FaultScore

Subaru Forester vs Nissan Altima

Both cars' complete complaint records, side by side.

Read the totals carefully. NHTSA publishes no sales figures, so the car that sold more collects more complaints regardless of quality. The rows worth weighing are the proportions — the share of complaints that involved harm, and which part dominates.

Measure Subaru Forester Nissan Altima
Complaints on file 8,703 20,238
Model years covered 1998–2026 1993–2025
Worst model year 2016 2014
Best model year 2026 2004
Crashes reported 891 1,256
Fires reported 157 317
Injuries reported 376 783
Deaths reported 9 17
Most complained-about part Windows, Mirrors & Wipers Engine & Cooling
Share of complaints involving harm 16.5% 11.7%

Subaru Forester by year

Complaints filed with NHTSA, by model year. Bar colour is the FaultScore grade: A B C D F ungraded

What breaks

Nissan Altima by year

Complaints filed with NHTSA, by model year. Bar colour is the FaultScore grade: A B C D F ungraded

What breaks

Engine & Cooling 3,482 17.2%
Airbags 1,967 9.7%
Electrical System 1,775 8.8%
Body & Structure 1,769 8.7%
Other & Unspecified 1,496 7.4%
Steering 1,346 6.7%
Lights 1,235 6.1%