Knock in engine at 10,000 km.
Strange water rushing sound in the dash.
Total Brake failure without warning at 22,000 km.
4 Tires replace at 22,000 km.
Doors began squeaking within weeks of getting it.
Door seal replaced twice.
Right front door glass has wind noise.
Once you push the latch to engage the Child locks they will not disengage and you have to open the door from the outside.
The door latches freeze on cold winter mornings and won't shut. You have to wait until the car warms up.
Two recalls - one for the converter and the other for a screen in the gas filler tube or something.
Engine shot and needs to be replaced at 62,000 kms.
This is by far the worst car I have ever had - bar none. It has been nothing, but trouble since I got it. It is a leased vehicle so I am obligated to keep it for the life of the lease. Had I purchased it, I would have dumped it long ago.
There are so many things wrong with the piece of junk that I don't know where to start.
There is an annoying wind noise coming in through the side glass when on the hwy that after 4-5 times having it in in for repair and still not fixed I gave up.
I left for work one day and put my foot on the brake to hear this gawd awful metal on metal sound. I brought it to the dealer expecting that there was something let go in the rear end. They informed me that all 4 rotors needed to be replaced and new pads. It ended up costing me $1200. There was less than 30,000 kms and no prior warning of brake wear. I still believe something let go.
The tires wore out after just over 20,000 kms. I had them replaced at the dealer. They put the wrong size on and informed me that they couldn't get the original size that came on the car...
After the first 10,000 km the car began hitting bumps like a train. It feels as though there is not a strut on it. The dealer says they are fine and refused to replace them.
The car has a strange water rushing sound in the dash. I've had it in several times and about 8 months ago they actually fixed it... now it's back again.
This is the most frustrating car I have ever owned and I have had a few. The door latches freeze on cold winter mornings and won't shut. You have to wait until the car warms up. One morning this past winter while in a hurry to get to work I opened the back door to throw mt briefcase in and of course it wouldn't close. I tried several times slamming the door with no luck. I tried engaging the child lock in desperation and that stuck and wouldn't come off. In pure frustration I began hitting the outside door handle in an attempt to free the latch. Now I have to big dents in my door...
I am currently waiting on a new engine to arrive. I've been telling the dealer every time I'd bring it in for service (which has been about 10 or 15 times) that there was a knock in the engine... They kept trying to tell me it was normal. Then two weeks ago they call me and tell me the engine is gone completely.
I've had ten year old cars that never give me the problems that his lemon has, and the dealer is as frustration as the car...
I would never ever buy another Nissan product again.
I hope you did not agree to a $1200 brake job!!! That is an insane price- - - Shop around!!!
Yeah I paid the $1200 because they had me by the balls. I couldn't drive the car as it was, it was already in the garage and I needed a car to go out of town the next day.
The damn brakes are gone again now (less than a year since replaced). You can rest assured it won't be going back to the dealer... I wouldn't trust them to change a flat tire after what I've been through with them.
I would just like to say you should have bought the 3.5 SE. On a special note try to look through after-market catalogs for drilled brake rotors which are superior.
Drilled brake rotors warp easily and are more expensive. Slotted rotors will get the job done.
It's unbelievable that the rear brakes would need replacing at the same time as the front because the front do most of the work and the back ones should last two or three times as long as the front.
I think the dealership ripped you off.
Get the brakes fixed by a small, independent, trustworthy workshop next time, or even Canadian Tire. Ask your car-owning friends for information, shop around.
Better still, learn how to spot worn brake pads before you score the discs and you ought to be able to replace all brake pads for less than $100.
The 2002 + Altimas need continual attention to the rear disc brakes... the pads sit in a square bracket that is prone to collecting road debris etc. Over time the pads will not push off the rotor because of the accumulation... results in premature pad wear & eventual metal to metal contact. Note that Nissan OEM pads do not have squealers so you might not be aware of the problem until you hear a grinding noise-- by then you're into rotors as well as pads. Every 20,000 kms or 6 months, I pull off the wheels, disassemble the pads from the calipres-- clean the brackets et al & reassemble. If your proficient in this task take your vehicle to a realiable mecxhanic... worth the $100.00 twice a year as a good preventive maintenace measure.
I have the same car. The only thing I've noticed is the same water rushing sound in the dash. It has gone away though. Everything else is great. I'm about to roll over 70K miles. I change the oil regularly and check the other fluids. Rotate and balance the tires on schedule. Today I'm changing the brake pads on the front. It's just their time, nothing wrong with them other than wear. No squeaks, clangs, dings, dongs, or otherwise.
I also have a 2003 nissan. Replaced the rear brake pads and rotors at 45,000 km. Just had front brakes done today at 55,000 km. It is my fathers cousin so I know he's not ripping me off. Other than that the car has been great. Just really poor quality brakes. My other car is a 2000 integra. 85,000 km and I just replaced front brakes, everything else is original. The quality and finish is far superior to the altima.
I just had the same premature brake problem on the rear as described above on my 2003 2.5SL. The car is driven by my wife who drives like a grandmother. So, needless to say, when they told me that the car needed rear pads and machining of the rotors at 38k, I was a little sceptical. I asked why would the brakes wear so quickly, and I was told by the dealer that this was normal wear and tear. I decided to take it to another mechanic who found out that only the right side had worn to almost nothing while the left side still had 65% of the pad left. He told me that the caliper/slider were stuck, most likely due to poor design mentioned above which allowed crap to accumulate prevent the pad from releasing from the rotor. Of course, you find out all of this after the problem occurs. I confronted the dealer and asked him why this was not pointed out while my car was in the dealership and I did not receive a satisfactory answer.
I read through the service manuals and there is no mention of any requirement to service the calipers/sliders. All it states is that I have to inspect the rotors/pads for wear, which I did and did not see any problems at my last inspection six months ago. I presented my case to both Nissan Canada and the dealership and they did the usual denial of responsibility. Without going into the lengthy details, they kept saying that I did not do the "recommended" brake service and I kept stating that "recommended" and "required" brake service are two different things. I did the "required" stuff, so my warranty should cover the repair of the defective performance of the brake caliper.
Anyway, I'm just going to replace the pads myself this weekend for a total cost of about $70 + my time. Both Nissan and the dealer know that most people do not have the time to fight these kinds of things so they just keep going in circles and point the finger at each other until you give up. Some people say that this is the way it is with all car companies, however, I have owned mostly GM products and some Hondas, and whenever I have had a disagreement regarding warranty issues, the other companies were much more reasonable that this. These guys were simply unbelievable!!!
So, lessons learned:
1) The dealer is not reputable in my opinion. They will never see another dime of my business.
2) Nissan does not stand behind their products and are completely unreasonable. Their warranty is not worth the paper it is written on. Despite following their rules to a T, they make up other rules which are not documented, just to deny your claim.
3) I will never buy another Nisssan product.
4) To overcome a poor design, I will have to lubricate and clean the brakes regularly to avoid costly repairs down the road. This is something that I never had to do with GM products and my brake and calipers never had any problems. If I was wasn't mechanically inclined, this would be costly regular maintenance ($130 to service both rear and front) which you shouldn't have to do. If you have to do this every year, you have to wonder which is cheaper, the prevention or cure. And they certainly don't tell you all this when you buy the car.
5) The new car business is a scam and I wish I could get in on it :> (just kidding)
Buyer beware!
I own a 2003 2.4S Altima and I don't recall having any problems with it. I've just replaced my brake pads at 64,000km for the first time with a very nice steel pads for $30 a set, and replaced them myself. These pads are great and smooth when braking, leaving no dust on the wheels. The car had some passenger door problems, which wouldn't close smoothly, you'd have to push it hard to close it, but that has been fixed. The driver's window makes lots of noise when its down and you try to close the door, like it's not stable in there. That has been "fixed" at least 10 times with no success, so I just gave up. Other than that I didn't have any problems with this car at all, not considering I got a good deal on it for $20000 including tax, brand new from the dealership hehehe.
Hi all. I'm a 23 year old white male who has worked very hard to build up credit. By working hard, I mean driving around a four door Grand Am with four doors, a four cyl. and an automatic while paying 28 percent interest...Anyhow, I recently traded it in on the 02 Altima I presently own. I love the car. Great looks. Plenty of power for everyday driving. Plus I got the 5 speed. Anyway...I've put two thousand miles on it since I got it. Recently I looked in the rear view to see a big cloud of smoke following me everywhere I go. Two thousand miles and I need a new engine. Nissan makes crap! I knew I should have bought the warranty. Thanks nissan... now I get to pay 300 a month on something that sits in the drive cause I'm too poor to fix it.
I own a 2003 2.5S Altima. I also have messed up credit and had to pay a ridiculous interest when I purchased this car, 2 months ago. Since, the purchase, I have had it back to the dealership 4 times. The first was sweaking brakes. They made out like the brakes were new and that is the reason for the noise. I took it back two weeks later, with air conditioner problems. They put 1/2 pound of freon in and said it was fine. 2 weeks later, no air, hot blowing out.. took back to the dealership, they recharged and put a dye in to detect the leak. Now the car is in the shop for the 4th time getting the dash taken out, and the air evaporator condensor replaced. The first month was heck, and the car was in the shop more than out, and I have driven a rental more than the actual car I'm paying $438.00 a month for. I love the car, just want it to be what I paid $15,000.00 for. When the service man was taking me to the rental place, he advised me that the 2003 Altima's are lemons... they have replaced more motors in these cars than anything. I certainly hope that the motor will last a while. I was smart enough o purchase an extented warranty that covers bumper to bumper for 24,000 miles..he advised me to be sure to keep the oil and all fluids checked and changed to protect the engine. Hopefully, it will last...I sure hope so, I do love the car, and it has plenty of room and looks great.
I have a 2003 altima 2.5 s and had to have the rear brakes and rotor done at 22,000 miles and they told me it was not covered under warranty. My friend had the identical problem at 25,000 miles. I asked if there was a recall on the pads and they told me no. The odd thing is the replacement pads have lasted another 65,000 miles without a problem. I get the water rushing thing also, it gets worse when I rev the engine while parked.
I have a 2005 Nissan Altima. I loved it at first now it's having so many problems it's been 2 Years since I've had it. the first problem was the Window it sounded like it was loose so I took it to the dealership then it was the AC it kept coming out warm when I had it on warm, now my seat sounds like it's going to break or like there is something loose and it sounds like something is loose in the engine. I just got new breaks not even 3 months ago and they are squeaking like crazy!!!
I took my car to the dealership and asked them to check my breaks all the guy said was oh.. for some reason all Nissan breaks squeak a lot! yeah thanks for letting me know when I got the car! now my breaks squeak and my seat and my windows are out of the socket!!! I should have listened to the guy when I first bought the car, he said "Watch out for some reason birds like to attack my car!!" well now I know why!!!
You should of bought a Honda or Toyota. Nissan has horrible reliability.