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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  my review - 2002 Nissan Altima
  By rvklein - September 25 - 10:00 am

  blistering performance, and a great kid hauler to boot. The perfect combination of family car/sports car

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  OK, but could be better - 1998 Nissan Altima
  By EJS - September 25 - 8:53 am

  Bought with 28K miles from the dealer in nice condition. It now has just over 100k miles and I would say its been OK. I replaced both axles at around 80K miles. I do not tear around in this car, but it eats engine mounts; I have replaced the rear engine mount 3 times so far. This car is noisy on the freeway and fuel economy has never been over 30mpg. Drivers window switch failed at 85K and this requires a fair bit of digging into the drivers door to replace a $200 part. CD player has twice died; first time the dealer replaced it ans second time I found a cold solder joint on the display connector. Lifters have been noisy at startup since we bought the car. I think Honda is better

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  Luster wears off quick!! - 2005 Nissan Altima
  By Ticked-off-tico - September 25 - 4:10 am

  I had written a review with higher ratings when I 1st got car but that has changed dramatically. Car started to pull to left more and more. Let go of steering wheel & you might hit curb or cars. Seats are uncomfortable for 50 plus mile trips. Interior parts have popped off or loosened and I have noticed that the black paint job on exterior is of inferior quality for $25,000 plus car. Engine sounds like it will need to be fixed soon. Rear view mirror does not dim well enough at night that you dont squint during night driving. I believed in Nissan before but lost faith that they even care about customers more than the buck. Ridiculous maintenance prices. No mp3 compatibility.Lots of road noise.

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  Impressed by quality - 2005 Nissan Armada
  By JOMAMA - September 24 - 6:23 am

  The vehicle was impressive upon purchasing however i experienced brake problems after 7500 miles. The local dealer (nissan east in monroeville pa) corrected the problem and no further isuues were experienced

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  Worst car Ive owned - 2004 Nissan Maxima
  By Eric - September 24 - 5:40 am

  This is the 3rd and last Maxima I will own. The car is/was beautiful and had all the perks, leather, heated seats, sunroof, heated steering wheel, Bose. I always got compliments on what a good looking car that is was. But that was it. During the 5 years of owner ship, replaced brakes 3 times, rotors twice, 3 wheel bearings, 1 steering knuckle, AC system had a leak at factory fitting, the rear end could not be aligned and ate tires every few months, and the transmission started to go (Google it). I hear many of the same complaints from this $30k+ car. Got to the point that I did not enjoy driving it because I was worried of what would go wrong next. Now I drive a 2009 Hyundai Sonata that I love!

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  Its a pretty good car - 2003 Nissan Altima
  By axxess1 - September 24 - 3:58 am

  I bought the car back in 2013 with 77k miles on it, now i have about 106k and had to do some maintenance on it.. ex brakes, engine mount, water pump.. but overall it a pretty good car, A/C is awesome and gas is pretty good !

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  Great Buy!! - 2007 Nissan Sentra
  By Bennett - September 23 - 8:30 pm

  You get the comfort and style of some of the more expensive sedans but in a low cost and highly efficient vehicle. It looked a little "stubby" to me at first, but it grows on you and is incredibly roomy for the appearance. I would recommend to all. It provides a smooth ride with lots of comfort.

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  Perfect match - 2008 Nissan 350Z
  By Nick - September 23 - 1:40 pm

  I was searching for a car that was a coupe, zippy, stylish, and unique. I found it all with the Nismo. Its a fun car to drive. Everytime you get in it feels like your going to an auto X. I test drove an STI, G35, and RSXs before I found this, and I beleive it is the fastest and best handling out of the 3. The performance is excellent, hands down. The interior is ok. Not fancy because things like leather and power seats add weight. The car has been purpose built. Its also very bumpy ride, because of the seam welded body. However if you like that feeling of being connected to the road like me you will love this. The exhaust roars FYI too. I tell people it runs on diced lions.

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  Great Truck - 2007 Nissan Frontier
  By JWG - September 23 - 4:06 am

  Bought my 2007 Crew Cab 4 months ago and I love it. Traded in a 2004 Titan and love that too but the gas mileage won me over on the Frontier. Just bought another Frontier today.

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  Frontier on the Edge - 2004 Nissan Frontier
  By wcoward - September 23 - 1:03 am

  The truck is the hardest working small truck on the market. The interior is laid out so that everything is in reach of your fingers. Its 4-cylinder motor is powerful enough to pull anything you want, except a house, a 30 ft boat, a travel trailer, or a horse trailer. If you needed to pull those things, you should have gotten the Titan. I work at a grocery store. I use my truck to pull trailers full of buggies, pallets of product, or anything we need to. One of my customers has a 97 Nissan pickup. He hauls about 200 cases of cold drinks in it, and it hasnt missed a beat. Hes got 270,000 miles on that truck.