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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  BAD MILAGE 10 MPG CITY- SUPER CHARGED - 2003 Nissan Xterra
  By xterragirl - October 2 - 10:00 am

  2002 6 cyl. Super Charged. Specs say 15/18 est. milage. I get 10 mpg and 7 mpg towing. The service department said everything is within specs. Did I get a lemon? I am under the 12/12000. Domestic v8s get better milage than this. This is the 4th Nissan I have owned, and the last if this isnt resolved. I love the Xterra, this is the second one I have owned, but the milage is KILLING ME!

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  Re: Back to the drawing board - 2004 Nissan Quest
  By soccermom - September 28 - 7:10 am

  My husband and I purchased a 2004 Quest sl after owning a 2001 odyssey that had its fair share of problems as well, and they were major problems as well transmission. Honda was much better at standing behind thier vehicle. Our quest has had doors checked three times, starter replaced after fighting the dealership after it broke while I was christmas shopping (we had to pay the tow bill Nissan was to refund the money it still hasn`t been done!), And materials in the interior are begining to fall apart the moldings in the rear doors, the heating ventin the passenger`s side in the front, and the engine having problems shifting as it starts out in lower gear.

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  Disappointed - 2002 Nissan Frontier
  By jratzloff - September 23 - 9:50 am

  I bought the Desert Runner (100,000 miles) after owning a 97 Dodge. The heater core had to be replaced ($700), the heater controls on the dash were "stripped" out and did not work properly($250), and the air distribution box under the dash still needs to be replaced, but I wont do that for a while, if ever. Ive had many small trucks, but none rode as rough as this one. I have replaced the shocks and will change tires soon. On a smooth road, it is great, but on a rough road, wow!. Steering wheel blocks the dash instruments (I am 63"). Truck looks great and has enough room inside for me, but I am really disappointed in the mechanical aspects of the truck, specially for a Nissan.

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  Good up to a point ... - 2001 Nissan Sentra
  By copykat - September 22 - 11:13 am

  This was really a good little car until about 85,000 or 90,000 miles. I had no major repairs until then, but at that point things started to go downhill. First, I had to replace the catalytic converter, an $800 repair. Then, about a year later the car developed a leak in the rear main seal, which cost about $700 to fix. A month later the exhaust flex pipe needed to be replaced, which was another $400. A week later I was told there was another problem with the catalytic converter/oxygen sensors, at which point I threw in the towel. But I suppose once you pass $100K all bets are off. And since I did very little to the car in the first eight years or so, thats not too bad.

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  Not for a family - 2015 Nissan NV Passenger
  By Sam - September 17 - 8:55 am

  I went from a Honda Odyssey to this van since our family grew and we needed more room. we have all the kids in boosters or car seats. Here are the pros: * smooth drive *comfortable driver configurations (however the shift stick gets in the way of adjusting the ac.) * handles the road well * great warranty * people move out of your way and let you into the lane Cons: * very wide turn which make it difficult to maneuver in shopping parking lots and carpool lanes at school * Ac has no power in the back since it is such a long run from the front * seats are poorly designed so car seats do not sit well and safely * they claim you can configure the seats in so many ways, but you cant and are limited to a few * essentially it is a truck with seats inside - *the cup holders are on the floor and there is no storage pockets or space so things fly all over the place, *the floors are uneven since they just put down padding in between the runners but once you use the van for a few month the padding starts to cave, * there are not enough car seat anchors so you are limited where you can put them, * the lights are poorly placed, * there is no rear controls for the ac only by the driver, *the seats dont move or recline at all. * there should be a second sliding door for easier access * the v8 drinks gas , I get only about 7-8 miles a gallon (I only have 4k miles on the van) * It is a very high step to get in and out and my little kids keep falling out of the van There needs to be a mom involved when they update this van or it wont sell well.

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  Bad Engine and a lot of issues - 2010 Nissan Altima
  By disappointed56 - September 14 - 11:20 pm

  End of July 2010 bought car with 32000 miles on it. 1st week of November car went into shop, 39000 miles now, my mechanic said top of the motor was bad & needs to be torn down to see what was wrong. Was under warranty so I took it to the dealer. The dealer started the car listened to it for 5 min & then told me the engine had oil sludge. Told them no way it had sludge. I called nissan consumer affairs. They paid for my rental & repairs. took the engine apart-no sludge-engine was bad. I needed a new longblock engine for the car. The new engine they ordered was cracked so they ordered another one. Bottom line it took 3 wks to get my car back. Hope this engine last longer then the last one.

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  EXCESSIVE FRONT TIRE WEAR AND NOISE - 2003 Nissan 350Z
  By piehole4 - September 14 - 2:00 am

  The 2003 Nissan 350Z has a documented front end suspension problem that causes premature front tire wear and loud tire roar. Autoweek has reported that Nissan is now investigating the problem but no word yet on a recall. Otherwise you will be buying expensive new front tires every 5000 miles. The problem is explained at www.nissantireproblems.com

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  Never buy a Nissan - 2005 Nissan Maxima
  By lordavot - September 13 - 9:36 am

  I bought the sixth generation 2005 Maxima when it was abt 49k miles. At abt 70k miles I starting experiencing transmission problems. shifting from park to drive, it jerks and it is really bad when the engine is warm. from drive to reverse or reverse to drive it does the same thing. The engine slips and the RPM races to 5 or 6 when you accelerate without any pick up. When I contacted Nissan they told me there is nothing they can do about it. Thousands of sixth generation maxima owners are having the same problem but nissan will not own up to their defect and recall and fix the problem. I am going back to TOYOTA. always faithful. NEVER AGAIN IN MY LIFE WILL I BUY A NISSAN PRODUCT.

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  Looks Good - Quality Bad - 2004 Nissan Maxima
  By Mike A - September 10 - 1:40 am

  14,000 miles - Sun windows leaked causing rust and paint to bubble. 21,000 miles - Significant shimmy in steering wheel at speeds above 45mph. Deal stated nothing was wrong. Tires needed replacement. Non-affiliated repair shop identified cause of shimmy and tire wear as being out of round wheel hubs. This is a very common problem with this year / model. Hubs were replaced and problem was corrected. 47,000 miles - ABS system failure. The causes are the bolts on the hub and wheel assemble rust. This allows the mounting plate to move causing the sensor to short out. This causes the control unit to burn out. The repair is $3,000.00 This is a very common problem on this year/make.

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  Never again - 2006 Nissan Sentra
  By Jerry LeCount - September 8 - 6:46 am

  The high price of fuel made it necessary to downsize to smaller vehicles. After owning 3 other Sentras I bought a pair of loaded 06s. The aluminum wheels and Firehawk tires are junk. I have replaced 3 rims and 4 tires because they are so poorly made the wont stand up to midwestern highways. This isnt just an expense but a danger. I am looking into the possibility of a product liability suit.