How much can you make parting out a Nissan Altima 2013-2018?

Parting out a Nissan Altima (2013-2018) breaks the usual rule: on this car the money is the transmission, not the engine. A fifth-generation L33 Altima takes home roughly $4,520 in the parts worth pulling, after marketplace fees, before your own labor and freight - and the single biggest number on it is the CVT, because these transmissions fail often enough that used replacements are always in demand. The engine, meanwhile, is one of the cheapest you will ever part out. This is the L33 Altima (2013-2018), the sedan generation before the 2019 redesign, so on a 2018 donor confirm which one you have before you price anything. This is the full Nissan Altima part-out value breakdown: what each major part sells for, why the transmission leads and the engine trails, and how to get the exact figure before you buy.

Parting out a Nissan Altima 2013-2018: the top parts

A few majors carry most of the part-out value. These are real used-market prices for the L33 Altima, ranked by take-home - your own labor, packing, and freight come off on top:

At a glance: estimated parts take-home $4,520+ · top part transmission at $1,723 · 18+ parts priced · prices updated Aug 2026 · years 2013 - 2018 · L33 (fifth) generation · body sedan, Xtronic CVT. The “$4,520+” is the take-home across every part worth pulling, not just the five above - the top 5 are shown here, and 13 more sit behind them.

What each part is worth when parting out a Nissan Altima

The table is the summary. The money is in reading it correctly, part by part.

Transmission - the headline, and it’s the CVT. Every L33 Altima uses Nissan’s Xtronic CVT, and that is exactly why the transmission is the top part: these CVTs fail often enough that used replacements are in constant demand. It keeps about $1,494 on a deep 192-listing market at high confidence - the steadiest big number on the car, and the one you plan the whole part-out around. Match it to the exact engine before you quote one; the 2.5L and 3.5L cars do not share the same unit.

Engine - deep market, small money. Here is the twist: the engine is a distant second at about $605 take-home, even though it sits on a 199-listing market. The 2.5L QR25 is one of the most common engines on the road, so used ones are a glut - deep, liquid, and cheap. It moves fast, but it will never be the headline on this car. The rarer 3.5L V6 is worth more, but sells on a much thinner market.

Catalytic converter - a theft-target that varies. The cat keeps about $468, but read it carefully: it comes off only 19 listings and rates Low confidence, and it varies by engine and emissions spec - the 2.5L and 3.5L cats are different parts, and the range runs $190 to $770. It is also a common theft target, so a “complete” donor may already be missing it. Confirm it is present and match it to the engine before you count it.

Doors and hood - body panels swing on condition. The front door keeps about $390 on a solid 127-listing market, and the hood about $314 on 86 - but body panels are where configuration shows up hardest. Hoods alone run from about $195 to $699, roughly a six-to-one range on a single panel; color, trim and how straight the metal is decide where a given car lands. Photograph honestly and confirm the paint code before you quote sheetmetal.

The 2.5L versus 3.5L split - price the right engine

The L33 ran two engines: a 2.5L I4 in most cars and a 3.5L V6 in the 3.5 trims. Engine-specific parts - the long block, the engine computer, the catalytic converter, accessory-drive hardware - do not interchange across that split, so confirm which engine a donor has before pricing them. The 2.5 is the common, cheap, liquid market; the 3.5 is rarer and worth more per part but sells slower. Decode the VIN and confirm displacement before you list any engine-specific part - sell a 2.5 part as a 3.5 and you buy a return.

Trims change which parts a car has - and what they sell for

The Altima ran a wide trim ladder - 2.5, 2.5 S, 2.5 SV, 2.5 SL, 2.5 SR on the four-cylinder, and 3.5 SL and 3.5 SR on the V6. Trim decides the hardware: lighting, wheels, seats and audio differ, and so do their prices. Read the trim off the VIN before you price the trim-specific parts, so you quote the part the donor actually has, not the one the badge suggests.

The full picture: 18+ parts, not 5

The five above are the headline, but they are not the whole car. 18 or more parts are worth pulling on a 2013 - 2018 Altima - the top 5, plus the rest of the body panels, the tail lights and headlights, wheels, seats, mirrors, the accessory-drive hardware, and the small mechanical parts. The Altima was one of the best-selling sedans of its era, so the donor pool is deep and buyers are always searching - the common parts move if you list them well.

Only the top 5 are shown publicly. The full ranked list - all 18+ parts with live prices, plus side-by-side vehicle comparison - is inside reParta. Start a free trial to see the other 13 parts and price your exact VIN.

The small parts only pay in volume

The alternator, the starter, and the small mechanical parts are all deep, steady markets on a car this common - but at low dollars each they only pay if you pull and list them in volume. On a vehicle this ubiquitous the upside is that buyers are always searching, so the small parts move fast if you list them well; the downside is that everyone else has them too, so price to the market. This is where a small operation quietly loses hours - the parts feel like money on the shelf, but they only pay if your listing and fulfillment are fast enough to move them at scale.

Get the exact number for your VIN before you buy

Everything above is the generation average. The Altima in front of you is a specific engine, trim, and condition, with specific damage - so the real part-out value is specific too, and on this one it hinges on the CVT’s condition, the 2.5-versus-3.5 engine, and whether the cat is still on it. That is what Pre-bid ROI gives you: paste the VIN and your max bid, edit the projected parts list to match what is intact on the lot, and it returns resale revenue from real used-market prices, minus marketplace fees, transport, and your bid - the net profit, a days-to-sell read per part, and a risk score. It works the same for Copart, IAA, and private buys, and it does not scrape the auction - you enter the price. Decoding the Altima is free: start with the free VIN decoder, then run the full profit number in reParta.

Parting out a different car?

The Altima is one of many. See the part-out value for other cars - ranked parts and real prices for the most profitable vehicles to part out, or go straight to the full 2013 - 2018 Nissan Altima part-out value - so you know the number before you bid on any lot.

Comparing donors? Run the part-out math on other midsize sedans - the Toyota Camry, the Honda Accord, and the Hyundai Sonata.

Know your profit before you buy - try reParta free

reParta is the pre-bid, list-everywhere, know-your-profit operating system for used-auto-parts sellers. See all 18+ Altima parts with live prices, compare vehicles side by side, and price your exact VIN before you bid - so you buy on a number, not a hunch.

Start your 14-day free trial - no card required

Takeaways

• A 2013 - 2018 Nissan Altima takes home roughly $4,520 in the parts worth pulling, after marketplace fees - and unusually, the transmission leads ($1,494), not the engine.
• The transmission is the CVT: every L33 uses Nissan’s Xtronic CVT, and because these fail often, used replacements stay in demand - a deep 192-listing, high-confidence market.
• The engine is cheap ($605) despite a deep 199-listing market, because the 2.5L QR25 is a glut; the rarer 3.5L V6 is worth more but sells slower, and the two engines’ parts (including the cat) do not interchange.
• Only the top 5 parts are public; the full 18+ list and your exact VIN are in reParta - start free or see the full Altima part-out value.