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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  Best vehicle ive ever had. - 2005 Nissan Murano
  By tychux72 - October 12 - 6:32 am

  I have owned my 05 SL 2WD since it arrived off the boat October 2005. It currently has 132,000 miles. I have NEVER kept a vehicle over 75,000 miles before. I drive 65 miles R/T 4-5 days a week through the Arizona desert and farmlands at 45-70 MPH, mostly using cruise control. In the summer I average 21.5 mpg or around 420 mpt. In the fall-spring without A/C I average 23.6 or 475 mpt. The most was a confirmed 525 mpt one winter. My local dealership has done all recall work as well as routine maintenance. All in all, it has been a great family ride and has never left us stranded. Unlike many Ford or Chryslers I have owned. Sure it has its known problems and this one is no different.

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  Expected better! - 2015 Nissan Altima
  By Robert Schulze - October 5 - 11:03 pm

  It would be great if there was a way to really test a car more thoroughly then you can on a short test drive at the dealers. Ive had 2 previous Altimas; a 2004 and a 2012. Both were good solid cars that I enjoyed, so I was expecting the same or better with this 2015. Test drive seemed fine. My major complaints are engine noise, and the CVT transmission. Especially when cold the engine is more like a diesel than a gas engine. VERY noisy even under mild acceleration. Seems better after warming up a bit, but still probably the noiseist engine Ive ever had. The CVT seems to have artificial shift points built in. The problem is when cruising at a steady speed (doesnt matter if slow or fast) the CVT feels like a manual transmission that needs to be downshifted a gear. You can feel the slight but noticeable vibration in the steering wheel. Also, the auto climate control is overly aggressive. When in heat mode, the fan goes to full speed and stays there way too long. You need to manually set the fan speed down a notch or two before you turn into toast. When on a test drive, the sales person said the heater was "industrial". She wasnt kidding! OK, a few good points. Good gas mileage, and a comfortable ride. Performance is certainly adequate for a 4 cylinder (other than the raucous engine noise). I was really debating between the Altima and an Accord. Now wishing I would have gone for the Accord!

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  Comparing my old 2007 Titan 4X4 with 2017 Titan - 2017 Nissan Titan
  By John Rigs - September 30 - 4:40 pm

  I was excited to purchase the new 2017 model with great expectations. After 2 weeks of driving and evaluations, Nissan did an exceptional job of adding many more features. 7 speed transmission was a big hit. With the older Titan 5 speed it shifted on hills with high rev. Power was better pulling the RV. So many new features that was needed was a big plus. The biggest drawback is the handling. The steering wheel was very stiff and due to the added size of the truck, it took much more space to turn and handle. In all I loved the feel of the smaller older Titan but like the more luxurious and more power of the new Titan. If I was in the market for new Titan, I would really take the time to get the feel of the steering and the new larger size to see if it is worth the upgrade. I would have preferred little larger than the older Titan with all the new features. Hope they improve on the size and handling in the future...

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  Good and Bad - 2002 Nissan Xterra
  By Brian in NY - September 21 - 10:00 am

  I love the truck, but I am disappointed with what I have. The design of the interior and the exterior are great, very distinct. But the quality of the Nissan is disappointing. There are so many little things that have gone wrong that you wouldnt expect in todays market. The gas mileage is aweful, but the ride is comfortable on the parkway.

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  Lots of miles but fun to drive. - 2000 Nissan Altima
  By Ken Voss - September 21 - 9:54 am

  Was great once, could be again. "Experts" say it has a fuel delivery problem, left me stranded twice recently. If I could fix that and give it some TLC it would still be my daily driver. Love this car but having a slight issue of trust. Drive it at least once a week. Still smooth/fun at 100+ mph as it is at 50. Washes up and looks beautiful but does have lots of miles/years so it needs a little love. You wont sorry if you buy it and give it a little time and effort. Still driving it, still love it, but cant give it the tlc it deserves. Will give to charity f or auction to raise funds to help others.

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  2.5S - The good, the bad, and the ugly. - 2015 Nissan Altima
  By mjg1234 - September 19 - 4:57 pm

  My wife and I were looking for a used sedan to replace her old Toyota and saw that Nissan had a great deal on brand new 2015 Altimas that competed with the cost of used cars so we purchased an 2.5 S in December of 14. The Good: The car is a joy to drive. It has great acceleration for a 4 cylinder. The handling is great and responsive for a car of its size. The steering may be a bit too soft feeling and aggressive for some, but I like it. The car brakes well, the brakes feel tight and I havent yet, knock on wood, had a situation where I had to engage the anti-lock brakes. The car gets great gas mileage, but I have a heavy foot so I average around 27 mpg mixed highway / city driving. The keyless entry and push button start are a convenience, but the most convenient feature of the car is the car honks when you have filled the tire up to the correct pressure. Just turn the car off. Press the start button twice with your foot off of the brake, fill up the tire until the car honks and youre off. Best feature by far when its cold and youre pumping air not having to fool around with a pressure gauge exposed to the elements. The Bad: Engine noise. This may not be bad to people who enjoy sports cars or are used to driving manual transmissions, but this car is really loud in certain situations. It purrs when at speed, but roars when getting up to speed and coasting downhill. Id compare coasting downhill in this car to downshifting from 4th to 2nd in a manual; you feel the car employing engine braking and a tug then the RPMs rev. I think this is a feature of CVT to keep the same MPH going downhill and not over accelerate causing the car to surge MPH down the hill. Engine noise may not be an issue with the V6. The transmission feels a bit frail after accelerating after shifting from reverse. The car flutters a little and even does it sometimes when accelerating from a standstill. I caution you not to reverse roll with this transmission. I feel its too fragile to handle going in reverse putting it in neutral while you roll and engage the drive gear. Thats a bad practice general for any automatic but may be fatal for this one. I bet thats why a few reviews said their transmission went out after 10k miles. The car feels cheaply made after driving it awhile. Road dirt and grime gets from the floor panel all of the way up to the door jamb where the car door closes. Never had that happen in any other car. The rain pings on the car like rain on a tin can; makes me feel the car has little to no noise insulation. At highway speeds there is a ton of wind noise, but one will get used to it unless that type of thing is a deal breaker. The "carpet" on the floor is paper thin. Literally. Its the cheapest carpet Ive ever seen in a car. Wait until you vacuum it youll see what I mean. Feels like it could tear easily. It seems like the carpet that comes standard in the trunk of cars. Nissan decided to cut corners and put that cheap stuff in the interior. The Ugly: The visor fell down while my wife was driving maybe month 3 into owning the car. Took it back to the dealer to get repaired under warranty and they claimed the visor would have cost $300! For that price why is it falling down?! While there we also got the fix done for the hood latch recall. Fast forward 2 months later my wife gets in the passenger seat and the passenger side airbag disengaged light came on. She got out of the car and back in and it stayed on. Drove for fifteen minutes and still disengaged, so I had to park turn the car off and back on to get the airbag to turn back on. It happened two more times. Took it to the dealer and they claim nothing was wrong but gave us a manual on how the feature worked. Mind you the 2014 Altimas had this very same issue. It has happened once since taking it back to the dealer. Trip three to the dealer was because of squealing brakes on a brand new car. If it rains and the car has been sitting they squeal. If its cold and the car has been sitting they squeal. This is a "feature" of the metal on metal brake pads the dealer says. I say another corner was cut. The projection headlights are dangerously dim. They work OK in dry conditions, but in the rain forget about it. You can barley tell they are on. Just compare other cars headlight beams on the road to the Altima youll see. The interior windows fog at the drop of a dime. I live in a humid region and this is a constant problem even with the recirculation off! It takes the defroster awhile to address the fogging. The technology package and Nissan connect are a joke. It barely connects with my Droid Turbo, and partially connects with my wifes iPhone 5s and her Droid MAXX, it did the best with her Galaxy S3. I have to turn the Bluetooth off and on on my phone several times before it connects and when it does the entire system freezes on the In Call for 0:01 display until the car is reset. Does not recognize voice

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  cars not built the same - 2005 Nissan Sentra
  By aharter - September 18 - 1:15 am

  I have a 2005 nissan sentra 1.8 . this car is fun to drive and gets good mileage. The problems with this car are crazy for its age and mileage. Two worm gears replaced in the tranny, new head gasket, radio cant get stations in, front windows hardly work when wet, fuel filter is in fuel pump, clear coat in really bad shape, already has rusted and repaired spots, and I really am afraid for my kids and thier future car choices...planned break down vehicles?

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  Great But - 2011 Nissan GT-R
  By johnny - September 5 - 11:06 am

  Ive had this for 4 months now and absolutely love it. However, many things need to be changed, before you think about purchasing, figure out what you care about. First ill start with the bad. The ride is very very harsh! The comfort setting does absolutely nothing to make the ride more comfortable. I live in the Midwest Chicago, Milwaukee area and the roads are horrible. Nissan needs to add a true comfort setting. The sound deadening is nonexistent because I can hear tons of road noise, gravel, rocks, exhaust, & transmission noises. No backup camera or parking sensors! Or memory & cooled seats! An $85k car should have it! Why they skimped on that it beyond me. A real launch!

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  maybe for a bit, but not for long - 2002 Nissan Sentra
  By goofball76 - September 4 - 10:00 am

  I have always liked this car, not for its exterior looks, but for the interior design, the comfort of the drivers seat, and all the cool little features that come along with the car. I have never liked the dorky way the car looks. Of course, I am used to mid-sized coupes and big trucks. But it holds its own, for sure. When called upon, the 126 horses wake up and pull the car forward with a surprising aggression. Great for highway driving. I dont like the way the plastic interior scratches so easily, and the door mouldings tend to fall off if you look at them funny. Build quality is poor, as far as I am concerned.

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  Dont Be Fooled - 2004 Nissan Xterra
  By Fooled - September 4 - 10:00 am

  Bought the truck thinking it was an off- road machine, wrong. Alternator died on me and the dealer said it was due to being dirty and wouldnt fix it under warranty. The truck has about 38k on it and it rattles like an Army truck. Gas Mileage is terrible. Installed a cold air intake and flowmaster and still dont have the advertised mileage. Highway miles average about 15.25 and city is 17.85 even with mods. Truck is sluggish at best on the street but does perform off-road. Watch out for front hubs coming un- lubed easily. DONT GET THE 5 SPEED, ill leave it at that!!!