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Nissan Altima Real World MPG

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Comments

  • genereegeneree Member Posts: 5
    hey tslbmw, hope you don't mind me asking but where do you live? is the climate usually warm in your area? i ask because i called the nissan dealership and the only reason they gave me for bad mileage was cause the cold weather. i average around 18 mpg now having 2300 miles, but damn i'm jealous you're gettting roughly 20 something (your city driving beats my highway miles!)
  • tslbmwtslbmw Member Posts: 172
    I'm in Richmond, VA. The trip that I got 26 & 25 mpg was this past weekend to Atlantic City, NJ and it was in the 20s/30s. And the around town temps (the 22 mpg tank) were about 50 degrees here locally.

    I have to be completely honest with you, I am blown away by the numbers I've received so far. Now, one note, I kept the rpms below 4000 for the first 1200 miles and have since opened it up. Also, when I have the "auto" mode on the climate control on, I always make sure the "a/c" button is off.

    Anyway, i don't think you're alone, maybe they stuck the 2.5 in my 3.5 SE! ;)
  • victrolajazzvictrolajazz Member Posts: 75
    I just recorded 26.8 MPG on a 300 mile tank, rim to rim from previous tank on my '07 3.5 SE with 6,700 miles on it. That was figured using a calculator against the mileage meter showing 27.5 MPG at the end of the trip. For awhile it was up to 28.2 MPG on the meter, but it declined during a terrific headwind for about the last 1/3 of the trip.
  • tslbmwtslbmw Member Posts: 172
    So it seems that my mileage may not be that unusual. To me, 26/27 is excellent! How about your normal around town mpg?
  • victrolajazzvictrolajazz Member Posts: 75
    I've had the car over a year and I've never seen lower than 23 MPG or any tank. I'm retired and have a "dinghy" I use for mostly in-town driving, so that probably produces somewhat better mileage in the Altima.
  • skinsfan3skinsfan3 Member Posts: 78
    I have a 2003 altima with less than 50k miles. Ever since day one, my MPG's have been low. I now get about 18 (that is for local driving) and I understand how stop and go can kill the mileage. I do get around 30 mpg on highway travel (without traffic.)
  • kshieldkshield Member Posts: 1
    Just purchased 08, 4 cyl altima 2.5s..Very dissapointed in mileage avgm 19-20 around town and a recent trip of 30 miles 10 miles to the hwy and 20 actually on the interstate I avg'd 23.6 mpg ....200 miles on the car. Pittsburgh area any sugestions
  • jresjres Member Posts: 69
    1220 miles on the car, three refuelings and I'm getting right around 26 MPG for each fill up. This is for mixed stop and go/highway driving and mixed temperatures NYC area in the winter.
  • mswlogomswlogo Member Posts: 2
    You guys are killing me with these lower than expected mpg figures. My wife gets 33mpg highway (25-26mpg mixed) with her V6 Stick Passat. I read over in the Audi A4 forums folks getting 37.5 mpg highway with a 2.0T Stick. And Prius well up into the the high 40's. I was really looking forward to this car but these numbers just don't look all that great.
  • jresjres Member Posts: 69
    My 26 mpg is dead on what the epa estimate was and that's a 15 mile mixed commute, mainly stop and go in the morning with higher speeds in the afternoon. I'm happy with it and am interested to see what an all highway tanks is like.
  • tslbmwtslbmw Member Posts: 172
    Interesting...those are some strong numbers. I'm getting about 26 on the hwy and about 22 around town with my 3.5 V6 SE Altima CVT and I am extremely pleased (epa 19/26). And I sold an 06 Audi A3 2.0T DSG and was only getting around 21 in town and 28 on the hwy. Usually the turbo four engines don't meet the epa ratings that often, but your numbers from the A4 forum are very strong.
  • busirisbusiris Member Posts: 3,490
    I have a 2008 Altima 2.5SL, with 1000 miles. I have averaged so far right at 27 MPG, all of it around town. This car replaced a 2005 Chevrolet Aveo, and the best it ever got was 25.5 MPG around town. I feel that I get the best of both worlds, a much nicer and roomer auto with better mileage. Haven't tried it out on the highway yet, so no idea about hwy mileage...
  • tslbmwtslbmw Member Posts: 172
    Funny, I thought the only reason someone bought an Aveo was for the excellent gas mileage......I guess you can't even count on that anymore! ;)
  • busirisbusiris Member Posts: 3,490
    You know, that was the plan...an "around town" car, good mileage and easy to park, but not many frills. My Aveo had all the options...sunroof, etc. I probably have accepted the mileage, if the car wasn't falling apart...3rd sunroof at 34 K miles, moaning and groaning suspension, self-destructing interior and insufficient engine power. Oh, I forgot to mention...HORRIBLE service. I think Chevrolet dealers view Aveo owners as something less than pond scum, and the Aveo as a toy...if you read the Aveo forums, you'll find many that agree with that analysis.

    Of course, if you buy the base Aveo with NO options, you can get a cheap ride, and since there isn't anything other than the engine or transmission to break, most of these owners will really like the car. However. my view is that an $800 sunroof on a $14,000 car should be just as reliable as a $800 sunroof on a $25,000 car...but hey, that's just me....
  • jkandlerjkandler Member Posts: 5
    I have a 20007 Altima 2.5L CVT with 10,000 miles that's is only getting 25 MPG on the highway. The dealer sayes it should get better very soon. This is 10 MPG less than published and I typically get 3-5 greater on other cars I have owned. So far the dealer has done nothing. The way I figure it this car will cost me $8-10,000 extra to operate because of the poor mileage. :( Any other similar experiences?? Is this a lemon?

    Jim
  • jd10013jd10013 Member Posts: 779
    its hard to say. a lot of things factor into your mileage. driving habits, traffic, weather, and even the gas you put in it. if your in an area that is using 10% (or god forbid 20%) ethanol, then that will kill your mileage. there could also be other local, state, or epa required additives to your gas that always have the effect of lowering your MPG. It's one of the seldom mentions side effects of all the "green" crap out there.
  • motoguy128motoguy128 Member Posts: 146
    We just took delivery on a new '08 2.5SL. I don't know how people are getting such poor mileage. We averaged 31mpg on the trip home at 70mph. That's the same as my '06 Accord average on the freeway at that speed. My wife's previous '06 Altima would have averaged 29mpg on that same drive. In mixed driving this afternoon we averaged 29mpg on mostly 2 lanes roads.

    Overall, it seems better than the '06 Altima 2.5S we traded in. I was skeptical of the CVT, but it's made me a believer. The manual mode works very well. Unlike a conventional automatic, where you can feel the torque converter lock and unlock, the CVT is directly connected with a similar feel to a manual transmission.

    The passat is a great car, but the VW 2.0T and 3.6 V6 need premium fuel. Reliability for most VW's is well below average, and my only VW dealer is almost 2 hours away. You don't get much for $25k on a VW either.
  • sincraftsincraft Member Posts: 24
    We were JUST about to buy a 2.5sl after a long search for the one we wanted, only to find out that PA (where I live) has just adopted this stupid CA global warming hoax and thus now - all vehicles herein must be ordered with CA emissions.

    Unfortunately, the one they found is a CA emissions. :(

    So our option is to continue searching for a 50 state emissions vehicle (that still passes CA emissions believe it or not) or , taking delivery of this vehicle that gets 1 mpg LESS and 5 less hp!

    We do ALOT of stop and go driving. 1 mile, traffic light...continue for 20 miles. Someone suggested the 6 cyl vs the 4 for actual better mileage in these conditions but the car dealer suggested against it if that would be our purpose for upgrading to a 6 cyl.

    Suggestions?
  • gpcramseysoralgpcramseysoral Member Posts: 2
    I just purchased an 08 2.5s as well. I've got bursts up to 35mpg on the highway. But after filling up at 1/2 a tank i'm yet to break 20mpg. I drive about 15-20 miles per day and about 1/3 of this is highway. I think it's all the hills in the Pittsburgh area. I'm beginning to wonder if I should have bought the 3.5s. I'm also quite dissapoionted in this....

    So what is this breakin period and how long is it supposed to last? I've had it about a 1.5 month's and have put just over 900 miles on it. Also what kind what kind of mpg increase can I expect after this period?
  • sincraftsincraft Member Posts: 24
    Sounds like you got a CA emissions car for sure. I'm hearing more and more that the Altima with CA emissions actually gets 1.5 less mpg (due to our hills). How nice, now we will have to drill for more oil to make up for it. Everything is universal. People don't understand this. I wonder what people are seeing in Pittsburgh with Honda's.
    We went yesterday to buy our Altima (pittsburgh also) and due to some small bumper scuffs we asked that they buff it for our approval or possibly to decline it if we are not happy. It's the only black with blond leather v4 out there really. So I started looking around again last night and came across the ...

    HONDA ACCORD 08! EX-L.

    At first, when we started this process - we looked at an 07 without leather and I believe the smaller less powerful 4 cyl. So, tonight we are going to look at the new 08 with the stronger engine.

    The thing that is kiling me about the Altima is their soft paint. I own a new frontier and have so many little scuffs etc and baby this thing. It's like it was born to scratch easily. Very soft paint. But the cool key system is really keeping me eyeing up the Altima.

    The Honda has LESS MPG. Rated at 21. The CVT transmission in your car 'should' keep you at the 23 mph. Pending you keep the rpms to about 2k. I didn't even look at what we were getting on our test drive. Yes we have MANY hills and traffic lights to deal with. I'm willing to lose a MPG to the Honda if I can assure I have better stopping power with the ESC and Brake Assist that comes standard on it vs the Altima that doesn't even offer it as an option. It's not for me so, it's important that it is safe and drives well in the snow.

    I'm seeing alot of mixed reviews about the gas mileage of the Altima. On a mixed environment , 23 can be had but most are not seeing that. Then there are the lofty 26 mph avg for the 6 cyl owners. You have to take much of this with a grain of salt. My brother claims 17mph on his huge truck. But he drives on straight roads and only about 5 miles A DAY, probably never breaking 40 mph.

    For us, it will come down to the drive. All things being equal it looks like we may opt for the Honda. I can get invoice pricing on both, what did you pay for your altima? The honda will be more by about 1200 if you include the nissan $1k rebate. Over the life of the loan it will be almost $2k exact more expensive for the Honda (due to nissans 3.9 vs honda's 5.0 % rate)
  • motoguy128motoguy128 Member Posts: 146
    All things being equal, the Accord being about 300lbs heavier will get lower mileage, especially with hills. However, as many people are finding, it's easy to put your foot into the CVT and not realize that you're accelerating harder than you realize.

    This isn't magic... the Altima 2.5L makes more power under about 6000RPM than the Hondas 2.4L. (look at the torque ratings) at 4000RPM, where you use it most, the Altima makes as much as 20 more HP than the Accord. More HP = more gas if both have similar overall effeciency. So if you drove both car side by side on the same road, you'll get better mileage with the Altima, but wthout realizing it, you're probably taking advantage of the extra power. The Accord would need to rev another 500RPM to match the Altima's power, an then another 300RPM to make up for the extra weight.

    So... don't put you're foot into it, keep the engine under 2500RPM and you should see an improvement. The trick it to keep an eye on the tachometer, try and keep it from climbing as much as possible. If you're careful with the throttle, you'll find the car can climb like a goat at low RPM's. I've crawled up a 10% grade at about 10mph at only 1400RPM... with 1 passenger. I was expecting it to rev to 2500, but it locked up the torque converter and kept it in the lowest range on the CVT and muscled up it.
  • jkandlerjkandler Member Posts: 5
    Hi, mine is a 2007 2.5S. The dealer said it will be close to 10,000 before it is broke in. I noticed right away that the mpg on the dashboard is about 5 mpg greater than the tank fills. So keep the gas receipts and check the real numbers. Over the winter in Wisconsin I averaged 25.7mpg. Now that spring is here it is 27.6mpg. These are all extremely bad. In the last 15 years I have not owned a car that I didn't get at least +10% over the published numbers for the highway. I drive 49 miles on the freeway each time, and average 40mph. Stangest thing, this is the sames dirve I have been doing for years with these other cars and filling at the same stations. Gee, I must be doing something wrong. If this stays this way I figure that it will cost me $10,000 over my normal usage life of the car to put gas in this thing. I am not a happy person. Friday I go back to the dealer again with my latest gas receipts. :sick:

    If there are other out there with a problem like this I would sure like to hear from you.
  • sincraftsincraft Member Posts: 24
    This is just a pile of s***.

    Personally, I would LOVE to see some class action lawsuits sent out against Honda and Nissan. At SEVERAL dealerships, I was quote WAY above the EPA ranges for City mileage.

    Funny how, when you buy the car (IE: my truck) from a dealer, then call to complain about numbers below the EPA #'s, and they then suddenly remember the hilly terrain we live in and cheap tree hugger non effective gas we use - and use this as an excuse for the reason they flat out LIED to you about what to expect.

    Why do they do this? Well because they all do.

    The only solace is knowing that the Honda DOES get less MPG than the Altima.

    We haven't even gotten ours yet, but I don't expect 23 honestly. Maybe 22. PA adopted the CA standards so we get less MPG. Funny, the website says to expect MORE MPG. Lies.

    It's so funny how people believe this is about saving the trees or the purple nosed squirrels, when in reality it's about making constituents happy and making huge amounts of $$$$$.

    I personally do not know what to do about buying this car either. We only have two choices. One has very light small scratches very low on the bumper about 1 cm in width , about 10 of them. The other, the nose ringed adorned car wash kid used sandpaper to wash the car they picked up on trade from another dealer and now it looks like what my truck did after a year of washing AND a winter.

    I wish there was another option, but after driving the accord today and dealing with the dealers unwilling to do anything less than 3% ABOVE invoice, and after feeling the EXTREME lack of power the accord 4 cyl has to offer...it's a no brainer - Altima all the way. :(

    Oh well. The lesser of two evils I suppose.
  • busirisbusiris Member Posts: 3,490
    Personally, I would have a problem buying a brand new car with any known defect, be it paint or anything else.

    It doesn't sound like your 2 dealer prospects are very customer oriented...that may be a clue to how you will be treated after the sale.

    I purchased a 2.5SL sedan in January 08, and fortunately, the dealership I dealt with was very accomodating....So much, in fact, that when I went to pick the car up, it was raining, and they provided me a demo to drive until the rain ended the next day. The sales manager said that a new car should be driven off the lot on a sunny day to truely be appreciated. It wasn't a big issue to me, but it sent a huge message as to how I would be treated later if a problem arose...
  • sincraftsincraft Member Posts: 24
    I don't want to highjack this thread but I will say in response to you that yes, I'm in a pickle here. We don't service our vehicles at the same places we buy them anyway. I took my Frontier to the garage I bought it over a 6 months period complaining about gas mileage. Finally gave up and went to another Nissan garage where they found some evaporator that needed replaced. Check engine light would pop on, I would go in and 15 mins later they would come out saying it was just a routine light. Yea. After 2 times I left to go elsewhere.

    I just put 10 gallons in the tank, marked my point and yesterday when we were almost home, it was about at the same point (Just before the yel light turns on) and we were at 194 miles! I would NEVER have been at 194 miles prior to the light turning on. Usually about 145-165. TOPS. I have this down to a science as I compared it to a full tank.

    I'm hoping this Altima gets OK gas mileage. At 23 that is a bit LOWWWWW for a 4 cyl. Keep in mind also that we have cars with two different emissions.

    CA, PA and about 15 other states NOW HAVE CARS that are CA emissions. Which means that it will be rated at 22 mph although they legally don't have to put that up there for some reason, they only have to state 23. If they are going to screw us, at least be honest about the end result eh?
  • sincraftsincraft Member Posts: 24
    I just ran the math for a car that lasts 125,000 miles. You will pay about $900 more for that car in fuel by best estimate if you have a car with CA emissions.
    Funny, most people don't even REALIZE that their state only allows a dealer to sell CA emissions product.
    AND, if they adopted this, they also force the fuel to not include as much sulfur in the gas which creates a very small amount of extra emissions. This raises the cost of fuel AND with all the other restrictions in the fuel - reduces your MPG further!

    I thought the whole idea was to have a more efficient car that uses less fossil fuels, NOT to reduce the emissions only to have to create MORE emissions because we will have to use MORE fuel.

    IT DOESNT MAKE SENSE!

    So then I see this on the Nissan Site.
    QR25DE — 2.5-liter DOHC 16-valve 4-cylinder
    Horsepower — 175 hp3 @ 5,600 rpm
    Torque — 180 lb-ft3 @ 3,900 rpm
    Emissions — Tier 2, Bin 5 (LEV2-SULEV in CA)
    VQ35DE — 3.5-liter DOHC 24-valve V6
    Horsepower — 270 hp @ 6,000 rpm
    Torque — 258 lb-ft @ 4,400 rpm
    Emissions — Tier 2, Bin 5

    (FYI SULEV stands for Super Ultra Low Emission Vehicle) It rates at a Bin 3 and VERY close to ZERO emission output.

    However, the 6 cyl does not seem to fall under this category?

    CAN THIS BE TRUE? Maybe THIS is the reason why the 6cyl people are seeing such great MPG in contrast to the 4????? If that's the case, then I'm paying the extra few bucks up front and getting a 6. That actually pushes me toward a more gas guzzling care at that point lol.
  • gpcramseysoralgpcramseysoral Member Posts: 2
    I pay' ed well under invoice for my Altima. This is if you take into consideration that my trade was actually worth nothing because the work it needed exceeded the value of the car. Obvcouse what it cost me to repair the vehicle and what it cost's them to repair it is two different things. But all things considered i'm pleased with the cost of the vehicle.

    I'm on a lease so a 1000.00 or so was relatively inconsequential for me. It was all about getting the most MPG's for the lowest payment without stepping into something that has no power.

    So my cost/value situation was unique to say the least.
  • kdshapirokdshapiro Member Posts: 5,751
    EXTREME lack of power

    One persons driving like a granny is another persons driving like a bat out of you know where. This is a case in point. Accord 4 cyl by all means has never been criticised for lack of power. OTOH when I drove the 2.5 compared to my XT I thought it accelerated like molasses and didn't like the drive very much.
  • snelsonlsnelsonl Member Posts: 1
    Greetings. I am currently in negotiations with a dealership for a 2008 2.5S SL Altima. The dealership claims the gas mileage is 26/town - 35/hwy. Both Edmunds and Kelley have the gas mileage listed well below that at 23/31. Could anyone currently driving this vehicle shed some light on what the actual gas mileage will be? I live in flat Florida so maybe that will help...?

    Thx!
  • motoguy128motoguy128 Member Posts: 146
    26/35 was the old pre '08 EPA rating system. for '08 they now list a more realistic 23/31.

    Rating sare only ment ot be used on a caparitive bases. So if you have a Honda Accord 4cyl rated at 21/31... you can therefore expect about 9% better mileage in the city and the same on the highway over the Accord.

    If you're trading in a Chevy Envoy rated at somthing like 12/17, you could expect to get roughly 47% better mileage in the city and 45% better mileage on the freeway.

    More improtantly, in the city, heavier cars get worse mileage than lighter ones, and on the freway, better aerodynamics help the most.

    Realistically comparing the Altima with other midsized cars, you could conclude that it's the lighter weight of the car that helps mileage the most, more than the CVT transmission.

    On theo other hand, consider that the Altima has more horespower, so you can expext to get worse mileage than other midsized cars if you drive aggressively.
  • ken75ken75 Member Posts: 52
    We have owned a 2008 2.5 SL since November and have only put on 1700 miles, mostly in cold winter (Mn.) weather and using the trip computer, we are getting 24.8 mpg at about 70% city and 30 % highway driving. On a recent short trip (100 miles) we averaged 30.8 mpg, all highway. With time, use of the vehicle and warmer weather, I believe both city and highway numbers will increase by 5% - 10 % and make me very happy. I traded a Ford F-150 for the Altima at a good time. I loved the truck but.................

    The above was done with moderate driving practices except for on ramps where the person in front has to stop, take a look and slowly accelerate onto the highway thus forcing me to go around if room and traffic allows. Normally I do not have a heavy foot and highway speeds are generally at or slightly above (5 mph) posted speeds. The I4 has all the power I need and with good MPG, this will be a great friendship.
  • rhythmgtr5rhythmgtr5 Member Posts: 3
    I've had my 2008 2.5s for almost 3.5 months now and have driven 2,800 miles in the cold MN weather. My avg MPG is 24. Needless to say I'm disappointed. On top of this, the car has been in the shop 4 times at 2 different dealerships to fix a rattle. unreal... i thought that by ditching my Volkswagen and getting a Nissan I could spend a few months without having to sit in a shop while my car is being worked on.
  • neo_neo_ Member Posts: 14
    I think you should give it a few more months. The avg is bad during winters (more idling, snow). I bought my 2007 2.5S last July and was doing 27+ with about 50% city and 50% highway, which I think is pretty impressive. I have done about 7K so far. The winter has dragged down my overall avg to 26. I do drive with a very light foot though.

    As for the recalls, I know it makes you feel bad that you have to take your new car for a fix but I think every new model has a few quirks.

    All in all, I am happy with mine and hope you would be too and soon

    BTW, I am in Milwaukee.
  • sincraftsincraft Member Posts: 24
    Is there a site where we could view recalls for a car? There was no mention of recalls when we picked up the 2.5s.
  • rhythmgtr5rhythmgtr5 Member Posts: 3
    I believe the poster above misspoke; there are no recalls on the 2.5s as far I know.

    My car has been in the shop for rattles, not recall issues. Does anyone else have tons of rattles in theirs? They fixed the one in the roof yesterday, but now I can hear one in the passenger door - unreal.
  • busirisbusiris Member Posts: 3,490
    www.nhtsa.dot.gov/ site has recall info...
  • neo_neo_ Member Posts: 14
    There are 2 recalls for the 2007 model that I know of. I got letters from Nissan informing of the same. First was to add some cover on the air intake to stop debris from entering or something like that and the latest is about a rattling noise that comes from the engine sometimes when you start the car. I have no other rattling noises otherwise.

    May be they have corrected the recalls for the 2008 model.
  • sincraftsincraft Member Posts: 24
    I included the moonroof deflection as this will create a bit more drag.

    After 1 week of driving, about 400 miles 50% city 50% highway

    24 mpg avg.

    I gotta say I'm kinda happy about this.

    1. We live on hills. EVERYWHERE you go, hills hills hills. Even our two lane roads go up and down big hills. And ever 1 mile - 1/4 mile is a stop light. Then there are the back roads. Go up a hill, stop at the top, go up some more stop and turn onto highway, go about 2500 feet at 50mph till a red light, go another 300 yards - red light.
    So as you can see, our highway isn't really highway. I can almost say it would be many people's definition of ALL city driving. (which it really is)

    I had it up to 25 mpg yesterday but my sweety brought it back down to 24 with her heavy foot. Not that I was being all that gentle either. :)

    So far, she is happy with it - it's her car and she drives it. Since it blocks my truck, I take it to run errands a couple times and LOVE the smooooooooooooooooth as ice ride.

    I don't like the seemingly cheap suspension that is in this car. Going over train tracks and the car feels like ...well....a kia that hit a pebble. (If you ever test drove a n optima...you will know what I mean)

    Total miles on car <500. I will report back at 5k.

    :)
  • buyingaltimabuyingaltima Member Posts: 1
    I've read over some comments regarding the MPG of an Altima, and I have to say that as I potential owner of this car, I'm not sure what kind of gas mileage I will get. Before I buy this car, I want to know how many of you are happy with your gas mileage and drive about 70%city, 30%hwy? This is one of the reasons I want to purchase this car, so I need to make sure the mileage is reasonable.
  • jd10013jd10013 Member Posts: 779
    with the I4 you'll probably get mid to upper 20's. I doubt you'll crack 30 with 70% city. but if your determined to buy a midsize, the altima does have the best MPG in the class.
  • busirisbusiris Member Posts: 3,490
    I have an 08 2.5SL loaded with CVT, and consistantly get 26-27 in town. Most (90%+) of my driving is in town.
  • sincraftsincraft Member Posts: 24
    Hey listen, you are going to find sooooooo many people here falsifying mileage or stretching the truth. It's kinda funny. I listen to people all day (I do computer work in dealerships now), lying about mpg and comparing it to their friends..like it's some level of bravado.

    I personally think this is simple minded. I'm a stats pig and LOVE anything with stats.

    I LOVE this car because I can watch my immediate MPG and long term MPG.

    All I can tell you is, if you know Pittsburgh at all then you know what I drive on. 1000feet of open straight roads and 1 mile of up and down hills, stop and start in traffic jams or road construction. It's about the worst kind of driving you can imagine.

    I'm probably on par with what your driving is. Although I don't know if you are looking for more power too. We wanted something that wasn't going to be ANNOYING to drive when it powers up. Do you have any idea how hard it is to drive a 6 cyl frontier in stop and start bumper to bumper traffic? This truck has NO slow start...touch the gas and BOOM it wants to mooooooooooooooove. MUCH more power than most 8 cyl American trucks, by far.

    That said, we also wanted something that could pull out quickly, smoothly and have a decent ride.

    The altima was the ULTIMATE to all of these.

    Honda fanboys are kidding themselves if they find the Accord superior to the Altima. I went in this with no pre conceived notions of the two. I drove the honda, and looked at the real time gas mileage. I then did the same with the nissan. I repeated this process twice. (dealing with slimeballs in between). Everything on the Altima seemed better, but I must admit that suspension of BOTH vehicles leaves something to be desired. The Altima had a smoother overall ride, but hitting bumps (small sharp ones) revealed a cheaper feel that took you out of that almost luxury feel of the altima with leather.

    The altima's 4 cyl engine completely blows away the honda's too. Between the two, the Honda will probably exceed the Nissan in 5 years with resale value within 1k. But to get the same things after you deal properly - you will pay far less than 1k for the nissan to match everything on the honda. So resale value is a moot point.

    You need to test drive EVERY car you can get your hands on. Call a manager at a dealership, tell them what you are interested in and what you are looking at. Tell them you want to drive the car and if it feels right, and the research falls into place - you will buy that car from them or their salesperson of choice, but you do NOT want to be propositioned for a high pressure sales technique as you are in a preliminary step of a long process.

    See they expect people to walk in off the street, drop the keys to their old car and hop into the next model they drove like you were swapping dvds at the movie store.

    Only idiots do that, and only idiots talk about how much they want to pay per month. Everyone should have this number in their eyes long before shopping for a car, then target the interest rates and prices that can reach that target. If you let a dealer do that for you, you are liable to get roped into a very raw deal.

    I can't tell you how many people I know, when I ask how much did you pay for your car, they say I don't know but are happy because they bought back their old car still on loan and now only pay about the same for a new car. DUH! (these people should only be leasing their cars honestly) So they paid monthly payments forever and are happy with their mid sized american car...when they could have been driving a luxury car for the same monthly payments on a lease.

    Oh well. Anyway - sorry for going on at length about this. There are so many ill informed people out there I feel it necessary to illuminate some of the buying process when asked...especially when it comes to the NISSAN ALTIMA! We love this car so far (so far!!!!!!!), and hope it will prove to be the best decision that we believe it to be. But for anyone else thinking of buying one, all I can say is look at:
    1.previous track record.
    2.service group (Nissan's is great!)
    3.price/mpg
    4.the feel...
    5.availability.

    Good luck!

    (P.S. We are now up to 26 mpg recently, on our 2nd tank now.)
  • busirisbusiris Member Posts: 3,490
    I can't tell you how many people I know, when I ask how much did you pay for your car, they say I don't know but are happy because they bought back their old car still on loan and now only pay about the same for a new car. DUH!

    Isn't that the truth?

    So many folks only concerned with how much the monthly payment is going to be...

    And, you can easily see just how well that philosophy worked out when it got translated and transferred to the housing arena!
  • genereegeneree Member Posts: 5
    hey everyone, i have a V6, do not drive aggressivley at all but i still get 18-19mpg per tank, which i think is bull. i spoke to the dealership but they just gave me the cold shoulder and told me not to rev too hard or cause the cold weather the gas will burn in such a way that's a little quicker than usual. almost have 5thousand miles on my car so break in is def over. any ideas?
  • omelet1978omelet1978 Member Posts: 10
    I had the same problem too. My mileage slowly started increasing around the 6000 mile point. I'm at about 7500 and now I'm getting just over 21mpg. I talked to my father about it and he said it takes about 10000 miles to really break an engine in, so I would just give it a little more time. Oh, and while I don't floor it everywhere I definitely use the power when I want to.
  • jresjres Member Posts: 69
    5300 miles on the car and what I've gotten so far is pretty much dead on with the EPA estimates, any sort of mixed driving I get 26 mpg, on the open road 32-33 mpg. I'm happy with it.
  • jkandlerjkandler Member Posts: 5
    Are you reporting the actual gas usage or some miles or the gauge on the dash. The dash indicator is not accurate. check it out, even Nisan says the fill the tank and divide by the miles traveled.
  • billhoobillhoo Member Posts: 1
    There are some new cars coming out within the next year or so that can reach 230 - 300 miles per gallon.

    From what I've read, they do no use radical engine technology.

    The Aptera hybrid gets it's fuel advantage primarily from it's hyper streamlined body design.
    www.aptera.com

    The new Volkswagon coming out in 2010 also has a bullet-shape and a regular gas engine with a slightly more efficient fuel injector. It gets its 230 MPG from the shape of the body too.

    Less air to push around.

    So are there any kits out there to modify the Altima? I think tossing out the back seat and a lot of junk in the trunk and a streamlined hood can get that kind of mileage on an Altima.
  • trolleyfantrolleyfan Member Posts: 7
    I'm just about ready to turn 2000 miles with my V6. My last fill up which was about 60% city and 40 highway gave me 23.6mpg (actual). My highway trip, cruise control set to 73, some back road hills but mostly Turnpike got me 26.5mpg. I try to drive smart and coast knowing a stop sign or red light is ahead, but do utilize the power of the six when I feel the urge or need.

    Honestly, the reason I bought six over the four was because of the much quieter engine. It came down to this or an Acura TSX. If the Altima 4 was as quiet as the Acura, I would have bought the Altima with the 4 cylinder. Love the Bose upgraded sound system with a quiet engine.
  • jd10013jd10013 Member Posts: 779
    LOL. its not the body shape that gives it good mpg. 1. its tiny and lightweight. and 2, it's electric. no gasoline car gets anywhere close to 230mpg. even scotters can't touch that.
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