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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  Try it - youll like it - 2011 Nissan Versa
  By mrpelick - September 5 - 1:51 am

  I bought this car for my daughter to drive. Its comfortable and spacious inside, looks great outside (red hatchback with tinted windows and spoiler....zoom), rides and handles very well, gets great gas mileage, not to mention lots of cargo space and all this at an affordable price. I like it so much Im considering getting one for myself.

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  Great SUV with bad Brakes - 2005 Nissan Armada
  By luey - September 4 - 4:20 pm

  Ive had my Armada for 8 months now. the truck is great for our three kids and two dogs. The only draw back so far has been a constant problem weve had with our brakes. Apparently the truck is too heavy for the brakes. They only last about 4000 miles before the steering wheel vibrates. With that said Our Nissan dealer has fixed the problem usually the same day I call them. It takes about 4 hours, and there is a heavy duty brake and caliper set up that will be available soon?!?

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  Worse Nissan Ever!!!! - 2013 Nissan Pathfinder
  By kuffsy2k1 - September 4 - 3:37 pm

  I owned so many Nissan cars, trucks and suvs but I was so disappointed with 2013 Pathfinder. I bought my 2013 Pathfinder SV at first I was enjoying it but after I hit more than 1,000 miles it started shuddering and losing power. All the moulding under the door became loose and when Im driving on the freeway it was vibrating so hard that the sound inside the cabin is so annoying. I brought it back to the dealer for them to fix the shuddering and losing power but the mechanic said "theres nothing wrong with. After three months of driving it I finally trade it in for the Titan which I should have bought in the first place.....

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  Great Sporty & Luxury Car. - 2016 Nissan Maxima
  By Luis Arzu - September 4 - 2:54 pm

  If u want these 2 qualities u got a winner here. Affordable car that gives u both. Many sport cars dont have an interior that looks this great. With this V6 u cant go wrong. CVT n all. Once u put your foot on gas pedal u will see what I mean!!! Get compliments all the time. Deep Blue Pearl baby!!!

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  Reliable Altima - 2001 Nissan Altima
  By njbaseball - September 4 - 2:53 pm

  I bought my 2001 Nissan Altima brand new. With over 120,000 miles on the odometer nothing’s gone wrong with this car so far. I did replace the original hubcaps after 40,000 miles because of the racket they made; aftermarket hubcaps don’t make noise! Otherwise this car has never been back to the dealer for anything except accident repair. I do change the oil & filter every 3000 miles, transmission fluid and coolant fluid every 30,000 miles, so the car is cared for.

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  Real Fun to Driver - 2002 Nissan Altima
  By Misos - September 4 - 1:50 pm

  The music system :-(. There are some sounds at high speed. :( Rest is superb. :)

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  Incredible fuel economy - 2005 Nissan Maxima
  By Max_speed - September 4 - 12:53 pm

  Traded a basic black 1995 Maxima for a red 2005. Few family sedans are fun to drive. The Maxima is fun, handles well, has tight steering and suspension, attractive. Its very fuel efficient when youre not tempted to take advantage of its great acceleration. Drivers who have a Maxima with manual transmission have a much more exciting, yet economical, car than those who drive an automatic. This is a car that must be driven with manual transmission to fully appreciate both its fun factor and its economy. Worth it to learn to drive a stick shift for this car.

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  Very Nice Car - 2006 Nissan Maxima
  By Nice Nissan - September 4 - 9:33 am

  I bought this car brand new in April 2006 and it has been solid mechanically. The only feature I dislike is that my electric controlled passenger side mirror had to be replaced due to the adjustment not resetting correctly after placing the car in reverse, which still did not correct the problem.

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  Passenger seat - 2010 Nissan Altima Hybrid
  By Aktija - September 3 - 11:30 pm

  Passenger seat with the premium package has only two manual positions. Forward and reclining back. The seat cannot be elevated. It is very low, slightly sloping forward which makes longer rides uncomfortable. It is also inconvenient for shorter people.

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  Lots of truck for the buck! Fantastic! - 2008 Nissan Xterra
  By Bill - September 3 - 10:26 pm

  Weve always been a Nissan family and bought our latest two, an 07 Sentra S (my daily driver) and 06 Xterra Off-Road (spouses daily driver), in 10/06. While I rarely drove the Xterra, I loved being high up and having power to spare when I did, so much in fact that I just traded my Sentra for a 08 Xterra. Even the base trim offers great bang for the buck. The 4.0L V6 is a beast, the 5 spd A/T meshes well with it, and it came with standard features that not even my S trim Sentra came with, including cruise, ABS, VDC and EBD (traction control). Its my first SUV and my first RWD vehicle, but its dimensions are easy to acclimate to, and its handling, though still SUV- like, is quite confident.