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:

• 

  2004 Titan - 2004 Nissan Titan
  By mabatista - August 30 - 4:10 pm

  I use this truck to Tow almost daily (about 4-5000lb trailer). Great tow vehicle. Mileage is about 10 towing. About 12 around town. I once got about 14-15 on the interstate and was thrilled! This thing eats brakes. Fronts every 25k, rears every 40k. Trim pieces are cheap, but the engine/trans has benn reliable. I would buy it again. (I would get 4wd though)

• 

  180K and going - 1999 Nissan Sentra
  By red chocobo - August 29 - 2:40 pm

  I bought this car used 2003, 91K and now I added 90K to it. Mean time, I took the car to the shop maybe 10 times or so. aircondition circuit $30, starter $200, PW window switch $100, exhaust leak 3 times, 250, front O2 $60. That is about it. Never stopped running, never fail to start, great for gas, and note that this care is the easiest car to change the oil filter. I do not think many people are interested in buying 99 sentra now, but I must say that you shuold by a manual shift, it goes OK over 2000 RPM, but if you really want to drive, you need to control the engine rev over 4000.

• 

  just a car person - 2003 Nissan 350Z
  By fun loved cars - August 28 - 10:00 am

  The car gos down the road good.Im a bigger person and the car just is not realy mant for large people but its ok. Would I say to buy one? Yes, you will love the look you get from others that can only dream of nicer things in live. If you want more info stop and buy one too.

• 

  great car for the money - 2003 Nissan 350Z
  By jeffrx42 - August 28 - 10:00 am

  the 350z is just fun to drive. This is a special car and it must not be your only car or you will be unhappy with it. 2 seats and limited space make this a car to just drive for fun.

• 

  Awesome car, bad design - 2002 Nissan Maxima
  By NYmaxima - August 28 - 10:00 am

  The car is awesome. I put 1000 miles on it the first week i had it. In 5 days I had my Headlights stolen. WHAT IS WRONG WITH NISSAN TO MAKE THE CAR LIKE THIS 2 YEARS IN A ROW. Had the dealer replace with 2001 halogen lights costing $2600. Other than that i love my baby.

• 

  What a great car inside/out - 2003 Nissan Altima
  By seau - August 28 - 10:00 am

  This is a great car to drive that has a lot of pep for a 4 cylinder car. Its exterior design is very stylish and the interior dash is cuting edge. The S model comes nicely equipped for the price and the Nissan name helps sell its reliability.

• 

  So far - a happy buyer - 2010 Nissan Murano
  By Billiebad - August 27 - 5:43 pm

  1700 miles in and 5 weeks of ownership. First the bad: Terrible burning/hot smell for first thousand miles - now gone. Throttle hesitation on low level initial acceleration. (Supposedly by design)Tough to see the corners of the vehicle - getting used to this - and the back up camera is a useful feature. The good - stylish, comfortable, 23mpg, more useful storage than my former RX330. Love the sunroof, the leather.

• 

  Rental Car rides again - 2014 Nissan Altima
  By Joshua - August 27 - 5:30 pm

  Update: the mpg has remained constant, the seats show the slightest signs of wear, the transmission needed to be replaced at 71k (thank God for the extended warranty I purchased), still believe I got a great value. I purchased this car with the intention of using it to drive for uber/lyft. I bought it from hertz car sales since their deals are about $5-$6k less than similar models I found nearby (and I searched for weeks). I figured that since I was going to put a million miles on it, having relatively high miles (50k) wasnt really an issue. The cvt transmission does take some getting used to, but since it is a main factor in my incredible gas mileage, its still worth it. The Bluetooth works great, even skipping songs in Pandora. Phone connectivity works like a charm. The most comfortable front seats Ive ever sat in and Ive had numerous large luxury sedans (bmw 7s, lexus LSS, ETC). My two complaints are the quality of paint (super thin) and the interior, while being nicely designed, is ultra low quality materials (styrofoam rear deck, really?) and the armrest feels like its going to break off any day now. I havent had any issues at all, at 6000 miles into ownership and 56k on the car.

• 

  Nice small Car...BUT.... - 2007 Nissan Versa
  By Viktorio - August 27 - 1:50 am

  I bought a new car and after 18 month a start hearing noisy inside of my car, transmission goes very noisy until RPMs goes down, service check engine light comes on very offter, sendos replaced, tire blow up, transmission goes 20m/p then went up without pressing excelator almost, horn went down after 2 years. I had issue with transmission but technician was not be able to find the issue plus charge me $95 for diagnostic and next month the transmission is went down.

• 

  my Xterra Rawks - 2004 Nissan Xterra
  By Doug Bolst - August 26 - 9:20 am

  Its Awesome, i love it