Good power
acceptably quiet interior
sporty and fun to drive
Good fuel efficiency
comfortable interior
Really Rockin' stereo (Rockford Fosgate)
Handles well
Exceptional Lighting (Headlighta and Foglights)
Great interior lighting
Trip computer is cool and functional

Engine noise when accelerating hard
Cruise control is sensitive causing a slightly jerky ride under some conditions
MORE legroom would be nice
Rear cupholder could be sturdier

The Sentra is a great commuter car. We purchased this vehicle primarily for that purpose with the idea in mind that our commuter car must meet certain criteria such as; it must have:

*An acceptable level of comfort for Mom, Dad and our 1 daughter as we all share the commute.

*An affordable price. We are going to wear the vehicle out. An expensive car is not an option.

* An acceptable level of style and be fun to drive. We want to enjoy the commute as much as possible.

* A somewhat quiet interior. Being hard of hearing, ambient noise is a problem.

* A low maintenance cost. We did not want a vehicle which uses a timing belt. This added a significant dollar value to the cost of maintenance over the expected life of the vehicle.

*Above 30 miles per gallon fuel efficiency

The Sentra measured up to our needs. Addressing all the criteria:

Legroom meets our needs. The back seat is OK for legroom for our 8 year old, but the seats are comfortable. The rear heater vent and cupholder is nice.

The price was great. We compared prices for new and used vehicles. The rebates offered by Nissan are excellent as are the financing deals.

The vehicle is sporty looking with the rear spoiler. The body design looks good and the colors are nice. The car is fun to drive. It handles well and has enough power with the 1.8L to get out of its own way. It will pull the foothills of the Sierra well with power to spare.

The interior is acceptably quiet, or is it just my hearing? We dont have to raise our voices to be heard and I can hear from the back seat to the front on the highway.

The low maintenance cost is based on previous years Sentra experience. The cost to have a timing belt replaced on a variety of vehicles ranged from $800.00 to $2000.00. But please note that the $2K price was NOT for a vehicle in this price class.

This model is rated at 28 city and 34 highway. With my driving habits, I should be able to edge closer to 37 on the highway.

All in all we are pleased with the vehicle. Our first 2006 Nissan Sentra 1.8S Limited Edition (purchased new) has ALL options available. We love it. After a great deal (months)of thought about a second vehicle (used vehicles were driven and considered)we purchased another New 2006 Nissan Sentra 1.8S Limited Edition., different color and no sunroof. We love it also.

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1991 Nissan Sentra which we drove for 350,000 miles with NO major engine or transmission problems. The engine was NEVER opened, the transmission NEVER had a problem. We were still driving and commuting in the vehicle when we were rear-ended which totaled the car.

Fuel economy
Reliability
Price

Econo box feel
Cheap interior materials

When gas prices started going up, I got rid of my 12 year old V6 Audi and needed a dependable 4 banger to commute back and forth. Basically, you get what you pay for. The interior is cheap plastic. The car's engine is noisy. The car is not very stable at speeds over 75 mph. The shifer is rubbery, and the back seats are cramped. However, the car is meant for economy. I average 32 mpg, the car is zippy, the exterior styling is nice, and I havent had any problems. As a commuter vehicle it is perfect.

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none

dependable for the first few years, good gas milage, good brakes.

suspension, alignment, tires, interior design.

I have read a lot of the reviews for the Sentra, and I have to disagree. My car is going on 4 years old, and I've already had to start looking into purchasing another vehicle. It has horrible suspension, and my car shakes and goes crazy every time I drive it...that's IF the car starts for that day! Also, if it's not the engine light coming on, then it's something else. The engine make all sorts of screeching and ticking noises.. one headache after another. The cd player no longer works, and I had to have work done on the gear shifter as well. It was a great first car, but don't expect it to last any longer than 5 years!

This car is very dependable; I have not had to replace any "major" parts. This car has excellent gas mileage. Highly recommended for "in town" drivers.

Belts!!!! Thank God the altinator belt hasn't gone on it yet :)

I purchased this car brand new back in 2003 after doing research on this web site. For the most part, this car is a great little car. Having driven a V6 most of my life, I did not notice much of a difference with the Sentra, except for how loud it gets on the highway; you do get used to it. No car is perfect though. Two months after purchasing the vehicle, I had to bring it back to the dealership because the knob for the heat would not work properly; it would get stuck halfway and only hot air would blow out of the heating vents. Considering it was nearing summer, that was a big problem for me. I had to bring my car back for a second time for the same problem, only because they didn't fix it right the first time. Belts! It seems as though I'm always replacing them. I've also had to replace two tires after only 29,000 miles; that could be my fault. Despite the few complaints that I have, I do recommend this car to anyone who wants a reliable car with EXCELLENT gas mileage.

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Mazda 626

Spunky, handles well, nice design (compared to the other Japanese road furniture,)good on gas

Suspect reliability, poor electronics, suspension parts not very tough, rides like a truck (at times). I have spent almost $1500 in the last three weeks - new controls arms, malfunctioning horn. and now I'm told I need a new catalytic converter - and it only has 145,000 kms on the odometer. The only saving grace is that this car is paid for, time to start researching my next new car purchase. This will be my last Sentra, although I do like some of their other products

Almost four years ago to the day, I drove off the lot of East Village Nissan with my shiny, new GXE. I was a happy clam, but things sure changed over 48 months......

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First Nissan after several Honda Civics

decent handling, drive for the price

terrible dealer service. Tires are awful. Paint scratches if you look at it.

Generally not a bad car for the price. But when things go wrong, you better have lots of money. Car is just over 3 years old, 37,000 kilometers, and the power steering rack is toast. Bought the extended warranty - don't bother. NOt worth the paper it's written on. Dealer claims this is not covered, although Nissan Canada website says different. Bottom line-they seem surprised I don't want to pay $1100 for a repair that should never have to be made at this mileage. Attitude is - you bought it, it's your problem now. Can't wait to unload this turkey.

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Jetta, protege

Engine power, power everything, cd player, subwoofer, the design is excellent.

gas eater (or my way of driving)

Got my 2002 Nissan Sentra SE-R at a local Infinity dealership. Car had 51400 miles. Have had it for 4 months and since it is my first car i love it. Its a lot faster than my friends Eclipses and even a Mustang GT. The car is in Radium which is like a brownish-grayish color. Have only seen a couple SE-R's in my city. Not a good car for teens, like me im 17, too fast and easy to speed but my parents trust me and i can control myself. Car looks good when rolling with your girl to the movies. i like it a lot. many people stare at the car cause it does look nice. The SE-R has a different front end than a GXE.

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05 nissan altima 2.5s

The mileage continues to be very good. I get around 30 MPG regardless of where I drive. Everything still works and for the most part has required minimal maintenance.

The car eats tires! I have had it aligned several times and it will ruin a set of tires in short order, even though I rotate every 2500 miles. The tire shops say it has to do with the manufacturers specifications. This has got to be one of the most uncomfortable vehicles ever made! If you plan on driving for more than half an hour, you had better plan on a massage when you get home. It,s interior is kind of cheap but it has held its own. Oh yeah, I also think the brakes wear too fast, but that may be the way I drive.

The Nissan Sentra is a good car to get around in. I bought it used with around 39,000 miles and it now has 123,000 miles. AT the time of purchase I was looking for something econmical to offset my other vehicles. After having researched many other cars and knowing my budget, this seemed to stand out. I had a sentra previously, back in 1987, and that one had no guts! The '98 was a definate improvement on power and performance. For a low end car, this thing came with power windows, power doorlocks and cruise which is kind of nice.

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'87 Sentra

Strong, powerful SR20DE (twin overhead cam, 140 hp) engine Handles like a dream, rides like it is on rails Solid-shifting 5-speed Firm, race-inspried seats Big, easy to read guages Limited slip front axle (both front wheels turn) Power sunroof NEVER leaked EXTREMELY reliable mechanically PERFECT for a single person

Paint faded Cannot get an SE-R with power windows until 1995 model AM/FM/Cassette radio went beserk about 90,00 miles (replaced it) Factory speakers are not good at all Looks boxy compared to other compacts like Honda Civic and Toyota Carolla, but it's a lot faster Big, Heavy doors Not good for families

I found this car on a used lot with 62,000 miles on it back in the fall of 1999. It was bought new in Chapel Hill, NC and had actually bounced around dealerships for almost 2 years when I got it (according to CARFAX) before I found it at Sherwood in Johnson City, TN. The car is PERFECT for young people, and especially for the euro/import crowd. The SE-R is a bare bones rocket, it was offered without power windows, without leather interior, without an automatic transmission, built to be inexpensive and go fast. Powered by the SR20DE engine, quite possibly the best 4-cyl engine ever built. 140 horsepower, 135 torque, in a car weighing less than 2600 pounds. Came stock with 15 inch sport wheels, rear spoiler, and fog lights (as all SE-R models do). Mine had the optional sunroof, rear defroster, and cruise control. The car is VERY quick and FUN to drive. The seats are firm and supportive, designed like the famous Recaro seats. Power all through the rpm curve, with a 7500 redline on the tach. 5-speed was sure and solid, pedals are close together like road racing cars. Power even with the AC on, which is rare for a 4 cyl engine. This car isn't for everybody, but if you're single it's a GREAT little car. It handles GREAT. Drives like it is on rails!!! I cannot emphasize enough how well built this car is, how powerful it is to be a 4 cyl, and well it drives. Some people may think it rides a little too rough, this is becuase Nissan built the car with heavy duty shocks and springs, which is why it handles so good. You can't get good handling AND a smooth ride in an inexpensive car. I could beat almost any stock 4-cylinder car (non-turbo) and MANY 6-cyl cars. There were NO mechanical problems while I owned this car. I maintained it at regular service intervals and never had a problem. When I bought it the AC didn't work, It had a leak in one of the freon tubes, I had it repaired and it worked fine ever since then. The headliner lost its grip and fell down, unfortunately I sold it before I replaced it. While owning the car the paint faded on the trunk lid, roof, and engine hood. This is common for all Nissans made 1990 through 1992, as they used bad paint during that time (happened to ALL Nissan models made in this period). Also, the doors are VERY HEAVY for a small car, and they had sagged quite a bit, and didn't make good contact with the peg that sticks. Those pegs on the frame are what the car uses to determine if the doors are open or not, thus whether the interior lights or door chimes should be on. I solved that by putting a couple magnets on the doors to make better contact with the pegs. Not too thick of a magnet or you will bust the pegs, as they are made of plastic. I sold the car in November 2002 after I bought a 94 Jeep Grand Cherokee because my wife and I needed something to carry our son in. She had a Dodge Stratus R/T (GREAT CAR!) she just bought, so we thought it better to sell mine and 'trade up' to the Jeep. The Jeep has been great, but the Dodge was never driven that much after that. Looking back we should have kept the SE-R and traded the Stratus R/T for an SUV. The guy I sold it to still has it, and it has somewhere around 140,000 miles on it (had 130,000 on it when I sold it). I hope to get a couple thousand together someday and buy it back from him.

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1987 Pontiac Sunbird 1999 Honda Civic 2001 Dodge Stratus R/T

gas mileage low price dependable

The seats can get uncomfortable during long drives.

We purchased this car with 9k miles. Since then we've put nearly 30k miles on it. Have not had a single major issue. This car has been perfect for our needs: low gas mileage, easy to maintain and a pretty fun car. The only small problem we've had recently is that we've had the passenger side window control button break-off and the side mirror control button is no longer still attached to dash board, but it's still under warantee and will be covered.

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