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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  Too many issues, now dealer wont fix, Nissan of Folsom problems - 2008 Nissan Altima
  By stever343 - January 6 - 5:44 pm

  Everything was going pretty good until about 50,000 miles. I am getting a pulsating when letting off the gas, and a rough idle when cold. The 12 v outlet quit working. I brought it back to Future Nissan of Folsom, and they replaced the head! Thankfully I had the Nissan extended warranty, but they wouldnt allow me a rental, even though the extended warranty covers one! I get it back, idle is rough, bring it back, they say the reprogrammed it per some bulletin. The next morning, the idle is as rough as ever. Now the service guy, Rod, who had always been so nice, changes abruptly and tells me theres nothing wrong with my car. Now they wont take my calls and wont fix my car!

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  Bulletproof - 2001 Nissan Pathfinder
  By Lifelong Nissan Guy - January 6 - 5:30 pm

  Original owner. 147k miles. Engine/tranny/drivetrain no problems at all. This truck has been in 6 accidents (none my fault) always kept me uninjured and today has no rattles or leaks - its as good as new. Have driven since 60k with check engine light on, no problems. Cd player has gone out twice. Everything else in excellent shape, great owner experience. Highway gas mileage really varies with speed. Keep it 65 and can get 21 mpg. Over 75 and its 17.

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  Fun car, not a family car - 2016 Nissan 370Z
  By Benjamin Reddoch - January 6 - 8:40 am

  The 370Z although getting long in the tooth, having been a capable competitor of the Mustang GT, and early reintroduced Camaro has fallen behind and between. The current iterations of those previous competitors have surpassed the Z but the baseline version of those cars still fall behind the Z. This leaves the Z in a weird place it cost about the same as those improved cars, but lacks the refinements those cars received with their respective updates. I owned a 300Z during my early college years and loved it, the gauges, the performance, the looks there Z captured my attention. When the 350Z made its triumphant return to America I was intrigued, the performance and look checked two boxes on my checklist, the interior felt so cheap and bad that I left the dealer disgusted. I dont know how people justified the price when you were being sold an interior that Kia, or Hyundai wouldnt put on their cars because it was too cheap. So I waited, then the 370Z came along, the performance improved, the interior was incredible (compared to the 350z). The only problem I proudly was driving an MKV GTi, so I waited, once I had the money, and driven my faithful GTi to 100k miles, I could justify the swap. I bought my 370Z, the trim, color and options I wanted, found one on the next largest town over and argued all Saturday until a price was met all sides could accept. I am tall, 61" 185#s and fit in the car fine, admittedly I push the seat as far back, as low and tilted back as it will go and fit snugly. The steering wheel only adjust in height, telescoping would be nice but is not included. The radio is very basic, it has Bluetooth for calls, and if you hook your USB to an iPhone, it will let you play music as well. The climate controls are straightforward and given the cars extremely small cabin work effectively it takes little time to warm or cool. The rear hatch is not for storage, you can fit a couple small pieces of luggage for a weekend getaway but this car will not help you move from one apartment to another let alone a house (of you dont mind moving 1 box at a time maybe... No just rent a truck if you need to move stuff) I would never suggest anyone visit Nissan of Boerne in San Antonio, the sales rep and manager will leave your very angry, I disclosed these concerns with their customer care and am happy I have many dealers I can visit instead of them. If you only want performance, the Z isnt your car, its great but needs an update, if you want looks, performance, and only 2 seats then try a Z, the smile I had test driving it I still put on every day that I continue to drive it.

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  Nissan Maxima 2004 SE - 2004 Nissan Maxima
  By tilo - January 5 - 10:00 am

  Esthetically, the Nissan Maxima 2004 SE is very nice inside and outside. It handles nicely and is pleasant to drive most of the time. However, sudden acceleration produces a tremendous amount of torque steer which drags the car to one side and wheel vibration can be pronounced around 50-60 mph. A bulletin is available to address the steering wheel vibrations problem by doing a road force variation procedure which most likely owners will have to pay for every time new tires are required. I am disappointed with this vibration issue which in my opinion is the result of a bad design.

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  My two cents - 2008 Nissan Altima
  By Jennifer - January 4 - 3:20 pm

  I think the Altima is a good quality product and you get a lot of car for the money; however, I have some issues with it. Most importantly, the exterior of the car crinkles very easily (per auto body mechanic). I had a plastic empty shopping car 3 inches away from the car. It rolled into my car and made a ding. I hope I never get into an accident! I also had a problem with my TPMS light malfunctioning. Also, there is a terrible blind spot when you back up from parking spaces. My sister-in-law has the same problem with her Altima. Its either the back of the car is too high or its the fact there isnt a good visual field from inside the car. not enough window. Very dangerous.

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  2005 Xterra - Still runs great! - 2005 Nissan Xterra
  By WylyGT - January 3 - 2:46 am

  My 2005 "S" Xterra 4WD with all the options of the "SE" still runs great and is fun to drive! I dont have fog lights and never found a pre-fab kit to install or I would have installed them. The only failures was the original battery - as usual on all new cars and the rear shocks had to be replaced at about 55,000 miles. The Xterra tows my 19 Bayliner just fine. Plenty of power every where I go. Off road is a blast! Now I have over 80,000 miles on the SUV and havent had a brake job! (Had to have one every 25,000 miles on my GM cars.) I hope to buy a new Xterra in a couple of years. Nissan makes a great car/SUV. NOTE: THIS IS AN AUTOMATIC!

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  Nice Ride - Got a great deal - 2007 Nissan Murano
  By Drewtoo - January 3 - 1:06 am

  I just purchased my 07 SL-AWD a month ago and so far so good. Really like how quickly it passes other vehicles. Love the NAV and the back up camera. Another cool thing is the speed sensitive radio volume and the tire pressure monitor and gas mileage indicator. So far I am at 19 MPG and Im no granny when Im driving to work. The seats are very comfortable and the ride is so smooth and quite and the handing is amazing for a SUV. Took a sharp corner @ 55 MPH and no roll or wheel squeal. The only regret I have is getting it in black. I forgot how much you have to keep it cleaned. But when it is clean, wow, it looks sharp.

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  Disappointed with my 2009 - 2009 Nissan Murano
  By Oskertwo - January 2 - 11:13 am

  I had a 2005 Murano and loved it. After test driving the 2009, I decided to trade the old one. The 2009 is definitely more refined than my 2005. However, the 2009 has been riddled with squeaks, creaks and rattles since delivery. It has been off the road for almost a month in total as the dealer has tried to repair it. After replacing almost all plastic pieces in the interior of the vehicle, there is now an issue with how the body panels were assembled at the factory. Nissan is not clear yet how to fix this issue. It likely will involve body work, re- welding the panels and inserting some type of insulation to prevent rubbing during body flex. Stay tuned. Check other blogs for similar posts

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  Great Truck 2006 CREW 4.0 2 WD - 2006 Nissan Frontier
  By wayne - January 1 - 3:00 pm

  I drive about 13k miles a year, bought used last year from original owner. It had 50,000 miles when I got it, it has now 67,000. Just put new front brakes on last month. Put new tires on yesterday. Original BF Goodrich long trails had 67k miles. I mainly use to commute to work, we do live in Fla and own a 3,500 lb boat that I pull a lot on the weekends. Pulls with no problem. Good truck if you dont mind the smaller cab and not much of a back seat. Overall, I have not had one problem. Just make sure cab has enough room for you. I was used to driving a Tundra.

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  Just ok - 2017 Nissan Rogue
  By Kenny c - December 31 - 4:30 pm

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