2016 Nissan Altima: shudder or vibration when accelerating

Filed Jun 16, 2026 · Transmission · MS

My daughter was driving down the road and came to a 2-wayy stop. Went to pull out and the car stalled and started shuddering. On down the road leaving a red light it did the same thing and not wanting to really go.

Filed Sep 30, 2025 · Transmission · TN

The transmission started slipping at 70,000 miles on the Altima, even after getting a preventative transmission service at 30,000 miles. A mechanic revealed a judder code, which means the transmission will stop working within weeks. A repair would cost more than the car is worth. My wife could have been stranded in traffic. This is unacceptable. No warning lights appeared on the dash.

Filed Apr 4, 2024 · Transmission · 76,454 miles · TX

The contact owns a 2016 Nissan Altima. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the accelerator pedal was depressed; however, the vehicle failed to accelerate as intended. The contact was almost involved in a crash due to acceleration failure. The contact noticed that the vehicle shuddered before the failure in acceleration. Additionally, the contact noticed that the RPMs were high during the failure. The contact stated that the vehicle failed to accelerate above 60 MPH. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed with a failed transmission. The dealer determined that the transmission needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. Three months ago, the contact heard an abnormal sound coming from the passenger's side front end of the vehicle. The vehicle was taken to the dealer and kept for six months; however, the failure could not be duplicated. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and a case was filed. The failure mileage was approximately 76,454.

Filed Jun 15, 2023 · Transmission · IN

CVT issues. with shudder in speed control and lack of transmission staying engaged seems like it is popping in and out of gear at any speed. lack of power and changes in speed creates safety issues with other drivers on the road.

Filed Dec 28, 2022 · Engine, Transmission · 120,000 miles · LA

The contact owns a 2016 Nissan Altima. The contact stated while driving 35 MPH, the vehicle made an abnormal sound and the RPM’s revved up and the vehicle started shuddering. There was no warning light illuminated. The contact veered to the side of the road and turned off the vehicle. The contact stated upon restarting the vehicle, the accelerator pedal was depressed and went all the way to the floorboard; however, the vehicle failed to respond. The contact turned off and restarted the vehicle two more times. The failure persisted but the contact was able to continue driving. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where the mass airflow sensor and intake manifold were replaced; however, the failure persisted. The contact referenced Nissan Technical Service Bulletin Number: NTB16-121a. The dealer and the manufacturer were not notified of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 120,000.

Filed Nov 25, 2022 · Acceleration, Engine · WA

I only had my vehicle(2016NissanAltima) for less than 2 weeks before the vehicles major problems started. The engine consistently Stalls, Surges and Shudders. As well as the Shifter locking itself to where it wont shift out of park. There are no and have never been any warning lights to alert me. The CVT and the Computer are very faulty. To the point the vehicle is now a Death Trap. When driving the car the RPM will randomly accelerate and I have no way to control the vehicle and then vehicle will go into "Limp Mode" consistently and won't go any faster or slower than the speed the car chooses to do. I don't trust anything of what it says on the dashboard as far as Gas amount, Odometer, MILWarnings, Speed or otherwise. If there are no warnings from the car to alert me with, then that is a major issue with the car and is not mechanically sound and very dangerous for me and other drivers on the road. I have had to make the car sit the majority of the short time I have had it. Because I simply won't drive very far because of the dangers it puts me in everytime I have drove it. I have had to spend my money on transportation to and from work instead of making my first car payment. At this point I want to just Opt-out with the vehicle entirely and give it back to the dealership. This car is just unsafe and should not have been sold in the condition it is in. I only got to drive the vehicle 10 days or so before major issues started with the vehicle. I have not a clue what the details of what is wrong with the car. The only warning signal I do see now, is the MIL and that is not even mentioned in the option menu of the car settings etc. This car needs to be re-manufactured so that it can become a safe running vehicle. I don't have the money that it will take to fix the car. It's far too expensive for me or any hard working citizen to ever afford. I don't advise anyone to own a vehicle of this kind.

Filed Oct 25, 2022 · Transmission · KY

Transmission failing. Will not take off from stand still, then jerks and goes after revving. Jerks badly and shudders when accelerating, then refuses to accelerate to highway speeds over 55mph.

Filed Jul 6, 2022 · Transmission · AL

Vehicle unexpectedly stalls WITHOUT illuminating brake lights! MAJOR SAFETY ISSUE with AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION FAULTY CVT. (Potential causes to unexpected Collisions) It unexpectedly Shakes, hesitates while shifting, struggles to change gear, wont change gear, stalls, and makes noise such as whining and/or grinding. These problems happen WHILE DRIVING HIGHWAY SPEEDS. It also happens coming from a stop. Completely dangerous happen once to me crossing an intersection car dodged me preventing a MAJOR accident/collision. This is a KNOWN ISSUE FOR THIS MODEL AND MANY OTHER NISSANS. NEED TO BE A RECALL ON TRANSMISSION ASAP. MANUFACTURE SHOULD BE ACCOUNTABLE FOR THIS SAFETY ISSUE NOT CONSUMER!! NOT a the weak manufacturer extended warranty from class action lawsuit. Nissan requires this $5k repair on these defective transmissions over 84k miles to be at owner expense. That repair cost extends well above what the average owner can immediately cover. Putting that owner/family and millions of others on highway/roads at risk of major accidents/collisions due to the unexpected failure of the transmission stalling, hesitating, shuddering, & distracting noises without brakes illuminating making cars around aware of an immediate unexpected speed decrease.

Filed Jun 26, 2022 · Transmission · TX

VEHICLE: 2016 Nissan Altima SL. I have a Nissan Altima, which is known to have CVT transmission issues. My issues started all of a sudden when my car immediately lost acceleration in the middle of moving traffic, resulting in my car almost being rear-ended on the highway. I had to quickly put the car in park, turn the car off and on and exit onto shoulder lane with a lot of shuddering and stalling coming from engine.I turned the car off again and waited for engine to cool down before attempting to drive again. I had to park my car somewhere overnight as the car was not making it home. The next day I took it to Nissan dealership (with much difficulty), almost resulting in another accident due to random and sporadic loss of acceleration. Nissan confirmed that it was transmission related (I have paperwork). Nissan has known CVT failures for 2013-2016 models and this should be covered under extended powertrain warranty. I am writing this because I have kept up with maintenance for my car and this issue had randomly appeared, often no tell signs until it happens, which Nissan then says is too late. The safety of myself and others is affected because this issue literally results in a loss of control over the car and in cities during traffic hours could be deadly. My vehicle is available for inspection upon request.

Filed Jun 21, 2022 · Engine, Transmission · CA

My 2016 Altima is experiencing hesitation when accelerating, jerking and shuddering while driving. The RPMs go up but the car doesn't respond. Yes, the vehicle is available for inspection. The car doesn't respond as it should when entering traffic (feels like the transmission is slipping) which means I have to slow down while merging into traffic on the freeway rather than accelerate. It puts myself and passengers at risk as well as other drivers. The vehicle has not been inspected by the manufacturer or dealer for this issue. This vehicle only has 33,000 miles on the car but the symptom's were apparent obvious around 25,000 miles.

Filed Jan 9, 2021 · Transmission · 40,000 miles · OR

While accelerating from a complete stop, the vehicle shudders or jerks but the engine rpms continue to increase. The problem appears to be random.

Filed Dec 16, 2020 · Transmission · 108,000 miles · AL

While driving my nissan altima at highway speeds, the transmission started to shudder and eventually stopping pulling in the middle of traffic. I was almost hit by an 18 wheeler that bare had enough time and space to swerve and go around me. This could've easily been a fatal accident because of a faulty CVT transmission that nissan knows about but refuses to correct. I took the car to the dealer and as expected they suggested replacing the transmission which is a $5,000 or more repair. So I contacted nissan consumer affairs in hope of getting some assistance from nissan since the vehicle is a 2016 with only a little over 100k miles. And like I've read on so many other forums and complaints, nissan refused to offer any assistance. They would rather risk someone being injured or killed when these cars just randomly stop pulling while traveling on the road in traffic. I've owned several other nissans, and every one with the CVT had this problem, I should've known better than to purchase another piece of junk nissan but I gave them the benefit of the doubt and took a chance to only be in the same situation with a bad CVT transmission. My think is nissan knows this is a problem and has been a problem of they've had since they went to the CVT transmission but they won't offer any assistance or repair the issue. Even the lady that I spoke to at consumer affairs said she had the same issue. Nissan did have a class action suit filed against them for this where they extended the transmission warranty to 84k miles but they're problems usually start right after 84k miles. I know some will say 100k out a transmission is good but I disagree, if you look at some of the competitors like honda and toyota's, they're drivetrains surpasses the nissans by hundreds of thousands of miles. I own a 2013 honda accord with the CVT, it's at 265k miles with absolutely no issues.