are extremely concerned that Nissan Consumer Affairs won-€™t put the denial and reason in wri

- Caledonia, IL, USA

problem #245

Jun 082022

Altima 4-cyl

  • 140,000 miles
The contact owns a 2013 Nissan Altima. The contact stated while driving 45 MPH, the vehicle started shaking and the rear passenger-€™s side lowered. The contact was able to pull over and he noticed that the rear lower suspension had separated at the bushing joint. The vehicle was towed to the dealer for diagnostic testing. The contact was informed that the lower link needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was contacted but offered no assistance. The contact was informed that the VIN was not included in TSB: P9324. The failure mileage was 140,000.

- Caledonia, IL, USA

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