2005 Nissan Altima Exterior lighting Problems
- Complaints
- 13about this part
- Share
- 1%of 1,091 total for the year
- Median mileage
- 48,250miles
- Trend
- Not enough dataFewer than 15 complaints, too few for a reliable trend.
NHTSA recorded 13 complaints about the exterior lighting of the 2005 Nissan Altima, 1% of the 1,091 complaints for this model year. Where a mileage was given, the median is 48,250 miles.
Fewer than 15 complaints name this part, so treat the figures as a rough indication only.
Example complaints
Selected from NHTSA records; personal details are removed. They are consumer reports, not findings.
“I bought a 2005 Altima 2.5 s brand new and it has always been garaged and kept in perfect condition. My headlights have started to oxidize horribly but only on the inside, this seems like a poorly made product, if after only about 5 years my headlights start failing to perform with no warranty?”
NHTSA complaint #10662088, filed 2014-12, 88,000 miles“The other day I got pulled over for having no lights on in there rear but my lights were on in the front I replaced the bulb. The license plate lights also my parking lights are still not working.”
NHTSA complaint #11099294, filed 2018-06, 100 miles“1. Three handles on the Nissan Altima on my car have snapped off when opening. Even after replacing them they still snap off probably because in cold weather they become brittle. If he handles were metal they would not snap off. My concern is if during an accident before emergency vehicles could arrive that if someone were to try to assist getting me out of the car the handles would snap off and they could not remove me from the car. This is extremely dangerous the handles on cars should not snap off and plastic handles are extremely dangerous in all climates. 2. …”
NHTSA complaint #11258505, filed 2019-09, 50,000 miles“When headlights are on lowbeam at night you can hardly see where you are going. I am very uncomfortable with this. There should be a recall for this. You will be seeing another complaint here again from me if this should cause an accident.”
NHTSA complaint #10133643, filed 2005-08, 1 miles“I bought this '05 Altima about 2 months ago. I don't drive at night a lot but when I did for the 1st time, I noticed the low beam headlights were in the trees. I found an adjustment screw on back of the headlight assembly and found that when I adjusted it, it turned both the hi and low beams down. When the low beams came close to level- the hi beams were now hitting the ground 15 ft in front of the car. I found a recall # on line for this very issue dating back to blogs in late 2004. It's # 07e087000. …”
NHTSA complaint #10904787, filed 2016-09Related service bulletins
- 10032306Nov 27, 2013Nissan: exterior lamp fogging. Occasionally water is noticed in the exterior lamps. This is generally not due to a defect. All current exterior lamp assemblies are vented to the…
- 10032992Apr 27, 2010Nissan: xenon head lamp service. A xenon headlamp is not functioning because of an issue inside the headlamp assembly (an internal issue). In most cases, replacement of a bulb or…
- 10021508Apr 18, 2007Exterior lamp fogging.
Exterior lighting: other model years
| Year | Complaints | Share of year |
|---|---|---|
| 2022 | 1 | 3% |
| 2020 | 1 | 1% |
| 2019 | 1 | 0% |
| 2018 | 13 | 6% |
| 2017 | 18 | 5% |
| 2016 | 42 | 8% |
| 2015 | 270 | 28% |
| 2014 | 299 | 27% |
| 2013 | 442 | 19% |
| 2012 | 5 | 1% |
| 2011 | 2 | 1% |
| 2010 | 7 | 2% |
| 2009 | 9 | 1% |
| 2008 | 9 | 1% |
| 2007 | 4 | 1% |
| 2006 | 9 | 1% |
| 2005 | 13 | 1% |
| 2004 | 6 | 2% |
| 2003 | 17 | 2% |
| 2002 | 41 | 4% |
| 2000 | 2 | 1% |
| 1998 | 1 | 1% |
| 1997 | 4 | 4% |
| 1996 | 4 | 4% |
| 1995 | 1 | 1% |
| 1994 | 2 | 2% |
| 1993 | 3 | 2% |
Other parts of the 2005 Nissan Altima
351 complaintsEngine cooling
259 complaintsEngine
141 complaintsTransmission and drivetrain
115 complaintsElectrical system
97 complaintsOther or unknown
60 complaintsAir bags
47 complaintsVehicle speed control
42 complaintsBrakes
37 complaintsFuel system
35 complaintsSteering
31 complaintsSuspension
21 complaints
← All problems reported for the 2005 Nissan Altima
About this data. Data from NHTSA (ODI) complaints, recalls, TSBs and investigations, updated Oct 31, 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