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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  Fantastic Value - 2004 Nissan Maxima
  By gen6lover - October 17 - 2:00 am

  Nissan hit it on the money with this one. The design and performance sold me on this car. I was looking at an Altima and Im glad I waited. For a price difference of less than $1,500 you get a much better interior and many more features than a similiarly equipped Altima 3.5SE. Skyview roof is perfect for us 63" tall drivers who cant loose the headroom of a conventional sunroof.

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  the max - 2004 Nissan Maxima
  By Jaw28Jaw - October 17 - 2:00 am

  love the look and feel. thinks it is more expensive than it is! a great value in this economy

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  I miss my Ford Edge - 2016 Nissan Murano
  By Stacy Peterson - October 16 - 9:10 pm

  Had the Murano four weeks. Handles great. Missing a couple interior displays like direction. Need to scroll through screen to locate it. Edge has a lot more little conveniences that I miss.

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  Went with an Altima SE v6 - 2007 Nissan Altima
  By Wills - October 16 - 5:16 pm

  After 2 months of searching and test driving, I ended up with an Altima SE. I drove; Camry, TL, G35x & Accord and by far the Altima was my favorite. Its sporty and has everything I wanted in a car. Please know it does drive somewhat like a sports car, so if you want a smooth ride go for the Accord or Camry. This car is the whole package, from the redesigned exterior to the dash and interior, I just really like the way it looks for a 4dr sedan.

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  Tried them all, loved this one - 2007 Nissan Sentra
  By Awesome Car - October 16 - 12:03 pm

  Handles well, good gas mileage. I am waiting to see how gas mileage does after it has been broken in. Great pickup in tight spots. My only complaint is when I put the windows down, there is a tremendous amount of fluttering in the stereo. I cant have the radio on and windows down.

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  2006 Nissan Maxima SE Happy Guy - 2006 Nissan Maxima
  By Black Max - October 15 - 8:30 pm

  I spent months researching a handful of vehicles. I was conflicted regarding cost vs true value between Nissan Maxima SE & Infiniti G35 and am very happy with my Black on Black Maxima; which turns heads. Driving is flat out fun with a very "torquey" yet smooth engine & transmission pairing. The black interior "matches up" better with the factory brushed steel interior trim and looks "integrated" overall compared to other interior colors. The interior lighting at night, on black, is awesome and detailed as almost every switch has an amber light for 2006. It doesnt lack for technology and features, many of which go unspoken on the nissan.com site. HID is great, has fog lamps, auto set.

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  Good Job Nissan! - 2013 Nissan Sentra
  By ggtg34 - October 15 - 12:42 pm

  This car is definitely a huge improvement over the 2012 Sentra and I really like the look of the exterior and interior. I have been getting about 23 MPG in city driving and 30+ in highway driving. I took it on a trip to Pennsylvania and averaged 39 MPG for the entire trip! I know others have complained about the lack of power in this car, I agree that this is no race car and more power would make it more fun to drive. But overall the powertrain serves its purpose very well and I have never had any problems merging onto highways or anything like that. Its meant to be a commuting car and the compact size, good fuel economy and backup camera make it a perfect car for city driving.

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  My 2009 has been great - 2009 Nissan Versa
  By rock2014 - October 14 - 8:43 pm

  I bought this car new - actually right off the truck - in 2009. I drive 100 miles round trip to work each day, and now have about 155,000 miles. The car has needed nothing but routine maintenance - because I baby it, were still on the original brakes. My wife and two daughters preferred traveling in this instead of our Ford Taurus - more roomy, especially in the back. Bottom line - especially if youre looking for what Edmunds calls a reliable "appliance" car, Ive never had anything better than this.

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  2014 Nissan Rogue SV - AWD - Owners Impressions - 2014 Nissan Rogue
  By steveomaha - October 13 - 3:00 pm

  Just bought my 2014 Rogue SV with AWD a few days ago. Overall I really like the vehicle and think styling inside and out is much improved from the 2013 version. I am a pretty dedicated Nissan owner but also checked out the Subaru Forester, Toyota RAV4, and Chevy Equinox. I was sold on the Rogues interior - looks and feels very upscale, better than its competitors, and the cabin is huge. The Sirius XM radio is awesome and Nissan gives you a 90-day trial to test it out. Mine came with dual climate control (have never had that before and love it!), pushbutton start, backup camera, and an extended power moonroof and it listed for just over $28,000. So, I feel the value was great.

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  Definitely Recommended - 2008 Nissan Sentra
  By Frank - October 13 - 10:20 am

  I went from driving various trucks for 20 years to the Nissan Sentra. Like for many, gas prices drove the change. I evaluated all the small car options from: Mazda, Ford, Toyota, Chevrolet, Honda, Hyundai, and VW. This took me 4 weeks to complete. For a loaded every option Sentra SL, I feel like the time spent was well worth it. Im getting about 32 mpg mixed and almost 36 mpg on the freeway. The ride is very comfortable. I was a little skeptical of the CVT at first but I am a fan now. This is really a smooth drive. Its almost too comfortable in the leather seats and cruise control zipping down the freeway with the moonroof open and XM on! All I can say is: Buy it!