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 steady SUV - 2000 Nissan Pathfinder
  By jeff-corease - July 4 - 10:00 am

  My 2000 Nissan Pathfinder is Rock soild. My Pathfinder has 60000 miles already and other than regular scheduled maintenance I have only purchased a battery for this automobile. In fact I brought my wife a 2001 E Class Mercedes and she drives the Pathfinder everyday and not the Benz! She told me the Pathfinder is slow (3.3liter) but she (Pathfinder) feels soild and is dependable.

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  Riding in comfort and style - 2003 Nissan Maxima
  By Eileen - July 4 - 10:00 am

  Having driven a mini van for 10 years followed by a Jeep Cherokee for five years, Im fully pleased and impressed with my new Maxima! There isnt anything I dont like about it. I would recommend this car to everyone.

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  Awsome - 2002 Nissan Xterra
  By BobbyBob - July 4 - 10:00 am

  Great Car! The Best!

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  frontier pro4x/tocoma trd - 2010 Nissan Frontier
  By norm - July 4 - 7:43 am

  I was looking at the Tacoma TRD and the Frontier PRO4X. I feel both trucks are great. Why I went for the Fronier is it felt more comfortable, had more power and felt like it, the automatic shifted better, and the options were more to my liking. The sprayed in bedliner is and the rail system is awsome, not slippery when wet like a composite, also like the radio and 6 CD player, sound great, and the blue tooth is a plus. Never like the looks of the new Tacomas I think the PRO4X color keyed front end looks awesome, but that is in the eyes of the beholder

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  Happy with the choice - 2008 Nissan Rogue
  By Badgerfan - July 4 - 4:26 am

  Have only owned the car for a few weeks, but living in WI we have had a good opportunity to test out the AWD in snow and rain and it is outstanding. We looked at other crossovers, but have owned three Nissan Maximas with total satisfaction, so went with the Rogue. I had a PT Cruiser for five years and it was a nice little car, but I have to say this is much more enjoyable to drive. The front passenger seat on the PT Cruiser folded down and I found I used this feature all the time. The others like Rav4 didnt have this available. My wifes car is an Acura TL and she even loves to drive this car.

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  Navigation System - 2010 Nissan Sentra
  By Rich - July 3 - 8:30 pm

  I know this is the first year with their Nav. System. It loads fairly slow and misses many of the features I had on my freestanding Garmin in our Toyota. I use the GPS alot and am really disappointed. Would not buy the Nav. System again on my SL. On a bright note, the Bluetooth in the car is better than the headset bluetooth I have. It is clearer and flawless. It looks like the vendor was Robert Bosch on gps, it should of been Garmin

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  The best car weve owned! - 2012 Nissan Leaf
  By ok778 - July 3 - 11:59 am

  We have a 68 mile daily commute to and from work in cold climate Michigan so we looked at the volt, prius, tdi, among others trying to offset costs of gas. We narrowed our choice to a volt or leaf after test driving cars. The volt was a close second but the Leaf beat it out for the following reasons: the volt managed a meager 30 miles in all electric when driven in temps hovering in the mid 40‘s - this wouldnt even get us half way. The leaf pulled out 82 during same weather. The leaf is larger with seating for 5 and larger cargo area. We liked the Leafs dash and gauge layout better than the Volt. The leaf is quiet,yet has tremendous torque and really flies off the line. And price

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  The car that made nissan - 1996 Nissan Maxima
  By TheSilverBullet - July 3 - 8:43 am

  Wife bought it in 03 at 90,000 miles, up to 166,980 now. Has driven to NY, VA, and ky twice a year the past 7 yrs. Replaced a starter, 2 batteries & a c. V shaft all my self. The automatic pulls ridiculously well, oversteer is more pronounced if you dont replace the shocks. Brother in law rear ended an 88 olds (steel bumper) & drove it home. Post-repair ($3600), no mechanical issues what so ever. The 6 Bose speakers have outlasted the cd/tape deck. Grease the door joints, or theyll squeak. 4 disc brakes stop at will, & mid-grade gas=mileage+passing power. The alloy wheels stopped a Subaru that pulled out on me, no alignment issues. Paid 8800 in 03, an it was worth every Penny; an awesome car

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  Return to a sedan - 2005 Nissan Altima
  By Three - July 3 - 1:20 am

  Having come from a gas-guzzling SUV, it is nice to have a car that gets excellent gas mileage.

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  Best value crossover SUV - 2009 Nissan Murano
  By stactum - July 2 - 12:20 pm

  Great car! I purchased mine 03/08/08 and so far put about 1200 miles on it and what can I say, every time Im in it, I enjoy it every second. For me one of the important things is the handling and agility and Id say its been great, pretty much BMW-like. Steering and braking feel is excellent. I am getting roughly 21.5 MPG in mixed driving. Its been mentioned that you cant listen the music when car is off, but you just should try to press Start button without pressing brake pedal and it will work without engine being on.