Nissan Altima - 2o6 Review

Started by 2o6, July 26, 2017, 09:20:50 AM

2o6

I originally reserved a "Chevrolet Spark or similar" with the idea that they'll likely upgrade me to a better car for the same price.


Then I realized that "Spark, or Similar" could also mean a 1st gen Spark, or a Mitsubishi Mirage, so I canceled that reservation and reserved a "Nissan Versa or similar" that had a picture of a Ford Focus.  :huh:


When I got there, I was put into this Nissan Altima, that upon closer inspection had clearly had the rear bumper replaced and not even an attempt was made to color match it correctly.






+ The fuel tank is big, and the range is wide. I only used one tank driving from Kirkland, WA to Portland, OR, and driving around Portland. Then back to Kirkland.

+ Fuel Economy was pretty thrifty - I paid no attention to economical driving (I was focused on driving down I-5 quickly) and I averaged 30.5MPG.

+ The seats are comfortable.

+ the base sound system is acceptable.

+ The QR25 isn't a very new motor, but somehow they have turned shit into sugar - it feels a lot better in this application compared to the old Altimas ive driven with this engine.


- It's a very ugly car.

- I like CVT's when they act like CVT's - this thing does this weird lull in ratios to simulate shifting and instead it just feels like 2 Fast 2 Furious with it's unrealistic umpteen upshifts.

- Steering doesn't have much feel and the ratio feels weirdly too slow

- no apple carplay (Even the new Mirage has this)

Who would buy this new? It seems like it was formulated specifically to be a rental car. Even the 1.5T Chevy Malibu rental I had had more standard features, more room, and was sharper to drive with better fuel economy.

cawimmer430

I'm more interested in that red Mercedes GLC behind it; and SUVs are not my thing.  :lol:

The different-colored rear bumper is hilarious.  :tounge:
-2018 Mercedes-Benz A250 AMG Line (W177)



WIMMER FOTOGRAFIE - Professional Automotive Photography based in Munich, Germany
www.wimmerfotografie.de
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68_427

My mom had to return her Forte rental due to faulty airbag sensor and ended up with a Sentra.  Even she said it was a POS after 10 minutes, and the car was covered in Nissan shipping stickers across every door, and bumper seam/gap it was ridiculous.  I'll never give my money anywhere but National.
Quotewhere were you when automotive dream died
i was sat at home drinking brake fluid when wife ring
'racecar is die'
no


MX793

I feel like Nissan is starting down the same road Mitsubishi is on.  My view of their current lineup is pretty much how I felt about Mitsu's back 10 or 12 years ago.
Needs more Jiggawatts

2016 Ford Mustang GTPP / 2011 Toyota Rav4 Base AWD / 2014 Kawasaki Ninja 1000 ABS
1992 Nissan 240SX Fastback / 2004 Mazda Mazda3s / 2011 Ford Mustang V6 Premium / 2007 Suzuki GSF1250SA Bandit / 2006 VW Jetta 2.5

12,000 RPM

Nissan took all the love the Altima needs and put it into the Maxima. THAT is a damn good car.
Protecctor of the Atmospheric Engine #TheyLiedToUs

Xer0

Quote from: MX793 on July 27, 2017, 04:47:36 AM
I feel like Nissan is starting down the same road Mitsubishi is on.  My view of their current lineup is pretty much how I felt about Mitsu's back 10 or 12 years ago.

Agreed.  This makes their current marketing tagline, "Innovation that excites", all the more annoying.

12,000 RPM

Nissan has always been questionable across their lineup. The Sentra was never thorougly excellent across the lineup like the Civic, and aside from the 2002 Altima 3.5 I can't really think of any monster mainstreamers they've had. Now the 1st and 2nd gen FM cars are pretty much excellence defined ;) but the 3rd gen stuff has fallen into the same traps as the similarly declining competition. The last unarguably great car from Nissan that we saw in the US was the Z32 IMO.
Protecctor of the Atmospheric Engine #TheyLiedToUs

Xer0

It has never been as bad as this, imo:

The Sentra, Versa, and Altima are all pretty much crap. 
The Titan is a redesigned pickup that is already in last place in pretty much everything. 
The work van they launched is seen as a joke. 
The Rogue is the rental/sub prime queen it's always been. 
The 370Z was eclipsed by the V6 Mustang in 2011 and Nissan hasn't cared since. 
Does anyone even buy the Armada or Pathfinder or whatever they call it now? 
There is no more Xterra. 

The only bright spot is the Maxima with the Murano being pretty decent too.

Laconian

They even have a Rogue Sport, which is some real 1990's GM Classic BS.
Kia EV6 GT-Line / MX-5 RF 6MT

2o6

Quote from: Laconian on July 27, 2017, 11:54:02 AM
They even have a Rogue Sport, which is some real 1990's GM Classic BS.

??? Rogue Sport is just the EU Qashqai.


You're thinking Rogue Select

Laconian

Oh, right. Rogues are selling well thanks to that Star Wars tie-in! Quick, let's confuse consumers by making the name mean other things!
Kia EV6 GT-Line / MX-5 RF 6MT

giant_mtb

I know someone who had a Rogue Select. They didn't know the difference, but got rid of it like a year later because they were a couple living in the Chicago area with no need for two vehicles.

2o6

Eh. All automakers have fleet specials.


And it's no different than the "Outlander Sport" that is a smaller "sportier" outlander

CALL_911

Quote from: Xer0 on July 27, 2017, 11:51:16 AM
It has never been as bad as this, imo:

The Sentra, Versa, and Altima are all pretty much crap. 
The Titan is a redesigned pickup that is already in last place in pretty much everything. 
The work van they launched is seen as a joke. 
The Rogue is the rental/sub prime queen it's always been. 
The 370Z was eclipsed by the V6 Mustang in 2011 and Nissan hasn't cared since. 
Does anyone even buy the Armada or Pathfinder or whatever they call it now? 
There is no more Xterra. 

The only bright spot is the Maxima with the Murano being pretty decent too.

But the GT-R is still dope!


2004 S2000
2016 340xi

CaminoRacer

What have all of their engineers been doing if all of their cars are out of date?
2020 BMW 330i, 1969 El Camino, 2017 Bolt EV

ifcar

Quote from: Xer0 on July 27, 2017, 11:51:16 AM
It has never been as bad as this, imo:

The Sentra, Versa, and Altima are all pretty much crap. 
The Titan is a redesigned pickup that is already in last place in pretty much everything. 
The work van they launched is seen as a joke. 
The Rogue is the rental/sub prime queen it's always been. 
The 370Z was eclipsed by the V6 Mustang in 2011 and Nissan hasn't cared since. 
Does anyone even buy the Armada or Pathfinder or whatever they call it now? 
There is no more Xterra. 

The only bright spot is the Maxima with the Murano being pretty decent too.

The Versa is fine for a super-cheap car: spacious, economical and reliable. The Rogue and Pathfinder aren't class-leading, but neither is an embarrassment -- I'd take both over their Toyota competitors, which are much worse to drive. The Sentra and Altima are pretty lifeless, but they're potentially fine for someone looking for a value option.

I agree that the Titan and Z are flailing and that only the Maxima and Murano are particularly interesting, but the heart of the lineup isn't meritless.

cawimmer430

Quote from: MX793 on July 27, 2017, 04:47:36 AM
I feel like Nissan is starting down the same road Mitsubishi is on.  My view of their current lineup is pretty much how I felt about Mitsu's back 10 or 12 years ago.

It's a real shame about Mitsubishi. I always felt they had some of the best-looking designed cars (along with Mazda) of all the Japanese car manufacturers. Even during the boring 1990s (where car design was dull, IMO), I felt that Mitsubishi stood out among the Japanese brands with handsome if not visually-pleasing car design.

Today there's not a single Mitsubishi that looks good.

It's like a Greek tragedy.
-2018 Mercedes-Benz A250 AMG Line (W177)



WIMMER FOTOGRAFIE - Professional Automotive Photography based in Munich, Germany
www.wimmerfotografie.de
www.facebook.com/wimmerfotografie

MX793

Needs more Jiggawatts

2016 Ford Mustang GTPP / 2011 Toyota Rav4 Base AWD / 2014 Kawasaki Ninja 1000 ABS
1992 Nissan 240SX Fastback / 2004 Mazda Mazda3s / 2011 Ford Mustang V6 Premium / 2007 Suzuki GSF1250SA Bandit / 2006 VW Jetta 2.5

Xer0

Quote from: ifcar on July 27, 2017, 12:15:09 PM
The Versa is fine for a super-cheap car: spacious, economical and reliable. The Rogue and Pathfinder aren't class-leading, but neither is an embarrassment -- I'd take both over their Toyota competitors, which are much worse to drive. The Sentra and Altima are pretty lifeless, but they're potentially fine for someone looking for a value option.

I agree that the Titan and Z are flailing and that only the Maxima and Murano are particularly interesting, but the heart of the lineup isn't meritless.

Besides the Maxima/Murano, Nissan has pretty much become a value brand that pushes ridiculously low lease rates for aspiring Uber/Lyft drivers.  I just don't think that's where Nissan should be positioning itself.

12,000 RPM

There is really no room to play. The auto market is too competitive, especially in the mainstream market. What can Nissan do? IF anyone says "make the cars more fun to drive" I will come throw your computer in the garbage.
Protecctor of the Atmospheric Engine #TheyLiedToUs

Cookie Monster

I feel like Nissan has given up on the mainstream market. FWIW Infiniti seems much more exciting and competitive.
RWD > FWD
President of the "I survived the Volvo S80 Thread" Club
2007 Mazda MX-5 | 1999 Honda Nighthawk 750 | 1989 Volvo 240 | 1991 Toyota 4Runner | 2006 Honda CBR600F4i | 2015 Yamaha FJ-09 | 1999 Honda CBR600F4 | 2009 Yamaha WR250X | 1985 Mazda RX-7 | 2000 Yamaha YZ426F | 2006 Yamaha FZ1 | 2002 Honda CBR954RR | 1996 Subaru Outback | 2018 Subaru Crosstrek | 1986 Toyota MR2
Quote from: 68_427 on November 27, 2016, 07:43:14 AM
Or order from fortune auto and when lyft rider asks why your car feels bumpy you can show them the dyno curve
1 3 5
├┼┤
2 4 R

MrH

Infiniti makes nothing exciting either. Nissan is probably the least interesting OEM out there IMO.
2023 Ford Lightning Lariat ER
2019 Acura RDX SH-AWD
2023 BRZ Limited

Previous: '02 Mazda Protege5, '08 Mazda Miata, '05 Toyota Tacoma, '09 Honda Element, '13 Subaru BRZ, '14 Hyundai Genesis R-Spec 5.0, '15 Toyota 4Runner SR5, '18 Honda Accord EX-L 2.0t, '01 Honda S2000, '20 Subaru Outback XT, '23 Chevy Bolt EUV

Laconian

Quote from: MrH on July 27, 2017, 10:14:31 PM
Infiniti makes nothing exciting either. Nissan is probably the least interesting OEM out there IMO.

Peak Infiniti was the G35 and FX45 in 2002. Otherwise, a very boring brand.
Kia EV6 GT-Line / MX-5 RF 6MT

12,000 RPM

????









If Infiniti isn't exciting, who is? BMW? MB? Jaguar? I suppose Alfas are exciting in that every drive is a gamble :lol:

Infiniti is def not what it once was, but I can't think of any other brands besides maybe MB or Audi doing it better. Everyone else is either a complete crap shoot or totally generic and similarly in decline. Yes I'm fanboiing but I can back it up.
Protecctor of the Atmospheric Engine #TheyLiedToUs

cawimmer430

This is hands down the most beautiful car Infiniti has ever made, IMO.  :mrcool:

-2018 Mercedes-Benz A250 AMG Line (W177)



WIMMER FOTOGRAFIE - Professional Automotive Photography based in Munich, Germany
www.wimmerfotografie.de
www.facebook.com/wimmerfotografie

CALL_911

No way, this will always take the cake:


2004 S2000
2016 340xi

cawimmer430

Those never did anything for me. I've seen one here with Spanish license plates. Didn't raise my heart beat despite being an "exotic" car here.

Design is subjective!
-2018 Mercedes-Benz A250 AMG Line (W177)



WIMMER FOTOGRAFIE - Professional Automotive Photography based in Munich, Germany
www.wimmerfotografie.de
www.facebook.com/wimmerfotografie

giant_mtb

Quote from: CALL_911 on July 29, 2017, 04:02:43 PM
No way, this will always take the cake:


My brother had one of those in red. Great car. He got rid of it a few years ago after getting married and deciding to start a family.

68_427

Quotewhere were you when automotive dream died
i was sat at home drinking brake fluid when wife ring
'racecar is die'
no