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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  Overall it seems good - 2008 Nissan Sentra
  By stella - July 18 - 9:53 am

  Our biggest disappointment is that there is no key entry on the passenger side. It is a safety concern for us. What do you do when you are trying to get an elderly person, child or pet into the car at a curb and have to go into traffic leaving the aforementioned person alone. It is inconvenient if not downright safe. What if you have packages? You leave them on the sidewalk and have to go to the drivers side. Down right stupid feature... feature???? it is just a stupid cost cutting measure.

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  GREAT! - 2009 Nissan 370Z
  By Alex - July 18 - 5:43 am

  When I picked up my 370, I was excited, and Im glad to say that a month later, its still as much fun to drive as it was then. However, two SMALL problems perk up. Im a typical American (read FAT), and the 370Zs seats are a tad narrow for my thunder thighs (small quip, not a deal breaker). Also, the stock tires they come with are Summer only, which is a baaaad combination where I live (read: wet and cold), and you could, in theory, have a terrible accident. Other than these very MINOR quibbles, great, fun, and worth every penny.

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  Better than I expected! - 2007 Nissan Versa
  By Twogrim - July 18 - 3:03 am

  I mean come on now, what do people expect for a cheap car. I thought when I bought it that it would make a great commute car! Then my wife decided to drive it to Florida to visit her sister instead of her Quest. It is an awsome little car! It drives great, gets good mileage and has plenty of room. But the best part is I could buy 2 for what I was expecting to pay for my "new" car! She has averaged 32+ going down at a steady 80, I would have to believe it might hit 34-35 when it is broken in good (still has less than 1500 miles on it)

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  Love my Frontier! - 2011 Nissan Frontier
  By dafowler88 - July 18 - 2:11 am

  I purchased my Frontier PRO-4X in Jan 12 for $26,500. It was a slightly used 2011 model with 5700 miles. I couldnt be happier. The only thing I have had to do to it after putting 20k miles on it is change the battery which was replaced under warranty. The gas mileage is my only gripe, but I can live with that as I only have a 5 mile drive to work both ways (average 15.8, mostly city driving). I went with the Frontier over the Tacoma and F150 V6 mostly becuase of value but also because I just think its a much better looking truck than either of the latter two. The 4-wheel drive system is second to none (Maybe Jeep, I suppose). It has great get-up.

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  Nice piece of Italian glass. - 2005 Nissan Murano
  By Jason - July 17 - 8:53 pm

  Very feature laden: Nav, Intelligent Key, memory heated seats,rear backup video monitor, Sat. radio...quite a few "nice to haves". Does not "feel" like a top heavy SUV, not tippy in the turns. I have no kids so room is immense to me, easy to get to items in the rear with seat fold down levers/lightweight hatch. Rear seats tilt for added comfort for your family/friends. Smooth ride considering it is an SUV. If your a geek like me and value this combo over utilty...give her a test ride. Dont get Edmunds dislike of the tranny, its not a top fuel dragster...its like its not even there! no harsh shifts...just seamless shifts...very nice indeed.

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  Sweet Ride - 2007 Nissan Altima
  By JohnnyL - July 17 - 9:03 am

  I have the 3.5 SE, CVT with minimal options...actually almost none other than spoiler, mats, fog lights and kick plates. The 2007 is a vast improvement over the previous model in design and fit and finish. Body gaps are minimal. Interior materials seem to be a much higher quality. One reviewer mention big blind spots but must be using badly adjusted mirrors. Virtually no blind spots. Engine is smooth and can hit higher digits really fast. CVT is great and does a great job of moving to a lower ratio when you need the engine breaking. Im glad I got this rather than the manual. Seats are firm which I like. My lower back doesnt ache after my hour long commute. Handles like a smaller car.

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  Versa/Kenny Ross - 2007 Nissan Versa
  By Heflynn - July 16 - 12:33 pm

  Bought new with 17 miles on it. I drive it back and forth to work, no off road, nor do I have a passenger the majority of the time. Here is what has been replaced. Strut bearings, struts, intermediate steering column (noise came back so it is going back again) rotors, rotors turned, fuel pressure regulator, oxygen sensor, rear defrost (twice), muffler has rusted off. This part is not covered under my extended warranty and it will cost around 2000.00 to fix. I have had no issue with the dealership that I bought it from, they are great just a bad product to be selling. The servicing dealership Kenny Ross, horrible service. There is not enough space to explain how terrible my experience was.

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  Best car I ever owned - 1997 Nissan Maxima
  By RV - July 16 - 9:23 am

  One owner, never had a problem. Next car will be a Maxima, and never in 35 years have I ever bought the same model twice in a row.

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  Murano Platinum - 2016 Nissan Murano
  By Tom Orsini - July 15 - 9:14 pm

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  Tranny troubles - 2012 Nissan Quest
  By SadVanMan - July 15 - 12:06 pm

  We enjoyed our Quest for the first five years. The van had a smooth ride. I liked the interior layout with the folding seats and no need to remove large middle-row seats. We could haul large objects without having to remove clunky middle row seats, and we thought we were getting a better quality van than a Chrysler product. With the back two rows of seats folded flat, we had a bedding area for long trips to Florida. The hidden trunk in the back provided nice storage. We were making some nice memories with our van. In the first year or two we started to worry a little when our van would stall on downhill angles with 1/4 tank of gas or less. A technical service bulletin software update fixed that problem with no cost. Routine maintenance generally kept our van rolling along. Second set of tires at just over 40,000miles and that set lasted nearly 60,000 miles. Brakes replaced at about 88,000 miles. Only unexpected repair had been a rear A/C line at 80,000 miles. Well, things began going bad in the last few months. The van began lurching or having RPM surges while driving at speed--especially with cruise set while going up a small grade or hill. Was that the transmission slipping? The problem happened rarely enough that our local Nissan dealer could not replicate it during a test drive. Then after the 105,000 mile service the transmission problems worsened. On a long trip we had lots of cruising on the freeway. The tachometer would bounce while maintaining speed. If we encountered a hill the RPMs might bounce from 2000 up to 2400 with no gain in speed. The bounce lasted a second or two and it occurred on minor inclines. Local driving too and from work seemed fine, but then a short trip to family was the last straw. A couple times on this trip shifting from reverse to drive produced a clunking sound with marginal acceleration. (That cant be good.) We had two or three episodes in which the van took a long time to move from a stop on an uphill grade. (That experience seemed marginally dangerous.) Then the check engine light confirmed our fears. We nursed it back to our dealer. The tranny was dead. We are now two weeks into waiting for a replacement. Five years with the van was fine, but then we learned the error of our ways in purchasing the Nissan Quest with the CVT. Our dealer is still waiting for a replacement transmission while we kick ourselves for not purchasing the Honda, Toyota, or even the Chrysler. While it may not help our efforts to unload this thing in a year or so, buyers should beware of Nissan CVTs...especially in the Quest. A quick contact with corporate produced the expected apology for inconvenience with no real help. Five years old and just over 100,000 miles and the transmission pukes? Please learn from our experience.