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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  Cant have it all, I guess? - 2002 Nissan Frontier
  By jshoota - November 24 - 10:00 am

  Has the gas mileage of a V8. 3.3L to small. I had to buy a high performance air filter and exhaust to help with the "get up". I liked the compact style, because Im able to get in tighter more remote spots, than the bigger trucks. Even though the rear seating is cramped, my buddies and I dealt with it just fine, during the hunting seasons. Climbs up(with stock tires)with no problems, and some pretty steep inclines. I had to have my steering stoppers regreased, because they were squeaking/creeking on sharp U-turns w/bumps. Brakes started to make a high pitch squeak noise, when going 20-30 mph. Brake pads were fine, the discs needed to be resurfaced.

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  Just bought...love it so far - 2003 Nissan Altima
  By Roe - November 24 - 10:00 am

  So far my whole experience with buying this car has been great. From getting quotes on the internet to test driving the car. I love the looks, the way it handles, a lot of car for the money. Iwill come back in 6 months and update the review.

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  Lower Quality interior than piror years - 2004 Nissan Maxima
  By dschnatz - November 24 - 10:00 am

  My 4th Maxima. This is by far the poorest quality interior ever had with Maxima. Dependability & quality are still big draw but gone is the rich leather & cushy seats. More austere interior with your choice of quasi titanium or plastic formica veneer faux woodgrain trim. Dont put your arm on the armrest after the car sits in the sun awhile. OUCH! May entice Altima crowd to move up a model, but left us grannies out in the cold. Sorely tempted by Infinity which is basically the old Maxima, but husband had other ideas. Missing my 1996 Maxima with rich cushy black leather interior & great comfort. (& no tacky plastic trim panels)

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  Expensive but fun. - 2005 Nissan Altima
  By seth16 - November 23 - 11:51 pm

  Ive had this car for about a year now. I have both ups & downs with it. First of all, it is a extremely fun car to drive...the 3.5L engine is amazing, very powerful. Faster then most sports cars under $30,000. The interior overall is good, the seats are soft and comfy. It IS NOT squishy in the back, lots of leg room. Only flaws are the knobs, they seem very big and bulky. The ride is smooth when going fast, but when going slow it feels rough in general. I think the car is very good looking, has a sport look too it. I have put around $3,000 in the car for repairs in the last year. ABS brakes were broken, steering problems, new battery & O2 sensors. NO engine problems yet.

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  I will miss it a lot! - 2005 Nissan Altima
  By Bolek - November 23 - 3:03 pm

  I am about to return this car as I leased it for the last two years and I have to tell that I will miss it a lot. For one - the $349/month with 0 down was an amazing deal considering how much they want for the fully equipped car today. To all the people who complained about the radio display being not clear in direct sunlight - you should have gotten the version with navigation system as I did. Then the radio info is displayed on the navi screen and you can see it in any light conditions. This car is a racket - you get instant response to the accelerator pedal. This comes with a price as I was getting on average 18- 19 miles to a gallon in 50/50 city/highway driving. On highway better – 26.

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  No problems here - 2004 Nissan Sentra
  By wellers - November 22 - 11:23 pm

  Bought my 2004 Sentra 3 years ago and I love it. No problems whatsoever. Its a no frills car but it is a great commuter and gets excellent gas mileage. Ive seen some of the complaints and I guess I got one of the good ones. CD plays and the car just humms along. My kids never complained about the size of the back seat but they are kids. Very happy with car. Very inexpensive too.

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  Love it but needs some improvements!!! - 2005 Nissan Maxima
  By Kelly - November 22 - 8:13 pm

  The car is a very nice car and I love the power. Have taken the car on two long trips. One I was alone so it was fine the other was very cramped. Not made for traveling, or maybe i just travel with too much stuff. Has pretty much every feature available. However the car seems very thin and I sometimes feel unsafe. The car looks great though, I love the new body style! If you buy one, buy it with all the features you want, dont put aftermarket xm radio or subs in it or you will have trouble if you have radio problems. The dealerships like to blame problems on other people!!! They think you like to spend hours at the dealership for no reason at all. They can never find anything wrong

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  pleased with van - 2004 Nissan Quest
  By Bob - November 22 - 5:53 pm

  the air cond. has had two leaks in pipe going along the chassis to the rear. both times it was repaired and now for the third time the dealer indicates I will pay since I am out of warranty. I say not fair. We will see what happens. otherwise a great good looking & running van.

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  Sentra SE Limited - 1999 Nissan Sentra
  By Jacob Dodge - November 22 - 11:13 am

  The Sentra has been an ok little car. The alternator died once, leaving me stranded. Both keys have broken, one is still in the trunklid. Front passenger window motor is going dead. Eject button broke off of cd player. Muffler rusted apart. Also, just recently, the fan speed selector only works on 4, 1-3 do nothing. Despite those problems, it is still faster than my freinds Civic and Corolla. It has a sunroof, which I am ever thankful for. And keyless entry, and white faced gauges. And fog lights. The Sentra now has 140,000 miles on it, with me putting around 40,000 miles/year on it. Considering this, I think the car is holding up rather well.

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  Just Okay - 2008 Nissan Xterra
  By RKW - November 22 - 10:10 am

  SUV is pretty much what you see is what you get. It is a truck with an SUV body. Wasnt long until I noticed a roaring noise when slowing down. It actually causes the entire vehicle to vibrate.There is also a whining noise between 45 and 50 mph.Sometimes the shifting is very loose and makes a clanking noise. I plan to address these problems on my next scheduled visit. The gas mileage is a little better than advertised. The ride is so so. The center armrest is too far back.