Is it just me, or does Nissan not care anymore?

Status
Not open for further replies.
As a car guy I wouldn't even consider a current Nissan product unless it was a 370Z or a GTR. The rest of their cars all seem to look alike and just seem boring to me.
 
Warning: unvarnished opinions follow, read with that fact in mind:

Nissan nearly went away in the 90s, had quite a spectacular resurgence after their alliance with Renault, and now has slipped back into mediocrity IMO. The highly respected VG engine isn't even really a segment leader anymore- Chrysler's Pentastar v6 owes its continued existence to beating out the VG in specific power/economy testing when Cerberus wanted to kill it and work a deal with Nissan to buy engines. I think they still have greatness, but gimmicky stuff like the Juke and Cube, plus a clear stagnation of style in cars like the 370 and most Infinitis is definitely hurting them now.
 
I remember the 4DSC days ( 4 door sports car). I had a '98 Maxima SE with a 5 speed and it was a joy to drive: fast and frugal with the gas. It was before the electronic throttle so engine response was fantastic. Really miss that car...
 
Last edited:
The new Altima is a winner on gas mileage it seems.
The last Nissan I looked at was the 1992 Sentra coupe when new(SE,SER or less)..it looked like a "normal" car was supposed to.Later generations just changed to weird.
 
Originally Posted By: 440Magnum
Warning: unvarnished opinions follow, read with that fact in mind:

Nissan nearly went away in the 90s, had quite a spectacular resurgence after their alliance with Renault, and now has slipped back into mediocrity IMO. The highly respected VG engine isn't even really a segment leader anymore- Chrysler's Pentastar v6 owes its continued existence to beating out the VG in specific power/economy testing when Cerberus wanted to kill it and work a deal with Nissan to buy engines. I think they still have greatness, but gimmicky stuff like the Juke and Cube, plus a clear stagnation of style in cars like the 370 and most Infinitis is definitely hurting them now.


+1

And may I add - their customer support for problems has been getting worse, their lack of willingness to do a recall is really hurting them. Speaking from experience - I bought a 04 Titan brand new...
 
Originally Posted By: 440Magnum
Warning: unvarnished opinions follow, read with that fact in mind:
The highly respected VG engine isn't even really a segment leader anymore-


You mean VQ engine ? VG went away with the last 3rd gen Maxima and the last 300zx.

Pentastar in Chrystler 200 :

HORSEPOWER 283 hp @ 6400 rpm
TORQUE 260 ft-lbs. @ 4400 rpm
EPA MILEAGE EST. (CTY/HWY) 19/29 mpg

VQ35 in Altima :

HORSEPOWER 270 hp @ 6000 rpm
TORQUE 258 ft-lbs. @ 4400 rpm
EPA MILEAGE EST. (CTY/HWY) 22/30 mpg

I wouldnt call this an all out win.
 
Originally Posted By: 440Magnum
Warning: unvarnished opinions follow, read with that fact in mind:

Nissan nearly went away in the 90s, had quite a spectacular resurgence after their alliance with Renault, and now has slipped back into mediocrity IMO. The highly respected VG engine isn't even really a segment leader anymore- Chrysler's Pentastar v6 owes its continued existence to beating out the VG in specific power/economy testing when Cerberus wanted to kill it and work a deal with Nissan to buy engines. I think they still have greatness, but gimmicky stuff like the Juke and Cube, plus a clear stagnation of style in cars like the 370 and most Infinitis is definitely hurting them now.


That's nothing new. The 2002 Maxima VQ35 outpowered the SOHC 3.5 300M by a whopping 2 (Two) horsepower. And the Chrysler made significantly more torque than the VQ at a lower rpm.

In some aspects, I see Nissan trying. The Altima for instance. It is competitive with the Accord and Camry in virtually all aspects

In some aspects, they do not seem to be trying. Submissively accepting the Frontier's role as #2 to the Tacoma.

I do not know where the "new" Sentra fits in. It does not seem to be competitive with the Mazda3, Civic, Cruze or Focus. The Versa looks roomier and costs less.
 
As a Nissan owner of 5 years, I've been very satisfied with my 2008 Altima Coupe. The main concern I have with Nissan is their use of a CVT. I have mixed feelings about mine and I spend 85% of the time cruising on the highway. Off the highway, some days it feels smooth/responsive, but other days it feels funny. I know some of that is in my head, but not all of it.
 
I love my Vera. In fact I will Buy another Nissan just cause of all the great experiences I have had from day one. And I would take a vq any day over the pentastar. I think every Nissan looks better than any hyaundai.
 
Originally Posted By: bdcardinal
........The rest of their cars all seem to look alike and just seem boring to me.


One could easily say the same about Toyota and Honda.
 
Just took a look -- many if not most of Nissan models are recommended by Consumer Reports: Altima, Maxima, Leaf, Juke, Rogue, etc.

If "boring" is the worst that can be said, I'd say that's pretty good.
 
Originally Posted By: sasilverbullet
Originally Posted By: 440Magnum
Warning: unvarnished opinions follow, read with that fact in mind:

Nissan nearly went away in the 90s, had quite a spectacular resurgence after their alliance with Renault, and now has slipped back into mediocrity IMO. The highly respected VG engine isn't even really a segment leader anymore- Chrysler's Pentastar v6 owes its continued existence to beating out the VG in specific power/economy testing when Cerberus wanted to kill it and work a deal with Nissan to buy engines. I think they still have greatness, but gimmicky stuff like the Juke and Cube, plus a clear stagnation of style in cars like the 370 and most Infinitis is definitely hurting them now.


+1

And may I add - their customer support for problems has been getting worse, their lack of willingness to do a recall is really hurting them. Speaking from experience - I bought a 04 Titan brand new...


+1. My wife's old '05 Xterra with its laundry list of TSBs and now a class action suit in regards to its transmission killing radiator design showed me they were a much different company from the folks who made the bulletproof Stanza my buddy had in college.
 
Yes, I meant the VQ (I'm not dyslexic, but I have always been prone to swapping 'q' and 'g' in handwriting and typing). Still a great engine, but perhaps resting too much on past greatness rather than leading the way forward anymore.
 
They haven't updated Titan for like 8 years. They had some real quality control problems a few years ago, when they overdid it in trying to automate everything in their plant. They have a couple of Altimas in our company fleet. I think they are pretty indifferent. They have this underboosted steering to make you think its something other than a tin can. But its still a tin can. If they said "Taurus" on the nameplate they would be the butt of a lot of jokes.

Don't mean to get into a "Ford vs. Chevy" discussion--The best car I will ever own was a 1980's Nissan. I'm sure some of their cars are better than others, as with any manufacturer. But its not the first japanese dealer I would visit.
 
More problems on the horizon for Nissan if you ask me. The brand new Altima is getting poor reviews from most auto magazines saying that the decent handling is now gone, and the new car is behind the recently introduced Honda Accord and equally brilliant Mazda 6 that just arrived.
 
Originally Posted By: bdcardinal
As a car guy I wouldn't even consider a current Nissan product unless it was a 370Z or a GTR. The rest of their cars all seem to look alike and just seem boring to me.


They are very boring and cookie cutter, however being the service manager at a Nissan dealer for 3 years, I can say that they are pretty decent quality. The 07 + Altima, which is their bread and butter was always pretty good. Just like any other auto maker, they had their common problems but for the most part less repairs than the GM's which was also sold and serviced at my dealer.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top