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Comments
Interesting question. I was comparing them partly on behalf of a friend in the market for something in the price range of the 3.5. I rented the 2.5 – it was OK. I drove it around San Diego and inland to Borrego Springs, up toward (not into, whew!) LA over 5 days.
As many have posted here and elsewhere, some of the interior materials fit and finish are not of the best quality. My rental had approx. 16,000 miles. There was wear – but not much more than the typical year old rental, in my experience. It drove well over the mountains to Anza-Borrego – brakes were fine on the descent.
Besides the power difference, and the typical 4 cyl. noise, the biggest dynamic difference may be the FWD vs. AWD. When I test drove a 2002 3.5 Altima, the typical FWD pull and torque steer and tendency to chirp one front tire when accelerating from low speed around a corner were annoying.
But with only the 3.5 and automatic, it could certainly be an entertaining car at a reasonable price.
- Ray
Who would certainly expect that a 3.5 turbo- or supercharged with AWD would be VERY entertaining . . .
Seriously, with 84K on the belts, you're already on borrowed time. At least change the one showing cracks.
The 3.5 owners manual says you can use the low octane fuel, but suggests for "better performance" to use the 93 octane. I'll probably continue to use the 93 octane.
I spent almost thirty minutes looking over the Altimas. The first Altima I saw in was Seascape with Black leather interior. It was an SL model. I want to add that the interior of the Altima is still a work in process. Everytime I look inside a newer Altima, the interior seems to be getting better. The new wood trim is much better looking than the stuff used last year. Thank God for that. I actually like the wood trim inside the Altima better than the Camry' or Accord's. The interior materials are slowly improving, and while the gas release button still doesn't have a cover, the cut-out is much less exposed this time around. I actually liked the interior for once. I cannot belive it has improved that much.
There were still some disappointments though. For one, the storage area in the front is still made out of very cheap plastic. Not a good sign. Also, there were scuff marks all over the bottom of each door.
The exterior styling is still nice, the best in the class IMO.
I can't recommend the aftermarket leather enough. It will cost you the better part of a grand but it turns this car into at $20000 Audi A6. I've had two friends mistake the car for an A6 and a Bentley respectively.
I realize the Bentley is a stretch but if an uninitiated person can actually think that then the car most have some pretty good looks.
I'm not bothered by things like plastic door pockets or a cheap fuel release button (I never notice it except when I pop it) and overall am very happy with the car (27mpg on first fillup). Could use better NVH but that's about my only complaint.
Going to add a nice set of aftermarket rims when I have a few dollars. That should make this car a real knockout.
The exterior looks great and I like the color. Unfortunately it doesn't have ABS. I bought cars in the 60s and 70s before ABS was available. There is no excuse for it not to be standard equipment on any car today. Even her cheapest model Saturn had them standard. The rear seats are uncomfortable because of the weird angle of the seat back. The orange colored gauges at night look incredibly cheap. The air bag warning light has blinked since she bought it.
But, the exterior is a nice color and looks great. What more can you ask ?
Thanks
I have a 2.5s basically fully loaded. If your looking for a roomy car this is the one. Altima is actually considered a full size car byCars.com.
There is alot of trunk space too.
The Bose system as edmunds.com has said over and over again is awesome. If your more into clear and crisp sounds than bass I would suggest getting it. The twiters(sp) in the A pillars are what I think makes the big difference. Many cars in it's don't have them there.
The Altima has lots of power once you tap the pedal but may loose a bit once you get to higher rpms. Steering is a bit light though but you get used to it.
As for the interior I don't think I could have chose any other car. I like an interesting interior and Altima has that. Camry was way too old american like. Passats was high quality but plain and Accords was nice but too basic.
The only gripe I have with this car are the doors. The materials just plain suck. Don't get me wrong everything is fitted nicely no lose panels or anything through the interior. But things like the interior door handles are really cheap and I wish they had used chrome plated ones instead. I do like the seat cloth (it was better then Camry's) and the seats are very supportive.
Anyways the Most important thing about the Altima is value. There are lots of standard features. Like alloy wheels instead of hub caps and all wheel disk breaks instead of drums (Camry). Most power in it's class, biggest etc. You will also notice little things about it. For example you can roll the windows down with your key or remote. There are touch down features for the windows which I don't think accord has and auto on headlights with a trip computer, curtain airbags etc. It also got good crash test scores. For 2003 the car should be even better because they upgraded the interior.
Every car in this class has there bright spots but I just like Nissans approach to the Midsize class. Sorry to babble, hope this helped.
My only choices were the Altima, Accord or Camry.
Side and side curtain airbags were mandatory and the Accord only offered these on the top of the line model.
Had a deal on a Camry LE that fell through.(Actually I think the dealer tried pulling a bait and switch - left $500 deposit and they traded the car away)
Anyway,
My first new Nissan and it is taking some getting used to. I came from a 95 Accord and the Altima seats were much softer. I've had back problems in the past but I think my back was just getting adjusted because there seems to be little problem now.
Love the power and sporty ride. Best looking body of all three IMO.
(Last two tanks of gas were 25 and 28mpg mixed driving)
Very large interior.
This is my commuter car and a backup to the family van.
Hope this helps.
Do you find a lot of tire noise with the Contis?
I have a 2000 Altima with 50k miles on it. Till date never had to take it to the dealer for any problem. recently, the dealer said I needed new brake pads in front. After I had that done, I have noticed a low speed wobble in the steering, that disappears at speeds above 30MPH. Anybody have a clue what it could be?
You could have the brakes looked at to make sure.
Nissan has been very proud of the fact that they haven't had to use incentives and rebates on the new Altima. My guess is that they will try to keep it up as long as possible.
The Altima's exterior looks and performance greatly outweighs any interior shortcomings. Just look at this car's styling and power at that price, it should be an easy choice compared to Toyota or Honda with the same specs for anybody under 50. Just look at the Camry and Accord they're BUTT UGLY and are only fun to drive if you are going to the Nissan dealership to trade it in for an ALTIMA.
I saw a review of the Altima on TV and they pointed out fit and finish flaws in and out that are worse than you can expect on a Toyota or Honda. They advised buyers to wait for the kinks to be ironed out.
What makes the interior cheapness so laughable is that, months prior to the release of the 2002 Altima, Nissan had made statements claiming that the interior would be VW quality. VW interior materials are better than Toyota and Honda, but now the Altima cannot even match those, much less a VW.
People make a point of how nice the interior of a VW is because it is super nice.
People do not usually say much about an Accord's or Taurus' interior because it is not really that much better or worse than they expected for the price.
People go on and on about the Altima's interior because it was worse than they expected compared to competing cars.
The Nissan Altima 3.5 SE does not beat a Honda Accord EXV6 on price once you add options to match what comes standard on the Honda. A loaded Altima 3.5 is way more expensive than the Accord EXV6 even if you skip the few options not available on the Honda (such as Xenon lights).
You pay more up front, then you lose more at the end because it depreciates more than an Accord or Passat.
Many people jump on the Altima interior because they read the many reviews that magazines print and if you notice they don't want to make any car seem perfect in any class and there's really nothing else to criticize the Altima for so they have to trash the interior and then readers overreact to it (mostly Honda and Toyota owners) because there's nothing else to talk about. One review I read the writer thought the car had too much torque steer (valid point, but it didn't bother me and I gunned the car in the test drive) but barely mentioned the interior because his main criticism had been made.
My point is I took both cars out on a test drive and when I was in the Accord all I could think about was getting back in the Altima. The Honda has the better interior and better mileage but is behind in everything else and resale means little because most people keep their cars much longer these days(if they didn't they would lease) and a 10 year old Honda and Altima wouldn't be much of a price difference. Resale value does not factor in much when people buy cars.
I 'll give the Mazda 6 a last chance to convince me otherwise but I doubt it (no matter how nice that interior is)
$27787 for 3.5SE with leather package, automatic and the side airbag/ABS package.
This is about as close as you can get with equipment levels since each has a few unique features that the other doesn't.
The are more options available on the Altima that would push the price even higher and you could get the navigation on the Accord that would add another $2000.
The Accord EXV6 with voice activation for the navigation, stereo and HVAC is only a few hundred more at ($28260 MSRP) than the Altima with just the options listed above at $27787.
Some people keep their cars 10 years, but not most people.
Leasing is only better than buying if there is some special incentive on the lease that it isn't matched by the manufacturer on purchases (this usually happens only on some luxury cars) and/or if you use the vehicle for a business and can write off part of the lease expenses on your taxes, or if you luck out because the car depreciated more than they anticipated in the contract despite you not going over the mileage and wear limits.
The lease cost is based on the difference between the sale price of the car on the day you buy it and what they anticipate it should be worth when you bring it back with the mileage and condition you agree to. The smaller the depreciation, the cheaper the lease should be.
According to Hondacars.com (official Honda website) and nissandriven.com (official Nissan website):
********** COMPARISON NUMBER #1 **********
Honda Accord LX V6
Price: $23,460 w/ Destination Charge
Features:
-ABS w/side airbags ($799 option on the Altima)
Nissan 3.5SE w/No Options
Price: $23,689 w/Destination Charge
Features:
-Fog lights ($330 option on the Accord)
-17 inch alloy wheels ($1000 option on the Accord)
-Chrome exhaust finishers ($89 option on the Accord)
-Cargo net ($49 option on the Accord)
Analysis:
If you add the fog lights, cargo net, 17 inch alloy wheels, and chrome finishers to the Accord you would end up with a price of $24,928 (which incidentally is just $900 cheaper than the base price of the top-of-the-line EX) for an Accord LX V6 equipped exactly like a base Altima 3.5SE sans ABS/side airbags.
If you add the ABS w/side air bags to the Altima the price jumps to $24,488 -- you decide you want a manual with the V6, which lowers the price to $23,988.
Accord LX V6 (equipped like a base 3.5SE) = $24,928
Base Altima 3.5SE (with automatic tranny) = $24,488
Base Altima 3.5SE (with manual tranny) = $23,988
Thus, a base Altima 3.5SE (w/manual) costs $1,000 LESS than a comparably equipped Accord LX V6, and $500 LESS when equipped with an automatic.
********** COMPARISON NUMBER #2 **********
2003 Honda Accord EX V6
Price: $25,800 w/ Destination Charge
Standard Features:
-Leather
-Moonroof
-6 disc in-dash CD changer
-ABS w/side airbags
Nissan 3.5SE w/Leather Package & ABS Package
Price: $27,787 w/Destination Charge
Standard Features:
-Leather
-Moonroof
-6 disc in-dash CD changer
-ABS w/side airbags
Features standard on the Altima but optional on the Accord:
-Fog lights ($330 option on the Accord)
-17 inch alloy wheels ($1,000 option on the Accord)
-Chrome exhaust finishers ($89 option on the Accord)
-Cargo net ($49 option on the Accord)
Analysis:
If you add the fog lights, cargo net, 17 inch alloy wheels, and chrome finishers to the Accord you end up with a price of $27,268.
Accord EX V6 (w/No Options) = $25,800
Accord EX V6 (like 3.5SE w/Leather & ABS)= $27,268
Base Altima 3.5SE (w/Leather, ABS + manual) = $27,287
Altima 3.5SE (w/Leather, ABS + automatic) = $27,787
Thus, an Altima 3.5SE (w/Leather and ABS packages + manual) only costs $19 more than a comparably equipped Accord V6, and $519 more when equipped with an automatic... Add in the Navigation system on the Accord and the price difference is smaller yet.
Of course if you don't care about certain features on the Altima and not on the Accord, then that changes the pricing structure. But the idea here was to compare apples to apples.
Additionally, Altima V6 "recommends" you run premium fuel, where Accord "recommends" you run standard fuel (which, if you read these boards, you know why I don't agree with this). But nonetheless, it is a factor, as is resale, mileage, etc.
Finally, I don't know about the Accord drivers out there, but I can tell you that many Altima owners (myself included) will continually report our "passion" for driving the car. I've driven the Accord -- and I LIKE IT -- it's just not nearly as "fun" to drive than the Altima... Don't ask me why, I don't know... For me and many others, it just is. Plus, in my opinion, the Altima's exterior styling is much more elegant.
(:-D Thanks Everyone!!!
Since the Accord EXV6 already comes with 16" alloy wheels standard, it would be an incredibly stupid waste of money to spend $1000 to upgrade to 1" larger wheels and throw away the brand new factory 16" alloy wheels.
Maybe on the LX that only has hupcaps, but if you add expensive options to an LX, you might as well get the EX. The EXV6 is a good value unless you don't care about alloy wheels, moonroof and and leather.
I would probably go for the cargo net and fog lights though.
So, if 17" wheels vs 16" wheels are extremely important to you, then the Altima compares in price favorably with the Accord. Otherwise, the features will not match exactly. For instance there is no option to get a 5-speed automatic on the Altima. I think the difference between the transmissions is more significant than the difference between 16" and 17" wheels.
I may be biased, but then again, I traded a 2000 Accord EX in for my Altima.
As far as the 5 speed transmission, is that for high speed? What is the benfit? My car already goes fast enough.
Each car has some unique features. The Accord EX also has 8-way power seats.
My feelings? The light gray trim is adequate and on a par for a car in the $20000 range (which is what I paid). Of course, when I look at the beautiful light gray leather I had installed at time of purchase I forget about the rest of the trim being only adequate.
The key here is price. If you buy this car as I did in the $20000 range I think the interior is fine. If however, you push the price envelope to close to $30000 (which is what a loaded SE would cost) than I think it's fair to say that the interior is inferior for that price range. You should expect an upscale interior when buying a car near $30000. I have heard rumors that a fairly major interior overhaul is coming to the Altima in 2004. This would certainly be desirable.
I'm happy with mine because for what I paid I got everything I need and more style than almost anything in that price range. Also very happy with performance of the 2.5 I4 and when it come to room the car is unbelievable. My final thought? If you are spending nearly $30000 then go for a near luxury car like G35, TL, 300M, etc. If you are on a budget like me and looking to spend something in the 19-23K range then grab the Altima.
Anybody who thinks a really nice interior makes the car fun should be taking a limo everywhere because they sure don't appreciate tight handling and major power.
If you compare the Accord and Altima feature-for-feature the Accord will most always be cheaper. 17" wheels are an option on every Accord .. it's called aftermarket. Cargo nets are standard on the Accord now. You can get fog lights installed for $500. So let's try this again using readily available pricing on www.carsdirect.com.
2003 Accord LX sedan with automatic transmission: $18,100
2003 Nissan Altima 2.5S with automatic: $18,600
2003 Accord EX-L sedan with automatic transmission: $21,700
2003 Nissan Altima 2.5SL w/ power sunroof: $22,800
So the Altima is $1,000 more in 4 cylinder trim.
2003 Accord EX V6 sedan: $23,700
Nissan Altima 3.5SE with Leather Sport Package & ABS, Traction Control, and Side Airbags: $26,900.
So in V6 guise the Altima is $3,000 more.
In every trim line the Altima is more. What are you paying for? The Accord may not have 17's but it has dual zone climate control. The Accord may not have fog lights but it is safer and gets better gas mileage (there's that extra gear showing it's face). The Altima doesn't have a significant performance advantage in automatic form and if you want to compare a manual Altima to an automatic Accord then you are going to open up a whole different discussion.
As to comparing the new Altima in any way to the first model Altima is laughable and a waste of time. Put it this way, guys care about performance and handling while women care about interior and # of cupholders (to each his own). Honda makes a good car but there is no steering feel. It's easy to drive but drivers want a car that drives hard.
One last point, I saw a show on NBC last week that gave the new Accord only 3 stars in crash tests so it may not be as safe as you think but then again Accord drivers tend to stay well below the speed limit. (why did they even bother making a V6?)
Anyone else hear this ? Because there was the same talk a year ago, but I would call the '03 interior upgrade very minor.
Also, no one is saying that the Altima interior has to be dazzling or luxurious, just not ........
You have all those GREAT features in a great looking car, but after getting into it, you wonder why didn't they finish it !
There is an Altima-Maxima intersection they want to differentiate. Could they be waiting on the Altima interior until the Maxima redesign comes out next year ? Or will the interior always need to be cheezie in order to sell both cars ?
The Altima is a very nice car, but the interior needs a makeover or something. I hear the 03s are a little better, but I don't know.
Also, the optional wood trim is AWFUL! I hated it! Never would pay more for something that looked like that. The whole "$20K vs. $28K" thing didn't work for me, as I wanted a loaded SE model with V6. I wasn't about to pay $28K for a car with an interior like the 02 Altima's that I sat in.
And if it makes you Altima people feel any better, I hate the new Accord as well. It looks like an overgrown Civic to me, and the interior still has that cheap, Japanese "clang" to it.
When I first got the car (we weren't married at the time), she thought my car was nice w/ a plain interior. Her car is a '94 J30 and she thought my plain car didn't compare to hers w/ the soft leather, heated seats..etc. She never really got a chance to drive the Altima, mainly because I wouldn't let her.
Before we were married she borrowed my car for 2 days to move some of her stuff. It was then she really appreciated the Altima. It's weird how she overlooks the plain interior but she does. She loves the roominess and the big trunk and also thinks it's drives much smoother and faster as well as it handling better than her car.
I like the buttery soft leather and the heated seats of her car so it was a pretty good deal. I used to have a '93 J30t so I am very familiar w/ the '94 J30.
Bottom line for me though, we are not going to buy any cars for the next 3 years so I really don't car how much better any other car is than the Altima. In 2005, I'll see what's out there for comparison purposes. I really like the Murano but I'd like to get away from Nissan because I still feel they screwed me over on the Altima w/ the interior.