1994 Nissan Altima Engine
Owner-reported problems and safety issues filed with NHTSA. Review common failures, severity levels, and complaint trends over time.
Complaint Timeline
Chronological view of owner reports
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 1994 NISSAN ALTIMA. WHILE DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 50 MPH, THE VEHICLE SHUT OFF. THE CONTACT WAS ABLE TO RESTART THE VEHICLE. THE FAILURE RECURRED MULTIPLE TIMES INTERMITTENTLY. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT DIAGNOSED OR REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 230,000.
MY CAR IS A 1994 NISSAN ALTIMA 4 DOOR WITH 107,000, AND NO PREVIOUS MECHANICAL ISSUES EVER. THERE ARE THOUSANDS OF NISSAN OWNERS OUT THERE EXPERIENCING THIS SAME ISSUE, WHY HAS NISSAN DONE NOTHING TO HELP? I FEEL THIS PROBLEM COULD BECOME A SAFETY HAZARD AS THE CAR RANDOMLY STALLS IN TRAFFIC. 1) THERE WERE NO EVENTS LEADING UP TO THIS FAILURE. THE PROBLEM BEGAN ABOUT 7 DAYS AGO ON APRIL 19, 2010. 2) THE FAILURE IS IN THE INTAKE MANIFOLD GASKET. THE CAR SHAKES VIOLENTLY AT IDLING (BETWEEN 0-1RPM) AND UPON APPLYING GAS, TREMBLES TO GET GOING. WHEN EVER CAR GETS BELOW 1RPM, IT WILL BEGIN TO TREMBLE AGAIN. THE CAR IS HAVING A VERY DIFFICULT TIME STARTING AS WELL AS GETTING POWER TO DRIVE. THE CAR STALLS SEVERAL TIMES BEFORE IT WILL START. THIS IS THE ONLY PROBLEM WITH THIS CAR. 3) TO CORRECT THIS PROBLEM, I WILL REPLACE THE INTAKE MANIFOLD GASKET, WHICH IS IN THE AREA OF $600-1000. I KNOW THAT THIS ISSUE IS DEEP ROOTED BECAUSE MY CAR IS UP TO DATE ON TUNE-UPS, OIL CHANGES, NEW SPARK PLUGS, EVERYTHING ELSE RUNS GREAT UNTIL THIS PROBLEM OCCURRED. *TR
OIL LEAK FRONT RUBBER O-RING AT THE FRONT OF THE ENGINE. HAD THIS REPAIRED ONCE AT THE NISSAN DEALER 3 OR 4 YEARS AGO. PAID $1200 TO FIX THE FIRST TIME, HOWEVER I'M ALMOST CERTAIN I HAVE THE SAME PROBLEM OCCURRING ALL OVER AGAIN. VEHICLE ISN'T WORTH THE COST OF THE REPAIR AT THIS POINT. *JB
I HAD NOTICED THAT THERE WAS AN OIL STAIN ON MY GARAGE FLOOR, AFTER SEVICING THIS VEHICLE THE DEALER SAID THAT THEY HAD TO REPLACE A SEAL. I HAD PURCHASED THE EXTENDED WARRANTY ON MY CAR SO IT WAS COVERED FOR THE REPAIR. A COUPLE OF MONTHS LATER I NOTICED THE SMALL OIL STAIN RETURNING, EVERY TIME I TOOK MY CAR IN FOR SERVICE IS WAS SOMETHING DIFFERENT THAN TRANSMISSION LEAKING (EVEN THOUGH OIL WAS NOT RED), THEY HAD TO CLEAN SOMETHING AND SO ONE. FINALLY THIS PAST WINTER THEY ADMITTED THAT THE SEAL HAD TO BE REPLACED IN THE ENGINE AGAIN. AT THIS TIME I WAS INFORMED FROM THE DEALERSHIP THAT THE ORIGINAL REPAIR THEY PERFORMED WAS NO LONGER WARRANTEED AND THAT I WOULD HAVE TO PAY OVER $800. TO HAVE THIS REPAIRED. IF NISSAN RECOGNIZES A DEFECT IN DESIGN WHY SHOULD I HAVE TO PAY TO HAVE IT REPAIRED. THEY WERE SUPPOSE TO CORRECT THE PROBLEM 4 YEARS AGO, AND NOT TELL ME EVERY 6 MONTHS THAT THIS SEEMS TO BE A FIGMENT OF MY IMAGINATION THAT I HAVE A SMALL OIL LEAK. THIS VEHICLE CURRENTLY HAS 37,000 ORIGINAL MILES ON IT, I HAS NEVER BEEN IN AN ACCIDENT, AND I HAVE TAKEN EXCELLENT CARE OF MY CAR. I HAVE NOT RETURNED TO THE DEALERSHIP AFTER THIS INCIDENT AND HAVE NOT REPAIRED THE PROBLEM, I FEEL THAT IF NISSAN MOTOR CORP, KNEW ABOUT THIS PROBLEM AS EARLY AS 1995 THEY SHOULD HAVE REPAIRED PEOPLES CARS INSTEAD OF LETTING THE PROBLEM CONTINUE UNTIL THEIR WARRANTEE EXPIRED. THIS IS WHAT I KNOW THEY DID WITH ME AND I DO NOT APPRECIATE IT THAT I WAS TAKEN ADVANTAGE OF BY KOEPPEL NISSAN BY TELLING ME THAT THE CAR WAS NOT LEAKING OIL WHEN IN REALITY IT WAS. *AK
THIS CAME OUT OF NOWHERE AND ITS A VERY BAD LEAK. *AK
OIL LEAKS PROFUSELY OUT THESE SEALS AND SOILS ALL GROUNDS THE VEHICLE THREADS OVER. VERY COMMON IN THE FIRST GENERATION ALTIMA. VERY EXPENSIVE TO MAINTAIN OIL LEVEL AND TO FIX LEAK. *AK
TIMING COVER GASKET LEAKING AS WELL AS MANIFOLD LEAKING. CAR SERVICED AT MERCHANT'S TIRE AND REPAIR CENTER 1/31/01 AND 2/6/01 FOR DIAGNOSIS. SHOP FOREMAN SAID IT'S A COMMON PROBLEM THEY'VE SEEN WITH THIS CAR. SAID IT'S A POOR DESIGN, DEFINITELY A MANUFACTURER'S DEFECT. HE TRIED TO FIX ONE BEFORE AND SAID HE WOULD NEVER TRY AGAIN. SAID IT'S A DEALER JOB, MEANING NO ONE ELSE WOULD BE ADVISED TO TRY AND MAKE THIS TYPE OF REPAIR. *AK
WHILE DRIVING ENGINE STALLED OUT AND DIED WITHOUT WARNING. DEALER HAS BEEN NOTIFIED. *AK
OIL LEAKING FROM FRONT ENGINE VALVE COVER.PLEASE PROVIDE FURTHER INFORMATION.*AK
FRONT OIL LEAK IN ENGINE
DEFECTIVE ENGINE, CAUSING ANTIFREEZE LEAK/SMOKE UNDER HOOD/ VEHICLE TO STALL. *SKD
Trend Over Time
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Other Issues
Common problems reported
Quick Summary
The 1994 Nissan Altima has 11 Engine complaints on file. Review the timeline above for detailed owner experiences.