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EnginePart report

2005 Nissan Altima Engine Problems

Complaints
141about this part
Share
13%of 1,091 total for the year
Median mileage
97,000miles
Trend
FallingComplaints filed in the last 3 full calendar years are at least 25% lower than in the 3 years before.

NHTSA recorded 141 complaints about the engine of the 2005 Nissan Altima, 13% of the 1,091 complaints for this model year. Where a mileage was given, the median is 97,000 miles. 4 of these say a crash was involved and 4 a fire, according to the filers.

Example complaints

Selected from NHTSA records; personal details are removed. They are consumer reports, not findings.

“Oil service turned into 3k out of pocket cost in crossville tn when j and r serviced my car. They insisted on cracking open the engine block to replace gaskets that did not need repair. Caused smoking-improper pressure and other problems. Burns massive amts of oil now. Did not before the service- cyl4 floods w oil- massive problems w oil flooding since. Repaired twice- both times I was taken for more $$.”

NHTSA complaint #11196454, filed 2019-04, 165,000 miles

“I am driving a 2005 Nissan Altima se-r with approximately 140,000 miles on it. I was driving on a busy road and coming to a stop for a traffic light, probably at 5 to 10 MPH. The engine shut off for no reason. I went to autozone and got the engine code and it is for can shaft position sensor. I browsed internet and this seems a common problem”

NHTSA complaint #10716137, filed 2015-05, 140,000 miles

“Vehicle died while coasting down the side street. Once I stopped the vehicle I put it in park and turned the key to off. When trying to restart the vehicle, the engine would crack, but would not start. This problem has been listed for a recall for the 2.5 engine but not for my 3.5 engine, and Nissan will not do anything to help the situation.”

NHTSA complaint #10653027, filed 2014-11, 97,867 miles

“Check engine light due to error code p0335 which is camshaft position sensor,my car hesitate to start,need more cranking, as per Nissan so many vehicles were recalled for this code but if I give my VIN # they said there is no recall, I am the original owner of this vehicle, all the maintenances are up to date and currently I have only 72000 miles, I am requesting to recall 2005 Nissan Altima as soon as possible”

NHTSA complaint #10849882, filed 2016-03, 72,000 miles

“Car shuts down no power will not start. Back up on the freeway it just shuts off with no warning this is not the first time this problem will kill me or ppl around me on the road. It will stop and you can't put on your brakes nor steer to move to a save place”

NHTSA complaint #11043125, filed 2017-11, 8,000 miles

Related service bulletins

Engine: other model years

YearComplaintsShare of year
2024512%
2023620%
2022723%
202169%
20203720%
20194821%
2018146%
20173910%
20168616%
2015667%
2014777%
20131587%
20126816%
20113615%
20105013%
20091077%
2008545%
2007317%
200616620%
200514113%
20043011%
200311713%
2002929%
200174%
200043%
199711%
199422%

Other parts of the 2005 Nissan Altima

Body and structure
351 complaints
Engine cooling
259 complaints
Transmission and drivetrain
115 complaints
Electrical system
97 complaints
Other or unknown
60 complaints
Air bags
47 complaints
Vehicle speed control
42 complaints
Brakes
37 complaints
Fuel system
35 complaints
Steering
31 complaints
Suspension
21 complaints
Tires
21 complaints

← All problems reported for the 2005 Nissan Altima

About this data. Data from NHTSA (ODI) complaints, recalls, TSBs and investigations, updated Oct 27, 2026. Complaints are unverified consumer reports and may be duplicated or inaccurate.

To check a specific vehicle for open recalls, use its VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls. Methodology