4th Gen Nissan Altima 2007-2012

[Cecil]

Ive had three 4th gen Altimas now, and have been continually researching and forum browsing them. Here is what Ive found, and experiences I have had with them.

Rear Sway Bars
First issue I want to point out is a design flaw with the rear sway bar that would effect every single one of them. The bar used is hollow, and shaped in a way where it actually bends instead of twisting. This results in a lot a snapped sway bars, as well as a feeling as if the back end is tossing side to side when driving on bumpy highways.
Nissan only replaces them with another OE part of the same design. There are two aftermarket bars which would be a one time replacement fix and upgrade. Stillen makes one that actually changes the shape of the bar and is far more solid. The Stillen bar will actually twist and not bend, and also includes new end links. It does not come with new bushings, so either reuse the OEs or buy new ones.
RacingLine makes the other one which is the same shape as the OE part, but 100% solid, and adjustable to either 40% stiffer or 100% stiffer. This bar is cheaper then the Stillen one, and comes with bushings, but does not come with the end links. You can buy RacingLine end links separately though.
Either would work, I personally went with Stillen since it was cheaper once you include the end links.

CVT (Continuously Variable Transmission)
The CVT was brought to the Altima in 2007, with Nissan really being the first company to mass produce cars with CVTs. The 4th gen Altima has seen a few different revisions of Nissan’s CVT, and generally only the first revision ones seemed to have the most issues. Nissan extended warranty on all CVTs used in models years through 2010 to 10y/120k.
A loud whine or a surging of speed in lower speed ranges (20-45) generally indicate an issue. I personally never had a CVT fail and Ive had 6 vehicles that had them. I think because of the difference in design versus a normal automatic, a lot of complaints are probably overblown. They act and sound differently then a typical automatic that most people are used to. That said, they did seem to have enough issues to warrant a warranty extension though.
Side note for CVT, fluid used really should be Nissan NS-2 only, and its $15-20/qt, needing around 6-8 quarts for a drain/fill, or 12 for a full flush. Dealerships charge around $250 for the drain/fill, and $400 for a flush. On the earlier revisions they recommend a drain/fill every 30k, but the newer ones just say have it checked at 60k. They have a computer that Nissan dealerships can use to read the oil life. Issue with this, is that’s an hour of labor. So just change it instead.

Steering Lock Switch
These are/were dropping like flies. Nissan should have issued a recall as this will cause the car to not start possibly leaving you stranded (happened to me at 2am outside an Ihop on a freezing February Ohio night). Dealer will charge $700-1000 if you don’t have warranty coverage. Nissan did extend the warranty on the part from 3 to 6 years, but that went out of effect at the end of 2015.
Easy fix is to unlock the wheel, and cut the pink wire (pin 1) from the switch to disable the wheel lock. If it fails before doing this, you pretty much need a tow.
http://www.altimaforums.net/disabling-steering-lock-t13929.html?s=e8ddce125f0b4423cea7fdedde635161&

SES (Service Engine Soon) Light Codes
P0101 is a MAF code and there is a TSB for the dealership to reprogram the ECM. Others have needed to replace the MAF sensor, and some just needed the throttle body cleaned.

P0011 reads as an Intake Valve Timing Control and from what I had, and seen others, its the rear timing cover / gasket. They should replace all the seals, gaskets, and covers. This runs about $1200-1700 without warranty, and was causing low oil pressure. No driving symptoms seamed to be present, and first time the light came on they did not check for this (same with another instance I read of). So if you get a P0011 have them check the rear timing cover.

AC Compressor
Quite a few reports of these failing in the 40k-100k mile range. I bought my 2011 3.5l with 16k miles and my compressor was leaking but still functional at that point. Was a $1000 fix if not covered by warranty.

Brake Squeal
Every Altima I had has had brake squeal after start up, especially in the cold. Even with high quality pads and rotors. Best thing Ive found is to replace the pad hardware shims fairly often, and service/lube the brakes when the squealing appears.

That about covers everything I can remember. As for personal experience, I had an 07 that never had an issue (aside from sway bar), an 09 that had the steering lock go, and currently the 11 3.5 has had the AC Compressor, and P0011 timing cover gasket blow out.

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