• Nissan is finally killing the Altima sedan, based on what Ponz Pandikuthira, head of product planning in North America, told WardsAuto.
• The executive reportedly said the Altima is being killed to give the "grown-up" Sentra more space to stretch its legs.
• Despite the executive's comments, a Nissan representative told Car and Driver that Nissan is planning to announce a 2027 Altima later this year.

UPDATE 7/15/26, 12:15 p.m.: This story has been updated to include a statement from a Nissan representative.

The Nissan Altima has been living on borrowed time, but all good things must come to an end, and unfortunately for fans of the long-running family sedan, Joe Black is just around the corner. Nissan's head of product planning and senior vice president for North America recently confirmed the Altima's death in an interview with WardsAuto.

Despite its expected demise after the 2025 model year, Nissan announced that the Altima would return for 2026. After all, the mid-size sedan was getting quite old, and Nissan had just revealed the refreshed Sentra. The executive said that the Altima will "soon depart" as the more "grown-up" Sentra is intended to cover Nissan's entire sedan market.

While Nissan has cancelled plans to build two EV sedans in the United States, Pandikuthira also reaffirmed that Nissan doesn't expect a surge in volume for the electric sedan segment until the end of the decade, at which point EVs and batteries should be a lot more affordable. He also touched on the Ariya, which was cancelled for the 2026 model year, saying that the SUV's future in the U.S. market is being discussed.

Despite Pandikuthira's comments, a representative for Nissan informed Car and Driver that the 2026 Altima remains in production, and the brand is preparing to announce a 2027 model later this year. "The Nissan Altima remains an important part of our lineup, meeting the needs of sedan buyers today. We continue to see strong customer interest, and later this year, we will introduce a 2027 Model Year," Nissan wrote in a statement.

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Jack Fitzgerald’s love for cars stems from his as yet unshakable addiction to Formula 1.
After a brief stint as a detailer for a local dealership group in college, he knew he needed a more permanent way to drive all the new cars he couldn’t afford and decided to pursue a career in auto writing. By hounding his college professors at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, he was able to travel Wisconsin seeking out stories in the auto world before landing his dream job at Car and Driver. His new goal is to delay the inevitable demise of his 2010 Volkswagen Golf.