2002 Nissan Altima Structure Problems
Owners have filed 128 complaints with NHTSA about structure problems on the 2002 Nissan Altima, 12% of all complaints for this model year. Half of the reports with a mileage happened before 100,000 miles. The words owners use most often: “passenger side” (36% of reports).
- 128structure complaints
- 100,000median miles at failure
- 0mention a crash
- 2mention an injury
- 0related recalls
- $3,200typical repair cost reported by owners
- 60%of reports with a speed happened at 50+ mph
What owners describe
Phrases that appear unusually often in these complaints compared with complaints about other cars.
- Passenger side: mentioned in 46 of 128 complaints (36%)
- Floor boards: mentioned in 22 of 128 complaints (17%)
- Rusted through: mentioned in 15 of 128 complaints (12%)
- Both driver: mentioned in 11 of 128 complaints (9%)
How much does it cost to fix?
Owners who wrote down what they paid or were quoted put the typical structure repair on the 2002 Nissan Altima at $3,200, and half of them between $1,900 and $4,250.
Based on 14 NHTSA complaints about this problem alone that state a repair bill or quote (2004–2017), converted to 2026 dollars with the U.S. consumer price index. These are owners' own figures, not a quote: they include dealer quotes, and owners who file complaints often faced larger repairs, so they can run higher than typical shop prices. Prices vary by shop, region and warranty coverage. How we calculate this.
At what mileage do structure problems happen?
Based on 99 complaints that reported the odometer reading.
How serious are the reports?
Of 128 complaints, 1 a fire, 2 an injury.
Nissan Altima structure complaints by model year
| Model year | Structure complaints | Share of that year | Median miles |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 Altima | 1 | 14% | — |
| 2024 Altima | 5 | 12% | 80,000 |
| 2022 Altima | 2 | 6% | — |
| 2021 Altima | 1 | 1% | 2,000 |
| 2020 Altima | 6 | 4% | 25,000 |
| 2019 Altima | 6 | 3% | 16,100 |
| 2018 Altima | 3 | 1% | — |
| 2017 Altima | 18 | 5% | 57,150 |
| 2016 Altima | 29 | 5% | 31,005 |
| 2015 Altima | 63 | 7% | 58,000 |
| 2014 Altima | 52 | 5% | 55,000 |
| 2013 Altima | 134 | 6% | 51,475 |
| 2012 Altima | 33 | 8% | 50,000 |
| 2011 Altima | 27 | 11% | 50,000 |
| 2010 Altima | 30 | 8% | 61,000 |
| 2009 Altima | 90 | 6% | 60,000 |
| 2008 Altima | 312 | 30% | 65,550 |
| 2007 Altima | 27 | 6% | 73,752 |
| 2006 Altima | 221 | 27% | 100,360 |
| 2005 Altima | 351 | 32% | 103,000 |
| 2004 Altima | 42 | 15% | 114,000 |
| 2003 Altima | 126 | 14% | 111,000 |
| 2002 Altima | 128 | 12% | 100,000 |
| 2001 Altima | 4 | 3% | 38,005 |
| 2000 Altima | 5 | 3% | 135,350 |
| 1999 Altima | 4 | 5% | 160,000 |
| 1998 Altima | 6 | 5% | 140,000 |
| 1997 Altima | 8 | 7% | 169,000 |
| 1996 Altima | 4 | 4% | — |
| 1995 Altima | 4 | 2% | 41,500 |
When owners reported it
Related recalls (0)
No safety recall lists structure for the 2002 Nissan Altima. A pattern of complaints does not always lead to a recall.
What owners report
Short excerpts of recent complaints, with personal details removed. Full reports are on NHTSA.gov.
Tl* the contact called on behalf of the owner of a 2002 nissan altima. While entering the vehicle, the rear driver's side door handle fractured. The contact stated that the front driver's side exterior door handle fractured. Additionally, the front driver's side window was also inoperable. The…
The vehicle will not pass a safety inspection because there are two big holes in either side of the floor boards. The holes were discovered during a state safety inspection. We have 12 days to repair the holes at a large cost. Unexpected and disappointing issue.
The car keeps stalling while i drive it
Frequently asked questions
Do all 2002 Nissan Altimas have structure problems?
No. NHTSA has 128 owner complaints about structure for the 2002 Nissan Altima (12% of the 1,047 complaints for this model year). Complaint data shows that the problem is reported, not how many of all cars sold are affected.
Was there a recall on the 2002 Nissan Altima structure?
No recall currently lists structure for this vehicle.
At what mileage do structure problems start?
The median reported mileage is 100,000 miles: half of the reports with a mileage came before that.
How much does it cost to fix structure problems on the 2002 Nissan Altima?
Owners report a typical cost of $3,200 (half paid between $1,900 and $4,250), from 14 complaints that state a repair bill or quote, in 2026 dollars.
What do owners say about structure problems on the 2002 Nissan Altima?
The most frequent phrase is “passenger side”, in 46 of 128 complaints, followed by “floor boards” (22).
Other 2002 Nissan Altima problems
See all 2002 Nissan Altima problems or structure problems across all Altima years.