2012 Nissan Altima: complete transmission failure

Filed Feb 26, 2024 · Transmission · NY

Service Engine Soon light on. Was driving on highway at 55mph Transmission started to slip and car started to slow down while I was pressing gas pedal. The more I pressed on gas pedal the more the car lost acceleration. Had to move off to side of the road and turn car off. Took to mechanic and had transmission flushed and plate replaced. Transmission needs to be replaced. Ran diagnostic and codes for Transmission comes up.

Filed Apr 11, 2022 · Transmission · CA

I have a 2012 Nissan Altima. Four years ago I drove from Sacramento, CA, to Reno, NV, with two friends in my car. As I was driving over the summit on Highway 80 my car started to lose power. This was extremely scary as the highway is only two lanes and since it was a Saturday there was a lot of traffic. I was driving in the slow lane and as my car continued to lose power and slow there was noplace to get off the road. I pulled onto the narrow sholder between the slow lane and the concrete barrier and my car came to a complete stop. Since there were cars whizzing by I was not able to open either the drivers side door or the passenger side door, which was inches away from the concrete divider. At this point I was shaking uncontrollably and in a panic I called Nissan of Sacramento to tell them what happened. The technician suggested that my transmission may have over-heated. He suggested that I wait for the transmission to cool and see if I was able to then make it to the nearest freeway offramp, which I did. After exiting the freeway we waited for an hour or so and were then able to proceed to Reno, NV. Once there, I took my car to a mechanic who checked the other systems and could find nothing wrong. Once back home in Sacramento I took my car to Nissan of Sacramento and was then informed that my transmission had burned and would need to be replaced. They contacted Nissan and were informed that there were no recalls and that I would need to pay for a new transmission out of pocket and the cost would exceed $4,700. After contacting Nissan myself, they informed me that they would not cover the cost of a new transmission. Since I am a retired, single senior citizen living on a fixed income, I have not been able to replace the transmission and subsequently have not driven more than 20 miles from my home. I have read that CVT Transmission problems are very common with Nissan Altimas. Why would they deny my claim when this is such a serious safety issue?

Filed Jan 19, 2022 · Transmission · CA

Had transmission fluid changed now starts bit doesn't go in gear took it to shop and was told I need a new transmission don't understand why new fluid would cause this and have heard nissan has had numerous problems with cat transmission

Filed Sep 23, 2021 · Acceleration, Transmission · NC

3 times car has decelerated when driving on interstate for 1 to 2 hours. Last time speed dropped to 20 mph when most cars were doing 70 to 80 mph. This creates a very dangerous situation that could result in loss of life if not corrected. Nissan refuses to address the matter and problem is well documented on the internet and lawsuits. Nissan should have issued a recall covering the defective CVT. My college age grandson is driving the car as he has no other option but he is putting his life and friends at risk each time he goes on an extended trip. Nissan should at minimum replace the transmission as a safety issue but have denied our claim. Your help would be greatly appreciated.

Filed Jun 15, 2021 · Transmission · PA

In mid-May 2021, noticed that the Altima (at 105,000 mls) had little power when accelerating. At one point, pulled out from from a stop at an intersection and basically "crawled" through. Barley made it up to the top of our driveway. "Check Engine" light came on. Not safe to accelerate in traffic. Local AAMCO, and local Nissan dealer, both diagnosed transmission failure. Have learned that apparently Nissan knew of this problem.

Filed Jul 19, 2020 · Acceleration, Transmission · 60 miles · CA

2012 nissan altima 2.5s sedan, purchased new plus extended warranty with 3 miles on it. At 64k miles while driving on the highway after about a. Hour at normal speeds on a hot day the car started making a whining noise from the engine compartment. The vehicle became sluggish and the speed reduced to 60mph. The RPM gauge began to rise ant the car began to decrease it's speed eventually descending to 20 MPH while the RPM gauge fluctuated from 2k to 5k RPM. The gas pedal was non responsive except for a louder whining noise as it was pressed . We pulled over for a while and the vehicle went to normal. This exact same issue happened 2 more times before we arrived home. The dealer responded stating a new transmission was needed but not covered they said my warranty was not valid. I complained, they contacted headquarters I guess and stated to me because the car was under 70k miles the company would pay partial for the repair but my out of pocket expenses would have been about 1200. Not only did I think this was unfair but I also didn't have an extra 1200 lyng around. So unfortunately I've been dealing with this issue for years car drives fine for about 40 min. So no long commutes.

Filed Jul 13, 2020 · Transmission · 110,000 miles · IN

My 2012 nissan altima was bought at 40k miles. It ran good for was maintained. At 108k miles the transmission started acting up. It would not shift into 6th gear (CVT transmission) and would eventually lose power and not accelerate. I had it diagnosed and found out there was a recall on these transmission but they were only for the prior year models so there was nothing I can do. It is now at 120k miles and it hasn't gotten so bad I can't drive it on the highway. I took it to the dealership and had it completely diagnosed and they told me that it threw what they refer to as a 'death code' and said it needed a new transmission. They told me that it's a matter of time before the transmission completely dies. I'm a student and in the military so I stay very busy and my car not being reliable has put a stop to everything. A transmission going bad at 120k miles should not be a thing. I truly feel cheated by nissan with this car.

Filed May 5, 2020 · Transmission · 112,000 miles · CA

This is a well-documented issue with the nissan CVT transmissions - lost power when accelerating, the engine winds up but the vehicle does not respond. A mechanic diagnosed it for me and says it's got code p1778 and the transmission needs to be replaced.

Filed Feb 5, 2020 · Transmission · 125,000 miles · LA

I was driving down the highway and my transmission started making a loud whining noise and revved up to about 6400 RPM's and my car had no acceleration from that time on.. Now I'm facing either paying $3400 for a new transmission or just trashing a perfectly well kept up car. I've always made sure to have my car completely serviced and maintained on time. After this I will never buy from nissan again. These CVT transmissions are horrible. Nissan is looking after their profit instead of reliability. This is a 2012 altima with 125000 miles.

Filed Nov 12, 2019 · Transmission · MS

Tl* the contact owns a 2012 nissan altima. The contact stated that the vehicle would hesitate to move forward while depressing the accelerator pedal. The failure occurred without warning. The contact took the vehicle to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed with transmission failure. The contact spoke with cannon nissan of greenwood (69900 us-82, greenwood, ms 38930, (662) 453-4211) and was informed that the vehicle was not under warranty. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was unknown.

Filed Aug 28, 2019 · Transmission · 85,000 miles · NC

I have a 2012 nissan altima. I have already replaced the transmission once last year when the car had 80,000 miles on it. The transmission went when traveling on a long trip, after a hours when going approx 65 MPH and trying the car failed to acccelerate. The car then would not go over 40 MPH. This was a very dangerous situation asthere was a tractor trailer behind me, which forced him to slam on breaks. Very dangerous and scarey situation for all involved. Again this year while traveling for approx 2 hours the same thing happened. I had to pull off the road on the left had side to avoid an accident. I have read numerous other instances where the same thing has happened. Someone is going to be killed or has already been. The 2nd time it happened at approx 99,000 miles. I have already contact nissan and am going to take car for a diagnostic, if I am able to get it there. I believe that other cars for other years have already been recalled due to a class action suit. I have been doing alot of research on this car and year and numerous others have had same complete. Very dangerous and deadly accidents will occur if nothing done on nissan part. There is no warning that anything will happen. The lights in the car did not go on, and even after pulling over did not go on

Filed Apr 9, 2019 · 150,000 miles · KY

Transmission went out whining noise..would not go over 40 MPH . Rpms went up but no power .. Had towed to dealer advised transmission was bad ..transmission shop advised would cost $ 3800 to repair and nissan transmissions were faulty has 150,000 miles ..