2018 Nissan ALTIMA - Ratings, Complaints and Recalls

The 2018 Nissan Altima has received excellent safety ratings across the board, with a perfect 5-star overall rating. It has also obtained high ratings in various crash scenarios, with standout scores in front, side, and pole crash tests. The car is equipped with standard electronic stability control and forward collision warning systems, enhancing its safety features. Unfortunately, it does not have a lane departure warning system.

In terms of complaints and recalls, the Altima has received 178 complaints and 2 recalls. While the number of complaints is noteworthy, the recalls are relatively low, indicating that the manufacturer has taken steps to address any potential safety issues promptly. Overall, the 2018 Nissan Altima offers a high level of safety with key features such as stability control and collision warning, making it a solid choice for drivers prioritizing safety on the road.

Top stats at a glance

Complaint Count

178

Recall Count

2

Investigation Count

4

Safety Rating

5/5

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Safety Features

2018 Nissan Altima 4 DR FWD Safety Features

Here are the safety features that come as standard on the 2018 Nissan Altima 4 DR FWD

Electronic Stability Control (ESC)

ESC is an advanced safety feature in vehicles designed to help drivers maintain control during challenging driving conditions. By continuously monitoring various factors such as steering angle, vehicle speed, and individual wheel speeds, ESC can detect and reduce the risk of skidding or loss of control. It achieves this by automatically applying brakes to specific wheels to stabilize the vehicle.

Standard
Forward Collision Warning (FCW)

Forward Collision Warning (FCW) is a safety feature in vehicles that helps prevent frontal collisions by alerting the driver of an imminent collision with a vehicle or obstacle ahead. Using sensors such as radar or cameras, FCW monitors the distance and speed of vehicles in front, and if it detects a potential collision, it provides visual and/or auditory warnings to prompt the driver to take evasive action.

Standard
Lane Departure Warning (LDW)

Lane Departure Warning (LDW) is a safety feature in vehicles that alerts drivers when their vehicle unintentionally drifts out of its lane without signaling. Utilizing cameras or sensors to monitor lane markings on the road, LDW detects when the vehicle crosses these lines and triggers visual, auditory, or haptic alerts to notify the driver of potential lane departure.

No

2018 Nissan Altima 4 DR FWD Safety Ratings

Here we have the crash and rollover ratings for the 2018 Nissan Altima 4 DR FWD Where possible we've included the ratings for the oldest and latest models of this car so you can compare how the safety ratings have changed over time.

Frontal Crash Ratings

Combines Driver and Passenger star ratings into a single frontal rating. The frontal barrier test simulates a head-on collision between two similar vehicles, each moving at 35 mph.

Test 2005 Score 2018 Score 2024 Score
Overall Front Crash Rating Not Rated 5 4
Front Crash Driver Side Rating 5 5 5
Front Crash Passenger Side Rating 5 4 4

Side Crash Ratings

Combines Side Barrier and Side Pole Star Ratings into a single side rating.

Test 2005 Score 2018 Score 2024 Score
Overall Side Crash Rating Not Rated 5 5
Side Crash Drivers Side Rating 3 3 4
Side Crash Passenger Side Rating 3 5 5
Combined Side Barrier Pole Rating - Front Not Rated 3 5
Combined Side Barrier Pole Rating - Rear Not Rated 5 5
Overall Side Barrier Rating Not Rated 4 5

Rollover Ratings

The Rollover Resistance test measures the risk of rollover in a single-vehicle, loss-of-control scenario.

Test 2005 Score 2018 Score 2024 Score
Rollover Rating Not Rated 4 5
Rollover Possibility % 0% 0% 0%
Dynamic Tip Result No Tip No Tip
Side Pole Crash Rating Not Rated 5 5

Complaints for the 2018 Nissan ALTIMA

This chart show the number of complaints for each car component. A Higher number of complaints could indicate that this car might have a common fault. Something to look out for when purchasing one.

Component Complaints

Choose a component to see what complaints people have made about them.

Complaint:
"when backing up, often times my rear camera screen goes black and i’m unable to see anything. it is not consistent and sometimes it appears to be distorted like a tv channel trying to clear. there have been no accidents and the most recent incident was on 1/3/24. i see there is a recall for cars as early as 2019 for the same issue, however, my 2018 vehicle is experiencing the same thing."
Components Involved: UNKNOWN OR OTHER
Date of incident: 2024-03-01

Complaint:
"i was riding down the road and the interior overhead dome light just fell out and was hanging. it was hanging right by my head. i researched this issue and it seems to be a regular occurrence in these cars and the dealer wanted to charge me to fix it even though i have a warranty."
Components Involved: UNKNOWN OR OTHER
Date of incident: 2024-10-12

Complaint:
"when pressing the brakes the push button does not start the car. the car also will not shift from park to drive even if the brakes are pressed. there are no warning lights and the problem has been “fixed” once by a nissan dealership already but it is a recurring issue. this problem is ongoing since october 2022"
Components Involved: UNKNOWN OR OTHER
Date of incident: 2023-11-01

Complaint:
"my transmission began shuddering then next couple days when i put the car in reverse it would stick and when i put it in drive it would hesitate to move. then when it did move it wouldn’t get up to at least 55 miles per hour. took it to nissan, put it on the rack ($170) test indicated that transmission was shot"
Components Involved: UNKNOWN OR OTHER
Date of incident: 2023-10-09

Complaint:
"battery cables corrosion is awful. i have replaced my battery three times since buying this car in 2018"
Components Involved: UNKNOWN OR OTHER
Date of incident: 2023-09-07

Complaint:
"gear shift will not leave park when car is first started, usually when vehicle is cold."
Components Involved: UNKNOWN OR OTHER
Date of incident: 2022-03-09

Complaint:
"just bought the car"
Components Involved: UNKNOWN OR OTHER
Date of incident: 2022-01-12

Complaint:
"the brake light switch fails which will not allow me to start vehicle with push start. already replaced switch once while vehicle under warranty. now around 60,000 miles it started failing intermittently. i have been stranded numerous times, sometimes in dangerous situations with car not starting. i have been stranded in parking lots in bad neighborhoods and in airport parking lots. there is no alternative to starting the car without engaging the brake, so when this switch fails you have no way to start vehicle. you get no warnings that it has failed or to tell what the problem is. i have spoken with dealer and described what vehicle is doing and they agree that the problem is the brake light switch again."
Components Involved: UNKNOWN OR OTHER
Date of incident: 2022-06-06

Complaint:
"i took it to get my inspection and they told me i have two recalls"
Components Involved: UNKNOWN OR OTHER
Date of incident: 2023-01-04

Complaint:
"front end t bone collision car is totaled out.*dt*jb"
Components Involved: UNKNOWN OR OTHER
Date of incident: 2021-11-09

Recalls for the 2018 Nissan ALTIMA

Component Recalls

Choose a component to see what recalls people have made about them.

Recall:
"nissan north america, inc. (nissan) is recalling certain model year 2013-2018 nissan altima vehicles. if the primary hood latch is inadvertently released, there is an increased likelihood that the secondary hood latch may corrode over time."
Consequence:
Corrosion to the secondary latch may cause it to bind and remain in the unlatched position when the hood is closed. If the primary latch is inadvertently released again and the secondary latch is not engaged, the hood could unexpectedly open while driving, increasing the risk of a vehicle crash.
Remedy:

Nissan will notify owners, and dealers will install a stronger release spring in the hood release lever, a warning label near the secondary hood latch, and an Owner’s Manual addendum card with instructions on how to lubricate and maintain the secondary hood latch mechanism, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed June 30, 2021. Owners may contact Nissan customer service at 1-800-867-7669. Note: Recall 16V-029 remains open for any unremedied 2013-2015 Altimas and this recall applies to all vehicles covered by 16V-029 even if those repairs have already been performed.

Component(s) Involved: LATCHES/LOCKS/LINKAGES > HOOD > LATCH
Date of incident: 2020-05-28

NISSAN Overall Complaint Ranking

This table shows the ranking of car manufacturers when it comes to most complaints and recalls. The manufacturer with the most complaints is at the top. However this doesn't necassarily mean they should be avoided. Some manufacturers might just have more popular or affordable cars which a lot of people have bought. Which means there's more scope for a complaint to be made. Use the ranking table below as a part your wider research into buying a car.

NISSAN ranks 5 out of 44 in the complaints ranking table.

Manufacturer Complaint Count Recall Count Ranking
FORD 208,358 3,259 1
CHEVROLET 111,306 2,082 2
TOYOTA 81,019 1,852 3
HONDA 61,937 1,268 4
NISSAN 56,226 930 5
DODGE 45,756 827 6
HYUNDAI 44,150 649 7
GMC 34,441 1,410 8
KIA 29,832 501 9
CHRYSLER 27,698 254 10
TESLA 26,230 730 11
BMW 24,890 1,877 12
VOLKSWAGEN 23,125 829 13
MERCEDES-BENZ 19,066 2,925 14
SUBARU 18,513 703 15
MAZDA 10,599 364 16
PONTIAC 10,430 138 17
CADILLAC 9,434 444 18
AUDI 7,865 1,093 19
BUICK 7,851 279 20
SATURN 7,672 84 21
MERCURY 7,374 135 22
LEXUS 6,373 408 23
LINCOLN 5,897 423 24
ACURA 5,722 382 25
MINI 5,585 366 26
INFINITI 4,000 187 27
MITSUBISHI 3,912 397 28
VOLVO 3,875 727 29
PORSCHE 2,646 1,231 30
SUZUKI 2,272 123 31
FIAT 2,205 80 32
SAAB 1,536 76 33
JAGUAR 1,195 198 34
SMART 528 17 35
GENESIS 436 42 36
ISUZU 249 37 37
ALFA ROMEO 161 37 38
MASERATI 76 46 39
BENTLEY 46 159 40
POLESTAR 42 2 41
LUCID 14 6 42
CODA 4 2 43
MAYBACH 0 0 44

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