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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  Traded it for $16k - 2008 Nissan Altima
  By Scott - December 8 - 12:36 pm

  Owned my Altima for 2 years. Proved to be reliable. I got 26 mpg mixed city/hwy driving (mostly commuting through the city). Like others have said, what I disliked were the seats. Im 65" and I didnt find it comfortable, so I traded it in. I got 16k on my trade for the SL w/leather at 24k mi. Pretty nice car, fun to drive, reliable, not ugly, decent stereo, great transmission, comfortable enough suspension, etc.

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  1998 Sentra GXE been a great car - 1998 Nissan Sentra
  By mab - December 8 - 10:50 am

  155,000 miles and Ive only needed to put 4 tires, 4 plugs, oil and gas. It is a great commuter car, tough on the body for really long rides though. Works great for my family of four. No ABS makes it a little tricky on snowy stops. Its been a great car over the its ten years of use... more reliable than my other new vehicle.

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  Great Car and a Hybrid Too - 2007 Nissan Altima Hybrid
  By steve11554 - December 8 - 7:36 am

  I have had the hybrid for over a year and so far have not had any problems and the gas mileage is better than advertised if you take advantage of the cars mechanics. In a Long Island to NYC trip I will average 44 mpg and in highway driving at around 60-62 mph I can get 40 mpg (summer time). Accelerating smoothly to 40 mph and then letting the electric motor coast you at 39-40 mph on electric only in afternoon traffic works really well. Putting the cruise control on also improves mileage at highway speeds. But if you need acceleration it is available.

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  A truthful review. - 2012 Nissan Quest
  By va24502 - December 8 - 6:05 am

  First, I like the styling of the Quest. Others cite 7 pass capacity as a fault. Nobody has 6 kids these days & if you need this capacity buy a bus.

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  Love my 2001 Maxima GLE! - 2001 Nissan Maxima
  By xrichardx - December 8 - 12:15 am

  WONDERFUL car! I bought it used in July, 2003 after literally months & months of research. You may not believe me, but I now have almost 170,000 miles on it, and there is NOT EVEN ONE RATTLE while driving! Its computer chip went out at about 150,000 miles, but I found a good used one online for about $250. And that is the only time it did not fire up and go. It has been extraordinarily reliable. Had to get seat covers for the leather seats, but the Texas sun where I live eats up leather seats on any car. I replaced the drivers seat at about 140,000 miles because two of the power motors in it went out, and it was less expensive to replace the whole seat with a used one from a salvage yard than replace the motors in the original. Factory Bose stereo system w/ subwoofer still is crisp & LOUD w/ no distortion. I get 23-27 mpg depending on the amount of city/highway driving I do, and it still does not burn one drop of oil between changes. Power seats are adjustable every way imaginable, & those front seats are more comfortable than most living room furniture, no kidding. Has pass-through from truck to back seats. This is far and away the best vehicle I have ever owned, and I have been through seven other foreign & domestic cars & trucks before I was lucky enough to find this one. Test drove a Chrysler 300M right before test driving the Maxima, and the American vehicle was a joke, absolute junk, compared to this one. I remember saying to my son at the time, "This car is amazing. You just THINK what you want it to do and it does it." I honestly expect to get 250,000-300,000 miles out of it, and I highly recommend this model year and other Maxima model years without any reservations whatsoever. Just a wonderful, wonderful vehicle!

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  Air compressor was frozen - 2006 Nissan Quest
  By newquestcustomer - December 7 - 11:16 pm

  This Quest was bought brand new. We took it on the first long trip vacation and the air compressor was frozen and belt was torn. We had to deal with Nissan service for the first time and it was a bad experience that I never had with a such low mileage (616 miles) and the air conditioning was being used the first time. I had another the chance I dont ever buy Nissan car again because of the service attitude.

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  You Gotta Love It - 2007 Nissan Xterra
  By Ron E. - December 7 - 11:10 pm

  Comfortable and capable off road vehicle. Mine is the Off Road version. Reliability is top notch. Getting in & out of rear doors is a little tight. Fuel economy is close to the 08 rating, not the 07 one. Ride is very comfortable for a 4x4 and seats are the best. Best 4x4 vehicle I have ever owned. You gotta love it !! If entry to rear seats is a problem for you, get a Pathfinder but expect to pay $5k more (approx.)

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  Great car - 2011 Nissan Altima
  By Dave - December 7 - 9:08 pm

  I bought this vehicle after owning a 2001 chevy blazer for 3 months. I bought it with 20k miles after 4 years it has 100k never gave me a problem. Gas is amazing. I was 18 at the time and it still looks amazing. Great car the only issue i am starting to have is the transmission which according to mechanics it held up great since i have a tendency to torture my car. And they say it can hold up to 60k miles more

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  2004 Titan - 2004 Nissan Titan
  By mel62 - December 7 - 4:36 pm

  purchased new and has been spraying gasoline out filler neck when re- fueling. Dealer has replaced evaporative canister 3 times and fuel tank once. Just returned at 43k and dealer and Nissan refused to repair item.

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  Safe bet for a used car - 2013 Nissan Leaf
  By Ray Murray - December 7 - 1:37 am

  This continues to be an excellent car. I still favor it for everyday driving. I now live in a single location in Maryland. I have my own charging station. Yesterday I charged the car from 35% to 98% in two hours of non-peak time on the BGE Electric Vehicle Schedule. That cost about $1.60 for 55 miles of driving. Ive found this car easier to live with having a Level II charger at home. Previously I was charging it at my condo overnight using the 110V charger. I purchased this car used to see for myself what living with an electric car is really like. I kept my older cars just in car just in case I found it too difficult to deal with the electric car at times. This car has substantially exceeded my expectations as a car I can live with. It has become my favorite car to drive. I live in two locations in the Washington D.C area on the Beltway. I was expecting to only use this car at one location for local driving. Instead, I find that I can also go between the locations on weekends without range anxiety. This car works very well in the DC area, now the worst commuter area in the nation. When in nasty traffic jams on the DC beltway, the BW parkway, and other major roads this car doesnt get grossly worse energy economy as is the case with my other cars (one a hybrid). In some cases the economy even improves in when you get into a major traffic slowdown. In the DC area that means 99% of the time. I find that a used purchase of a Leaf is a safe bet. I purchased a certified used one with 0% financing for extra security. From what I see now, I think that a non-certified one could have been a good buy too. I got the advantage of someone else claiming the $7500 tax credit, which made my cost lower since people buying new ones have that incentive. I noticed that people buying new 2015 or 2016 models can get very good purchase, financing, and lease deals too. I figured out that that some people wont get the full 7500 incentive since they dont pay 7500 in federal taxes anyway. If they purchase used, or even lease a new one, they effectively get the advantage of that credit. As far as living with the car goes, you learn to "plan" your driving a bit more, to make sure it has adequate charge. For me it is nice my older cars in reserve. I have not purchased a charging station yet, so I depend on my trickle charger and public charging stations. I end up going to businesses (restaurants, malls, grocery stores, etc) having charging stations. Whatever Ive saved in gasoline cost in the last month Ive ended up spending that (and more) at those businesses. In some cases such charging stations are a mile or two from where I need to be. That has help pushed me to get some more much-needed and pleasant exercise by doing some more walking. As I walk along roads I wish a lot more more people had electric cars so I wouldnt have to hear as much noise, or breath as much exhaust. I do not find that there are yet enough charging stations in the overall DC metro area area. They tend to be common in some areas and very absent in other areas. The campus where my suburban Maryland employer center is doesnt seem to want to make them available. I like the free ones at some businesses, but realistically Id like some more paid stations that price the power roughly around the cost I pay at home, plus some extra cost for occupying the space beyond a reasonable charging time. It is nice that Walgreens has stations, and Id like to see them at all of their locations, however, their cost of $2.00 per hour makes it more expensive to power a Leaf than powering my Honda Civic Hybrid at current gasoline prices. I found that living with the hybrid for 9 years, learning how to leverage the regenerative braking, has helped me transition to living with the Leaf. Buying a Leaf used is a safe bet. You can learn to live with its range quite well. 5/22/2015. Ive had this car 7.5 months now and have put 6000 miles on it. I use it much more than my other cars. I have to make a point of driving them periodically to make sure they dont sit too long. I am ready to get rid of one of them. I have come to appreciate the quietness of the car, and its decent sound system. Ive averaged 4.6 miles/kilowatt in nasty DC/Baltimore area traffic, which comes out to about 115 mpg, although I am paying BGE and Virginia power the equivalent of about $4.00/gallon. I still rely on 110V charging overnight for most of my charging, though Id like to have a 240V charging station. I have found some free charging stations, that I end up using about 25% of the time. The whole charging station situation is not ready for prime time yet. I did find that charging stations are easier to find in the city of Washington D.C. than gas stations. Overall I continue to be very pleased with this used Leaf. A used one is a safe bet.