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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  Altima Gas Mileage - 2004 Nissan Altima
  By Richard Swig - November 1 - 2:00 am

  The 2004 Altima looks great and handles well, like several other Japanese sedans. However, mine doesnt measure up in the gas mileage department. Since I live six miles out of town and have only one (1) stop sign and one (1) light between my location and the mall, Ive previously experienced very high mileage, above the advertised highway figure. This 2004 Altima has been getting (1300 miles since new) only 22-24 mpg, right at the low end of the rating (23city, 29 highway). Its unacceptable.

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  Frontier SC - 2002 Nissan Frontier
  By Bob D - October 31 - 11:16 pm

  This is the second Frontier Ive had and this time I will never purchase another Nissan again. I had reliability issues with the first Frontier that I had, a 2000 and was offered a "good deal" on a trade in on a 2002. The 2002 has been no better. This vehicle is extremely costly to maintain.

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  Great Car, I miss it! - 2003 Nissan Altima
  By macfie87 - October 31 - 10:40 pm

  I bought this car used at 62K miles and loved it, until it was recently totaled at 150K. Everything was great, except for a few problems as its mileage got higher. Had to have a throttle replaced and it was about 800, but that was really the only major problem. It was needing a new alternator and a new shift lock, but I fixed those myself. Everything else was AWESOME! And airbags deployed and engine shut off automatically...great safety features.

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  Nissan Maxima GLE - 1998 Nissan Maxima
  By kabisco - October 31 - 10:00 am

  This car has a roomy interior with very comfortable seating. The exterior design is sleek with smoothh contours. It is very sturdy on the road with little or no noise penetrating the interior. It seems to be very reliable thus far, requiring only basic maintenance to keep it performing at an optimum level. I would definitely, highly recommend it.

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  fun to drive - 1998 Nissan Maxima
  By GPB - October 31 - 10:00 am

  Ive only had this car a month, but Ive driven my brothers 97 SE and liked it so much I bought one myself. Great acceleration, good handling, fantastic Bose stereo.

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  Fantastic Car - 2001 Nissan Pathfinder
  By stinger_bee - October 31 - 10:00 am

  Overall a fantastic SUV. As with others, I cant say enough about the new V6. Tons of power and acceleration even at high speeds. The interior is nice but, as with other Nissans I have seen, has been "cheapened" up. The headroom is a little tight. Im only 6 0" and my head is touching the roof unless I lay back the seat. Only other complaint is that the side mirrors are not integrated with the memory seeting.

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  gas issue so far! - 2002 Nissan Frontier
  By 1st newcarowner - October 31 - 10:00 am

  Iam a college grad and I bought my crew cab almost a month ago. So far the mpg /gas has been my concern. I drive easy but still seem to have to full up every week. I have a 12 yr old jeep that gets better gas mileage

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  Did I get "Juked" ??? - 2012 Nissan Juke
  By kamir1990 - October 31 - 3:54 am

  I bought this car for my wife as it as time to replace her Hummer H3 with a more fuel practical vehicle. I have the AWD SV CVT automatic model. The car is a blast to drive in any of the 3 modes and the looks are in a class of its own... but it stops there. The vehicle does not even come close to the MPG rating of "30" Hwy, and I have tried different driving techniques to try to make it happen. The best it will get is 25.5 period! This was one of my deciding factors and it was not accurate. I have noticed we had to look at 3 Jukes to find a consistent paint quality as most had "orange peel" issues. All in all a fun car to drive, but there are nicer MPG models out there.

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  Better than my 05 altima - 2007 Nissan Altima
  By Blackhaus50 - October 30 - 7:13 pm

  Great car, lots of room for the driver and in the back seats for adults! Lots of power with the 3.5

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  Great Highway Car - 2003 Nissan Altima
  By matthew - October 29 - 7:40 pm

  Bought car with 5000 miles, dealer demo. So far, has been great. Bought to use as commuter so I can keep truck for towing. Overall, I love the car. Handles great. Secure driving in the rain and snow. Installed Bridgestone Turanzas, made huge improve in overall handling and foul weather performance. Accelerates decent with 2.5, great gas mileage. With my new job I am now driving 100+ miles a day, and on the highway it is great. Average 27 mpg at 75 mph. Good NDSS sound system, decent features for base car. Seats are awesome. Interior quality not great, nothing really broke on car but I am careful with her. Reliability so far great. Now has 54,000 miles, still love it. Overall, great car!