Executive Editor Brandon Dye introduces us to the 2012 Nissan Juke. While it’s got a face only a mother could love, the rest of this funky looking crossover’s attributes amount to more than we expected.
Proof That The Midsize Sedan Segment Is More Competitive Than Ever
We’re not sure why, but when we think of the midsize sedan segment our minds tend to picture the Toyota Camry or Honda Accord, or maybe even the Ford Fusion or Chevrolet Malibu. For some reason we don’t immediately remember the Nissan Altima. We’d blame marketing except dealers managed to push almost 230,000 of them into American driveways last year making it the third best selling midsizer behind the Camry and Accord. Maybe we should blame ourselves. The press seems content to watch Toyota and Honda duke it out for first and occasionally devote a few words to how the domestic competition is stacking up against—you guessed it—the Camry and Accord. But Nissan has nothing to be ashamed of, as our week in an Altima 2.5 S proved. Read more…
Nissan Manages to Offer up an Unconventionally Styled Conventional Crossover
A few years back I found myself earning a living after answering a job posting at a local car rental agency with the unglamorous description of ‘Lot Attendant’. As the lowly lot attendant I found myself vacuuming and washing battered and abused rental cars, completing vehicle inspections of those poor cars, towing them to and from remote locations using a tired F-150 of indeterminate vintage with an auto dolly and shuttling customers to and from dealerships while their cars were in service. It was the dealership customers that seemed to be the most interesting, as they often shared a story of their once-loved purchase. The most amazing stories reliably came from our Nissan Murano customers. It seemed that this early entry in the crossover craze was also one of the first larger vehicles to offer a continuously variable transmission (CVT) in the US. So problematic was the transmission that one customer posted a “for sale” sign of his Murano in our office hoping to offload the vehicle onto one of our customers dulled by a sense of mediocrity after turning in their rental Chevy Classic. On more than one occasion I witnessed a problematic Murano in the service department with entire engine and transmission removed as the mechanics searched for a solution. It should come as no surprise, then, that I wasn’t expecting much when an all-wheel-drive 2011 Murano SL showed up in the Automotive Trends garage. Would this vehicle’s unloved CVT and bizarre styling draw further criticism, or, like the Mazda CX-7 we drove last year, surprise by exceeding expectations? Read more…
The boys have spring fever but somehow managed to get a 2011 BMW 335i Coupe out for a little bit of track time. Catch up with them as they discuss the 2011 New York Auto Show and throw a quartet of new cars at Gernand’s Design Wall before driving down the middle of the road in a Nissan Murano.
Design Editor Gernand takes a ride in the 2011 Nissan Murano to discuss that while the design is bold and compelling, the vehicle itself rides down the middle of the road.
Best If Used By 2007
The little Versa washed up on our shores back in 2006 as an ‘07 model looking pretty much like the same car you see here. But dig into history a bit and you will find that the Versa first went on sale in Japan in 2004. The little Nissan has gone by the aliases Tiida, Tiida Latio, Latio, Versa and the Dodge Trazo. It has been sold in Japan, Latin American, Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia, Canada, a select smattering of European countries, and likely a few more places we just don’t have the space here to list. So to say this car is getting a bit long in the tooth is a bit of an understatement. Nevertheless, when the Versa showed up in the AT Garage we had a road trip assignment ready for it. Read more…
Econoline, Express, Savana, Beauville, Ram Van. These are not typically vehicle names that are brought up in conversations with auto enthusiasts unless one is talking about its merits as a tow vehicle. The general public has been largely disinterested with the entire full size van market ever since the Chrysler minivans debuted in 1984, forever changing the van market. Read more…
Nissan Puts The Accord Coupe In Its Crosshairs
Nissan recently launched its revised 2007 Altima sedan complete with the requisite Hybrid model to generally positive reviews. While we haven’t driven the latest iteration of the family hauler we expect it to continue being the slightly sportier, less frumpy alternative to the Camry and Accord that it has always been. But Nissan is no longer content with simply fighting for the family sedan buyer; it wants to offer something for what it calls “typically younger, more performance-oriented coupe buyers.” And after driving it, the Camry Solara and Accord Coupe better hit the gym and get down to fighting weight because the all-new 2008 Altima Coupe offers credible performance in a body almost as sexy as the big brother Infiniti G37. Read more…
It seems like only yesterday that Nissan was bragging about its stylish new Altima. Sales were hot when it was introduced in 2002, but they’ve cooled somewhat in the face of new competition, especially the ever-present Toyota Camry and Honda Accord.
But fear not, Nissan fans. An updated Altima is already on the way for 2005. Read more…
There’s something magical about listening to Hank Williams when you’re driving a pickup truck. It’s like the two were meant to be together. They just feel right.
And when you’re driving a Nissan Titan, listening to Hank Williams via satellite radio feels just as fitting. Hank’s twang and country drawl inspire the feelings of good-ol’-boy America, but you know there’s something different about the delivery — something high-tech, fresh and foreign. Read more…
