VehicleVerdict

2020 Nissan Altima engine problems

The 2020 Nissan Altima has 38 engine complaints filed with NHTSA — 14% of the year's total, and down from the prior model year.

38

Engine complaints

14%

Share of year

1

Crash-involved

1

Related recalls

Engine complaints by year

Altima engine complaints by model year752 complaints1993: 18 complaints1994: 14 complaints1995: 30 complaints1996: 10 complaints1997: 8 complaints1998: 14 complaints1999: 8 complaints2000: 55 complaints2001: 68 complaints2002: 752 complaints2003: 591 complaints2004: 142 complaints2005: 407 complaints2006: 358 complaints2007: 76 complaints2008: 75 complaints2009: 118 complaints2010: 54 complaints2011: 42 complaints2012: 72 complaints2013: 165 complaints2014: 80 complaints2015: 66 complaints2016: 86 complaints2017: 40 complaints2018: 13 complaints2019: 52 complaints2020: 38 complaints2021: 7 complaints2022: 7 complaints2023: 5 complaints2024: 5 complaints
Altima engine complaints by model year. Red bars are years to avoid.

Related recalls

25V437000EngineJune 27, 2025 · 443,899 units

Defect

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.

Consequence

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.

Remedy

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.

What owners report

“The CVT issue remains with this car even though I have complained. The car will randomly de accelerate and randomly accelerate which has cause minor fender bender. The car continue to studer and jerk and continues to show since of transmission issues. These cars need to be recalled before someone…”

Complaint filed with NHTSA · Engine · June 1, 2024 · crash

Common questions

How many engine complaints does the 2020 Nissan Altima have?

NHTSA has 38 complaints about the 2020 Nissan Altima engine — 14% of all complaints filed for that model year.

Are there recalls for the 2020 Nissan Altima engine?

Yes — 1 NHTSA recall campaign for this model year is tied to the engine: 25V437000.

Related

Based on NHTSA ODI data through June 2026. Complaints are consumer-reported and unverified. Updated July 5, 2026.

Compiled by Sharon Ben-Moshe, Founder.