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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  Great Truck - 2004 Nissan Titan
  By Vicenso - June 14 - 10:00 am

  This truck is overall a great product. As you have noticed everyone loves the power, large cabin and ride Comfort. I have had mine in the shop several times already for various reasons, one being the front brake rotors. Nissan has issued a Bulletin to all dealers regarding the correction of this problem with Most Titan trucks. The interior plastic scratches very easily and yes I do have many rattle noises from the dash which the dealer says they cant do much about. I also had a very annoying squeaking noise from the front passenger seat which I fixed myself. The Utility Bed is awesome with the spray in bed liner, and bed extender, and tie down hooks.

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  FUEL EFFICIENCY EXCELLENT - GREEN CAR!!! - 2005 Nissan Sentra
  By Metalblade - June 14 - 10:00 am

  Main reason I bought it is for fuel efficiency, you can almost inhale exhaust without feeling disgusted! My model is rated SULEV and partially PZEV!! (close to Zero-emmisions) This baby makes 40 miles/gallon when all heavy stuff is removed ( I removed spare tire, one seat, jack, useless metal objects, one sun visor, etc. as its covered by 24-mos roadside assistance (in case of tire problem) and I stay in the city where repair is avai;able on any corner. Now if you keep spare tier loaded, etc. still makes 36 mpg if you drive intelligently (i.e. dont accelrate in front of red light, dont idle, dont do stupid things many people doing) - use brains and you get near-hybrid fuel efficiency

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  Pathfinder Rear Seat Belts - 2005 Nissan Pathfinder
  By mq12518 - June 14 - 10:00 am

  Have had the 2005 pathfinder for a few days. Love the truck, the look the ride. One major gripe - using the lap/shoulder belt for my kids booster setas is near impossible. The seat belt receptor is too short to easily engage when standing outside the vehicle. Nissan (or someone!) needs ot offer a short 3" - 4" extension ASAP. The extension could be easily disengaged and stored if one needed to fold the seat(s) down. Third row receptors are longer - maybe thats the way to place the kids until a remedy is found. I have surfed a few websites for aftermarket extensions - no luck yet.

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  New 05 PathFinder Fun To Drive - 2005 Nissan Pathfinder
  By Pgh Kid - June 14 - 10:00 am

  Just bought 05 Pathfinder SE 4x4 - paid $1,900 under $30,200 MSRP - had to negotiate quite a bit - Dealer tried to add $695 Dealer Mark-up which I flatly refused - Very powerful engine with great low end torque - can light up the back tire - handles very nice, smooth ride, classy interior compared to others - 3rd seat is tight - nice body lines - bought Granite color -

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  excellent - 2005 Nissan Pathfinder
  By maNDYLYNNN - June 14 - 10:00 am

  i love driving this vehicle, it has great steering, great room, and great look, when you drive it, ts as if, youre floating on a cloud.

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  Bad - 2004 Nissan Xterra
  By bithc - June 14 - 8:06 am

  i hate this car i bought it and then 4 months later i hade to replace the engin because it blew that cost me 4,000$ and then a week later i had to bring it in to get a new muffler because the orignal one fell off i guess the clamp was not on and it just droped and i was driving down the street and it almost hit a person behind me i hate this car is is the worst car in the world

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  Great vehicle - beats all competition - 2007 Nissan Sentra
  By Mike - June 13 - 3:20 pm

  I drove all the usual players in this area (Civic, Elantra, Sentra and the Corrola) The nissan is incredibly smooth and handles better than any of the others. Its also much quieter on the inside (wind and engine) than any of the others. I was surprised given how I thought about the old Sentra, but Nissan really did this car right. It has all the most important features that I look for (comfort, quiet, smooth, easy to use dash, looks nice, alloy wheels, convenience package is AWESOME, and the audio package is out of this world) I would recommend getting your Sirius radio installed too. I did the sportster 4 on the dash plugged into the aux input. This works best so you can swap 4 ipod.

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  Buy it - 2006 Nissan Armada
  By Richey - June 13 - 12:13 pm

  Those of us who are 6 5" tall and weighs 250 this is the most effec SUV; that with the price and comfortablity this SUV drives great and also the power is great.

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  I love the car, but....... - 2007 Nissan Maxima
  By Steve B. - June 13 - 2:16 am

  Solid vehicle. Love the design and the way it drives. Very comfortable seats and all controls are reachable, but a little confusing at first. If you are going to drive this car hard then get the SE with the lower profile, larger tires and stiffer suspension. The only thing that troubles me is the gas mileage. I had a 99 SE and got 28 mpg and drove that car very hard. The rear wheel wells have a felt material as protection I was told was for sound deadening. This material catches all dirt, leaves and gravel in it and if very hard to clean. Bad choice for that material when the front wells have hard plastic.

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  Love My Xterra - 2010 Nissan Xterra
  By BStanky - June 13 - 12:50 am

  I had my eye on the Xterra after buying an Altima for my wife last year. This year I traded in my old Explorer and after considering the smaller Escape, I drove over to the Nissan dealership and am glad I did. I love this vehicle. The performance from the 4.0L 6cyl engine is superb. The ride is smooth thanks to the 17" wheels and tires, comfortable beyond belief. I wish fuel economy was better, but I am getting 20 MPGs. As the Edmunds model review notes, the brakes take a little getting use to as they are a bit mushy. I love the Rockford/Fosgate audio system with XM, 6CD disk, 9 speakers and blue tooth. This is a very well built vehicle, no rattles or squeaks, and a pure joy to drive.