2005 NISSAN ALTIMA 3.5 SE-R

[BMWDave]

2005 NISSAN ALTIMA 3.5 SE-R
DATE IN FLEET: May 4-18
AS TESTED PRICE: $30,150
POWERTRAIN: 3.5-liter V6; fwd, six-speed manual
OUTPUT: 260 hp @ 6000 rpm, 251 lb-ft @ 3600 rpm
CURB WEIGHT: 3316 lbs
MPG (EPA COMBINED/AW OBSERVED): 22.95/19.82

MANDEL: Incredible to think this "lowly" Altima is capable of 260 hp, quick shifts, slick looks and a great exhaust note. Has this car grown up, or what? There is more than enough room inside this boy-racer SE-R model for a stoplight-running family of four. But make no mistake: It screams, "Look at me!" which for some is exactly what they want. Personally, I would opt for an R32, with fewer doors and increased stealth. And anyone who says otherwise ought to have their own personal alignment recalibrated. But if you don't like torque steer, stay away from here.

FLOYD: Give it up to Nissan, which is clearly taking pole position among Japanese automakers as builder of trick performance vehicles. While its rear-drivers are preferable, it has done a nice job with the Altima SE-R. Nissan's engineers have dialed back the torque steer over its previous front-drive, high-horsepower efforts. The ride is taut, just short of rock hard-it's a blast to take hard into wide sweepers and tight corners. Jump off from the stoplight and you get the wheelspin and growling exhaust note mandatory in a factory hot rod.

Nissan's workhorse 3.5-liter doesn't reach the horsepower heights of stablemates like the Z, but it still pulls hard and strong through all gears. Jump on the brakes and it stops with force. It's also hard to beat the sweet-shifting six-speed. Kudos to Nissan for keeping the shift-for-yourself drive alive. Inside, the gauge work, sport seats and SE-R touches add greatly to the sporting character of this roomy midsizer. Exterior-wise, the effects package gives what is generally a pretty bland sedan a much meaner demeanor. There's a lot of sport sedan competition in this price range, but this ultimate Altima has muscled its way right into the picture.

MORRISON: Wow, I'm impressed. The Altima SE-R brings its A-game to a market segment that demands it do so. The standard Altima 3.5 is nice, and the SE-R sharpens everything that much more. Ten more horses, sport exhaust, stiffer suspension, 18-inch forged wheels, stronger brakes and a short-throw six-speed shifter make this one fun sedan. It feels good from behind the wheel, with a fairly flat cornering attitude and good feedback through nicely weighted steering. I like the feel of just about everything, from the meaty clutch resistance to the positive shift action. I might welcome a harder brake pedal feel, but it is not bad as is.

Sure, some torque steer happens when you drive aggressively, but not nearly as much as I anticipated. However, a limited-slip diff would do wonders for the SE-R, as the inside front wheel lights afire when you put the power down hard mid-corner; I laid down single streaks of rubber all over town. This car prefers and rewards smooth inputs. If you can restrain your enthusiasm, you will find you can hustle through corners with relatively little drama.

The rest of the package is nice, too. The body kit improves the understated look of lesser Altimas without going boy-racer bonkers. I'm not sure what Dutch finds so overstated about this; it is a long way away from the gaudiness of the Lancer Evo or STi. Our test car's Code Red paint is the most obnoxious thing about it.

[Raghavan]

Torquesteer. that's why every highpowered car should be RWD.

[Run Away]

I think the exterior modifications on the SE-R look very very sharp. B)

It's actually possible to have no torque steer with a high HP FWD setup.

[Raghavan]

I think the exterior modifications on the SE-R look very very sharp. B)

It's actually possible to have no torque steer with a high HP FWD setup.

The SE-R is nice, but the letdown is that it's FWD.

[Run Away]

Not for me. Tell me, in your vast experience driving cars, how noticable is torque steer in high powered FWD cars compared to RWD ones? In your experience, what makes RWD so much better?

Here's a pic of the car:
http://www.desktopmachine.com/pics/Nissan_Altima_05-1024.jpg

[280Z Turbo]

I think the exterior modifications on the SE-R look very very sharp. B)

It's actually possible to have no torque steer with a high HP FWD setup.

I agree. I love the wheels and blacked out wheels and the interior looks very sporty. The Z car gauges are cool too!

[Raghavan]

Not for me. Tell me, in your vast experience driving cars, how noticable is torque steer in high powered FWD cars compared to RWD ones? In your experience, what makes RWD so much better?

Here's a pic of the car:
http://www.desktopmachine.com/pics/Nissan_Altima_05-1024.jpg

drifts, burnouts, doughnuts, smoky launches, no torquesteer...  

[Run Away]

Not for me. Tell me, in your vast experience driving cars, how noticable is torque steer in high powered FWD cars compared to RWD ones? In your experience, what makes RWD so much better?

Here's a pic of the car:
http://www.desktopmachine.com/pics/Nissan_Altima_05-1024.jpg

drifts, burnouts, doughnuts, smoky launches, no torquesteer...

I though you didn't have your license?

[Raghavan]

Not for me. Tell me, in your vast experience driving cars, how noticable is torque steer in high powered FWD cars compared to RWD ones? In your experience, what makes RWD so much better?

Here's a pic of the car:
http://www.desktopmachine.com/pics/Nissan_Altima_05-1024.jpg

drifts, burnouts, doughnuts, smoky launches, no torquesteer...

I though you didn't have your license?

when did i say that?

[Run Away]

You never said that, but I know that you are quite young (possibly young enough not to legally be able to obtain one) that you don't have your own car, onl your parent's Accord, and you've never spoken of a driving experience.

[Raghavan]

You never said that, but I know that you are quite young (possibly young enough not to legally be able to obtain one) that you don't have your own car, onl your parent's Accord, and you've never spoken of a driving experience.

i have my driver's license (legally of course   ), but i don't have my own car because i really have no need for it, so i use my mom's Accord when i want/ need to. And why would i talk about a driving experience if nothing memorable happens?

[280Z Turbo]

I have RWD in the Z and Ranger and I had FWD in the Saab. The torque steer was there once you got into boost, but it wasn't bothersome. It was just a slight tugging at the wheel.

However, I like the RWD in the Z a lot more. Believe me, it's a lot more fun than a FWD car. I like to break the tires loose.

Also, I did just fine with the Ranger in the Michigan snow. If you just drive sensibly it's fine...and, again, breaking the rear end loose is fun.

[Run Away]

Point is, you have no real basis for bashing FWD when all you can do is regurgitate what you read in magazines. Torque steer is not noticable unless you're really pushing it, and even then, it's just a gentle tug.

[Raghavan]

Point is, you have no real basis for bashing FWD when all you can do is regurgitate what you read in magazines. Torque steer is not noticable unless you're really pushing it, and even then, it's just a gentle tug.

me? or him?

[Run Away]

You of course...he drove around a car known for torque steer (turbo Saab) for a while and now drive a RWD car with good power, he's got experience.

[Raghavan]

You of course...he drove around a car known for torque steer (turbo Saab) for a while and now drive a RWD car with good power, he's got experience.

how much hp does that Saab make?

[280Z Turbo]

The Saab couldn't have made more than 200 hp. It was peppy, but not fast.

[Raghavan]

the accord makes 200hp too. i don't see why Ben is bitching about me not having experience....

[850CSi]

For $30K, I could easily buy an '06 A4 and easily make it waaaaayyyyy faster than the Altima SE-R. For $5K more, I could have a 325i with 320HP.

And I wouldn't have FWD either way.




It's still very cool, though. Someone around my school's neighborhood has one in Red with Black wheels... GORGEOUS.

[Run Away]

the accord makes 200hp too. i don't see why Ben is bitching about me not having experience....

Because as you said "nothing memorable happens" when you drive, so obviously you don't notice tq steer, or you've never pushed the car hard.

[Raghavan]

the accord makes 200hp too. i don't see why Ben is bitching about me not having experience....

Because as you said "nothing memorable happens" when you drive, so obviously you don't notice tq steer, or you've never pushed the car hard.

yes, i notice the torqe steer, especially when i punch the throttle, but other than that, what's there to talk about? you don't talk about your drive.

[850CSi]

My problem with FWD setups is generally because the result is usually poor weight distribution. Hell, even my A4 feels a slight bit nose-heavy if you're really looking for it, even thought it weighs only 3200 lbs.

I drove an A4 2.8, and it really was not a very pleasant experience. Even around a parking lot, it was remarkably fast, but you could tell there was too much power being put through the two front wheels.

To me, FWD best suits small, light cars with relatively low HP output: Mini Cooper, Integra, 307, etc.

[Raghavan]

My problem with FWD setups is generally because the result is usually poor weight distribution. Hell, even my A4 feels a slight bit nose-heavy if you're really looking for it, even thought it weighs only 3200 lbs.

I drove an A4 2.8, and it really was not a very pleasant experience. Even around a parking lot, it was remarkably fast, but you could tell there was too much power being put through the two front wheels.

To me, FWD best suits small, light cars with relatively low HP output: Mini Cooper, Integra, 307, etc.

yes, i only like low hp FWD cars. i even considered getting a CRX before.

[BMWDave]

the accord makes 200hp too. i don't see why Ben is bitching about me not having experience....

Because as you said "nothing memorable happens" when you drive, so obviously you don't notice tq steer, or you've never pushed the car hard.

yes, i notice the torqe steer, especially when i punch the throttle, but other than that, what's there to talk about? you don't talk about your drive.

Ben is saying that since you have only driven one car, you really have no basis on which to say FWD is horrible and all cars have torque steer.

[TBR]

First, FWD can be torquesteer free, even with a high power engine (Acura CL Type S 6-speed is the perfect example). Second, the Altima SE-R is awesome. It would be better if it had AWD but other than that it is perfect. It looks great both inside and outside, has plenty of power, and Nissan has finally figured out how to do a manual tranismission.

[TBR]

Also, 280z, was your SAAB a manual or auto? Manual cars typically have a lot more torque steer than automatic equipped ones.  

[Run Away]

First, FWD can be torquesteer free, even with a high power engine (Acura CL Type S 6-speed is the perfect example). Second, the Altima SE-R is awesome. It would be better if it had AWD but other than that it is perfect. It looks great both inside and outside, has plenty of power, and Nissan has finally figured out how to do a manual tranismission.

Yup, I said that on the first page. It has to do with the lenghts of the axles; in FWD cars, since the engine is mounted "sideways" the tranny usually gets pushed over to one side of the car, making one axle longer than the other. I know in my car, the passenger side axle is shorter, and as a result the passenger side wheel is usually the first one to spin.
Suspension geometry also plays a part; my prelude has a different suspension setup than the basic design used in Civics or Integras. It has what I beleive are called "torsion bars" and this dampens torque steer. It also dampens wheel hop, and even though I don't have a limited slip, preludes will still lay down two black marks when dropping the clutch.

yes, i notice the torqe steer, especially when i punch the throttle, but other than that, what's there to talk about? you don't talk about your drive.

Not here I havn't (there, I did a bit above) but on C&D I did, especially when I first got the car.

[Raghavan]

the accord makes 200hp too. i don't see why Ben is bitching about me not having experience....

Because as you said "nothing memorable happens" when you drive, so obviously you don't notice tq steer, or you've never pushed the car hard.

yes, i notice the torqe steer, especially when i punch the throttle, but other than that, what's there to talk about? you don't talk about your drive.

Ben is saying that since you have only driven one car, you really have no basis on which to say FWD is horrible and all cars have torque steer.

i never said that all cars have torque steer. And i'm not saying that FWD is horrible. I'm saying that FWD isn't good for hipowered cars. As i said, i wanted to get a CRX, which is obviously FWD.  

[850CSi]

First, FWD can be torquesteer free, even with a high power engine (Acura CL Type S 6-speed is the perfect example). Second, the Altima SE-R is awesome. It would be better if it had AWD but other than that it is perfect. It looks great both inside and outside, has plenty of power, and Nissan has finally figured out how to do a manual tranismission.

My biggest gripe with the Altima is that it's just too big for my tastes.

[Fire It Up]

Good car, awesome styling.    The G - Sedan should have been agressive looking like this car.