My family and I were heading down a major highway into a metro area for the evening and the power steering went out nearly causing me to hit a wall on an exit ramp. This is only one of several issues I have had with the vehicle, this one being the most serious. I will be seeking to return the vehicle for full refund as I do not believe this car is safe. Please push nissan to resolve the issues.
2013 Nissan Altima steering complaints
Page 4 of 4: complaints 71 to 94 of 94, newest first, as owners wrote them.
I first noticed it driving the car home from the dealership. I felt as though the front tires were moving in different directions at the same time and there is a metallic sound in the front end (can only hear when your next to barriers or bridges on the highway). The car drift is so bad I feel I will be pulled over for dui!!!! I was planning a trip that week to texas with my grandchildren and I had already had an issue with the airbag light being on so I took the car back to the dealer to look at it, they couldn't get me in!!! I made my trip anyway and it was the scariest most dangerous trip I have ever made!!!! I was all over the highway on any straightaway, the slightest wind or another vehicle passing me would send me into the other lane. I finally was able to get the car into the dealer and advised them to take the car on the highway and listen for the noise as well at overpasses (when you have noise coming back at you) the rep came out and said that his tech could not find any thing wrong with the car and that it drives like all other altima's! This is not true!! And they said they never heard the noise, which I find very hard to believe because I hear it all the time! The driverside front-end sounds like a 10 year old car when it hits a bump in the road or parking lot, like its shocks or something are bad... I am soooo disappointed in nissan and with the altima completely, what is the use having a beautiful car when it is a danger on the highway!!!!!!!!!! I will post on all websites about this car! It is dangerous!!!
Tl* the contact owns a 2013 nissan altima. The contact stated that the steering wheel was very loose and that made it hard to keep the vehicle straight. The vehicle was taken to the dealer who performed an alignment. The contact stated that did not correct the problem. The failure mileage was 15 and the current mileage was 3,250.
At highway speeds the car is difficult to control - very poor handling. A lot of sway in the steering and suspension. Car constantly drifts side to side at highway speeds requiring continuous steering correction. Not a mechanical or electrical malfunction, just poor handling.
Car lost the control when I speed over 60 mile per hour. Feeling like losing control. I have to hold the steering with two hands. Difficult to stay in the lane. Feel like driving in windy condition.
2013 nissan altima has a very annoying whining/whistling noise. Dealer said they heard noise and checked other cars on lot and they had same noise, this is normal. I've seen others complaining of noise and some seem to be getting resolution. Took car back to dealer and complained again. Told once again this is normal. Noise is very annoying and for the money spent on new car expect better results. Nissan needs to fix this.
Tl* the contact owns a 2013 nissan altima. The contact stated that the vehicle exhibited an abnormal knocking when turning the steering wheel. In addition, there were various warning lights illuminated on the instrument panel. The faiure recurred sporadically. The vehicle was taken to the dealer but they were unable to determine the cause of failure. The failure was reported to the manufacturer. The failure mileage was 6,000. The current mileage was 17,000.
Passenger's air bag turns on and off randomly while an adult (150 lbs) is sitting while car is moving at different speeds (0 to 80 MPH). I took car to dealership in january and reported problem to the service manager and he stated that it was normal. I explained to the manager how that could not be normal because the passenger can suffer serious injuries or even death if we had an accident. The service manager stated he checked the car's computer and there we no error codes. The car is not included in the recall nissan issued in april. Now, I'm nervous/worried when I have a somebody in the passenger's side and the airbag light turns off randomly. In addition, the electrical steering pump makes a loud vibrating noise at low speeds. Service manager stated it's not normal but nissan does not know how to fix the problem.
This vehicle wanders left and right, especially at highway speeds. It feels like you are driving in breezy conditions, even when there is no wind at all. The effect is amplified on concrete highways with light drainage grooves. When the road is wet, it feels very unstable. It is difficult to keep the car going on a straight course, with constant steering corrections needed. The vehicle is also very sensitive to slight crosswinds or passing vehicles which send the car off its course. The dealer said it was caused by the tires but I know this is not true because I have a 2013 honda odyssey that has the same contiprocontact tires and it drives like a dream.
I love the fact that my car has the heated steering wheel and for paying so much for this vehicle to have this wonderful feature you would expect it to work. Well it did for the first month, but I used it alot, usually on highway trips when it would cut off I would turn it back on, then about a month after that I noticed it was only getting warm at the top of the steering wheel and not the rest. Then a little later it doesn't even get warm anymore. I have taken it to service at least 2 different times, and they just tell me that it is normal. But in the armada, and maxima they loaned me while my car was in the shop those seemed to work fine. Their answer to that is that in the altima it reads the temperature inside the car to determine how hot it gets. This is not the problem because in march of 2013 here in northern va we had a big snowfall. I went to my car at 3:40 am the day of the snowfall, and started it. It was about 28 degrees outside, and the inside of the car felt the same. I turn on the heated steering it I never felt it the entire 30 miles I drove. To me it feels like the electricity is not getting to any or all of the heating element. Nissan says to take it to another dealership, but all the dealers around me are owned and managed by the same.
So I have been hearing a whining sound coming from the engine compartment of my car at low speeds. I took it in and the dealership told me it was a normal power steering noise. And said there was nothing they could do, I brought it back a week later after I found out the next day that their is a nissan technical bulletin on this. And they had it for a few days with my other concerns and returned it to me saying that my car did not qualify for the repair. Why is this? It is making intolerable noises and yet they do not fix it? To this day I am still getting these noises and have read that the steering pump has failed on other 2013 nissan altimas. There needs to be a recall!
Since new this car has had a serious handling issue. It did arrive new with defective tires. New tires were installed, problem caused by tires was know gone. However, the car still handled very poorly at speeds over 65 MPH. The handling is so bad that I feel it is dangerous at freeway speeds. Handling is a very subjective complaint, and because it is, I do not feel that this is being treated the way it should be. The may issue of popular mechanics describes this issue perfectly. "against the competition the altima feels disjointed, as if different engineering teams had calibrated the steering, suspension, and powertrain without talking to one another.when we pitched the car hard into a corner, for instance, the light steering made us wonder if we'd be able to complete the turn. We found that the body bobs and weaves during a hard run through the canyons, leaving the driver without confidence in its handling.' I have contacted nissan, and I truly believe this is a very serious issue that needs to be addressed before someone is injured or worse.
There is a shuttering vibration in drive train when engine is at 1500 RPM and going up an incline. Eventually it is going to cause loosing of bolts and cause crash.
Tl* the contact owns a 2013 nissan altima. The contact stated that while driving approximately 40 MPH, the steering wheel shifted to the sides. The contact also stated that the steering wheel was stiff and required extreme effort to steer. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The approximate failure mileage was 160.
2013 nissan altima sv purchased 02/2013 vehicle has 1732 miles whining noise from power steering is unbearable steering is not too good feels like wandering. Brought back to dealer and was told nissan is working on it. Filed a complaint with nissan corporate and was assigned a case manager who said that this was only the second time she heard of this happening well that s a lie because the dealer said it is happening and more than twice someone needs to check this out power steering unit.
Tl* the contact owns a 2013 nissan altima. While driving various speeds a loud noise emitted from the engine area. The defect also occurred whenever starting the ignition. The vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer for diagnosis. The technician stated that the noise originated from the power steering pump which functioned as designed. The manufacturer was notified of the problem. The approximate failure mileage was 2,000.
The car wonders on the highway, you need to always correct the steering, it is very distracting.
I purchased my nissan altima 2013 s car on 17 october 2012 with 12 miles. Approximately two days later after buying this vehicle, I began hearing a constant whining noise coming from the engine compartment at a very low speed, a drumming slapping noise when I abruptly brake, a rather disturbing metal clunking sound that seems to generate from the fuel tank and finally intermittently clicking sound from the engine compartment at a high rate of speed. These sounds ar extremely nerve wrecking for a brand new car. I brought my car to three different nissan dealerships for inspection at least seven times only to be told that these concerning sounds are normal conditions for this model. The car has also hesitated multiple times on start up. Filed a complaint that LED to nowhere because nissan north america, inc insists that these are "normal" conditions for this vehicle .
I am writing to you in the hope that someone will look into my complaint and safety concern with the power steering pump of the new 2013 nissan altima. There has been no accident to date. This complaint concerns the newly designed 2013 nissan altima that when driven has a constant, annoying noise that sounds like morse code. This noise problem has apparently been identified by nissan as coming from the power steering pump due to other owner?s complaints about the noise. Nissan claims this is a ?normal noise? And both the dealer and the nissan customer service center are aware of the multiple owner complaints about this noise, yet will offer no corrective service to eliminate this disturbing noise emanating from an apparent defective power steering pump. 2013 altima drivers need to be warned of the possible defect of the power steering pump and to be alert and report any problems in steering while driving. As an owner of a 2013 altima, I am extremely disturbed about the dealer?s and nissan?s response to my complaints about the power steering pump that it is just normal noise. I have owned 7 new cars over my lifetime, the last 2 being 2009 altimas, and have never had such a noise from the power steering pump. My car and work experience is that unusual noise from a pump means that something is wrong with the pump; and usually the pump has to be replaced before its tragic failure. Nissan's non-response to fix or replace this power steering pump in the 2013 altima is unconscionable, and should not be condoned as an acceptable business practice regarding the safety of the vehicle occupants. I respectfully request that this issue be investigated to determine whether the power steering pump is defective or not - before there are serious accidents caused by the pump failure.
At highway speeds over 65mph vehicle wanders. Wandering creates the need for constant corrective steering action. Steering is extremely sensitive. Any wind or passing vehicle exacerbates problem. Vehicle feels very unstable at highway speed. Nissan north america had me take vehicle back to dealer. I did so today(freedom nissan in burlington, vt). Vehicle has 5225 miles to date. Service director [xxx] confirmed that he felt the same problem at highway speed. Tire pressure was checked ok. An alignment was performed, minor adjustments made. On departure, service director said that the vehicle is mechanically correct. That the wandering is normal. On the drive home, there is no difference from prior to my visit to the dealer. No notable difference from alignment. I joked that I should buy a few hundred pounds of sand. I will not buy another nissan product. This vehicle is unpleasant to drive, and the wandering and steering sensitivity are potential safety hazards on the highway. I have left a message for my case manager at nissan north america. Information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u.s.c. 552(b)(6).
Tl* the contact owns a 2013 nissan altima. The contact stated that while driving approximately 65 MPH, the steering wheel became difficult to maneuver. The vehicle was taken to the dealer for diagnostic testing two times. The second time the vehicle was taken to the dealer the technician advised the contact that the vehicle needed a front end alignment performed. The alignment was performed however, the failure persisted. The vehicle was not further repaired. The failure mileage was 1,400.
On our first trip following purchase of the car, we noticed that the car was not tracking in a straight line at highway speeds. This condition was not noticeable at speeds lower than 65 MPH. Above that speed, the car wanders in the lane requiring continuous adjustments to the steering. Inattention to the drift would allow the car to cross into the adjacent lane. The problem appears to be caused by the new steering system on the 2012 altima. It uses a power-steering system that consists of a hydraulic rack driven by an electric motor. We brought the car to the dealer and their test drive service manager confirmed the problem. After he talked with nissan USA, however, he disavowed ever saying that he noticed any problem. Numerous contacts with nissan USA have resulted in no action to remedy the problem. The internet includes many 2013 altima buyers complaining about this problem. Nissan management says that we just "need to get used to it." this problem while it may sound minor, can be a serious safety issue on the highway. We have found that we often overcorrection to the lane drift, sending the car to the opposite side.
On aug. 10th we recd an email from the empire nissan fleet mngr [xxx]. He stated that they needed to have the car back and would pay our first mth pymt and give us a replacement car of like kind and quality. They would not tell us why the veh needed to be returned. We notified corp nissan consumer affairs dept and they contacted empire nissan. They finally advise that the reason they need the veh back was because there was an open campaign on it with a single recall. We agreed to return it for the repair. We took the veh back to nissan and later on that day, we were notified there were 10 recalls found on the veh! At this point we realized that was why they wanted to swap the veh. They agreed to give us a rental car during repairs. We picked up the veh & as soon as we left, there was a constant buzzing noise coming from the car, there was a lot of road noise and whistling from the windows, the engine was loud. We called the gm [xxx] & ask them to buy the veh back & they told us that we were asking too much and that we are acting like we are the victim. We also called the svs mgr, [xxx] to make have the veh serviced again. He was rude and said he didn't want to get in the middle of this with the manufacture & to not bring the veh in to them for svs & they will not be providing a loaner nor a rental for us. He stated he would have an engineer come out to look at the veh to determine the cond. We have heard nothing. Nissan has been evasive and has not been honest with us. Knowing that veh had several mechanical issues, they allowed us to cont to drive this veh and put us in danger with no regards to our safety. Just a day ago we saw on the news there are now two more recalls on our veh. Now a total of 12 recalls on a brand new car! Information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u.s.c. 552(b)(6).
On interstates car wanders all over road requiring both hands on wheel making constant corrections to stay in lane and is severely buffeted by passing trucks and busses. At lower speeds constant corrections are still required to avoid running off road.
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