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!! - 2006 Nissan Frontier
  By Terry - December 10 - 12:46 pm

  Great truck, fun to drive. First new Vehicle, but I researched every midsize truck available. Frontier had the best bang for the buck. Ive had a couple of issues but they were handled by the dealer with little trouble.

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  Best Value for Crossover SUV - 2005 Nissan Murano
  By Jon - December 10 - 10:03 am

  Studied this purchase for several years, glad we chose it over the FX35 or MDX, even the ugly RX330. Better rear seat room, better value with identical equipment. Less than one month old, but have no compliants. Plan to use it as a tow vehicle for a small tent (pop up) trailer. Wont exceed 2,500 pounds, so well within the 3,500 rating. Well controled body motions and steering feel, love the distictive looks. Navigation system and back-up camera pure genius, not to mention wildly entertaining for the neighbors. Since we dont have kids, no need for a third seat. Much happier with generous rear seat room and abundant storage under the rear load floor.

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  Our Nissan - 2008 Nissan Altima
  By Lucinda Nipper - December 9 - 8:16 pm

  Living in the state of West Virginia, we drive a lot of hills and curves; our new Nissan Altima Coupe makes driving those easy and fun. Curves are made a lot smoother and the car does not lean like my old car use to do. The autostick gives you manual when you need it especially when coming down a mountain, what a brake saver. We love it.

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  Best of the Best - 2003 Nissan 350Z
  By DarcyJRN - December 8 - 10:00 am

  This car is the ultimate in sports car driving. I think the handling and speed of this car is absolutely wonderful, especially for the value. Its so much fun to drive. I recommend it to anyone wanting a really fun, quick car to drive.

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  350Z Performance - 2003 Nissan 350Z
  By Z Fan - December 8 - 10:00 am

  I own the Performance model. Nissan did it right! It is obvious the Nissan has been putting out excellant product over the last 2 years and the Z is their best. It is simply a beautiful car that is fun to drive. If I had to find a complaint it would be no door protective molding (dings)and the location of the power outlet for my cell phone.

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  nissan pathfinder - 2001 Nissan Pathfinder
  By lilly hoy - December 8 - 10:00 am

  I love the vehicle but I hate pulling up to the pumps these days. The Bose 6 cd stereo is fabulous and it is a true pleasure to drive, my only complaint is the fuel consumption. The tires that come with the vehicle suck big time though, go out and get some new rubber, $2.00 tires on a 36000 vehicle just dont cut it

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  Fun, Fast Ride! - 2004 Nissan Maxima
  By stratguy - December 8 - 10:00 am

  Cannot put into words how much I love this car! It is so much fun to drive, and the effortless power is great! The new look is neat to. I love the options, the VDC trac control is great, and highly recomend it. I have the SE model with the elite package. Love the way this car turns heads!

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  Great Value - 2008 Nissan Sentra
  By SonomaRed - December 8 - 5:40 am

  I researched Corolla, Civic, and Jetta. I have driven my Sentra for 1200 miles, and am happy overall with my purchase. It is sharp looking, especially in Sonoma Red, and I am happy with the room inside the vehicle. I have good vision of the road, because you set the height of the drivers seat.

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  My first Nissan - 2007 Nissan Maxima
  By B - December 8 - 3:36 am

  I have owned a lot of different cars (Volks, Chevy, Buick, Olds, Dodge, Honda, Mercury, Saturn, Chevy, Toyota, Jeep) and this is by far the nicest one. I would recommend the senory package because it gives you a lot for a reasonable price. Car has good power for a "luxury sedan" and looks nice. Nissan has made big improvements on the interior compared to the 04-06 models. I love the new CVT trans but it does take time to get use to. I love the keyless start.

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  2014 Altima S - 2014 Nissan Altima
  By Import Jockey - December 8 - 1:19 am

  This is our 2nd Nissan. Our 1st was a CPO Maxima several years ago when CPO program had just started being offered. We traded our 2009 Accord EX sedan for the 2014 Altima S. I never buy a car in its 1st year of a body style change as it takes a year to get any bugs out, and I prefer to let someone else eat the 1st year or 2 of depreciation. Our new to us, CPO Altima S with 12K mi is a great sedan. I would have preferred the SV with the convenience pkg & mnrf. This is the most comfortable car we have ever owned and the fuel economy is incredible. We just returned from a 1200 mi round trip & we averaged 39 MPG Hwy, that is better than our daughters 2014 Honda Civic EXL sedan, and the Altima is twice as big. My only disappointment is the paint quality(thickness), we too have found rust around chrome strip on trunk just above licence plate. I noticed other reviewers with same issue. Im taking in to dealer to have addressed. We did purchase an extended warranty that covers everything for 6-yrs or 100Kmi in addition to the CPO warranty. We trade sedans every 5yrs or 60Kmi. We put about 7kmi/yr on our sedans. We also have a 2013 CRV w/ AWD that has close to 25Kmi that we bought last year. If Nissan will improve its paint quality, we will be adding a Rogue in a couple years. We need to get back on track buying our vehicles after they receive their MCR(Mid Cycle Refresh). Its truly the best time to buy ! However, the auto industry is changing back to making changes to vehicles every year rather than keeping them appearing the same from the outside until the MCR. The Nissan Altima is by far the best overall mid-size sedan available when factoring in all attributes !