Looking at a 2007 Nissan Altima w/ 145K miles

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Mar 16, 2009
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Southeast Michigan
I'm looking for a used car for my daughter who is about to get her license and ran across a 2007 Nissan Altima sedan in my price range. It is very similar to a 2008 Nissan Altima coupe that I had a number of years ago, with the same QR25DE 2.5 liter inline four engine and Jatco CVT transmission. I bought that car new and owned it for about 5 years / 65K miles. It was very reliable and a pleasure to drive.

Does anyone have first-hand experience with and/or knowledge of this vehicle's high-mileage reliability, powertrain issues and maintenance to be aware of, etc. Whether or not the timing chain has been done is something that I'll definitely ask about.
 
Nissan CVTs seem to have a pretty bad reputation, at least until more recent years (say 2012 or later - it may vary by model).

Timing chains are not a maintenance item on any vehicle, are they ? You may be thinking of a timing belt.
 
Didn't the QR25 engines in those years tend to lose intake butterfly valves and/or suck up the pre-cat into the engine? I remember they were a miserable motor (for the long-haul) in their early years, this might be one of them. Someone correct me if this is a later year and the problem was remedied by 2007.

Aside from that, like others have mentioned, the Jatco CVT in that model is not known for reliability; quite the opposite.

The car itself, I had a 2 week rental around that same year, is a joy. The 2.5L feels plenty strong and powerful with the CVT. I didn't mind the rubber-band effect (my first time driving a CVT); it was always in the powerband when you needed throttle, with none of the more modern CVT fake shifts, which I'm not a fan of.
 
Someone here has one with a ton (maybe close to 300,000) of trouble-free miles. I can't remember off the top of my head who it is.
 
The main thing is rust. 15 rust belt winters can be crusher time.

Check the front and rear subrames, bushings, etc.
 
I used to think very highly of Nissan, but that was in the glory days (pre-Renault merger) after that I viewed them as a Japanese Chrysler and I would not even give a Nissan the time of day these days. As others have noted, Nissan has a BAD reputation with CVTs. Nissan = turd, Nissan with CVT=turd sprayed with skunk smell!
 
If it was made in 06 I wouldn't touch it with a 10 foot pole. Those had cat fails that drew ceramic particles into the cylinder back through the exhaust ports. Make sure it is not a late 06 sold as an 07. Rear sub frames cracked and rotted on them, then the CVT issues. The things are as durable as plastic railroad tracks. The more I think about it I would hard pass.
 
I’d steer clear. All issues mentioned above and also known to have issues with exhaust manifold/precat unit. They would crack on the top weld of the pre cat. Have to replace the whole header. $400 if you don’t mind wrenching yourself. Not a bad fix but coupled with the known CVT issues, I’d pass.
 
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