2020 Nissan Altima
Problems, recalls and owner-reported issues
Electrical system is the leading concern among 179 owner complaints filed for this model year. This is the 19th highest complaint count among 26 Altima model years with reports.
Of the 2020 reports, 16 involved a crash and 7 involved a fire. 15 people were injured and 1 person died.
What owners report most often
Recalls and investigations
Engine and engine cooling, engine, hard parts internal/mechanicalJun 27, 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.
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.
Dealers will reprogram the engine control module (ECM) software, free of charge. Owner letters were mailed April 8, 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.
Campaign 25V437000 on NHTSA.gov
Back over prevention, sensing system, cameraSep 8, 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."
A rearview camera that does not properly display an image can reduce the driver's rear view, increasing the risk of a crash.
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.
Campaign 23V628000 on NHTSA.gov
TiresMar 11, 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.
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.
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.
Campaign 21V169000 on NHTSA.gov
Steering, linkages, tie rod assemblyMar 4, 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.
A detached tie rod ball joint can cause a loss of steering control, and increase the risk of a crash.
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.
Campaign 21V138000 on NHTSA.gov
TiresNov 5, 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.
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.
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.
Campaign 20V685000 on NHTSA.gov
Visibility, glass, side/rearSep 22, 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.
Rear window glass that separates from the vehicle can increase the risk of a crash.
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.
Campaign 20V570000 on NHTSA.gov
Representative owner complaints: visibility/wiper
10 reports, newest first. Show all
Electrical system, Visibility/wiper, Jun 20, 2025
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).
Exterior lighting, Visibility/wiper, Apr 3, 2025
1 of 2 problems! 1 the passenger head light seems to be leaking water into the headlight and blurring vission forwards and gives a blurring illusion and mabe shorting out the headlight. 2 the windshield wipers liquid sencer showes it needs windshield wipers fluid when it's full. The light on the dashboard keeps flashing showing this and keeps the odometer blocked.
Visibility/wiper, May 15, 2022
Its not unknown. I arrived at work on Thursday the 12th of May, AT 8:00 A.M. I work in an Industrial Park where there is no traffic. My car was looking great, I put my sunshade cover up and proceeded to go into work. After working all day I came out to my car and my windshield was crack starting from the top of the car and flowering down. Nothing hit my car on my way into work, and actually there is nothing that shows it was hit a all. This is a factory defect and there are bubbles when the glue or whatever they use is a mess.
Electrical system, Fuel/propulsion system, Visibility/wiper, May 7, 2022
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.
Visibility/wiper, Feb 18, 2022
The washer fluid motor or spray nozzles design is defective. I’ve been to my dealership multiple times they have replaced the pumps and gone through the whole set up and said there’s nothing that can be done. When dirt and dust are on the windshield and you want to spray it off is when the problem arises. The fluid is only sprayed on the lower portion of the windshield and does not spray the part that needs sprayed the middle and top where you look out off. This is not only a hindrance but could be a safety issue when your visual path is compromised. The dealer said they were putting in complaints and hopefully the engineers or design team looks at it as a problem. I hope this grabs the attention of the people that can make safety issues known and hopefully something is put in the motion to fix this. Thanks
Visibility/wiper, Oct 21, 2021
My windshield cracked on the front passenger side out of nowhere...meaning not any reason for it to do so. First it was on the passenger's side which I originally assumed that something/somebody must have hit it while parked at my child's school. I took it to AAA Glass to get an estimate and was told that that usually a windshield does not do that unless it is 3 years old. My car is a 2020!!! Then my car was parked in my driveway all weekend and when I got in it, I noticed that the driver's windshield area was cracked. Finding this VERY usual, I did a google check to discover that several drivers have had the SAME problem with the SAME year, SAME model and SAME make of the car. A YouTube video of their car even showed it is the SAME area that I experience the crack. I called the dealership and was told there wasn't a recall and they offered no assistance. I called Nissan and am waiting on them to return my car. With so many people having this issue, it is worrisome. This is a safety issue and a recall should be done immediately to avoid any accidents or injury/harm to those that sit in the front seat. I am not getting anywhere and hope that this complaint and others are taken seriously. Thank you!
Visibility/wiper, Apr 7, 2021
MY WINDSHIELD CRACKED FOR NO REASON . NO SIGNS THAT IT WAS CRACKED BY IMPACT . THE CRACK KEEPS GETTING BIGGER. GIVING ME POOR VISIBILITY WHILE DRIVING . VERY EXPENSIVE TO REPLACE .
Wheels, Visibility/wiper, Mar 3, 2021
SINCE THE PURCHASE OF THIS VEHICLE I'VE HAD TWO INSTANCES THAT I FEEL ARE DEFECT RELATED. THE TIRE INDICATOR LIGHTS CONTINUED TO READ LOW AIR. THE TIRE WAS LEAKING SOME TYPE OF BLACK FILM AND A HUGE KNOT APPEARED ON THE SIDE OF THE TIRE. ANOTHER INCIDENT INVOLVED THE TIRE COMPLETELY BLOWING. THE TIRE DEFECTS WERE REPORTED BACK TO THE COMPANY AND WERE INDICATED AS NO FAULT TO MANUFACTURE. SINCE I'VE COMPLAINED OF A RECALL THAT HAS BEEN IN THE MODEL VEHICLE BUT A DIFFERENT YEAR. MY VISIBILITY IS OBSTRUCTED DUE TO ALL WINDOWS RETAINING DEW AND MOISTURE CAUSING FOG TO APPEAR IN ALL WINDOWS. IT HAPPENS WHILE DRIVING EARLY MORNING & AT DAWN DURING TEMPERATURE CHANGES. THE DEFROST DOESN'T CLEAR THE WINDOWS. DURING RAINY WEATHER THE CAR IS COMPLETELY DISABLED DUE THE OBSTRUCTION IN VISION FROM THE THICKLY FOGGED WINDOWS. I HAD IT CHECKED BY THE SERVICE DEPARTMENT AND WAS TOLD IT WAS LIKE THAT BECAUSE THE WINDOW WAS DIRTY. I DON'T FEEL LIKE SERVICE HAS THOROUGHLY INSPECTED THE VEHICLE. I'M CONCERNED FOR THE SAFETY OF MYSELF AND MY CHILD AND HAVE STRESSED THIS TO THEM NUMEROUS TIMES. DURING EACH DEFECT, THE VEHICLE WAS IN MOTION. PLEASE HELP
Visibility/wiper, Feb 17, 2021
MY WINDSHIELD CRACKED IN OCTOBER 2020. BOUGHT IT IN AUGUST 2020 AND MY SISTER AND MOTHER BOTH OWN NISSANS(SENTRA AND ROUGE). BOTH WINDSHIELDS ARE CRACKED.
Visibility/wiper, Jan 16, 2021
MY WINDSHIELD CRACKED FOR NO REASON WITH ONLY 460 MILES ON THE CAR. UPON LOOKING THROUGH A SOCIAL MEDIA GROUP AND READING FORUMS IT WAS VERY EVIDENT THAT THIS IS A SUPER COMMON ISSUE. I DON'T KNOW IF IT CRACKED WHEN I WAS DRIVING OR OVER NIGHT BUT I NOTICED IT ABOUT A MILE INTO MY MORNING DRIVE TO WORK WITH NO OTHER CARS AROUND AND ONLY DOING 30MPH. THE WINDSHIELD IN THIS CAR IS NOT ONLY VERY EXPENSIVE TO REPLACE BUT IT ALSO POSSES A SAFETY ISSUE AND IN MANY STATES YOU CAN BE TICKETED FOR IT BEING CRACKED. THIS FORM WON'T ALLOW ME TO UPLOAD A PICTURE, JUST A PDF BUT I DO HAVE PICTURES OF THE CRACK. I PERSONALLY KNOW 1 AND HAVE FOUND AT LEAST 20 OTHER PEOPLE WITH THIS ISSUE WITHOUT LOOKING HARD