Overview & Reviews

Nissan was born in Japan, and like other marques from its homeland, the brand is known for crafting vehicles that place an emphasis on quality and reliability. The company's roster of products is broad, and includes sporty coupes, family sedans, minivans, trucks and SUVs.

The automaker got its start in 1933 as the Jidosha Seico Co., Ltd. The following year, this outfit merged with another Japanese manufacturer, and the new company was christened Nissan Motor Company, Ltd. Nissan initially marketed its vehicles under the Datsun brand, with the first Datsuns being built in 1934. Postwar, the brand made its presence felt worldwide, building a partnership with the U.K.-based Austin Motor Co. and establishing a presence in the United States. The first Datsuns hit American shores in 1958. Vehicles like the Datsun 1000 were based on Austin platforms.

The '60s witnessed Nissan's merger with Prince Motor Company, a union that helped the Asian manufacturer create more luxury-focused vehicles. In the U.S. it began offering its first vehicle styled for the U.S. market, the Datsun 510 sedan. By the end of the decade, Datsun had exported more than 1 million vehicles. Datsun rose to prominence in the 1970s on the popularity of its 240Z sports car. Powered by an inline six-cylinder engine, the car was coveted for its blend of style, performance and affordability. By the time the '70s drew to a close, the automaker's cumulative vehicle exports had surpassed the 10 million mark.

In 1981, Nissan shelved the Datsun name and began selling vehicles worldwide under the Nissan moniker. The '80s also saw Nissan's launch of a tuning division called Nismo for the development of performance-oriented vehicles and accessories. Nissan also brought its production to American shores, with the construction of a Georgia-based plant.

The early '90s saw Nissan's fortunes rise in the U.S. thanks to fun-to-drive cars like the 300ZX, Maxima and Sentra. But this trend didn't last long and by the late '90s Nissan's offerings consisted of anonymous vehicles. The company's future was uncertain.

After the turn of the new century Nissan bounced back, helped by a 1999 alliance with Renault that boosted the company's finances. Its redesigned Sentra and Altima boosted sales and consumer interest, as did new models like the 350Z sports car, Armada SUV and Titan pickup. Today the manufacturer is known for offering a wide range of well-regarded vehicles, including the popular Murano SUV, the incredible GT-R supercar and the all-electric Leaf.

User Reviews:

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  2011 Nissan Frontier 4.0L AUTO 4X4 S MODEL 1000 miles - 2011 Nissan Frontier
  By sumncguy - October 10 - 11:30 pm

  V6 is capable but slow on starts, ok once revs are up. 4x4 is also capable in 4-6" snow. Seats + interior feel a little flimsy. Normally standards, Cruise + overhead drivers light not available on this model. Seats wife + I, our 13 + 9 year old comfortably. MPG is decent averaging 15 mph under varying conditions. 991 miles and 3 weeks of ownership. Overall, Im happy but some low grades, especially related to how the interior will hold up, indicate areas of concern at this point in time. I will return for a 6 month evaluation.

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  Excellent but for a few mech. issues - 2005 Nissan Xterra
  By TCWTW - October 7 - 12:10 am

  This a good vehicle. If would be very good except for a few items. 1.) Sometimes takes several miles to switch out of 4 wheel drive (up to 20). 2.) The fuel level transmitter went faulty at about 53K (1.5 yrs). 3.) The front wheel bearing sounds like it is going bad. It was the best vehicle for the money when I bought it and if you want a lot of power and dont mind the poorer gas mileage, this car is for you. The seats on the base model are not that comfortable. I would highly recommend this vehicle for college students going off to college.

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  Bad Seats - 2010 Nissan Murano
  By Smooth - October 4 - 10:00 am

  Seats are very uncomfortable and do not have enough adjustments. Rear cargo area is cheap, piece of carpeted plywood covers the spare tire. Used AWD last night for the first time, it stayed engaged even at 40/45 mph, the manual says it cuts off after driving past 6 mph. I may not entirely understand the AWD feature. Rear seats recline, very nice feature for rear passengers. Very smooth car like ride. Overall a nice vehicle but the seats are a real drawback, my 2001 Pathfinder seats were much more comfortable.

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  Bad Buy! - 2005 Nissan Maxima
  By pdmj - October 4 - 3:06 am

  Even though this car looks like a best buy in terms of price (even the newer models), this car will rip you apart in maintenance cost. All parts are 3 times as expensive as other cars in the category. Annual maintenance is about $1200 up 60000 miles and there after just pray to god! Your maintenance cost may go even upto $3000 / year. I have a Honda Odyssey bought at the same time as that of Maxima, but in terms of maintenance Odyssey has no major maintenance needs. In all I would say Nissan NO GO!

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  Traded in! - 2011 Nissan Murano CrossCabriolet
  By wyomingkid - October 1 - 12:58 pm

  I have to totally agree with the previous review! I lasted a month and a half and traded it in, and took a bath on it. It was worth it though to get out of it! I traded it in on a 2012 Nissan Murano hardtop and love it.

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  My Altima is falling apart - 2007 Nissan Altima
  By Not Happy - October 1 - 2:50 am

  My car has been fine until the warranty expired now the car is falling apart and Nissan does not want to stand behind their vehicles. I had the electronic door locks replaced at 20K. The issue start happening after the warranty is up and now Nissan refuses to fix it. In addition my windows dont roll down anymore and the Nissan dealership wants $700 to fix. They made this car too complicated and I dont trust the reliability. I am selling it and buying something else. This was my second Nissan and most likely my last.

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  Rust eats this car fast - 1996 Nissan Sentra
  By sentraowner - September 30 - 10:16 pm

  Very reliable car but rust eats it very quick. My major complain is the metal used in the frame chasis and exterior and the paint, very bad quality. the interior plastics in the doors are also cheap and break easily. Ive been driving it for 7 years bought it used with 70K, and only minor repairs due to a wife learning to drive messing up everything. Other than that you only need to change oil to this car every once in a while, very reliable. Rust eats this car very quick not only the cheap panels but the frame and chasis (but Im in cold weather, no garaged, salt on streets) I think Im better off paying for a frame replacement and body work than buying the cheap made new models.

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  Awww!!!! Man!!! Another Mistake - 2005 Nissan Armada
  By BJ - September 30 - 9:33 am

  I cannot stress to you about how much my 05 Armada has been giving me problems. I have to take it to the dealer every couple of weeks to get something fixed. From the A/C to the automatic tailgate. The A/C wouldnt give out cold air. It takes about 15- 20 minutes for it to get going. The steering wheel vibrates when you go 55 mph or more. The DVD system would not play the DVDs. The front headlights got water stuck inside of them because they were not installed correctly. The CD player would not eject my CDs. I went to the grocery store and I had a whole bunch of foods for Thanksgiving and the tailgate would not open. You could not manually open it or even open it with the remote.

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  rollovers - 2002 Nissan Xterra
  By D. Faaborg - September 29 - 10:00 am

  Please visit this site to see the safety record of this vehicle - www.nhtsa.dot.gov/NCAP/Cars/2002SUVs.htm l. We loved our Xterra but were recently involved in a rollover accident caused by road/weather conditions that sustained the driver with serious but not life threatening head injuries. We wish wed known the safety issues prior to buying. We loved this vehicle but would never have bought it had we known it was one of the lowest rated in regards to safety.

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  Nissan Altima Problems - 2002 Nissan Altima
  By E. Delisle - September 29 - 10:00 am

  I have a problem with a thump in the front end of the car. Nissan will do nothing about this and said all standards do this. Problem was not there when car was purchased. Started about 300 miles into the car.