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Nissan Altima Hybrid Prices Paid and Buying Experience

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Comments

  • hiwaymanhiwayman Member Posts: 98
    That's hilarious, man! I don't think I've ever heard of cup-holders in a car being a deal breaker before.... But yes, the NAH DOES have rear-seat cup holders. They are in the center, fold-down arm rest and in the door pockets (4 all together.
  • langjielangjie Member Posts: 250
    yep, cupholders galore!!!!!
  • stevedebistevedebi Member Posts: 4,098
    "yep, cupholders galore!!!!!"

    It's funny how times change. My daily driver is a 1987 Toyota FX, and there is not a SINGLE cup holder in the vehicle!
  • viperjoeviperjoe Member Posts: 7
    What is the warranty on the battery pack and does anybody have a clue on what next months incentives will be before I pull the trigger.Thanks
  • emgremgr Member Posts: 109
    Your latter question is the $24,000 question. From what I heard the batter warranty may depend on the state that you live in. I believe in NY State, Hybrid manufactures are obligated to warranty the hybrid parts for 180,00 miles. But I could be wrong in that figure.
  • jaydee49jaydee49 Member Posts: 7
    I'm in the same boat, trying to decide whether to pull trigger now or wait. I would have to think the incentives after 9/4/07 would either stay the same or get better. Though at some point the 07 inventory dwindles. I am in no hurry, been researching/shopping for 2+ months now.
  • hiwaymanhiwayman Member Posts: 98
    Battery pack warranty varies from state-to-state. Check with your local dealer. A quick phone call will get you the info you need. I think most of the warranties are 150,000 miles or better.

    The comment about cup holders appearing in late-model cars is interesting. Cup holders appeared. Ashtrays disappeared. Cigarette lighters did, too. So did vent windows. What's next? ;-). BTW, if my count is correct, between front and rear, there are 10 cup holders for 5 passengers. Four in the front center console, 2 in the rear center arm rest, and one in each of four doors. "Anyone need to stop for a bathroom break?!?!"
  • langjielangjie Member Posts: 250
    i think it's ONLY 9...there's only 3 in the center console.

    though the 3 are great, fits almost any cup!
  • saabgeorgesaabgeorge Member Posts: 22
    Since the car is only sold in CA emission states and meets the government's AT/PZEV, the warranty is the same for all hybrids no matter where you have Nissan service it.

    California Emission Performance - 180 months/150,000 miles

    California Emission Defect - 180 months/150,000 miles

    California Emission High Voltage Battery - 120 months/150,000 miles

    Hybrid Electric(HEV)System - 96 months / 100,000 miles

    http://www.nissanusa.com/pdf/techpubs/altima_hybrid/2007/2007_Altima_Hybrid_WIB.- - pdf
  • hiwaymanhiwayman Member Posts: 98
    You're right. I checked later after writing the note. In the center console it's 3, with a couple of slots for coins or poker chips or cookies, depending upon what your needs are...
  • hiwaymanhiwayman Member Posts: 98
    Thanks for the details. I searched all over Nissan's site, and didn't find what you did..... It's probably valuable to note here, that these warranties do not cover the extensive electronics packages that are not specific to the hybrid system. If you get the connection package, and especially the tech package, seriously consider an extended warranty. Nissan has a pretty cool deal. If you do buy an extended warranty from them, and you don't use it, they refund your money in full when the warranty expires. While a finance guy knows that's giving them free money to use for the course of the warranty, it's a nice gesture for them to offer to refund what they could just take and run with. My guess is, though, considering the complexities of the NAV, XM, passenger-compartment environmental controls, that SOMETHING will go wrong after the regular warranty expires....to the tune of thousands of dollars. For instance, our salesman told us that an AC compressor for the NAH is electrically powered (normal ones are driven off the engine). The cost of parts for a replacement (no labor..just parts) is $2500.00. OUCH!!! I'm enjoying my car, but NOT looking forward to its "golden years". ;)
  • langjielangjie Member Posts: 250
    yeah, it's a good point. i have an extended warranty for my car, though it's not from nissan. oh well, i researched online and found that the company wasn't bad
  • hiwaymanhiwayman Member Posts: 98
    Where ever you get your extended warranty, I think on these new cars with all the electronics for handling control, entertainment, and comfort, you will be thanking your lucky stars you bought the warranty in a few years. Japanese electronics are excellent, but everything wears out after a while, no matter how good it is. I look at all the warning/status lights on my dashboard, each one representing a system of some kind. There's a lot there to misbehave....
  • emgremgr Member Posts: 109
    I just got this from my dealer. Remember that I placed a $500 deposit on the car on June 12th.

    "I have no good news. I spoke with distribution on your vehicle and it will be an October production car as they will not be building leather or technology packaged cars until their over surplus of the base cars have dwindled. "
  • langjielangjie Member Posts: 250
    that makes no sense at all.
  • jaydee49jaydee49 Member Posts: 7
    Looks like the 60 month financing went up to 4.9% which is surprising. Rebate is $1500 now.
  • happy_hybrid_1happy_hybrid_1 Member Posts: 41
    Your dealer is full of $hit. While that may be the case now, if you placed an order on June 12th, you should be able to have gotten your car sometime in August. As far as them not making Tech Packaged Cars, that has to be complete bs. I got want amounts to be one of the last 2007s off the line, and it has a Tech Package. My original order went in on 5/7. That car was wrecked on 6/25. Then, they reordered on 6/26, and my second car came in 8/17. Where are you located, and what dealer are you using? I highly suggest you get your deposit back and go elsewhere. It sounds like they are jerking you around.
  • langjielangjie Member Posts: 250
    there is about an 8 week turnaround period from when the order is placed to when you actually get your car. i think in your case, they might have expedited the order or already had another vehicle ordered and just tagged it as yours. but he should have received his car by now
  • hiwaymanhiwayman Member Posts: 98
    While it's undoubtedly true that there's an 8-week turnaround if you order a specific car, most dealers order well in advance, and then you choose from among the vehicles they've ordered. There are only three packages available for the NAH, the baseline, the connection, and the tech. The only latitude, then is the color combos. If you're looking for a specific color combo in a specific package, you may have to wait.

    Our own experience was that our dealership was getting groups of hybrids in, about 5 at a time, in various colors (mostly tech packages). We could choose from the color combos. Fortunately, one of the incoming cars was exactly what we wanted, so we only had to wait about a month.

    I'm very suspicious of a dealer claiming that there's a glut of tech packages. They're rare, as near as I can tell (at least here in Northern California), here at the end of the model year. Maybe a few phone calls would be in order. Even one to Nissan US Corporate might shed some light on the issue. My only question for your dealership is, "If there's a glut, where are these cars? I'll go buy one there!" ;)
  • tomscot2tomscot2 Member Posts: 33
    There is a "Glut" (4-5 cars per dealership) of Basic and Connection package NAHs here in So California. Tech packages are impossible to find. If the dealers do get one that is not committed to a buyer, they don't even list in the inventory as they seem to sell right away. We went in to order ours with a Tech package and lucked out that they had one the lot that wasn't in the inventory.
  • emgremgr Member Posts: 109
    What the dealer said was that there was a glut of base Altima Hyrbrids and not connection or tech. I myself called around in a 500 mile distance including dealers in New York, New Jersey and Mass. I found only one dealer in Mass who had tech packages and I would have accepted almost any color. I would have had to travel 1,000 miles round trip and was willing to do that. However, he wanted full list plus.

    I think I used an Italian hand gesture at that news.
  • hiwaymanhiwayman Member Posts: 98
    Ohhhh, OK. I misunderstood. Now it makes sense. I bet Nissan is cranking up the Tech/connection package assembly lines, now, but still, it's not like flipping a switch. It'll take time to get inventory in the pipeline and onto the dealer lots.

    Putting a new product on the market is always a crap shoot. Though the Toyota Prius has demonstrated itself to be very popular, it hits a slightly different market segment than the NAH. The NAH is a sport-hybrid, which is hitting a segment that Nissan (and others) doesn't completely understand, yet. It's people who want good feel of driving a hybrid, without giving up sportiness, and apaprently, gadgetry. I'm sure Nissan's marketing and sales departments are looking at the sales figures with a bit of amazement. No one wants the base package to speak of (unless you can't afford the higher-priced packages). More people want the connection package, but what the heck, for a few thousand more, you get all the cool stuff...

    I'm guessing that Nissan had it upside down. They probably built a lot of base and connection packages, thinking, "these hybrid drivers are all about economy and price point", while building relatively few of the tech packages for the "unusual" driver who wanted hybrididity, serendipity, and fun.... :shades:
  • langjielangjie Member Posts: 250
    i agree. anyone who wants a hybrid for about 24k might as well get the prius and not a base altima. more people wanted a luxury hybrid here. i had to wait 3 months for my tech package hybrid
  • emgremgr Member Posts: 109
    You don't make me feel so bad. But they say it is being built in October. I wonder if the delivery will be October or November?
  • hiwaymanhiwayman Member Posts: 98
    I don't know what the lead time between build and delivery is these days, but when we got our car in June, it was about two weeks. We had to wait a month, because they were behind on manufacturing dates, but once the dealership was notified the car was built, we drove it off the lot two weeks later. Hopefully Nissan is catching up.

    In any manufacturing business, inventory sitting in a warehouse or on a lot costs money for the company. The manufacturer wants to get their product in the hands of the consumer as quickly as possible to keep the cash flow healthy. You can bet that Nissan will get the car into your sweaty little hands as soon as they possibly can.

    Now that they're overcoming the shock of the overwhelming popularity of a car they thought wasn't going to sell very well, I bet there are a lot of assembly workers getting a lot of overtime out Kentucky-way (where the NAH is built). Fingers crossed that you won't have to wait too long...
  • langjielangjie Member Posts: 250
    the actual building time to delivery time is about 8 weeks. I'm thinking you'll take delivery late november to december

    the one good thing is, i know you move up the queue if a customer is attached to a car instead of a dealership name

    i do hope you get your car earlier than later, but plan on december
  • emgremgr Member Posts: 109
    Thanks Langjie, But you would think the dealer would tell me that rather than keep me getting more frustrated. If it is December, than it will be 6 months from the date of the order. That is really Sh*t!
  • stevedebistevedebi Member Posts: 4,098
    "i agree. anyone who wants a hybrid for about 24k might as well get the prius and not a base altima. more people wanted a luxury hybrid here. i had to wait 3 months for my tech package hybrid"

    For those not impacted by the AMT, the Nissan has the full hybrid rebate available, which drastically reduces the price of the car vs. a Prius.
  • emgremgr Member Posts: 109
    Stevedebi,

    What Hybrid Rebate are you talking about? I can't find anything. If you are talking about the tax credit, that is old news.
  • saabgeorgesaabgeorge Member Posts: 22
    i agree. anyone who wants a hybrid for about 24k might as well get the prius and not a base altima. more people wanted a luxury hybrid here. i had to wait 3 months for my tech package hybrid

    I can't agree entirely with this statement - not everyone is looking for a full blown version of the NAH. You could make the exact opposite statement - anyone who wants to spend $32,000 for a hybrid should get the Camry - I belive you can get a similar equipped Camry for less. I think Nissan grossly overpriced their options - $7,000 for the Tech package - that's insane.

    I actually had to look around to buy the "base" NAH. I still have the same mechanics/styling/performance as a fully blown version. Why would I want a Prius instead? The only thing I'm missing are the extra creature comforts which I still can provide in part by using my Garmin GPS and my BlueAnt bluetooth speaker - which I can move to my other vehicles. The "base" NAH is a well equipped car - not a stripped version.

    You can get $1,000 to $2,000 off sticker on a "base" NAH plus the tax credit making it a great bargin and you'll be able to recover the "hybrid premium" in a very short time.

    I wish Nissan would have split up there options into seperate available items as I would have liked the heated seats.
  • stevedebistevedebi Member Posts: 4,098
    " What Hybrid Rebate are you talking about? I can't find anything. If you are talking about the tax credit, that is old news."

    Sorry, yes, I was referring to the tax credit.

    I realize it is "old news", but I was responding to a message that said one might as well buy a Prius rather than wait for an Altima Hybrid. My point is that the Tax Credit was available for the Nissan, but (after Sep 30) not available on the Prius. That could be a serious chunk of change for a taxpayer who is not subject to AMT.
  • lovenavylovenavy Member Posts: 15
    I went to a dealer in southern california to check out nah with tech package. They have one left. 07 nah with 67 miles on the odometer. I ask the saleman why so many miles on the odometer. He replies, It was test driven by more than 10 people. I decided negotiate the price anyway. MSRP $33,250. I offer $30,000 plus ttl. Salesman wants 31,000 plus ttl, so i just walk out. What do you folks think?
  • emgremgr Member Posts: 109
    $31,000 is a very good price. Looking at Edmund's and seeing his cost as well as a better financing deal. I I think that looked good. Even being an '07 with a few miles. Actually anything under 500 miles is considered still new inventory to a dealer.
  • townboy325townboy325 Member Posts: 37
    why not wait for the 08, also isn't there was a 1000 rebate for the hybrid for now?
    I really don't see whats the problem to get base Altima Hybrid instead of Prius. If u have 4 or 5 people in the car and go uphill than u know why u didn't or glade u didn't get the Prius.
  • emgremgr Member Posts: 109
    Gosh I guess some people don't read at all. While my order back in June was for an 07, it was in July that they told me that they couldn't get it and it would have to be an 08.

    I am way ahead of you. Also told that the build date would be in October and delivery would be the end of November. Almost 6 months from the order and deposit date.

    I have ridden in many Altima base cars and the seats kill me and just to plain for my taste. That is why I wanted the tech package.
  • smr36smr36 Member Posts: 59
    I compared prices and specs on an Altima w/ tech pkg at $32k with a Prius - Touring w/ Pkg. #6 at $28k. Besides the $4k addl cost for the Altima based on current 9-16-08 prices, here's what I noted:

    '08 mpg: 42/36 for the Altima vs. 48/45 for Prius.
    The Altima is 550 lbs. heavier but has 162 vs 82 (more)torque
    The Altima has a wider turning circle 37.4 vs. 34.1 ft.
    The Altima has smaller luggage space 10.1 vs 14.4 sq. ft.

    There are other differences, but for me the above are what's important. It appears that except for the more powerful gas engine, the Prius has the advantage.

    What do you think? How would you chose between the two?

    Steve
  • langjielangjie Member Posts: 250
    the 08 mpg for the altima is actually 35/33
  • smr36smr36 Member Posts: 59
    Thanks for the correction. I've decided to go for the Prius.

    Steve
  • bcp01scu05bcp01scu05 Member Posts: 19
    I drive a NAH and my mom, aunt and uncle all drive Priuses (Prii?), so I can give a decent answer to this question.

    I think it boils down to whether you want a smaller car or not. They are both great cars, but objectively, the Prius is the better car unless you want the niceties (better seating, bigger interior, maybe some more technological goodies) of the NAH. The Prius has much better mileage and is cheaper, although I would say I would feel much safer in an accident in the NAH. All of the above, like I said, boils down to whether you want a smaller car or not.

    The other big change is the styling. I've heard very positive things about the NAH's styling, and very few people disliking it. The Prius is more of a "love it or hate it" styling, though, and the hatchback design does take a little bit of getting used to.

    Ultimately, I don't think you could go wrong with either one. If you don't have issues with the Prius styling, and don't mind the smaller interior, the Prius is your car. If you want something bigger with maybe a few more creature comforts, go for the NAH.

    PS. I think the difference in the cargo areas is a little misleading. The Prius may have more overall space, but if you filled up that space, you would also likely be blocking your rear view. Assuming you don't want to do that, I would guess that the storage space is about equal, except the Prius' space is deeper while the NAH's is taller. The Prius still has the advantage, though, as I'd rather have the deeper space.
  • langjielangjie Member Posts: 250
    goodluck with your purchase

    but for what it's worth, i love my NAH
  • rahoooolrahooool Member Posts: 1
    I paid invoice on the base Altima and no destination charge which is effectively 600 below invoice. FYI I got the Nissan special APR instead of the manufacturer rebate. I was looking for the convenience package but they didnt have one so they offered me this deal.

    How much did youll pay for etching/documentary/registration. I go charged 199/299/400 - I think I got taken for a ride there. Any suggestions?
  • langjielangjie Member Posts: 250
    you got ripped off in etching (i think there's a kit that only costs $30)

    documentation isn't horrible, a little on the higher side

    i'm not sure about registration for NJ

    but we'll just say you gave back the destination and handle fee, overall, not bad
  • jaydee49jaydee49 Member Posts: 7
    does anyone know, to get the $1500 rebate do you have to finance through Nissan or can I do that privately?
  • tomscot2tomscot2 Member Posts: 33
    There are no published rebates currently available for the NAH that I can find. If you are talking about the Federal Income Tax Credit, you must apply for that when you file your 2007 income tax return. It will be a reduction in the amount of taxes owed. For the 2007 NAH (and probably the 2008 NAH purchased before 12/31/07) the credit will be $2,350. However, once 60,000 are sold it will start to be phased out. See Fueleconomy.gov for more info on the tax credit.

    You should also read the article Hybrid tax credit bait and switch which describes all of the ways that the credit can be reduced by your particular tax circumstances.
  • townboy325townboy325 Member Posts: 37
    There is a rebate($1000) going on about a month ago in here NorCal but like many other take rebate than no specail fin.

    Also i did get the Altima with CVPKG instant of the Prius cause it has more room and a lot more power for a family car to seat 5. For 31K or more for the Tech. PKG why not u get the Prius with PKG 6 for around 26K(that how much 2 month ago when i searching for Altima which they where on sale could be more now) isn't that the same question???
  • insikinsik Member Posts: 6
    I just got my altima hybrid 2007 and the rebate was $1500.00. Plus the dealer throw in another $300.00 discount. I got it for $23707 OTD. I don't know what package comes with this but it comes with alloy wheels but no power seat.
  • insikinsik Member Posts: 6
    For the other person asking if the rebate is if you are financing through Nissan, no, I got the rebate even when I told them that I will be financing though my own bank. But when I went to the finance officer to do the paper works, she told me that either 4.9% APR or the $1,500 rebates. But still I got the $1,500. This is at Nissan Oxnard. Anybody looking at this dealership, look for Kevin Stokes (nice guy to deal with). They did not put too much pressure on me. They only asked once (like selling extended warranty) and when I said no, then it's done.
  • townboy325townboy325 Member Posts: 37
    well, u got the base one for no power seat on driver side... if u have power seat and spolier and other things than u have CovPKG... wondering how much u pay before titile, tax etc. than we'll know u have good price or not. i got my with covPkg in May for 24020 and out door 2600x and no rebate at the time but i do get the .7% for 36 month thought Nissan.
  • insikinsik Member Posts: 6
    I got it for 21,715 + TTL. The alloy wheels comes standard with the hybrid. So, mine does not come with Conv. Package.
  • Karen_SKaren_S Member Posts: 5,092
    A reporter with a large finance magazine is hoping to talk to consumers who just purchased or looking to purchase a more fuel-efficient car for their daily commute. Please reply to ctalati@edmunds.com no later than Monday, October 8, 2007 with your daytime contact info.
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