2014 Altima First Check-Up

668 Views 26 Replies 4 Participants Last post by VStar650CL, 3 d ago

Radan86

Discussion Starter · 2 mo ago

Hello everyone,

I just bought used Altima S 4cyl 2014 4D with 115k miles.
I would like to take it to a mechanic for a thorough inspection.
Can you give me advice what are common problems with this year and Altima in general and what should I pay special attention to, please?

Thank you all!
Radan

1 - 20 of 27 Posts

Radan86

Discussion Starter · #2 · 2 mo ago

Any info would be greatly appreciated, guys.

I need advice:

Should I go to Nissan Dealership for deep-dive inspection and CVT full service/maintenance, or it is better to go to reputable local mechanic shop?

One more thing:

Today while I was driving, “o/d off” light came on by itself. I switched D>N>D and ti disappeared. Should I be concerned?

Thanks!

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2016AltimaS

· #3 · 1 mo ago

Radan86 said:
Hello everyone,

I just bought used Altima S 4cyl 2014 4D with 115k miles.
I would like to take it to a mechanic for a thorough inspection.
Can you give me advice what are common problems with this year and Altima in general and what should I pay special attention to, please?

Thank you all!
Radan

What did you end up doing? The common issues are the transmission. You should change your transmission fluid every 25k miles in my opinion. Change your oil every 5k and in my opinion learn how to work on it yourself. I have 285K plus miles on my 2016 Altima S On my third tranny, Nissan paid for the first one that got put in at 75K miles. That one lasted until 225K miles. On my third one now. Are you having any issues with your car so far? Do you have the maintenance records?

2016AltimaS

· #4 · 1 mo ago

Radan86 said:
Hello everyone,

I just bought used Altima S 4cyl 2014 4D with 115k miles.
I would like to take it to a mechanic for a thorough inspection.
Can you give me advice what are common problems with this year and Altima in general and what should I pay special attention to, please?

Thank you all!
Radan

Usually, someone would get a car thoroughy inspected before they buy it. You can look on Carcomplaints.com for any issues regarding that year

rogoman

· #5 · 1 mo ago

Radan86 said:
Hello everyone,

I just bought used Altima S 4cyl 2014 4D with 115k miles.
I would like to take it to a mechanic for a thorough inspection.
Can you give me advice what are common problems with this year and Altima in general and what should I pay special attention to, please?

Thank you all!
Radan

You should especially pay attention to the CVT flush/fill maintenance. If no records show a CVT flush/fill, then do one ASAP considering the vehicle has 115K miles on it. There are no filters to be changed.
Very important note - Make sure that the fluid is not overfull. Not even just a little bit; better to be underfull a little bit. An overfull condition will cause the fluid to foam thereby losing it's lubricating function and causing a very early "death" of the CVT. Stay away from fluid flushes; they can sometimes cause internal damage.

Follow the advise of @2016AltimaS :

2016AltimaS said:
What did you end up doing? The common issues are the transmission. You should change your transmission fluid every 25k miles in my opinion. Change your oil every 5k and in my opinion learn how to work on it yourself. I have 285K plus miles on my 2016 Altima S On my third tranny, Nissan paid for the first one that got put in at 75K miles. That one lasted until 225K miles. On my third one now. Are you having any issues with your car so far? Do you have the maintenance records?

VStar650CL

· #6 · 1 mo ago

I gave this gentleman a long answer in AltimaForums as well as a long string of PM's, so he pretty much knows the CVT score.

2016AltimaS

· #7 · 1 mo ago

rogoman said:
You should especially pay attention to the CVT flush/fill maintenance. If no records show a CVT flush/fill, then do one ASAP considering the vehicle has 115K miles on it. There are no filters to be changed.
Very important note - Make sure that the fluid is not overfull. Not even just a little bit; better to be underfull a little bit. An overfull condition will cause the fluid to foam thereby losing it's lubricating function and causing a very early "death" of the CVT. Stay away from fluid flushes; they can sometimes cause internal damage.

Follow the advise of @2016AltimaS :

I changed the tranny filter in mine. It did not seem to need it though

Radan86

Discussion Starter · #8 · 22 d ago

I wish to thank everyone for their answers. All of you guys helped me a lot. I really feel grateful for your support!

CVT is good. Paper-test shows very light degradation of the fluid. No need for replacement yet.
I found a good mechanic, I did some repairs which include:

1. AC refrigerant flush and replaced (AC is not very good even after this, though..)
2. Engine oil and filter replaced
3. Cabin air filter replaced and cavity vacuumed
4. All four tires replaced with roadforce and alignment
5. Outer tie rods replaced, inner looking brand new

Coming in next week:

1. Headlight assembly replacement (i got TYC, it will be DIY project... trying to get some video or manual on how to do it)
2. Front grille replacement (looking to find a good looking one. I got some 50$ trash from ebay, not happy at all..)
3. Valve cover + gasket replacement
4. Spark plugs replacement

Thats it.. As a future project,I would like to put some aftermarket audio system.

I would appreciate additional input on following subjects:

1. Where to find headlight assembly instructions and am I gonna need any screws or clips thatI cannot find at Home Depot?
2. Any thoughts why AC is barely ok even with brand new refrigerant?
3. Any suggestion where to get good quality front grill?

At the end. I would like to thank Vstar650CL for unbelievable support thru ought all this time. You are one very unselfish human being, sir!

I salute you, guys!

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VStar650CL

· #9 · 22 d ago

Happy to help, and glad your CVT is in good shape. The prior owner must have given it some upkeep, that's a very good thing.

The first thing to check with the A/C is the swash plate in the compressor. It's a frequent failure item on gen5's and an easy procedure to check it. Stick a thermometer in a center vent with the system set on Max A/C but the blower on the lowest speed. Let the A/C run until it's as cold as it's going to get. You should see something pretty arctic, say, 35~38F. If not, the swash isn't the problem and you can go on to other things. If so, turn the blower to high speed. If the cold goes away and you get an outlet temp in the 50~60's, the swash is stuck and you need a new compressor.

The headlights are DIYable, but it isn't an easy job without a lift. The bumper skirt needs to come off to do both at once, or you can avoid removing it completely by taking one side loose at a time and replacing one housing at a time. The latter usually works best in a driveway setting because you can avoid needing to jack both sides at once. The fasteners are no worries, they're all 6mm machine and sheet metal screws and plastic push clips, all available at Home Depot or the local parts store.

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VStar650CL

· #10 · 22 d ago

With the fasteners and parts below removed, you'll be able to pull the end of the bumper cover loose from the pawls holding it to the fender and pull the whole side out about 6" away from the car, leaving it supported by the other side. That leaves just enough room to sneak a ratchet with an extension underneath the cover and get at the one hidden screw holding the headlight, marked in red on the lower drawing. The tricky part is the two funny-looking red pieces in the upper drawing, they're interlocking plastic supports and can be a bit of a jigsaw puzzle to fit back together. They align into each other and the metal fender with plastic pins and holes, and all the pins have to be in all the holes for them to fit back together correctly. The headlight also has a plastic alignment pin that has to fit into a hole in the metal fender. Don't try to tighten anything until it's clear that it fits right, tightening down on an unfitted pin can break the plastic parts, and worse, screw up the paint and sheet metal at the corner of the fender.

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Radan86

Discussion Starter · #11 · 17 d ago

Oh dear god, that diagram looks like a horror film to me😱
I really have to find some video on the subject.
tomorrow is my day off. I am going to attempt to replace the lights. I got Diode Dynamics in today.
Still trying to figure put where to get the front grill.

Can you help me with list of tools I need for the task? I will most likely have to get some stuff I dont have at the moment.

Radan86

Discussion Starter · #12 · 17 d ago

Why I can’t remove the bumper without the lift? I just watched video where guy took itnoff on 2016 altima no problem while it was parked in garage.

VStar650CL

· #13 · 17 d ago

The only tools you need are a #2 phillips, a 10mm socket with ratchet, about an 8" socket extension, and a clip pliers or large slothead screwdriver for the pushclips. There's no problem doing it on the ground if you want to be a creepy crawler, the five M6's across the front and three phillips and two pushclips on each side are all underneath the car. It's a lot easier to jack both front wheels if you really want to remove the whole fascia, but it's more work. The connectors for the directionals and fogs all need to come loose if you do it that way, which means peeling back the undercovers on the fenders. That stuff can all stay where it is if you do one side at a time.

Radan86

Discussion Starter · #14 · 17 d ago

Can I jack both front wheels one at the time with OEM jack that I have under the trunk and support with some random items like bricks? Or I need to get legit support stands and trolley jack to lift the whole front end?

VStar650CL

· #15 · 17 d ago

Never work on a car supported by bricks or cinderblocks. We'll miss you.

Radan86

Discussion Starter · #16 · 8 d ago

I have successfully replaced headlight housings and front grill. It was a lot of creeping and crawling since I decided to save on stands for now.

I installed Diode Dynamics as low beam. Last night I gave them a test drive, they seem to trow light very short but I just may not be used to projector system. I’ll research more. What are your experiences?

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VStar650CL

· #17 · 8 d ago

You may need to aim them up a bit, the beam pattern on the SL1's is different from a halogen. My impression with the ones on the wife's car is that they throw a little less light in the vertical but a whole lot more in the horizontal. I had to adjust them up about half a turn.

Radan86

Discussion Starter · #18 · 8 d ago

Is there a way to change the angle of the projectors?

VStar650CL

· #19 · 8 d ago

Yes, there are aiming screws for both horizontal and vertical on a gen5. The horizontals rarely need to be messed with, but as I said, I did need to trim up the vertical on the wife's '13.

Radan86

Discussion Starter · #20 · 8 d ago

I guess I’ll need to remove the bumber again to reach the screws, right?

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