2010 Nissan Altima 3.5 SR

Written by Eric Peters

December 21, 2009

I can give you roughly 2,000 reasons why Nissan's Altima 3.5 SR sedan with its 270 hp V-6 engine is a pick of the proverbial litter in its segment.  The Altima V-6's base price of $24,520 is about that much lower than similarly equipped competitors such as the Honda Accord V-6 ($26,805), Mazda6 V-6 ($26,450) and Ford Fusion with 3.5 liter V-6 ($26,180). Only the V-6 version of Toyota's hugely popular Camry sedan ($24,565) nearly matches the V-6 Altima's power . . . and almost matches its price. Of course, price isn't always everything.  How does the Altima stack up otherwise?  WHAT IT IS The Altima is a mid-sized, mid-priced, front-wheel-drive sedan available with both four and six-cylinder engines. Prices start at $19,900 for the base 2.5 model equipped with a four cylinder engine and $24,520 for the V-6 powered 3.5 SR, subject of this review.  A coupe version of the Altima is also available but it is different enough from the sedan that it will be covered later as a separate model. The Altima sedan is also available with a hybrid powertrain and likewise that model will be reviewed separately.  WHAT'S NEW FOR 2010 The Altima's front end has been slightly restyled and the optional GPS navigation system has been upgraded with a larger LCD display and real-time traffic updates. Stability control is now standard equipment on all trims.  WHAT'S GOOD The V-6 SR version offers as much or more power/performance than V-6 versions of higher-priced competitors from Honda, Mazda, Ford and others - and significantly more front seat head and legroom, too. More of a driver's car than the comparably powerful/comparably priced/comparably roomy but not-the-least-bit sporty Toyota Camry.  WHAT'S NOT SO GOOD Nissan has dropped the six-speed manual transmission that used to be available in the Altima sedan with the V-6 engine. (You can still get the manual transmission in the Altima coupe.) Altima options are often "bundled" into costly packages that force you to buy several items you may not especially want to pay for in order to get the one thing you do want.  ENGINES & PERFORMANCE Altima buyers can choose either a 2.5 liter four cylinder engine (175 hp) or a 3.5 liter V-6 (270 hp). Both are strong performers. A four-cylinder Altima can reach 60 mph in about 7.5 seconds; with the V-6, the time drops to 6.9 seconds.  The Altima's gas mileage matches its excellent performance. With the four-cylinder engine, 32 mpg on the highway is possible. City mileage is listed at 23 mpg. The highway figure is outstanding for a family-sized sedan capable of comfortably carrying five people. And both figures (city/highway mileage) beat the four-cylinder Honda Accord's (22/31), the four-cylinder Ford Fusion (22/31) and the four-cylinder equipped Mazda6 (20/29). The four-cylinder Camry beats the four-cylinder Altima on highway mileage (33 mpg, best in class) but the Toyota's city mileage (22 mpg) doesn't quite match the Nissan's.  The V-6 cersion of the Altima does well on fuel economy, too - with an EPA rating of 20 city and 27 highway. That's slightly better than the Ford Fusion V-6 (18 city/27 highway), noticeably better than the Mazda6 V-6 (17 city, 25 highway) and pretty much dead-even overall with the V-6 Camry (19/28) and V-6 Accord (19/29).  The downside - if you'd like a manual transmission - is that you can't get one in the Altima, with either engine. A Continuously Variable (CVT) automatic is the standard and only transmission that comes with both four and six-cylinder engines. Competitor models like the Fusion, Accord, Camry and Mazda6 all offer a manual transmission with their standard four-cylinder engines.  Last year, Nissan offered a six-speed manual in the Altima sedan - and with the V-6 engine, too. That made it one of the few mid-sized sport sedans in the under-$25k price slot that could be so equipped. Nissan says the manual option was pulled from the roster because of lack of interest, but it may also be that a six-speed, V-6 Altima for around $25k undercut sales of the Nissan Maxima - which has the same basic engine, accelerates, rides and handles very much the same - and has just about the same interior space, etc. - but which starts at $30,460 DRIVING IMPRESSIONS The Altima is real sleeper in this segment. Though the power output of its standard and optional engines tracks with the power output of competitors' standard and optional engines, the only car that's comparably fun to drive - specifically, fun to drive fast and hard - is the Mazda6.  In pretty much all the ways that matter, the Altima has become what the Maxima used to be: Nissan's afordable four-door sports car.  Over the course of the past few years, the Maxima has edged ever closer to the entry-luxury segment. A loaded version can cost close to $40,000 and even if you just buy the as-it-sits version, you're still went into the $30k range. That leaves the minimal-frills (if you don't want 'em) high-powered (same engine as in the Maxima) and still-affordable Altima as the better choice for the enthusiast driver on a budget.  And the best choice overall, relative to competitors.  While the Mazda6 V-6 can match the Altima 3.5 SR's handling and acceleration it costs about $2,100 more. The Camry V-6 costs about the same as the Altima V-6 and accelerates powerfully in a straight line - but it doesn't even make a pretense at being sporty. The Camry is more vanilla than Vanilla Ice.  The Fusion 3.5 V-6 and Accord V-6 handle and accelerate well, but like the Mazda6 V-6, they're both priced about $2k higher than the Altima V-6.  I miss the used-to-be-available six-speed manual transmission, but have to admit that the Altima's now-mandatory CVT automatic is a slick piece of work. Other automakers offer CVTs but Nissan's are probably the best.  Because there are no individual forward gears (and therefore, no up or downshifts, just a single continuous "drive" speed - with the transmission adjusting itself to engine speed/load at any given moment) acceleration is electric motor-like. Push the gas pedal and the car picks up speed - more and more of it, the harder you push down on the pedal.  An advantage of the CVT over a conventional automatic - for the hard-charging enthusiast driver - is that the transmission is never in the wrong gear (too high or too low) coming into or out of a corner hot. The CVT will hold just the right engine RPM for whatever the situation is, letting you throttle steer the car through S-turns very much like you'd do with a stickshift - only better because you don't have to worry about when to upshift. The transmission maintains just-right leverage at any given moment. And there's no lag between up and downshifts (because there aren't any shifts) and also no coffee-spilling shift shocks. Just linear, forward thrust - like an airplane on its take-off roll.  I still miss being able to play with a clutch, but from a purely functional standpoint I have nothing but nice things to say about the Altima's CVT.  STYLING & UTILITY It doesn't get more straightforward than it is inside the Altima's cabin. No learning curve is necessary to operate the simple, effective rotary knobs that control the AC and heat. The stereo has large buttons with the name of the function (AM-FM, CD, AUX, etc.) clearly spelled out instead of painted with heiroglyphic-style icons whose function you have to guess at until you memorize the meaning of the inscrutable symbols. Even the optional navigation system has clearly identified buttons and knobs that make using it as soon as you get into the car - even the very first time you drive it - a snap.  The ergonomics of this car are so much better - so much less frustrating - than the computer mice and inscrutable/illegible/Chiclet-sized buttons used in many other cars.  Visibility to the side and back is especially good because of the large (and tall) door glass and rear quarter windows. I liked the gauge pod's clear lettering and orange-ish backlighting a lot better than the Camry's off-white '80s boom-box look.  Side note: It'll be interesting to see whether Nissan choses to wagonize the Altima - as Honda has done with the just-launched Accord Crosstour wagon and Toyota did last year with the Camry-based Venza wagon - in order to address the one possible way a Camry or Accord can feel more spacious on the inside than the Altima  If the sedan versions of these models are compared side-by-side, the Altima's advantage over them in front seat headroom (40.6 inches, about 1.5 inches than the Camry and Ford Fusion and nearly 2 inches more than the Mazda6) and front seat legroom (44.1 inches, or about 2-3 inches than its major competitors) is immediately obvious - and not just on paper. If you are over six feet tall, you will find the Altima's much more spacious-feeling. And, there's that crucial extra margin for ordering the optional sunroof - which will eat up an inch or so of headroom compared to the same car without a sunroof. For taller drivers in cars where headroom is already tight, ordering the sunroof means your head will constantly be brushing up against the headliner There is a downside, though. The Altima has a roomier front seat area than most cars in its segment, but backseat headroom (36.8 inches) is about an inch less than most of its major competition and rear seat legroom (35.8 inches) is about 3 inches less than in the Camry and Mazda6 and about two inches less than in the Ford Fusion.  So, the Altima is great for up-front occupants - but not-so-great for those riding in the back seat.  Trunk space - 15.3 cubic feet - is slightly better than the Accord (14 cubic feet) and Camry (15 cubic feet) and slightly less than the class-leading Mazda6 (16.6) cubic feet) and Ford Fusion (16.5 cubic feet).  QUALITY & SAFETY Last year's Altima, which is essentially the same car as this year's Altima, earned JD Power & Associates' "Highest Ranked Mid-sized Car in Initial Quality," which is a measure of customer satisfaction with their purchases. The '09 model was also a Consumers Digest "Best Buy" - both strong indicators that the '10 Altima will prove to be a reliable, well-built car. It certainly comes across that way. Paint quality is excellent, the materials used for trim (inside and out) all look great.  The factory warranty coverage, however, is only three years and 36,000 miles (comprehensive) and five years/60,000 miles on the drivetrain. It's true that this is exactly the same as the coverages offered with the Fusion, Accord, Camry and Mazda6 - so it's "par." At least within this segment. But many new cars now come with 100,000 mile drivetrain coverage and basic warranties that are much better than three years and just 36,000 miles. All these characters ought to back their cars better than the currently do.  Every Altima sedan comes standard with ABS, electronic traction and stability control, front seat side impact and full-row curtain air bags. In government and insurance industry crash testing, the Altima scores highly - so it's a good pick as far a safety is concerned.  THE BOTTOM LINE No sedan currently selling for less than $25k can match the Altima's fun to drive qualities - while also going toe-to-toe with its more expensive rivals as a great choice for a mid-large family car, too. Comment?

 

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