Problems · by component

2015 Nissan Altima air bags problems

177 owner complaints to NHTSA about the 2015 Nissan Altima cite air bags, 19% of all 955 complaints for this model year. NHTSA also lists 3 recalls on this component.

Complaints
177
19% of all complaints
Crashes
23
Reported by owners
Fires
0
Reported by owners
Injuries
16
Reported by owners
01 —Owner reports

What owners say about the air bags

Verbatim from NHTSA complaints, newest first
“My car was hit and airbags did not deploy from driver side. The front driver side of my car is totalled. Not sure what force of an impact is needed for airbags to deploy but if my driver side tire rod broke and tire came off is this not sufficient force. This 2015 Nissan Altima has had many recalls. The last one was my front driver side head lamp almost caught on fire but mechanic found everything burned and melted because of electrical issue which was a recall. With my luck the recall expired apparently because it happened after the fact when it was no longer covered. I called and basically I was told too late. Now my airbags did not deploy.”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Sep 11, 2026Electrical system, Air bagsCrash reportedODI 11763563
“A vehicle airbag light is staying on which indicates my airbags will not work this is a common problem in a 2015 Nissan Altima SL but it is not showing up as a recall on my certain vehicle. This recently started happening at 114,000 miles. When the light first came on it would go on and off at different times it would not be every single time I started the car but now it will not shut off”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Sep 10, 2026Air bagsODI 11763283
“The contact owns a 2015 Nissan Altima. The contact stated that the SRS warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where it was diagnosed with a driver's side air bag module internal failure. The dealer recommended replacing the driver's side air bag module and informed the contact that the repair was not covered under the extended warranty. The manufacturer was contacted and confirmed the dealer information. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 59,256.”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Jul 30, 2026Air bagsODI 11753801
“The passenger seat airbag detection system consistently mis-characterizes whether a passenger is in the seat. The vehicle should have been covered under the 2016 recall - before I owned it. The website doesn’t show any outstanding recall items, but the problem persists.”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Apr 24, 2026Air bagsODI 11733636
“The contact owns a 2015 Nissan Altima. The contact stated that the air bag warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired by an independent mechanic or a dealer. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 120,000.”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Jan 5, 2026Air bagsODI 11708794
“The front seat passenger air bag detection system does not detect a passenger in the seat and turns off the frontal air bag. This has occurred numerous times and applies to certain 2015 Nissan Altimas. Nissan claims the recall to repair the Occupant Classification System does not apply to our VIN number, yet we continue to have this safety issue. The issued has been addressed with several dealerships, even provided them videos of the problem, and the problem continues as of today's date.”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Sep 22, 2025Air bagsODI 11688909

Showing 6 of 177 reports. Read every report on NHTSA.gov.

Data from NHTSA Complaints API (owner reports, unverified) · synced Nov 3, 2026NHTSA vehicle page
02 —Related recalls

3 recalls on this component

Air bags: occupant classification

Free remedy

Nissan North America, Inc. (Nissan) is recalling certain model year 2013-2015 Altima vehicles manufactured January 3, 2013, to July 29, 2013, 2015-2016 Rogue vehicles manufactured October 14, 2014, to August 12, 2016, and 2016 Maxima vehicles manufactured June 4, 2015, to August 19, 2015. An incorrect Occupant Classification System (OCS) Electronic Control Unit (ECU) may have been installed in the front passenger seat. The incorrect ECU and seat combination may misclassify the front passenger seat occupant.

Air bagsReported Dec 19, 2016NHTSA 16V911000

Air bags: occupant classification

Remedy pending

Nissan North America, Inc. (Nissan) is recalling certain model year 2016-2017 Nissan Maxima, 2013-2016 Nissan Altima, NV200, LEAF, Sentra, and Pathfinder, 2014-2016 Nissan NV200 Taxi, Infiniti QX60, QX60 Hybrid, and Q50 Hybrid, 2014-2017 Nissan Rogue and Infiniti Q50, 2015-2016 Nissan Murano, Murano Hybrid, and Chevrolet City Express, 2014-2015 Nissan Pathfinder Hybrid, and 2013 Infiniti JX35 vehicles. In these vehicles, the front seat passenger Occupant Classification System (OCS) may incorrectly classify an adult passenger as a child or classify the seat as empty despite it being occupied. As a result, the passenger frontal air bag may be turned off and not deploy in the event of a crash.

Air bagsReported Apr 26, 2016NHTSA 16V244000

Air bags: frontal

Free remedy

Nissan North America, Inc. (Nissan) is recalling certain model year 2013-2015 Altima and Pathfinder vehicles, 2013-2014 Nissan Sentra vehicles, 2013 Infiniti JX35 vehicles, 2014-2015 Infiniti QX60 vehicles and 2014 Infiniti QX60 Hybrid vehicles. The affected vehicles received an incorrect occupant classification system (OCS) control unit during a repair. These OCS control units may incorrectly classify the front passenger seat as empty, when it is occupied by an adult.

Air bagsReported Oct 20, 2015NHTSA 15V681000
Data from NHTSA Recalls API · synced Nov 3, 2026

Complaints are unverified owner reports to NHTSA and are not normalized for sales volume. One complaint can cite several components.