2014 Nissan Altima Problems

What owners report

Owners of the 2014 Altima most often write about dim headlights that make night driving difficult, CVT transmission shuddering, whining or failing, and rear lower control arms that rust through and break. Many complaints arrive between about 60,000 and 120,000 miles, and the control-arm reports cluster in cars driven where road salt is used.

1. 1
   Exterior lighting

   Dim low-beam headlights

   • 248 complaints (22%)
   • median 81,000 mi at 5.4 yrs old (137 state mileage)
   • 3 mention a crash, fire or injury
   • owner-quoted repair $1,000 (median of 22 quotes)
   • filed 2017–2026

   Owners describe low beams that put very little light on the road, especially on dark roads, forcing them to drive with high beams. Complaints say new bulbs, LED or HID replacements, and aiming did not help, and that the problem worsens gradually. Dealers are reported to have recommended replacing the whole headlamp assemblies, often quoted at several hundred to over a thousand dollars, and some owners were told the warranty mileage had been exceeded. Reported from roughly 25,000 to 125,000 miles, typically noticed at night and described as getting worse over months or years.

   13 related service bulletins

   What to check: Drive the car on an unlit road after dark and compare the low beams against the high beams, and look at the reflector bowls inside the housings for clouding or a burnt appearance. Ask whether the halogen headlamp service campaign or warranty extension work was performed.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “The low beam on my Nissan Altima is extremely dim. Is so dangerous to drive at night. My friend got an accident last night because of this issue. I have to use the hight beam when I'm driving at night, this is also another safety issue which affects the the other drives but we have to, otherwise we could hit somebody.”

   NHTSA complaint #11373268, filed 2020-11, 2 miles

   “My low beam lights are barely lighting up the road even after changing the bulbs. It's coming from the silver housing part that holds the bulbs and Nissan needs to replace this. I almost hit a person walking last night. I was driving down a dark road going slow. I have to use my fog lights just to help me out some and it's still not enough lighting. My brights work great it's just the low beam.”

   NHTSA complaint #11322379, filed 2020-04, 78,000 miles
2. 2
   Suspension

   Rear lower control arm rusts through and breaks

   Mentioned in 16 of 60 sampled complaints

   Owners report a pop or snap followed by the rear of the car dropping, a wheel tilting inward, or the steering pulling to one side; some describe the rear wheel collapsing or wobbling. Inspections found the rear lower control arm broken or separated, often with heavy corrosion, and complaints repeatedly mention road salt use in winter. Owners say dealers sometimes declined coverage, with some pointing to a service campaign they were told applied only to other model years. Typically reported between about 70,000 and 160,000 miles, with several mentions of vehicles driven in salt-belt states.

   What to check: Have the rear lower control arms inspected on a lift for rust perforation, flaking metal or cracks, particularly on cars from snowy states, and ask whether any rear suspension campaign work was done.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “Our 17 year old son was driving ur 2014 Nissan Altima about a 1/4 mile from our home. He hit a bump and immediately felt the steering pull. He got home and we looked under the car and saw that the rear control arm was rusted thru and had broken. Thankfully he was not on the interstate or going faster when this happened.”

   NHTSA complaint #11322477, filed 2020-04, 80,000 miles

   “Lower rear control arm on the drivers side separated while driving due to corrosion. I live in wisconsin where salt is used to clear snow. I was driving in a straight line on a freeway.”

   NHTSA complaint #11399741, filed 2021-03, 107,000 miles
3. 3
   Transmission and drivetrain

   CVT shudder, whine and failure

   • 238 complaints (21%)
   • median 70,000 mi at 4.5 yrs old (192 state mileage)
   • 2 mention a crash, fire or injury
   • owner-quoted repair $4,093 (median of 33 quotes)
   • filed 2013–2026

   Complaints describe juddering and shaking while accelerating or slowing, whining or roaring noises that grow with throttle, delayed or stuck engagement when shifting into reverse or park, and in some cases stalling or loss of power while driving. Several owners say the dealer diagnosed the CVT as needing replacement, and some were told the vehicle was out of warranty so no assistance was offered. Mostly between about 70,000 and 120,000 miles, often appearing first as intermittent shudder at low speed or during takeoff.

   7 related service bulletins

   What to check: Test drive from a stop and at steady low speed, listening for whine or shudder, and check for delayed engagement going into reverse. Ask for transmission service records and whether any CVT calibration or diagnostic bulletins were applied.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “I bought a 2014 Nissan in 2017 Altima make: I had taken the car in because it would delay in reverse. I have the receipt on the date I went in, 08/27/2018 ; they note on it could not duplicate customer concern. There was a second time I took car in for the same reasons, they could not find receipt. Now looking back on, 08/20/19 I had problems with getting park in gear, it would get stuck, the invoice says internal failure to internship solenold replaced interlock shift. …”

   NHTSA complaint #11351257, filed 2020-08, 92,000 miles

   “June 2019, vehicle started to judder, shake and stalled out at red light. Put the car in park, restarted the vehicle, put it into drive and it stalled again. This happened 3 more times until I was able to drive. Approaching another set of lights, vehicle slowing down and the judder and shaking began, I did not come to a complete stop so the car did not stall. I was able to drive home. I then let the car sit for 2 days before I drove it again and when I test drove it after those 2 days, the car seemed to be better, it did not stall out. …”

   NHTSA complaint #11319633, filed 2020-03, 71,000 miles
4. 4
   Air bags

   Airbag warning light and seat-side airbag faults

   • 151 complaints (14%)
   • median 22,000 mi at 1.9 yrs old (105 state mileage)
   • 8 mention a crash, fire or injury
   • owner-quoted repair $1,450 (median of 8 quotes)
   • filed 2014–2026

   Owners report the airbag warning light coming on with no crash, sometimes along with the passenger airbag-off light showing with an adult seated there. Dealers are said to have diagnosed faults in the driver's seat side airbag, the airbag harness under the seat, the clock spring or the occupant detection system, with repairs quoted in the hundreds to over a thousand dollars and often described as not covered by warranty. Reported across a wide mileage range, with several complaints under 50,000 miles and others past 100,000 miles.

   Recall 16V911000Recall 16V244000Recall 15V681000Recall 14V1380003 related service bulletins

   What to check: Turn the ignition on and confirm the airbag light goes out after the bulb check, and seat an adult in the passenger seat to confirm the airbag-off indicator does not stay lit. Ask whether the occupant classification recalls were completed.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “I had an airbag light come on recently. My Nissan dealer said there was something wrong with the side airbag which is built into the driver's seat and would require the back portion of the driver's seat to be replaced. This is a 2014 Altima with less than 30k miles on it already having an airbag fault out of nowhere with no accident. It concerns me that I am having to foot a $1600 bill to fix a piece of safety equipment that the manufacture seems to have poorly made.”

   NHTSA complaint #11319067, filed 2020-03, 28,000 miles

   “The passenger's airbag off light is on while having an adult passenger on the seat eighter the car is moving or is parked. Meaning the passenger's airbag is not working”

   NHTSA complaint #11365603, filed 2020-10, 50,000 miles

Buying note. Have a pre-purchase inspection look closely at the rear lower control arms for rust and at the headlamp housings for dim output, and test the CVT on a varied drive. Ask for records showing the hood latch, airbag and headlamp campaign or recall work were completed.

Summary written with AI from a sample of 60 NHTSA complaints for this model year (picked at random, with complaints that state a mileage and recent ones taken first), then checked automatically against the source records. Where a problem shows a complaint count, every complaint for this model year was matched with fixed keyword rules (written with AI and tested against the sample), and the mileage, age and repair figures are calculated from those complaints; owners' figures are as stated, not verified. Other counts refer to the sample. The excerpts come from NHTSA's public complaint records and are unverified; capitalisation is normalised, NHTSA staff notes are removed, and shortened text ends with “…”. Something wrong? Request a correction.