So my wife gave birth to our first child in November and she was driving a 2006 Nissan X-terra. She's small and was having trouble getting the baby in and out of the back seat. So we looked at some of the new models...Camry, Accord, Altima. All nice, but the altima is considerably cheaper with the same options as the other two.

The exterior styling, recently redsigned, is much improved for the model of a few years ago. It is larger, more refined in appearance, and yet still has the sporty look expected from the Altima. The only change from the 2008 model is a few different options for wheel covers.

We purchased the 2.5S model (4cyl.) as my wife drives a lot and we wanted the engine with the better mileage (as opposed to the 3.5 V6). This engine is generally at the top of the reliability range also. It is perky and quick for the size of the car. It puts out about 175hp and still manages around 26 overall mpg (city and highway). The 2.5S comes with the CVT transmission which helps with fuel economy as well. My wife did have to get used to the different feel of the CVT since there are no shift points. I have heard of these transmissions giving people trouble, but we have yet to encounter any. The suspension feel is good especially on the highway where the sporty tuning really works well. It can get a little rough in construction zones or over moderately bumpy roads, but it wasn't designed for that. The brakes feel strong as well. Living in southern California I have had to use them for high speed braking more than once. The pedal feel remains strong even after multiple hard stops.

The interior also remains unchanged from the 2008. Although there is less plastic on this model than the 2006 and earlier models, I still feel there is too much to really set this interior apart from those of Honda or Toyota. I would give the edge to them for overall interior feel. The one thing I did notice about the Altima over the others is the relative silence in which you drive. Obviously with a baby in the back seat there's not much silence in the car, but when he's asleep, you can hardly hear anything from outside the cabin. Our vehicle has the cloth seats, I wish we would have gone for the leather, but too late for that! The seats are comfortable but feel as though the cloth may wear out rather quickly. I felt the same way about the X-terra but we never had any issues with it. The steering wheel mounted radio controls are great for quick easy changes and don't distract as much as reaching for the radio would. The only major complaint I have with the interior is more of a safety concern. Soon after getting the car home, my wife noticed that everytime she sat in the passenger seat the Passenger Airbag Off warning light would stay on. Obviously not a good thing. We took the vehicle back to the dealer and they replaced the weight sensor in the passenger seat which corrected the problem. We had the same issue with the 2006 X-terra that we traded in for this car. This seems to be a recurring issue with Nissans...or maybe it's just our luck!

Overall, I would recommend this vehicle to anyone looking for a good quality vehicle with midrange fuel economy trying to avoid a higher priced competitor. It is a great value for the price.
Amount Paid (US$): 22500
Condition: New
Model Year: 2009
Model and Options: Altima 2.5S