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:

• 

  Inspect thoroughly - 2012 Nissan Altima
  By jacksol - June 12 - 12:07 pm

  I was looking for a car good on gas , low miles, nice sporty looking, found it at dealership for $12,999, thought I had hit the jackpot. Purchased in May and in July noticed a rattling noise , it was pulling when driving, was hard to tell when it changed gears. In Sept, the a/c started blowing hot air and on a 6 hr trip, the car started losing power, rpm was high, was making whining noise, was struggling to change gears. The car was still under warranty so took to the shop, had to replace A/C condenser unit , had to pay deductible, then had to get wrecker to pick up and take to another place because the transmission was stuck in 2nd gear .They had to put in another transmission and welded the pipe which was causing the rattling. Had to pay another deductible. A week later, car will not change gears and fluid is leaking like crazy, had to get another wrecker to take back to dealership found out there was a problem with seal . 2 weeks later, check engine light came on, problem with sensor, last week check engine light came back on, problem with computer. At this point I am beyond frustrated, I tried trading it in on something else, but right now am so upside down that I cant afford anything so am just stuck with it and looking for a way out.

• 

  LEMON - 2005 Nissan Armada
  By Matt Smith - June 5 - 8:36 pm

  Within 400 miles my Armada was back at the dealers. First to have the oil pump changed (be aware that Nissans arrogant business model means that they dont have spares available yet and you will have a long wait), and there it remained when they discovered that they needed to replace the whole engine. Its now been in the garage for 30 days. I will never drive this car again. It is a LEMON.

• 

  Defective Altima - 2002 Nissan Altima
  By John - June 5 - 4:46 am

  The 2002 Altima has defective catalytic converters. The media comes apart and gets sucked into the engine and destroys the rings. That is why so many folks complain about high oil usage. Nissan has abandoned owners and refused to do a recall. Buyer beware when dealing the this car company. My daughter purchased this junker and now cant afford the $4000 to fix it. Google "Altima engine failures" before you buy a Nissan. Who knows what other Nissans might have wrong with them after 70,000 miles. Owners beware.

• 

  Small & Reliable - 1999 Nissan Sentra
  By Kana - June 4 - 10:36 pm

  I purchased this vehicle new back in 1999. I am surprised I still have it after 128,000 miles and still going. This car has been quite reliable with oil and trans fluid changes. As for the problems, the sun visor cracked and I swapped from the passengeer side onto the driver side. Also the drivers side power window push-down button malfunctioned. I opened everything and taped it to make it work. The engine oil is starting to drip very slowly right now. It must be the cranckshaft seal. Ill get to it someday. I cant deny the fact that its a very reliable car for going from point A to B. In fact, I had owned 1989 Tercel and 1993 Civic. Sentra outperformed both in quality.

• 

  Worse Investment of my life! - 2004 Nissan Maxima
  By syed786 - May 29 - 12:29 am

  Worse car Ive ever owned. Paint is fading, chrome is chipping off the front grill, Ive only owned this car for about 12 days, and already had to replace the clutch(which dint help with fading or going to the floor), water pump, radiator, hose, and head gasket. I had the car inspected 2nd day I had it and I was told it was flawless. Performance is poor, theres no such thing like fuel economy in this car, no oil leak but still have to add oil every week, replaced two rear tires already, one of the rims bent already...Do I need to say more? Worse car Ive ever owned in my life. I wish I can take Nissan to court for these faulty factory defects

• 

  Nice SUV but Nissan cannot support the vehicle - 2013 Nissan Pathfinder
  By plhpgh - May 18 - 7:40 pm

  Bought the Pathfinder when it first came out unfortunately 4 days later I took out a 7 point buck. We hardly felt a thing in the Pathfinder but there was a lot of front end damage. Upon taking it to the dealer I was advised that they have to wait at least a month before the needed parts may be available. This was unacceptable that a company would put out a product that they could not support, I am in the process of having Nissan buy the Pathfinder back due to inability to support a product.

• 

  New model Altima - 2002 Nissan Altima
  By Debbie Jara-Lorek - May 16 - 2:00 am

  The car was brand new off the lot. During the first year the following needed replacing: clutch pedal, exterior molding, clutch boot and casing, entire exhaust system, some other oil parts that were recalled because of fire potential. Tail light and head light. Unable to get tail light out of casing to change (still out for 6 mo. now). Very disapointed!!!

• 

  Electrical Nightmare - 2001 Nissan Pathfinder
  By Electrical Nightmare - May 14 - 11:03 am

  At 60K miles, this vehicle is amazingly problematic. We have taken good care of it, but I have lost track of all the electrical problems. I will try to recount them: - The ignition wont come on reliably. I drove it to work today and when I tried to go to lunch it would not start. I was stuck with a buck and a vending machine. - Rear window wont roll up from front switch. - Gear shifter wont budge from park when applying the brake. - Engine light keeps coming on because of the electronic fuel injection controls (bad connector).

• 

  Good car but unstable in winter - 2009 Nissan Altima
  By arilling1 - May 9 - 4:51 am

  As posted in separate message, my 2009 Altima has stability problems in winter and weighted conditions. Aside from this, it is rather decent car but the fear to drive in winter out-weighs any benefit. I would recommend not to buy due to safety concern.

• 

  Repair Nightmare - 2006 Nissan Frontier
  By Mike - May 9 - 12:23 am

  I enjoyed the truck for the first 6 months and then the run on repairs started, first was new rackinpion system, then came the new steering column, then new tie rods, and now finally over $500 to find and repair the leak causing the Service Engine Light to stay on. This was the 5th Nissan Ive owned (2nd Frontier) and will be my last. Ive talked to several mechanics both Nissan and private and all have expressed the downward trend of Nissans reliability.