2003 Nissan Altima S from North America - Comments

My 2006 Altima SE has just over 8K on it. I pulled it out of the garage to wash it a couple of days back then parked it back in the garage. I went to start it this AM and it would not turn over at all. Upon exiting the vehicle I could smell the unburned fuel rather strong.

I decided to let it sit for a while before any further attempt at starting then found this great forum. I took the advice of the poster about pulling the battery terminal off for a bit to reset the computer. I also checked the gas cap, just in case that I had failed to tighten it past the required click.

After a couple of hours I tried again! This time it was trying to hit so I held the gas pedal down while cranking and it finally started up. It ran bad for a few seconds with a lot of gray smoke then idled out. I let it warm up a while then took it for spin, kicking it down pretty good to blow out any excess fuel, vapor or whatever from of the system.

I don’t like this one bit and plan to monitor the situation closely. This problem is obviously a fault with the computer system design in relation to the warm up monitoring, based on this happening after a short move of the car.

I most definitely will be trading this thing in at my earliest convenience and not for another Nissan. Since this problem spans so many model years, it tells me a lot about their engineering process. Thanks For the help I found here..

HI I have a 2003 Nissan Altima and just passed my 61000 mark on it I just took it in to get the computer re programed and now a week later I move it this morning and come back later in the night to take it for a drive and I won't start I tryed pumping the gas and nothing worked then I took the the battery cables off and then put them back on and tyred to turn on the car and it wanted to then I held down the gas pedal and it turned on gray smoke came out the car and smelled like gas really bad and then I took it for a drive and it ran good WHAT IS THE DEAL WHY Won't NO ONE HELP US WE PAY GOOD MONEY FOR THE CARS Don't WE!!!???

I too bought a 2003 Altima 2.5S. I feel everyones pain. I've had problems just like most of you & I'm in Hawaii. Some days my car doesn't want to start either. And it is not cold here. I bought the car in 2002. I had the crank sensor changed because it somehow had engine oil on it which caused my car to jerk when accelerated & then die out when it felt like it. I had to pay $100 for that service. I changed the starter in 2005 because "they" thought that was the problem. Paid $200 for that service. Then a year later, I had to change the starter again because the "new" starter was bad. Had to pay for that one too because the part had a 1 year warranty & I was a few days passed the expiration. I take my car in faithfully for oil changes, tire rotations, etc. I take my car in for all recalls. For the past month, my service engine soon light has been on. I called "them" & they said I have no recall on my car, they already did it. A few weeks later, I get the recall notice about the service engine light soon on. They still insist that my car doesn't need it because they already did it. And would like to charge me $150 to diagnose the problem. When all they do is plug in their little computer & read the code. RIDICULOUS!! That takes less than 5 minutes tops. I've been a loyal Nissan buyer. We also have a '05 Frontier. And before these 2 cars, we had a Sentra. But my first car was a Toyota. I think I'm about done with Nissan & will go back to Toyota.

I have a 2002 Nissan Altima 2.5S that gave me trouble until the dealership that sold it to me paid for me to have the engine replaced (their salesperson falsified my income on the loan application, they were trying to avoid a lawsuit). One of the cylinders went out and the engine was flooded with oil. I guess Nissan is doing a good job of hiding all of these problems. I say that someone should start a lawsuit and all of us who have had these problems should get on the bandwagon with them. I just found out today that my air conditioning compressor has died. My next car will be a Benz.

I've seen the "won't start thing" too.. Seems to usually occur the time (s) after starting the car and not warming it up, and only moving a short distance. Ie. parking spot to parking spot, down the street, etc... This I've seen with my wifes 99 sentra. Happens to several later model cars also, vw's, honda, infiniti, etc.. It basically is a flood and the electronic ignition can't correct.. hit the pedal it will start (roughly)

I've also got a 2000 altima 2.5 se.. hasn't happened with that one, but on the up & up.. The sentra is a '99 with 154,000 miles. and the Altima is an'00 with 197,000 miles!!! Drive it 200 miles's per day! So I stick up for the nissan.

I see some posts with minute complaints. It sounds like you may just not be operating it correctly... parking spot to spot, etc.. its not just nissan for that problem.. Easy fix, learn from it... If you move short dist... Rev it up,. clean it out.. warm it up even, be fair to your baby, lol.

Just my 2 cents. No offense, if your car is giving you trouble, or even more so your service dept, then by all means... rant away!!! I've had good luck thankfully, and the next ride I think is a 350Z... Any common complaints on that if you know shout them out!

I just got the call from the service department...you'll never guess, that's right it's the Cam Sensor. It seems this is a real problem with the 2003 Altima's. If you know someone who owns one, let them know, if the car cranks, but won't start, it's the Cam. Save yourself the $89 diagnostic and buy the part and have a local mechanic put it on...it's a lot cheaper. It cost me $153.00 to have the dealer do it.

I just bought a 2003 SE with 94000KMs a month ago. I chose the Altima over the Accord, Camry and TL for a number of reasons. Yesterday, I returned to the car after having lunch with Clients. The car started but I had no accelerator. After waiting a while, I started it again and all was fine. My company mechanic ran a scan, and fault code 1121 came up. He reset the computer, tried again and the code did not appear. The car started again the rest of the day. I did about 150KM post dignostic. I awoke this morning to take my other car in for cooling system problems and was going to have my wife come pick me up from the shop when she called to say she couldn't start the car. It would crank, then start and then die right away. From what I've read in this forum, it sound similar so I'm very worried. I bought this car to replace a very expensive to repair BMW 740 with 300000 KMS so I'm sick of putting tons of money and stress into cars. Any suggestions? Who should I complain to?

Hello. I bought my 2006 Nissan Altima 2.5s last year february. On 7-8-07 my family and I were going out when the car wouldn't start. Finally after a couple tries it did turn on with strong smelling fumes. I took it to the dealership & he said nothing was wrong with it and that I should "Not hit the gas while starting care it'll flood & won't start car" (which I wouldn't do anyway) & "Hold key until car starts". Well I did what he said and yesterday my husband tried to turn the car on and it wouldn't, it would make like a clicking sound, it took us more than an hour to turn it on. I would've been towed, but good thing it turned on. I left it at the dealership this morning so hopefully they can find the problem, but I have a feeling they will say nothing is wrong with it.

2004 Altima 2.5S with 44K miles. Car died while coasting in a parking lot and had very difficult time restarting it. The "Service Engine Soon" (SES) light came on. The manual states that the SES indicates that there is an emission problem.

Took car to Midas and they ran a diagnostic check and he said the code on the computer indicates that the Crank Shaft Sensor is bad and needs to be replaced. Called Nissan and asked if the Crank Shaft Sensor is covered under warranty. They said no because it is not part of the power train (60K miles) but covered under the emissions (36K miles). I personally think anything that will kill an engine while driving should be covered under the power train.

Did some research and found out that the 02 and 03 Crank Shaft Sensor was recalled, but not the 04. My 04 did have a recall for a computer upgrade. I'm upset because Nissan obviously knows there is a problem, but are still manufacturing these subpar parts.

Midas replaced the Crank Shaft Sensor, but the SES light was still on and had trouble starting. Took it to the dealer, they ran a diagnostic check and said the codes indicate the Cam Positioning Sensor and the head gasket could be bad. They replaced the head gasket that was covered under the power train warranty, but the SES light was on. They replaced the Cam Positioning Sensor and the car now performs adequately. $114 for the Crank Shaft Sensor and $252 for the Cam Positioning Sensor. A lot of money for such an easy fix.

Nissan has lost any future business from me because of a known flaw that they refuse to recognize.

Wow.

This is crazy to know that I had the same problem as everyone else. Monday my car wouldn't start and I was going to call for a tow truck. About 15 min. later my car started. I have 59.000 miles on it and keep up with all the services. It only has happened one time to me. But I will change the cam sensor and pray it doesn't happen again.

I own a 2003 Altima and the "SES" light came on. Took it to the dealer and learned that I need a new throttle body -- seems that an electronic sensor is built into the body so you have to replace the whole thing --> $180 parts/$270 labor. By the way, I've had the sudden "won't start/completely dead" problem twice -- once they replaced the spark plugs and the second time, the battery.

I own a 2003 Altima S and have had the following problem! When I start my vehicle I smell fumes in the cabin. After driving the vehicle my eyes are itchy and I have a headache. I have heard it could be due to the catalytic converter. I am planning to take same into the dealer, but does anyone have any suggestions?

My nissan altima 2003, I never have problems until the ses signal came out, it was the cam shaft sensor it cost me 22 dollars the dealer want me to pay 263 dollars, I recommended go and buy and change with a local mechanic it will cost you less money!!!

Hello"" yes I have a 2003 Altima,. and yes like everyone else., the crank and cam shaft position sensors are giving me problems. I have replaced the camshaft., but can any one tell me were the crank shaft sensor is???

Hello: We have a 2002 Nissan Altima with a 2.5 and we are having all kinds of problems with it. First the SES light came on about two weeks ago and it was a mass sensor. A 200 fix, then it ran for a week and the SES light came on again. This time the mech says it has a fuel problem. It won't hardly run, and falls on its face unless you baby it. Then it gets up to about 50 miles per hour and runs OK for about 2 to 3 minutes, then it drops on its face, and then starts to work itself back up to speed. If you leave the car seat for awhile, it will start back up, but you have to baby it back to speed. Is it the fuel pump or what? It doesn't have a regular fuel filter on it, it is in the tank with the pump. I'll take any help I can get. Thanks.