2012 Nissan Altima Recalls and Problems

NHTSA lists 4 safety recalls and 426 owner complaints for the 2012 Nissan Altima.

Recalled components: steering, air bags, and suspension. Most-described problem: loss of power or limp mode (60 complaints, 14%). Most-reported area: powertrain (149 complaints, 35%; median mileage when it happened: 92,800).

Data: NHTSA recall, complaint and investigation filesUpdated Oct 2, 2026

Year to avoidBest year

Includes the Altima Coupe.

4 safety recalls for the 2012 Nissan Altima

Newest first. Summaries are NHTSA's own wording. Open a recall for the fix and the full notice.

Questions about any of these recalls: call NHTSA's Vehicle Safety Hotline at 888-327-4236 (TTY 888-275-9171) or check your VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls.

NHTSA investigations

NHTSA has opened 1 investigation that names the 2012 Nissan Altima; it is closed. An investigation means NHTSA is reviewing reports of a problem. It is not a finding that the vehicle has a defect.

An equipment query is a review of whether a recalled part was also fitted to vehicles the recall does not cover. NHTSA lists investigations by make, model and model year only, so one can apply to only some versions of a model, such as one engine; its summary says which.

What owners report

Owners have filed 426 complaints with NHTSA about the 2012 Altima. Below, they are sorted by the problems owners describe and by the areas NHTSA files them under. NHTSA does not verify complaints.

Problems owners describe

• Loss of power or limp mode60 · 14%
  Median 100,000 miles at failure, from 49 reports with mileage
• Transmission failure or replacement41 · 10%
  Median 91,500 miles at failure, from 29 reports with mileage
• Hesitation or slow acceleration35 · 8%
  Median 96,000 miles at failure, from 28 reports with mileage
• Airbag warning light or airbag fault26 · 6%
  Median 43,000 miles at failure, from 17 reports with mileage
• Shaking, shuddering or vibration22 · 5%
  Median 70,000 miles at failure, from 16 reports with mileage
• Stalling or shutting off17 · 4%
  Median 47,700 miles at failure, from 15 reports with mileage
• Check engine light14 · 3%
• Overheating or coolant loss12 · 3%

Counted from the complaint text: a complaint counts once for each problem it describes (how we match them). Some complaints describe none of these. Compare other models in the problem owners report most for every model year.

Areas named in complaints

• Powertrain149 · 35%
  Median 92,800 miles at failure, from 116 reports with mileage
• Engine68 · 16%
  Median 80,000 miles at failure, from 53 reports with mileage
• Air bags57 · 13%
  Median 51,000 miles at failure, from 37 reports with mileage
• Speed control49 · 12%
  Median 93,000 miles at failure, from 39 reports with mileage
• Electrical system44 · 10%
  Median 46,500 miles at failure, from 32 reports with mileage
• Body structure33 · 8%
  Most named: body (22); body, door (3) · Median 50,000 miles at failure, from 20 reports with mileage
• Brakes20 · 5%
• Unknown or other56 · 13%
  Median 80,000 miles at failure, from 35 reports with mileage

A complaint can name more than one area, so shares add up to more than 100%. Mileage is shown where at least 15 owners reported it.

Nissan Altima recalls and complaints by model year

The highlighted bars are the 2012 model year. Newer model years have had less time on the road, so their counts are lower. Counting complaints filed in each model year's first three years, the 2013 Altima drew the most (556) and the 2012 drew 70.

Crash test ratings

NHTSA's 5-Star Safety Ratings for each version it tested. Rollover risk is NHTSA's estimate of the chance of rolling over in a single-vehicle crash.

2012 Altima MPG

Questions