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.

Owners are complaining about transmission problems related to the CVT (Continuously Variable Transmission).

10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
4 / 1
Injuries / Deaths:
7 / 0
Average Mileage:
25,791 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.

2016 Nissan Altima miscellaneous problems

miscellaneous problem

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2016 Nissan Altima Owner Comments (Page 2 of 4)

« Read the previous 20 complaints

problem #51

Aug 192021

Altima

  • miles

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

I was driving the car was driving fine. No indicator lights came on to warn me. I drove to my cousin house. And when I turned the car off my doors didn-€™t unlock like they usually do. I tried to turn the car back on I wouldn-€™t do anything. The whole time my windows was up. I was stuck in the car. I had to climb out through my trunk. That is dangerous.

- Gainesville , GA, USA

problem #50

Aug 102021

Altima

  • miles
This vehicle is a 2016 Nissan Altima with only has 36,000 miles. When driving this vehicle and stopping at a stop sign or traffic light the vehicle will not accelerate for a 10-30 seconds. No engine code or check engine light. This has happened two times when my wife drove the car and one time when I drove it. My wife will not drive this car anymore because she does not feel safe in it. She fears she will be rear ended or hit trying to make a turn. I talked to my local Nissan dealer today 8/19/2021 while having the hood latch recall done. The dealership didn't know anything about this problem with this or other Altimas but said it could be the valve body in the transmission ( without looking at the car, just my conversation) MMMMMMM. The dealership said they would charge me $130 to do a diagnostic check but without a check engine light it would not show anything and of course the car was doing fine when I went to there. This problem is sporadic and you don't know when it will occur again and can be very dangerous. I have looked at chat forums on google and see this is a big problem with Nissan Altimas of this model year generation. Thank you for your time.

- Pueblo West, CO, USA

problem #49

Jul 272021

Altima

  • miles
The RPMS are jumping while driving, , car shut off while driving, car is sputtering and jerking and changing gears are not smooth.

- San Bernardino , CA, USA

problem #48

Jun 012021

Altima

  • miles

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

After driving for a period of time (not too far, but more than just around the block) when I come to a stop at a stoplight or stop sign and try to accelerate again, there is a long delay of around 3-5 seconds and then my car will -€œlaunch-€. I can push the pedal all the way to the floor and nothing happens. Then it will suddenly take off. This is a hazard while trying to turn out into traffic, if I would have to accelerate out of the way of a vehicle approaching me from any angle while at a stoplight or stop sign. Trying to cross intersections that only have 2 way stops, and for many other reasons that are pretty self explanatory. This sits very uneasy with me especially when my wife and child are riding with me. I brought this up to the dealer and they found no codes and could not recreate it, but did reprogram my ecm to most current programming per NTB13-054D. That cost $140 and did not fix my issue. It seems like to recreate the issue the car has to be driven for a little while (at lease 20-30 mins on the highway) before it begins acting up. It also seems like hot weather contributes to the issue as well.I drive an hour each way to work, so it pretty much acts up for me 2x a day since it has gotten warm out.

- Fairplay, MD, USA

problem #47

Jun 192021

Altima

  • miles
The CVT transmission in my 2016 Nissan Altima causes my vehicle to experience sudden shaking or jerking and to occasionally stall after a traffic stop while driving. I have been in near accidents based on this CVT issue as there is no way to anticipate when my vehicle will experience the aforementioned problems. I have taken my vehicle to an independent service center where technicians confirmed that the issue lies with my transmission. My vehicle was also inspected by my municipal vehicle inspection service which also flagged the problem. I have tried to contact Nissan USA to assist in the resolution of this issue but it has not been helpful in resolving the issue as I am outside the arbitrarily-set extended warranty period due to the vehicle's mileage. The Nissan Altima CVT transmission is a public safety emergency that needs to be fixed and I hope Nissan USA adequately and equitably addresses this problem. As a consumer who has previously only owned and operated Nissan Altimas, I am saddened by the company's inability to fully help consumers who are endangered by its faulty transmission and who may be a danger to others on the road due to this known issue.

- Washington, DC, USA

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problem #46

Jun 102021

Altima

  • miles
On june 10,2021 i had to put my car in the shop bc the engine was running poorly. My car stalled on me at intersection and didnt want to pull. I was in panic thinking a car was going to hit me. Luckly i was able to get it to pull to the nearest vacant lot. I immediately stopped and let all moving traffic clear the way. Then i got my car to go and i had to gain enough speed to make it over the overpass without stalling again. When i finally got tje car home my husband had it put in shop tw next day. Mechanic hooked it up to a machine and the codes for transmission popped up. My life was at risk as i had no oter choice but to play rush and roulette.

- Lepanto, AR, USA

problem #45

Mar 282021

Altima

  • 98,794 miles

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

I was riding on the highway headed to Mississippi with my 2 babies in the car and got ready to go up a small hill and my car slowed down and wouldn't gas up the hill. So I put my hazards on, put my car in park, turned it off and back on, it then proceeded to go up the hill with some hesitation but it moved. I then stopped at an automotive store to get a read out even though my check engine light did not come on. I got a P0776 code with no check engine light at all. That alone is scary! so I got my transmission serviced and thought that would fix it but weeks later I'm having even more issues. The car quit moving in the middle of city traffic lucky enough nobody ran over me and my babies. So I put my car in park, put my flashers on and turned it off and back on enough to coast to the gas station on the other side of the road. I pay too much money for this car and keeping it serviced for this to happen.

- Sheffield, AL, USA

problem #44

Feb 202021

Altima

  • 138,800 miles
I was driving to work on a dry road and my traction control light came on and stayed on. So I pulled over turned off the vehicle waited a few minutes and started off again. As soon as I started movie the traction control light came on and stayed on again.

- Leesburg, OH, USA

problem #43

Jun 142020

Altima

  • 44,800 miles
While driving towards the end of the trip 250 miles, was cruising about 15 mph, car was no longer responding to acceleration, engine making loud noise as if struggling and RPM increased about 5000, I drove like this for about 2 miles, no check engine light came on. Next day car drove fine. Had two similar episodes in the following months while driving in traffic, car with suddenly slow down and not responding to acceleration, RPM increased 5-6K, these lasted less than a minute and then drove normal again.last week had a major episode, while in traffic at 40 miles an hour, was not accelerating again and speed stuck at 40 mph. And rpms increased to about 5 to 6000, no check engine light came on, engine sound as if struggling. Car is now jerking when reversing, only has 44,800 miles. I did some research and they are several videos on youtube with similar model Altima experiencing similar problems, most people think is the cvt transmission that is faulty and overheating.

- Fayetteville, NC, USA

problem #42

Sep 302020

Altima

  • miles
Car has delayed acceleration. If I'm at a red light, car will not go at a read light even if I push gas pedal all the way down. I hate it when it happens and my kids are in the car. Happens when I'm turning too and almost got hit yesterday with my kids in the car

- Euless, TX, USA

problem #41

Sep 222020

Altima

  • 0 miles

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

When ever I'm at a light to long, the cars been running for a while, or I'm in the drive thru the car takes a couple seconds to accelerate. I've brought it to the dealership twice and they updated the computer system. They can't recreate the problem. This is a repeated problem

- New Haven, CT, USA

problem #40

Sep 072020

Altima

  • 100,000 miles
Gear shift locked in park position unable to engage gears

- Dadeville, AL, USA

problem #39

Mar 102020

Altima

  • 45,000 miles
After stopping and going a decent amount (such as a drive thru) the car has a delay of shifting gears and starting to move after completely stopped. I am not sure what is wrong with my vehicle. The rpms will go significantly up before increasing speed. It will do this on slow or fast roads.

- Columbus, OH, USA

problem #38

Jun 302019

Altima

  • 83,000 miles
There is a recall on my hood latch that I received in the mail.. due to this recall my hood opened while I was driving and shattered my windshield and messed up my hood and fenders. * (recall related incident)

- Roselle, IL, USA

problem #37

May 282020

Altima

  • 500 miles
Hello at May 28 I saw that opened new recall on my Nissan. At nowadays dealer doesnt know how can fix this problem and said that don't have remedy to fix the car. I have two Nissan Altima 2016 and 2017 I want to sell a both because at today passed around 2 month from opened recall and nobody knows any decision how to fix my cars. Dealer said that NHTSA should give instructions to resolve this problem.

- Glendale, CA, USA

problem #36

Jul 082020

Altima 4-cyl

  • miles
01/01/20 recall received 07/03/20 from Nissan for hood latch, R20A7. No car lift. Risk rank: Collision. I called two Nissan dealerships and they say there is no remedy. Car is my only source of transportation and Nissan corporate will not answer phone. I am afraid to drive my car. Mr. Zach mcquaig, pearson Nissan in ocala, said there is no remedy and he could care less (that was his attitude). What can I do?

- The Villages, FL, USA

problem #35

Jun 092020

Altima 4-cyl

  • miles
There have been a total of 4 recalls on this car- I am getting sick of it. I have had at least 1 repaired, I want a good deal for a trade-in at a Nissan dealership.

- Fort Worth, TX, USA

problem #34

Feb 132020

Altima 4-cyl

  • 22,550 miles
After the car has been driven in stop & go traffic, there can be no response when pressing the gas pedal. I can be stopped at a light, then press the gas, and nothing happens, until suddenly it will engage and lurch forward. I was told at the dealership that this was a known problem with the brake relay switch. They repaired it under warranty, but the car continues to have the problem. I took it back to the dealership, they told be they 'rebooted the software', but again, the car still has the problem. I was told there was nothing else to they could do unless there was a "code" to read, but since the problem is random and intermittent, there is no code. I feel this is a big safety issue. I have been stopped, waiting on a left turn, then try to proceed, and the car doesn't move for several seconds, then have oncoming traffic. I appreciate your input. Thank you.

- Albuquerque, NM, USA

problem #33

Oct 162019

Altima 4-cyl

  • 94,000 miles
My car after it has warmed up from a stop it will not move when accelerator is depressed, even all the way to the floor, then will all of a sudden take off even peel out and if I continue to drive it will start revving the rpms but barely move. One time the check engine light came on and it showed the solenoid #2 needed to be replaced. Once the car was turned off it resets somehow and works fine for a while then does it again. So I will stop and restart the car before I get to an intersection so I won"T get hit because my car won"T go. It will also shudder on hills regardless of being cold or hot. Definite safety hazard and my daughter wants my car so bringing it in to get the solenoids replaced and transmission flushed to see if this fixes the issue. Rear passenger window has never been able to go down much from day I bought it, so may be related to door opening recall, guess we'll see.

- Bay Springs, MS, USA

problem #32

Apr 242020

Altima

  • 73,000 miles
Last summer I had an issue with the butterfly valve on the exhaust system. It was a Saturday, I was on my way to work and the only place that was open and the closest was the Nissan dealership. I took it in there they fixed it, but the repairs were over 1 grand. I don't have that kind of money lying around so I called Nissan corporate to ask if I can have financial assistance. They said because I don't service my car at the dealership they can not finance me and help me with it. The Nissan dealership is out of my way to get it serviced. Second issue started recently and that is when I am driving my car there is not very good acceleration and once I hit 20 mph I start to hear a whining noise. I did some digging in several online forums and those with similar issues have been told its the cvt transmission. Last week I barley went over 73,000 miles on my odometer. I do not have money to replace an entire transmission, nor do I really care to. I will never purchase another Nissan as long as I live. There cooperate customer service sucks as well as there cvt transmissions!!

- Spanish Fork, UT, USA

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