Nissan Altima

bimmer4me · June 2001

under future cars...

http://community.webshots.com/user/vinceburlapp

qin2 · June 2001

Odd it looks just like the '02 Altima. Are you sure they'd have a test mule more then a year before the car debuts?

If so, then using a new Altima body to bear the mechanicals makes some sense, as the '03 Maxima is based off a streched version of the '02 Altima's platform.

har1bush · June 2001

the shape of the new maxima looks very much like the '02 Altima, but so far it looks pretty bad... what's with that short trunklid? Almost looks like a hatchback Saab. Those pictures make the current maxima look like a thing of beauty

ludacris · June 2001

i dont think it looks thaaat bad...the computer enhanced shot looks sorta odd, but the camoflauged one looks good with those crisp edges and fastback shape..

jmfreshour · June 2001

Before this discussion gets too out of hand, it has been pointed out in other fora that these pictures are of an Opel car that will be sold in Europe. As some of you may know, Opel is a General Motors brand, and thus, would never produce the '03 Maxima. The likelihood of Nissan already having an '03 tester is very slim. With that said, I can't wait for the '02 Altima to show up.

s852 · June 2001

Those photos may be of some other vehicle other than a 2003 Maxima.
Vince Burlapp and that site are notorious for having bogus and mislabeled photos.

vlis · June 2001

It looks like a doctored image of an '02 Altima to me.

nikecar · June 2001

it seems to be an Opel...

http://66.96.198.147/forum/Forum10/HTML/000150.html

Max pic....

Opel Pic....

nikecar · June 2001

from NissanNews

http://www.nissannews.com/nissan/product/vehicles/altima/photos.html

s852 · June 2001

It looks good. Too bad they still did not show any good photos of the entire interior. They continue to show tight shots of gauges and gear levers etc. and do not show what it looks like without the titanium trim or with the wood trim.
From what I can see, it looks good enough though.
It is still about 3 months from release for sale, so it's good that they even have as much info as they do available.
Toyota remains secretive about the new Camry coming out on the heels of the Altima.

dhoff · June 2001

Thanks for posting the pics.

Speculation continues on the gas mileage of the new Altimas. Didn't the Altima's you took pictures of on the truck have window stickers in them? They should have the EPA mileage numbers on them. Did you take a picture of the sticker? Or were they preproduction cars?

Inquiring minds want to know...

Dave

dhoff · June 2001

Never mind. I just looked at the pictures again and saw they have license plates on them. Must be pre-production cars or test mules.

Dave

djcunnin · June 2001

Nissannews.com now has the EPA specs up for the 3.5L V6 for the Maxima, I don't remember exactly but it was something like 21/29 for the manual and 20/28 for the auto...so I can bet that this will be close to the same for the Altima, maybe the Alty a little higher since it'll be lighter. The 4 should be a little more efficient as well...

s852 · June 2001

The mileage for the 2002 Nissan Maxima is 19 city and 26 highway for the automatic. 20/28 for the stick shift. Not that great, but it has 260HP.
Maybe the Altima will be better since it has less power and should be a little lighter.

har1bush · June 2001

definitely expect the Altima to have same or better mileage than the upcoming Maxima -- enough said, let's move on!~ (I can't believe some of the people who posted comments earlier really believed that the typos on the mileage were true!)

bluesky999 · June 2001

Wow, the picture of that "opel" is incredible to my eyes. Who is "opel", and can we buy their cars, and what do those cars have in them, and what do they cost? I imagine they're a European brand--do they have a program like BMW, Volvo, etc. for buying a car over their at a discount while on vacation? I like it!

ludacris · June 2001

opel's the German branch of GM, they seem to be just sorta a family car builder. they sell some "minicars", the short-wheelbase chevy venture with a different grille, the caddy catera with a different grille, opel astra (i guess its sorta the current gen altima size) and the best one is the roadster. i dont know the name but its got really radical styling and is about the size of the Lotus Elise.

s852 · June 2001

http://members5.clubphoto.com/ken374755/Jun_2_2001/photo60.jpg?8565.

For people who are interested in customization ideas.

orangelebaron · June 2001

Opel's got a..........."website"!!!

Oh and BTW, regarding the Altima, the Passat came first.

himomer · June 2001

I was reading on the Nissan News site and it says that this is the first time a V6 will be available for the Altima, but if i remember correctly, when the 2nd gen. altima came out, didn't the SE Limited version offer a V6?

maxamillion1 · June 2001

The second generation Altima never had a V6 available.

himomer · June 2001

ok, i thought i was mistaken.

nikecar · June 2001

opel are nice.. the Caddy Catera is an Opel... when I lived in Germany the Opel could easily hang with the beemers and benz and Porsches on the Autobahn...

lsc · June 2001

i was all ready to get the altima but after seeing the new G35's pics...i think i change my mind. the G35 looks to be the perfect sports sedan.

s852 · June 2001

There are not that many pictures of the G35 and even less info about it. No price, no release dates, no interior photos.
It is hard to be all set to buy someting like that when for even the Altima, there are no road test reviews and you can't see one in person or drive it yet.
There is always someting else better or different coming later. New Camry this year and new Accord and Maxima next year, maybe a new IS300 the year after.

deejw · June 2001

After owning the Altima GLE for the past 3 years, I really can't think of many things I could recommend about the car other than that it never broke completely down on me and left me stranded. For the first year the car was great, then the little problems started cropping up. When I finally unloaded it, the carpet was coming unglued, the back doors only opened when they chose to, the overhead light only turned on when it wanted to, and the power windows were almost impossible to raise. The noise in the cabin went from none to sounding like all the windows were down when they were up. And the thing had more creaks than a haunted house. Plus the car is just boring looking as they come. All I can say is good riddance Altima and if the posted pic is the new Altima, then I'm glad I didn't wait to see what is was going to look like.

danny25 · June 2001

Actually there is some info about the new 2003 G35, it's suppost to have a 3.5L V-6 with 250+ hp and rear-wheel drive. It's also suppost to be arriving sometime in the spring of 2002.

kostamojen2 · June 2001

For those of the folks not in the know, the G35 is a Skyline Sedan... But with the infiniti "It must have wierd numbers and letters" luxo-touch :P

And its probably going to be over $30k, or more...

lsc · June 2001

there is actually comprehensive info about the Nissan Skyline in Japan which will essentially be the new G35 on the nissan global website.

http://www.nissan-global.com/EN/NEWS/2001/6_18.html

it really looks very promising just like the altima does except i like rwd better and the 5-speed automatic better than the 4-speed auto.

i certainly wouldn't buy a Camry and the Accord is very dated...that only leaves me w/ the 2002 altima, 2001 maxima or move up and get the G35.

between the altima and the maxima, the altima is a newer design...hence, it should be better..the rear suspension really makes it attractive compared to the max.

s852 · June 2001

If you are going to wait so long for the G35 in 2002, a few months later in 2002 the all-new 2003 Accord will be out.
The new camry will be much different. You are saying you would definately not buy the new 2002 Camry when you haven't even seen the offical specs and photos (since they are not out yet)?
The new Maxima will be out next year also, so then it will be a newer design than the Altima.

nikecar · June 2001

of all the folks I know with Altimas, no one (well maybe 1) has complained about so much in their car.

lsc · June 2001

I was going to save a few bucks and get the Altima...but after seeing the specs of the G35 - mainly the fact it's RWD and it's as roomy as the Maxima, that looks like the car. I don't think the Camry and the Accord are alternatives to the 2003 G35.

I'm sure the Camry and the Accord will be very nice though...and as always will be the top 2 selling cars in the US.

ruski · June 2001

just got a call from a local dealer. They are not taking orders yet, but they know approximate prices:

17,500 - 23,000

s852 · June 2001

Assuming those prices are correct, it will be more expensive than an Accord.

$23,000 for an SE that does not have leather, automatic transmission, side airbags, moonroof or ABS standard. By the time you add those all those options, it will be more than the $25K price of an Accord EXV6 (which can actually be had for about $23,000 after discounting).
People are going to balk at $26,000 for a loaded V6 Altima vs $23,000 for an EXV6 even for an extra 40HP.
For the 2003 model year, a new Accord will be here that will very likely have a HP boost and will be all-new.
Honda usually does not raise prices that much with new models, so it will likely be about $26,000 for the top line model which will still be no more than a Nissan Altima.

redline65 · June 2001

Yep, a loaded SE will sticker for over $25K. Not too bad considering everything you will get.

ruski · June 2001

the guy left a voice message for me and said

"... from 17-five to 23K for a loaded Altima"

s852 · June 2001

If it is $23K fully loaded for V6, automatic, leather package with BOSE and Automatic climate control, ABS and side airbags, then that will be a good price.

Even at $23K (with all the options) it is still the same price as what you could get an Accord EXV6 discounted to, but you would at least get 40HP, Bose stereo, better side airbags (with side head curtain), and heated seats that won't be on the US spec Accord, so it would be easier to justify.

I can't see $26K+ for the Altima.

swsms · June 2001

$25K is good price compared to what you have to pay for a Maxima SE with the same equipment. The only addition feature you would get on the Max would be a power passenger seat. That is not worth $3-4K!! Based on size and option offerings, they are competing in the same market.

In addition, we need to compare apples to apples here when comparing the price of '02 Altima to an "everybody has one" Honda Accord EX-V6. Eventually the dealers will be giving 2K-3K off on the '02 Altimas and you will be able to get an SE for about 23K. I don't recall Honda being discount happy when the latest Accord came out in '98.....

Can you tell I am just a "little bit" excited about the new Altima?!?

Enjoy!

s852 · June 2001

Besides, the power passenger seat, the 2002 maxima will offer 260Hp, 6-speed transmission and optional navigation system.

On the Accord, the EXV6 is still the hottest Accord, since they are still not discounted them as heavily as the 4 cylinders and it has the proven resale value that the Altima lacks.
People will continue to compare the Altima with the Accord and, for 2003, the new-style Accord will be out.

There will be strong competion for even for the new Altima. At least now the Altima is competive.
Until now, there was little reason to buy an Altima other than to collect on the huge rebates.

cncman · June 2001

DOn't see why anyone would balk at paying more for more of a vehicle, right now people are paying more for the maxima than the accord and aren't balking, in fact, Nissan sells more maximas than honda does V6 accords. Now throw in the fact that the altima will be bigger and more powerfull than the current maxima and you have a winner, just depends on what Honda does with the accord, but I don't see it growing to the size of the new altima or maxima. Right now you can buy a loaded maxima for around $25-26,000, this fall you will be able to get a bigger more powerful car with more stuff available for around the same price, don't see the problem there either. One thing is for sure, sedan buyers will have alot of great choices in the next year! God bless competition!

ludacris · June 2001

2002-2003 are gonna be some pretty busy years for nissan

infiniti q45, infiniti g35, infiniti i35, nissan Z, nissan maxima, nissan altima, nissan sentra SE-R, nissan xterra, nissan full size truck some infiniti SUV, nissan fullsize SUV and the list probably goes on...

speedracer3 · June 2001

Nissan discounts deeply while Honda does not. My Maxima SE had an MSRP of $27K and I got it for $23K. Try that at your Honda dealer.

har1bush · June 2001

if the loaded Altima DID have a sticker price of 25K+, who says Nissan dealers won't discount to about 23K like the Honda dealers? If 17-23K price range holds true for a LOADED Altima, then a SE V6 might be out the door for about 22K

s852 · June 2001

If the car is great and is priced at $23K with all the options, dealers won't have any reason to discount it, since there won't be anything better available for less.
At $26K+, people will perceive they can do better for the same, less or a little more money elsewhere.
Maybe people will pay $26K or more for a Maxima, but the Altima name does not match a $26K price tag.
The Altima lacks valet appeal.

bluesky999 · June 2001

speedracer, your comment is "Nissan discounts deeply while Honda does not". If you check under the "new" section of this website you'll clearly see that Accord's are going for close to invoice price, which is a deep discount. This jives with what I've heard from people making purchases, also.

speedracer3 · June 2001

People might be getting Accords "near invoice", but you can buy a Nissan car at or below invoice. Again, Nissan discounts much deeper than Honda. Mind you I got my 2k Maxima when it first came out (Summer of 1999)!..and I got it for $300 above invoice, nowadays discounts are even better. My Honda dealer was not willing to bargain that low even on a previous model year Accord.

s852,

At first there probably will not be any discounts, like what happened with the Xterra when it first came out. I am sure after there is enough product at the dealers you will be able to pick up an Altima for near or below invoice if you know how to bargain.

speedracer3 · June 2001

http://www.nissannews.com/nissan/product/vehicles/altima/photos.html

nikecar · June 2001

from my experience also, Honda's aren't as discounted either, or if they do give you a deal, its because you've spent 10 hrs in the dealer's office.

Once they wanted to sell my brohter-in-law a Civic HB BASE for $15,500... yeah, that's real discounted...

lsc · June 2001

honda doesn't discount as much because they don't have to.

nissan discounts because they have to.

another typical case where the market determines price

redline65 · June 2001

Pretty sweet pics. I really like that turquoise color. What's with the crappy looking digital readout on the speedometer though?

Nissan Altima

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