Top Safety Pick

2015 Nissan Altima

midsize car / 4-door sedan

Crashworthiness

Rating overview
Evaluation criteria	Rating
Small overlap front: driver-side
Moderate overlap front: original test
Side: original test
Roof strength
Head restraints & seats

Crash avoidance & mitigation

Evaluation criteria	Rating
Headlights (varies by trim/option)
Front crash prevention: vehicle-to-vehicle	Not available

Seat belts & child restraints

Evaluation criteria	Rating
LATCH ease of use

Other available safety features

Optional blind spot detection
Optional lane departure warning

Key

G
Good
A
Acceptable
M
Marginal
P
Poor

Superior
Advanced
Basic

Some ratings use a scale of Poor to Good. Others range from Basic to Superior.

Small overlap front: driver-side

Rating applies to 2013-15 models built after November 2012

Tested vehicle: 2013 Nissan Altima 2.5 S 4-door

The Nissan Altima was redesigned for the 2013 model year. Beginning with 2013 models built after November 2012, structural changes were made to improve occupant protection in small overlap frontal crashes. (Information about when a specific vehicle was manufactured is on the certification label typically affixed to the car on the driver door or adjacent B-pillar.) The tested car was built after the structural changes were in place.

Evaluation criteria	Rating

Structure and safety cage
Driver injury measures
Head/neck
Chest
Hip/thigh
Lower leg/foot
Driver restraints and dummy kinematics

Action shot taken during the small overlap frontal crash test.

The dummy's position in relation to the door frame, steering wheel, and instrument panel after the crash test indicates that the driver's survival space was maintained reasonably well.

The frontal and side curtain airbags worked well together to keep the head from coming close to any stiff structure or outside objects that could cause injury.

The door hinge pillar began to tear as the wheel and tire was pushed back, and this intrusion contributed to a high risk of injury to the left lower leg.

Technical measurements for this test

Evaluation criteria	Measurement
Test ID	CEN1231
Lower occupant compartment
Lower hinge pillar max (cm)	23
Footrest (cm)	11
Left toepan (cm)	5
Brake pedal (cm)	3
Parking brake (cm)	14
Rocker panel lateral average (cm)	0
Upper occupant compartment
Steering column	0
Upper hinge pillar max (cm)	6
Upper dash (cm)	11
Lower instrument panel (cm)	11

Evaluation criteria	Measurement
Test ID	CEN1231
Head
HIC-15	143
Peak gs at hard contact	no contact
Neck
Tension (kN)	1.1
Extension bending moment (Nm)	7
Maximum Nij	0.21
Chest maximum compression (mm)	25
Femur (kN)
Left	1.7
Right	0.0
Knee displacement (mm)
Left	1
Right	0
Knee-thigh-hip injury risk (%)
Left	0
Right	0
Maximum tibia index
Left	1.28
Right	0.34
Tibia axial force (kN)
Left	2.9
Right	0.3
Foot acceleration (g)
Left	79
Right	98

About the small overlap front test

Moderate overlap front: original test

Rating applies to 2013-18 models

Tested vehicle: 2013 Nissan Altima 2.5 S 4-door

The Nissan Altima was redesigned for the 2013 model year. Two moderate overlap frontal tests of the Altima were conducted, one by the Institute and the other by Nissan. Ratings are based on both tests.

Evaluation criteria	Rating
Overall evaluation
Structure and safety cage
Driver injury measures
Head/neck
Chest
Leg/foot, left
Leg/foot, right
Driver restraints and dummy kinematics

Action shot taken during the Institute's moderate overlap frontal crash test.

The dummy's position in relation to the steering wheel and instrument panel after the crash test indicates that the driver's survival space was maintained well (Institute test car shown).

Dummy movement was well controlled. During rebound, the dummy's head hit only the head restraint in each test, as indicated by smeared greasepaint in the Institute's test.

Intrusion into the driver's space was minimal in both tests, and all leg and foot injury measures were low.

Technical measurements for this test

Evaluation criteria	Measurement
Test ID	VTF1206	CEF1208
Footwell intrusion
Footrest (cm)	5	6
Left (cm)	7	8
Center (cm)	7	7
Right (cm)	11	9
Brake pedal (cm)	10	12
Instrument panel rearward movement
Left (cm)	1	2
Right (cm)	3	3
Steering column movement
Upward (cm)	-7	-8
Rearward (cm)	-1	-1
A-pillar rearward movement (cm)	0	0

Evaluation criteria	Measurement
Test ID	VTF1206	CEF1208
Head
HIC-15	158	148
Peak gs at hard contact	no contact	no contact
Neck
Tension (kN)	1.2	1.0
Extension bending moment (Nm)	15	19
Maximum Nij	0.24	0.23
Chest maximum compression (mm)	28	29
Legs
Femur force - left (kN)	0.1	0.2
Femur force - right (kN)	0.2	0.4
Knee displacement - left (mm)	0	1
Knee displacement - right (mm)	1	0
Maximum tibia index - left	0.28	0.26
Maximum tibia index - right	0.38	0.52
Tibia axial force - left (kN)	0.9	1.3
Tibia axial force - right (kN)	1.3	1.0
Foot acceleration (g)
Left	42	53
Right	68	65

About the original moderate overlap front test

Side: original test

Rating applies to 2013-18 models

Tested vehicle: 2013 Nissan Altima 2.5 SV 4-door with standard front and rear head curtain airbags and standard front seat-mounted torso airbags

The Nissan Altima was redesigned for the 2013 model year. Side ratings are assigned by the Institute based on a test conducted by Nissan.

Evaluation criteria	Rating
Overall evaluation
Structure and safety cage
Driver injury measures
Head/neck
Torso
Pelvis/leg
Driver head protection
Rear passenger injury measures
Head/neck
Torso
Pelvis/leg
Rear passenger head protection

Technical measurements for this test

Test ID	VTS1209
B-pillar to longitudinal centerline of driver's seat (cm)	-12.5
Negative numbers indicate the amount by which the crush stopped short of the seat centerline.

Evaluation criteria	Measurement
Test ID	VTS1209
Head HIC-15	292
Neck
Tension (kN)	1.3
Compression (kN)	0.4
Shoulder
Lateral deflection (mm)	29
Lateral force (kN)	1.3
Torso
Maximum deflection (mm)	32
Average deflection (mm)	30
Maximum deflection rate (m/s)	3.60
Maximum viscous criterion (m/s)	0.52
Pelvis
Iliac force (kN)	1.4
Acetabulum force (kN)	2.6
Combined force (kN)	3.8
Left femur
L-M force (kN)	1.3
L-M moment (Nm)	58
A-P moment (Nm)	204

Evaluation criteria	Measurement
Test ID	VTS1209
Head HIC-15	159
Neck
Tension (kN)	0.3
Compression (kN)	0.6
Shoulder
Lateral deflection (mm)	37
Lateral force (kN)	1.4
Torso
Maximum deflection (mm)	39
Average deflection (mm)	29
Maximum deflection rate (m/s)	3.40
Maximum viscous criterion (m/s)	0.71
Pelvis
Iliac force (kN)	0.4
Acetabulum force (kN)	1.5
Combined force (kN)	1.7
Left femur
L-M force (kN)	1.4
L-M moment (Nm)	28
A-P moment (Nm)	160

About the original side crash test

Roof strength

Rating applies to 2013-18 models

Tested vehicle: 2013 Nissan Altima 2.5 S 4-door

Overall evaluation
Curb weight	3,115 lbs
Peak force	16,485 lbs
Strength-to-weight ratio	5.29

About the roof strength test

Head restraints & seats

Seat type: Power cloth seats

Overall evaluation
Dynamic rating
Seat/head restraint geometry

Technical measurements for this test

Seat type	Power cloth seats
Geometry
Backset (mm)	2
Distance below top of head (mm)	38
Seat design parameters
Pass/fail	Pass
Max T1 acceleration (g)	13.1
Head contact time (ms)	49
Force rating	1
Neck forces
Max neck shear force (N)	0
Max neck tension (N)	266

About the head restraint & seat test
Currently, IIHS tests apply only to front seats.

Headlights

Ratings are given for 2 different headlight variations available on this vehicle.

Trim level(s)

SL 3.5L trim

Evaluation criteria	Rating
Low-beam headlight type	HID projector
High-beam headlight type	Halogen reflector
Curve-adaptive?	No
High-beam assist?	No
Overall rating
Distance at which headlights provide at least 5 lux illumination:

Low beams
On the straightaway, visibility was fair on both sides of the road. On curves, visibility was good on both right curves, fair on the sharp left curve and inadequate on the gradual left curve.

The low beams created some glare.

High beams
On the straightaway, visibility was good on the right side of the road and inadequate on the left side. On curves, visibility was good on the gradual right curve, fair on the sharp right and gradual left curves, and inadequate on the sharp left curve.

Technical measurements for this test

Evaluation criteria	Measurement
Trim level(s)	SL 3.5L trim
Low-beam headlight type	HID projector
High-beam headlight type	Halogen reflector
Curve-adaptive?	No
High-beam assist?	No
Overall rating Applies to 2015 models

LOW BEAMS	Average minimum useful illumination distance (5 lux)	Amount glare exceeded threshold
Straightaway right edge	77.9 m	None
Straightaway left edge	52.8 m	None
250m radius right curve, right edge	69.9 m	None
250m radius left curve, right edge	50.7 m	None
150m radius right curve, right edge	57.7 m	8.2%
150m radius left curve, left edge	48.2 m	None

HIGH BEAMS	Average minimum useful illumination distance (5 lux)
Straightaway right edge	159.6 m
Straightaway left edge	105.6 m
250m radius right curve, right edge	79.2 m
250m radius left curve, left edge	67.6 m
150m radius right curve, right edge	63.6 m
150m radius left curve, left edge	54.7 m

Trim level(s)

Base trim
S trim
SV trim
SL 2.5L trim
Special Edition trim

Evaluation criteria	Rating
Low-beam headlight type	Halogen projector
High-beam headlight type	Halogen reflector
Curve-adaptive?	No
High-beam assist?	No
Overall rating
Distance at which headlights provide at least 5 lux illumination:

Low beams
On the straightaway, visibility was fair on the right side of the road and inadequate on the left side. On curves, visibility was inadequate in all 4 tests.

The low beams never exceeded glare limits.

High beams
On the straightaway, visibility was good on the right side of the road and inadequate on the left side. On curves, visibility was inadequate in all 4 tests.

Technical measurements for this test

Evaluation criteria	Measurement
Trim level(s)	Base trim S trim SV trim SL 2.5L trim Special Edition trim
Low-beam headlight type	Halogen projector
High-beam headlight type	Halogen reflector
Curve-adaptive?	No
High-beam assist?	No
Overall rating Applies to 2015 models

LOW BEAMS	Average minimum useful illumination distance (5 lux)	Amount glare exceeded threshold
Straightaway right edge	89.1 m	None
Straightaway left edge	26.4 m	None
250m radius right curve, right edge	47.0 m	None
250m radius left curve, left edge	32.8 m	None
150m radius right curve, right edge	35.5 m	None
150m radius left curve, left edge	29.0 m	None

HIGH BEAMS	Average minimum useful illumination distance (5 lux)
Straightaway right edge	165.0 m
Straightaway left edge	126.5 m
250m radius right curve, right edge	63.9 m
250m radius left curve, left edge	58.9 m
150m radius right curve, right edge	52.1 m
150m radius left curve, left edge	46.7 m

About the headlight evaluation

Child seat anchors

Rating applies to 2015 models

Evaluation criteria	Rating
Overall evaluation
Vehicle trim	2.5 S
Seat type	cloth

This vehicle has 2 rear seating positions with complete child seat attachment (LATCH) hardware.

It has 1 additional seating position with a tether anchor only.

Evaluation criteria	Rating
Overall evaluation
Vehicle trim	2.5 S
Seat type	cloth

Rating icon	Rating
G	Good
A	Acceptable
M	Marginal
P	Poor
	Seating positions that rely on borrowed lower anchors or have only a tether anchor available are not rated.
thether anchor symbol	Tether anchor
lower anchor symbol	Lower anchors
shared lower achors symbol	Lower anchor(s) can be borrowed from adjacent positions(s)
	No hardware available

Details by seating position

Position	Rating
1
1	Tether anchor
	easy-to-find location
	no other hardware could be confused for anchor
	Lower anchors
	too deep in seat
	too much force needed to attach
	difficult to maneuver around anchors
2
2	Tether anchor
	easy-to-find location
	no other hardware could be confused for anchor
	Lower anchors
	none available
3
3	Tether anchor
	easy-to-find location
	no other hardware could be confused for anchor
	Lower anchors
	too deep in seat
	too much force needed to attach
	difficult to maneuver around anchors

Technical measurements for this test

Lower anchor A
Open access rated	No
Depth (cm)	2-4
Force (lbs)	25
Clearance angle (degrees)	50
Lower anchor B
Open access rated	No
Depth (cm)	4-6
Force (lbs)	40
Clearance angle (degrees)	45
Tether anchor
Location	Rear deck
Confusing hardware present	No
Has contrasting label within 3 inches of tether anchor	No
Tether anchors can be accessed while seatback is properly positioned for use of LATCH	Not measured

Lower anchor A
No lower latch for this seat position
Lower anchor B
No lower latch for this seat position
Tether anchor
Location	Rear deck
Confusing hardware present	No
Has contrasting label within 3 inches of tether anchor	No
Tether anchors can be accessed while seatback is properly positioned for use of LATCH	Not measured

Lower anchor A
Open access rated	No
Depth (cm)	2-4
Force (lbs)	49
Clearance angle (degrees)	47
Lower anchor B
Open access rated	No
Depth (cm)	2-4
Force (lbs)	37
Clearance angle (degrees)	53
Tether anchor
Location	Rear deck
Confusing hardware present	No
Has contrasting label within 3 inches of tether anchor	No
Tether anchors can be accessed while seatback is properly positioned for use of LATCH	Not measured

About the child seat anchor evaluation