2020 Nissan Altima: What to check before buying
Owners have filed 162 complaints with NHTSA about this car, most about the electrical, steering, and engine. The 9 checks below target those problems, in the order you would do them at the car.
2020- Owner complaints
- 162
- Recalls
- 6
- Crashes reported
- 14
- 13 injuries
Your inspection sheet
Tick items off on your phone at the car, or print it. Ticks stay on this device.
0/9 checked
2020 Nissan Altima: inspection sheet
Paperwork and questions
Before you go, or before you touch the car0/3
Walk-around and cabin
Engine off, key in hand0/1
Cold start, engine bay, and underside
Ask the seller not to warm the car up first0/2
Test drive
At least 20 minutes, with some highway0/3
These checks are specific to this model year. For tires, body panels, fluids, and the other basics every used car needs, use the general inspection guide.
Which Altima is it?
EPA figures for each version of the 2020 Nissan Altima. Use them to confirm you are looking at the version that was advertised, and as a yardstick on the test drive.
| Version | Drive | EPA rating |
|---|---|---|
| 2.0L 4-cyl | FWD | 29 mpg |
| 2.5L 4-cyl | AWD, FWD | 30–32 mpg |
- The 2020 Nissan Altima was sold in two versions. Confirm which one this is from the window sticker, the engine cover, or the VIN report before you compare prices.
- Reset the trip computer at the start of the drive. A Altima that averages well under the EPA 29 mpg combined on a mixed route may have an engine or tire problem.
Check the odometer against these mileages
Owners report these failures starting around the mileages below. A car inside one of these ranges deserves a closer look at that part, or records showing it was already fixed.
Premature engine failure
32,000–40,000 miles
Door lock actuator failure
40,000–91,228 miles
Why these checks: what owners reported
NHTSA complaints for the 2020 Nissan Altima, grouped by the part owners named. Open a row to read what goes wrong.
Electrical33No crashes
Fire is the most serious pattern here. Of 33 complaints, 6 involve fire and 1 involves an injury. Flames start under the steering wheel, in the dashboard, near the battery on the driver side, and in a front seat heater. Some fires follow a sudden power loss on the freeway. Others start after the car is parked and shut off. Door lock actuators also fail, so some doors only lock by hand, and one owner reports a break-in. Other reports describe a frozen or garbled backup camera and radio volume that jumps to maximum.
Steering203 crashes
Tie rods come apart during routine turns, often near 15 mph, and the car can no longer be steered. Several of these end in crashes into a fence post or bridge rail. In all, 3 complaints involve crashes and 2 involve injuries. Owners link the failures to a tie rod fastener recall that did not cover their VINs. A clicking, popping, or humming noise while turning often comes first, and shops trace it to wheel bearings or tie rods. Other reports describe power steering cutting out or the wheel seizing, then working again after a restart.
Engine15No crashes
Power drops suddenly with an "Engine Malfunction, Power Reduced, Service Now" message, sometimes into limp mode at 5 to 15 mph in traffic. The warning often clears after a restart, and dealers often find no code or cannot reproduce it. Some reports tie it to freezing, snowy weather. A second pattern is outright engine failure: coolant loss, overheating, a cracked head, and dealers recommending a new engine at mileages as low as 32,000. Several owners say they were refused an engine-failure recall repair for their car.
Transmission14No crashes
From a stop, acceleration lags, sometimes for 3 to 4 seconds, while RPM climbs and the car shudders or jerks. Owners report near misses during left turns and cars lunging forward. Dealers often cannot reproduce the problem. Full transmission failures range from about 17,500 miles to 111,000, and one CVT failure alert sent a car into limp mode on the freeway. Other reports describe repeated limp mode after several throttle body replacements, every dash light coming on with a dead speedometer, and a battery fire while driving.
Airbags75 crashes
Nothing deploys in several serious frontal crashes, including one that destroyed the front end and windshield and another that totaled the car. Of 7 complaints, 5 involve crashes, with 4 people injured. One report says the seat belts also failed to engage. In another, a bag with a hole sprayed its chemicals onto a passenger's arm and left a painful burn. Other owners find white powder on the driver's knee airbag cover, or an airbag warning light that stays on.
Brakes71 crash
Automatic emergency braking kicks in with nothing ahead. Some cars come to a full stop on the highway, and one owner says this has gone on for years. The rear system can also stop the car from backing into an empty space until it is switched off. An AEB fault can disable cruise control. One report describes the brake pedal sinking to the floor at a stop light, causing a 5 mph collision. Another describes power loss with several warning lights that a new mass air flow sensor and battery did not fix.
Door latches and locks51 crash
Door lock actuators fail one after another, often starting with the rear doors and spreading to the front. The key fob stops unlocking them, the key can be hard to turn by hand, and in one report the driver's door stopped opening at all. Failures show up between about 40,000 and 91,228 miles, and dealers diagnose failed actuators. One crash report with 1 injury combines a loose, rattling hood with sudden emergency braking and hesitation.
Acceleration and cruise control51 crash
Cars speed up on their own while parking, and one hit the parked car ahead. Dealers could not reproduce the problem in another report at 40,000 miles. Other cars slow or stop on their own with no traffic around after an orange warning light comes on, and one went back to the dealer 6 times without a fix. Malfunction and driving-aid warnings remain even after a new speed sensor, CV axle, and hub. A dealer confirmed a twitching speedometer needle and found the same thing on a new Altima.
In owners' own words
Excerpts from complaints Altima owners filed with NHTSA, as written. Listen for the same symptoms on your test drive.
First, the chip has started to malfunction around 13k miles. Secondly, there is a lurch when the car first starts and an aggressive RPM jump and then drop, it begins to run fine upon warming up alittle. Now, at 20k miles the car is having issues with the wipers not spraying the windows well and the rear passenger door has to be locked manually from the interior.
Filed with NHTSA, May 2022
Windshield Wiper Fluid Reservoir sensor going on even when reservoir is full. Gives drivers a warning light which is very distracting. If you go on line, this appears to be an extremely common problem that Nissan has not addressed. This can lead people to not know if they have fluid in reservoir as they will eventually ignore warning light or disconnect sensor (the two most common solutions in Nissan Altima forum).
Filed with NHTSA, June 2025
I was driving home and my steering wheel locked up on me while my car was in motion. I eased on down the road thinking that it locked because of a safety warning, but it never unlocked. I eased my car onside the road and put it in park. While in park, the power steering light appeared on the dashboard. Once I turned my car off, the steering wheel was still locked. This risked my safety because I was not able to control my vehicle.
Filed with NHTSA, July 2021
While accelerating from a complete stop, the car stalled with tires, powertrain, and steering wheel all locked. For 15 seconds, the steering wheel, tires, and car was unable to be manipulated. During acceleration, the speed was less than 15mph when it came to an abrupt stop. Another car behind me almost hit me when my car came to a stop. Car was just serviced for another warranty issue a few months ago by Nissan dealership.
Filed with NHTSA, July 2024
On the way to work a warning error message came across the dash board saying “ Engine Malfunction Power reduced. Service now” then is turned off. The engine light didn’t come on until a month later saying P0101. P0101 was fixed but the engine malfunction still comes and goes.
Filed with NHTSA, February 2025
It’s been 2 times that I get the WARNING ️ Sign of Engine Malfunction Power Reduced Service now and at the same time another warning that’s says Malfunction see owners Manual and my car looses it’s power
Filed with NHTSA, June 2024
While driving my vehicle on the freeway, the car suddenly went into limp mode then a few seconds later, the Warning Light appeared showing CVT failure alert. The car has 111,000 miles. This should be an issue that Nissan need to be responsible 100%.
Filed with NHTSA, November 2024
Engine failed prematurly with less than 40k miles. All service was completed in a timely fashion. Nissan is taking a long time to get back to me with what next steps are. They are still investigating after 10 days. Pls help.
Filed with NHTSA, June 2024
How the 2020 compares with other Altima years
Complaints for this year next to the average for the other model years, area by area.
The 2020 ranks third for owner complaints among 8 Altima years, about 2.0 times the average of the others. Newer years have had less time to collect complaints, so compare like with like.
- Electrical3316
- Steering204
- Engine153
- Transmission144
- Airbags76
- Brakes78
Where the 2020 fits in the Altima's history
Redesigns and mid-cycle updates change what can go wrong.
The 2020 is the second model year of the Altima's sixth generation (2019–2023).
Nissan updated the Altima for 2023, so a 2020 does not have those changes.
What changed for 2023 (not on a 2020)
- Redesigned front fascia with new LED headlights
- New user interface for standard 12.3-inch touchscreen
Recalls to confirm (6)
Recall repairs are free at any Nissan dealer, but the seller may never have had them done. Check each campaign number against the VIN.
25V437000EngineJun 2025
Nissan North America, Inc. (Nissan) is recalling certain 2021-2024 Rogue, 2019-2020 Altima, 2019-2022 Infiniti QX50, and 2022 Infiniti QX55 vehicles equipped with 3-cylinder 1.5L or 4-cylinder 2.0L variable compression turbo (VC-Turbo) engines. The engine bearings may have manufacturing defects that can lead to engine failure.
Risk: Engine failure increases the risk of a crash. A bearing failure may cause a breach in the engine block, allowing hot oil to be discharged, increasing the risk of an engine fire.
Fix: Dealers will reprogram the engine control module (ECM) software, free of charge. Owner letters were mailed February 2, 2026. Owners may contact Nissan's customer service at 800-647-7261 or Infiniti's customer service at 1-800-662-6200. Nissan's numbers for this recall are R25A8/A9 and R25B1/B2.
23V628000Backup cameraSep 2023
Nissan North America, Inc. (Nissan) is recalling certain 2019-2021 Altima and 2020-2021 Sentra vehicles. Damage to the camera harness can cause distortion or loss of the rearview camera display image. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard number 111, "Rear Visibility.".
Risk: A rearview camera that does not properly display an image can reduce the driver's rear view, increasing the risk of a crash.
Fix: Dealers will inspect the rearview camera and harness for damage and replace them as necessary. If no damage is found, the dealer will apply protective tape and reroute the rearview camera harness. Repairs will be performed free of charge. Owner notification letters are expected to be mailed October 19, 2023. Owners may contact Nissan's customer service at 1-800-867-7669. Nissan's number for this recall is R23C3.
21V169000Wheels and tiresMar 2021
Nissan North America, Inc. (Nissan) is recalling certain 2019-2020 Altima and 2018-2021 Titan vehicles equipped with Continental tires. On the affected vehicles, it is possible that one or more tires were cured for too long during tire production.
Risk: Over cured tires may develop a break in the sidewall, resulting in sudden air loss or belt edge separation which could lead to tread/belt loss. Either condition can cause a loss of vehicle control, increasing the risk of a crash.
Fix: Nissan will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the tires, and replace them as necessary, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed on May 11, 2021. Owners may contact Nissan customer service at 1-800-867-7669. Nissan's number for this recall is PC798.
21V138000SteeringMar 2021
Nissan North America, Inc. (Nissan) is recalling certain 2020-2021 Nissan Altima vehicles. The tie rod ball joint fastener was not tightened properly, which could result in the tie rod ball joint detaching from the steering knuckle.
Risk: A detached tie rod ball joint can cause a loss of steering control, and increase the risk of a crash.
Fix: Nissan will notify owners, and dealers will tighten the left and right-side tie rod ball joint fasteners, or install new fasteners as necessary, free of charge. The began March 31, 2021. Owners may contact Nissan customer service at 1-800-867-7769. Nissan's number for this recall is PC795.
20V685000Wheels and tiresNov 2020
Nissan North America, Inc. (Nissan) is recalling certain 2020 Altima S grade vehicles equipped with Continental ProContact TX tires, size 215/60 R16 H, with TIN date code 3320 and Mold ID S-419149. The tires may have been over cured.
Risk: Over cured tires can result in a sidewall break causing a sudden loss of air or the tread separating from the tire. Both conditions increase the risk of a crash.
Fix: Nissan will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the vehicle's tires to see if they are affected, replacing them as necessary, free of charge. The recall began December 10, 2020. Owners may contact Nissan customer service at 1-800-8677669. Nissan's number for this recall is PC765.
20V570000Wipers and visibilitySep 2020
Nissan North America, Inc. (Nissan) is recalling certain 2020 Altima, Maxima and Leaf vehicles. The rear window glass may not remain properly secured to the vehicle.
Risk: Rear window glass that separates from the vehicle can increase the risk of a crash.
Fix: Nissan will notify owners, and dealers will replace the back window glass, free of charge. The recall began November 4, 2020. Owners may contact Nissan customer service at 1-800-867-7669. Nissan's number for this recall is PC752.
Also looking at these instead of a Altima?
Cars shoppers compare with the Nissan Altima, with their own 2020 checklists.
2020 owner complaints, side by side
- Subaru Legacy121
- Kia Optima138
- 2020 Nissan Altima162
- Hyundai Sonata163
- Ford Fusion176
- Chevrolet Malibu178
- Honda Accord344
