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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  Buyers Beware - 2005 Nissan Pathfinder
  By Pathfinder Owner - March 12 - 9:46 am

  I have read several comments from people who own a Pathfinder about the problems with the radiator leaking into the transmission. Well, now I am personally having this problem as well. The fluid has leaked into my transmission which now has to be completely overhauled and its only 3 years old and of course out of warranty. So buyers beware. We called Nissan but were basically told too bad. Until now the vehicle ran great so if you do purchase a Pathfinder then make sure you buy the extended warranty!!

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  Good Vehicle - 1995 Nissan Pathfinder
  By irongirl - March 11 - 10:00 am

  My first car. Bought it new. Had a few wear and tear problems once I hit 110,000 miles: replaced alternator, exhaust manifolds on both sides - expensive to fix. Other than that, great first car.

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  Got screwed by Nissan again - 2005 Nissan Altima
  By nissancrap - March 10 - 5:53 pm

  I have a 2005 altima SE 3.5 with 80K miles. It was a fun car to begin with and plenty of power and torque for a $25,000 car. But I had spent more monies on this crap even more than my 2002 BMW. I ran into the timing chain tensioner guide cracking issue @40K miles which I was lucky it still covered warranty. Many owners were not so lucky but have to pay close to $2,000 after warranty expired. But after Premier Nissan at Fremont, CA fixed it, the air conditioning stopped working. Took it back to Sunnyvale Nissan to get it fixed again. The car interior had some strange rattling sounds which the dealers thought it came from the dash panels and never able to eliminate it.

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  Lemon!! - 2004 Nissan Altima
  By Fred - March 8 - 6:10 pm

  For the first year or so, this car was the best thing I had ever driven. It looks great inside & out, its very powerful for a 4-cylinder, and its pretty good on gas. Then the problems started happening... having to replace a steering joint, numerous brake work, engine cover coming undone, sensors out of whack, you name it. I am extremely meticulous when it comes to servicing my car, which is why I dont understand why all these problems kept coming up. And the car just turned 5 years old, with just about 100,000 kms only. This car has become a nuisance - I will never buy another Nissan, and Im now hoping I can sell it or that it gets stolen. Seriously.

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  Pretender - 2006 Nissan Frontier
  By Morris - March 8 - 6:13 am

  The Nissan Frontier does not deserve to be rated near the top of this class. I wish I would have gone with a Toyota or even the Chevy. The build quality on the Nissan is average at best and the engine is very sluggish for supposedly having over 260hp. The gas mileage is poor for a compact pickup, I used to get better from my full size. This truck doesnt come close to measuring up to a Toyota in any way, and I would even rate the Chevy a better truck for the money. I would not recommend this truck to anyone.

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  Big Disappointment! - 2006 Nissan Maxima
  By bruin in Ottawa - March 7 - 7:10 pm

  This car has given me no confidence in the Nissan brand. It has a horrible fit and finish. This is going to catch up with Nissan just like it did with the big three.

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  buy a honda - 2000 Nissan Maxima
  By monroe - March 5 - 5:03 am

  My wife bought this car in 2000 before we were married and it has been great until it hit about 60,000 miles. Like the others the coils have went out and front end and rear end suspension needs replacing. Tires are outrageously overpriced for the 17". The car is also louder than my 2002 accord. The gas mileage has never been good. For the price that she paid and what I paid for the accord I think that I came out a lot better. With 77,000 on the maxima I think that the tranny is going out. It loses power at high(over 3700) rpms. any sugestion?

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  Nissan Xterra - 2002 Nissan Xterra
  By MMR - March 5 - 2:00 am

  fun to drive; always

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  Would not own another Nissan - 2009 Nissan Murano
  By mbe35008nm09 - March 3 - 3:23 am

  I bought a 2009 LE on 4-1-09 and sold it on 5-15-08 I had a jerking/vibration at speed of 40 - 60 and they were giving me the run around that it was the gas. They wanted me to run 4 tanks for 93 octane this would fix the problem. Well it made NO difference. If you are thinking about buying one of these I would make sure that you do a hell of a good test drive, overnight drive at different speeds and on different roads. Selling it was the best thing for me to do to deal with it!

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  Works for small, city commutes - 2008 Nissan Versa
  By JJONES - February 26 - 6:54 am