2003 Nissan Altima: misfire or rough idle

Filed Apr 28, 2015 · Electrical, Engine · 160,000 miles · TX

Car began to idle roughly and was hard to start. Replaced oxygen sensors which did not cure symptoms. Was told that the 2 pre-cats (catalytic converters) needed replaced. Motor mounts also recommended. Replaced and problem persisted. Hard to start, runs rough now shutting down while driving. Ran codes myself with obd-ii tool and found crankshaft and camshaft position sensors to be faulty. I heard of a recall for this very issue; even described my symptoms exactly. Even though my year model and car was recalled the nissan of fort worth service desk told me my VIN # was not covered. My car has the exact same engine as all of the other nissans made in this year range and the same faulty crankshaft and camshaft sensors but for some unknown reason mine are not covered by this. How is this even possible. I have replaced a lot of pricey parts all which may have been avoided by replacing the sensors. Even if I had to pay for the crank and camshaft sensors it would not have been bad if I had not paid over $3000 in repairs to other stuff that may not have needed replacing.

Filed Oct 13, 2014 · Engine · 151,000 miles · RI

I had just bought my vehicle in march 2010 for $4200. A few weeks after I started to notice that the vehicle was burning through oil every few days. I took it to my mechanic and he stated it needed a tune up. A few days after the tune up I noticed it started to run rough on the highway on my way to work. While on the highway the car stopped running everything shut down, no power steering. I had to glide to the breakdown lane hoping and praying I would make it and not get hit. So I had the car towed to the mechanic who then told me that the motor was blown. I didn't have the money to fix it seeing as I had just bought the vehicle 6 months earlier. So I then parked the car in my driveway until I had the money to replace it($2000). Once I was able to replace the engine 2 months later the check engine light come on again. I take it back into the mechanic and he tells me its the radiator. I replace the radiator ($200). A few weeks later the check engine light comes on again. The mechanic tells me its the catalytic converter and that he's done atleast three nissans in the past month with the same problem and that there is a recall and to contact nissan. He also told me that if I to drive the vehicle like that it would blow the motor again because that is what caused it to blow initially. After taking it to a nissan dealer they told me that there is not "open" recall on the catalytic converter just an ECM reset and the halogen light recall. They did tell me the catalytic gone due to a cylinder 2 misfire but that was not covered by them. I then called nissan directly and they told me that there was a recall previous for the engine and catalytic converter but it was not an open recall and they were not allowed to send me that information. If I wanted that information I would have to go through car fax. This was from their upper management.

Filed Nov 12, 2013 · Engine · 92,000 miles · TN

While my son was driving, the engine began missing and started to smoke. At the same time the heater quit producing heat. The check engine light came on. Engine diagnostics indicated cylinder # 4 misfire. Took to independent mechanic where it was confirmed that the engine was destroyed by failed catalyst in the pre- catalyst. Oil had fouled the missing cylinder's spark plug. The engine oil level was full and there had no previous indication of oil consumption, but the oil was found to contain coolant. These cars are popular for parents to purchase for teenagers and appear to be hazardous. The federal safety agency campaign id number: 03v084000 indicated that this pre-catalyst issue was a fire hazard back in 2003. It appears whatever was done in this recall did not solve the problem. This failure seems to be fairly common occurrence.

Filed Aug 22, 2011 · Engine · 111,463 miles · CA

As I was driving on the freeway during rush hour, my 2003 nissan altima began to jerk back and forth, as if it was misfiring. The check engine light came on and then started flashing. At the next exit I got off the freeway to drive to a safe place to stop the car. Getting off the freeway, my car stalled in a busy intersection (all red lights came on and there was no power to my car). I could not restart it and was stranded just past the busy intersection near the center divide. I put on my emergency lights and was almost hit several times, and I am very lucky to not have been hurt. After about 30 seconds I was able to restart the car, pull over to the side in a safer area and had my car towed by aaa straight to the nissan dealership, who had performed an oil change on the car a day before. It took them 2 days to figure out that a power valve screw failed and was sucked up into the engine, causing irreversible damage to the engine -the piston top, cylinder walls, spark plugs, valves and catalyst. Nissan recommends a long block replacement with new exhaust manifold with converter ($4500). After much research and speaking with the nissan service manager, I have found that this was an issue with all altimas (manufacturer's defect) until the screws were redesigned for the 2006 model year. I have also found that there was a recall for 2004 nissan sentras and 2004-2005 altimas with the 2.5 l engine for this reason. But the 2003, which has the same engine, was not part of this recall. I have been told by nissan that since I am past the warranty period that this is not covered, even though it is a known defect. I am thankful I was not hurt, and I am very upset that nissan knew about this defect and did nothing about it for my model year. I have seen other similar complaints on-line and hope that they will be analyzed as well for possible recall & compensation.

Filed Apr 20, 2010 · Engine · 66,000 miles · GA

My 2003 nissan altima with 83,700 miles was driven to a local dealership where I bought it used a little over one year ago. But prior to leaving home I read at the federal safety agency website about similar problems I was already having, hoping this dealership would also have similar, if not, identical results. To my dismay, they had neither. Thereby no type of recall was showing on my model's history via the manufacturer, so I was told. My vehicle problems are as follows, per dealer diagnosis: tw catalyst sys-b1 (code p0420), engine over temp (code p0217), and cyl 1 misfire (code p0301). Furthermore, my complain essentially was about the car over-heating and taking longer than usual periods to restart, usually up to 10 minutes. This dealer said it could cost upward from at least $400.00 to fix either one of the problems which may still not correct them all. But the most serious was the catalytic problem that involves hot gases and debris being drawn into the engine instead of going out the exhaust, resulting in engine damage. The problems began when the check engine light remained lit after about 6 months of ownership. But the problem with starting didn't show up until the one year point. Just recently, I have purchased a tune-up as well as a new battery for my vehicle in order to remedy what I thought were owner service issues. Sadly, this local dealer either does not know about your recall or somebody is hiding this from not just them but from owners like me as well. I plan to call nissan-1 tomorrow as they were closed after leaving the dealership. I hope no fire results from this or any serious problems relating to injuries as we try and resolve this issue. Thank you for your service in advance.

Filed Mar 10, 2010 · Engine · 67,000 miles · CA

My 2003 nissan altima started making a knocking sound on the engine and runs rough. I tried using fuel system cleaner but it did not work. I also tried oil treatments and changing the oil but non worked. I took to a nissan certified mechanic and told me intake valve screws were loose and creating a knocking sound that the butterfly is half open causing the car to idle roughly. The mechanic also said the this happens alot with this cars, altimas and sentra and that there is a recall for 2004 and 2005 models but not 2003 even if it has the same engine. He also informed me that if I don't get it fixed the it will break my engine and could cause an accident. On the same car I also had to pay for a crank sensor the failed on me. Nissan said the same thing, recall on the 2004 and 2005 but not 2003. It caused my car to stall and run roughly. Took it to nissan and they said nothings wrong and take it back to them when the check engine light turns on. After a month it did turn on. Luckily have warranty but they still charge me. Please help, I'm not looking for someone to replace my car just to have nissan fix what they messed up on.

Filed Sep 9, 2009 · Engine · 103,000 miles · NJ

2003 nissan altima I've had two different problems that are safety issues that I've noticed many other altima owners have experienced. First, I've had two ignition coils go bad. Each time it occurred the engine would misfire and stalled out in the middle of intersections when traveling at low speeds. After the second ignition coil failed the mechanic recommended replacing of the remaining two original coils due to the likelihood of future failure. The second problem was the failure of the camshaft and crankshaft position sensors. This prevented the car from starting altogether and stranded my daughter and myself late at night. Both sensors were replaced. Fortunately this failure did not occur when I was driving the car on the highway. I've seen that other people have had this failure occur when driving. Obviously an extreme safety hazard. These problems were readily and quickly diagnosed by the nissan mechanic, which LED me to believe that he knew that my car was prone to these problems and that he has seen them many times before.

Filed Apr 21, 2009 · Engine · DC

2003 nissan altima has had multiple problems with the engine. *nj the consumer was informed, the cylinder 1 misfired which caused the engine light to illuminate. There was a problem with the head gasket consuming 3 quarts of oil every 4000 miles and running terribly rough. The consumer believed her vehicle was among the hundreds of vehicles having problems with the pre-catalytic converter where it deteriorates and becomes sucked into the engine, scorching the cylinders causing massive oil consumption then followed by the engine running rough.

Filed Apr 17, 2009 · Engine · 66,000 miles · WA

I bought a 2003 nissan altima with 66k miles on it 6 months ago from wilsonville nissan. They promised this car was in perfect running order, even after the check engine light came on during the test drive, but the technicians there insisted that they just forgot to reset the computer after they performed an oil change. As I have come to find out, ses lights do not illuminate on altimas for this reason, but after I bought the vehicle and multiple problems arose, we ran diagnostics and cylinder 1 was misfiring. There are many more issues with this vehicle now, including problems with the head gasket, consuming 3 quarts of oil every 400 miles, and running terribly rough. There hundreds of thousands of people complaining of these same pre-cat related issues in their 02-06 altimas. The precat deteriorates and is sucked up into the engine, scorching the cylinders, causing massive oil consumption, and then followed by the engine running rough and then dying. We took the vehicle back to wilsonville nissan and they refused to give the precat a visual inspection. They claimed that since the computer did not throw a code concerning the precat, they had no reason to look at it. Instead, they charged us $110 to tell us that the computer was giving a cylinder 1 misfire code. We already knew that and we told them that before they took the car in. Under the federal emissions warranty, nissan has to pay for all costs to diagnose, repair, and replace all parts that are ruined by any faulty emissions part under 80,000 miles. The precat falls under this category, and the engine should also be replaced by nissan as its problems are a direct result from the precat falling apart and getting sucked into the engine. Recall id# 5450 requires them to test and look at the pre-cat, and if there is any damage to the cat, then the engine must be replaced, free of charge. Nissan will not cooperate and will not even look at the precat. Please help.

Filed Apr 1, 2008 · Engine · OR

Vehicle developed drive-ability issues, rough idle, stalling and odd smell from exhaust. Vehicle was taken to a private repair shop and was diagnosed with a miss-fire code. Dec 06, service light is back on and vehicle is running rough, stalling and hard starting. Scanned system and code p0507 (idle speed) was pulled. Was advised to take car to nissan dealership to have a relearn performed on the computer. Dec 14, 2006, vehicle was taken to lithia nissan, procedure was performed and sensors were-calibrated. Recommended a throttle body be replaced (cost $800). Vehicle running rough, service light on and stalling are occurring again. Scanned system, code p0302 miss-fire code on cylinder #2, code p0420 catalyst efficiency low bank 1. Replaced throttlebody per nissan recommendation. Nov 02, 2007 engine light on, vehicle running poorly, hard starting and stalling. Was informed by repair shop about possible recall issues relating to vehicle. Contacted nissan consumer affairs after reading about recall for 2002, 2004-2005 vehicles similar to mine with same problems (reference #5962832 & 6071239). Talked to rep about the recall and the issues with my 2003 altman 2.5l and was basically told to take vehicle back to dealership to have another scan done. Feb 9, 2008 vehicle was taken to lithia nissan to run a system scan. At this point the vehicle is running poorly, hard starts, stalling, rough idle. Dealership pulled four codes, p0420 catalyst bank 1, and p0335ckp sensor, p0302 cylinder 2 miss-fires and p0725 engine speed sensor. Was informed that the catalyst is bad and could not only be causing the miss-fire code but may also ruin my engine. Also the crankshaft sensor is bad. Approx cost of repair, $1000. I contacted matthew again about the results and was told that due to not having the vehicle regularly maintained at a 'nissan' dealership, they were not able to track a maintenance record and that they were not going to do anything about my car.

Filed Jan 7, 2008 · Brakes, Engine · 70,000 miles · CA

I purchased a brand new 2003 nissan. The first time I heard about a recall issue with the 2003 altima, I took it back to the dealership and they told me there was nothing wrong. The car will sporadically not start. I have had to replace the tires early on, the plugs were also replaced because it was misfiring, the brakes were squeaky at about 20,000 miles, the AC and the heater did not work (at about 30,000 miles and we had to replace them), water sloshing sounds, and had to replace the rooter. At about 55,000 miles the car started stopping sporadically. I took it to the dealership and they claimed they had fixed it. On my daughter's birthday, (3 months later) the car stalled on us on the road and she missed her own 3rd birthday party. I took it back to the dealership and they said it was the battery (less than 3 years from the time it was replaced). 2 weeks before christmas, I was on the road with my 11 month old infant, making a left turn at a busy intersection and the car just stopped!!! The driver behind me was just inches away from rear-ending me with my infant in the back seat facing back. I called nissan headquarter and told them what happened. I explained to them that I fear for the safety of my 2 young children and myself in the car. I explained to them that we drive on one of the busiest freeway in the country (ca ? 405). My children's lives are in danger each time I drive them in this car. I requested a replacement car from nissan and was told that they could not do that. This vehicle is my main means of transportation. I am very frightened about driving this car. I fear being killed with my children in this car; this car is a death trap just waiting to happen. Why has nissan refused to take responsibility and do something to prevent someone from being killed in their poorly built-malfunctioning vehicle?

Filed Apr 18, 2006 · Engine · 74,850 miles · MA

My 2003 nissan altima 2.5 s (75,000 miles) was brought in for routine maintenance. For a week or two the car has run roughly and had a strange odor in the drives compartment. It was discovered that the radiator has a cracked seal and it has been leaking fluid. It was below the minimum line when it was brought in. The fumes in the drivers compartment were the fumes from the anti freeze. No service engine warning light ever came on and the temperature gauge never moved. There was no indication that the car had a problem.