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Nissan Xterra News & Reviews

   2010 Nissan Xterra Road Test Review

The Nissan Xterra first debuted in 1999, when there were far fewer SUV nameplates in the marketplace.  For 2010, the count

The Xterra continues on in its pure 4x4 form. (Photo: Canadian Auto Press)

is higher, especially when one includes the crossover genre.  It is indeed admirable when a vehicle in such a competitive field remains an authentic and capable SUV, providing flexibility and versatility combined with genuine off-road capability, affordability and lots of room for stowing activity supporting gear.  Nissan's Xterra is such a vehicle. 

The Japanese vehicle manufacturer saw no need to completely revolutionize or reinvent the Xterra, only to enhance and improve it through an evolutionary process, making it progressively better.  This philosophy builds on the vehicle's original concept rather than completely modifying it.  The Xterra provides the best SUV off-road capability in Nissan's 4x4 utility lineup, which also includes the Pathfinder and Armada. 

Significant <Read More>

   Prime Minister Socrates of Portugal is first world leader to get Nissan Leaf

The southwestern European country of Portugal doesn't make global headlines all that often, and lately the news hasn't been all

Portugal prime minister Jose Socrates accepts keys to Europe's first Nissan Leaf. (Photo: Nissan)

that great with talk about its borrowing costs soaring with yields on its 10-year bonds jumping to nearly 7-percent, and a potential economic bailout needed as we move into 2011. At least Prime Minister José Sócrates will be saving on fuel costs as he drives away in a new Nissan Leaf.

The Portuguese PM became the first world leader to take delivery of the Japanese brand's all-electric Leaf, receiving the keys from Carlos Tavares, executive vice president of Nissan. Technically the car is the property of the Portugal's government and Sócrates merely accepted the keys. It will be used for test drives before the Leaf goes on sale in select markets throughout Europe in early 2011, Portugal chosen as the EU point of entry due to its leading-edge electric charging network.

"We are extremely pleased to be introducing the electric vehicle in Portugal," said Sócrates. "After three years of collaborative work between the Government, public entities, the corporate consortium which developed the MOBI.E solution and Nissan, we have achieved the first smart, built-in charging <Read More>

   Nissan Leaf Wins 2011 European Car of the Year

Automotive rulebooks are being rewritten now that alternative fuels have gone mainstream, and the result of that is an automotive

Nissan's new 2011 Leaf is the first zero-emission electric vehicle to ever win European Car of the Year!

first: a zero-emission electric vehicle has won the 2011 European Car of the Year!

A total of 41 entrants as of the beginning of last month were whittled down to 7 finalists, and now news has arrived that the 2011 Nissan Leaf claimed the top prize.

"The jury acknowledged today that the Nissan LEAF is a breakthrough for electric cars", said Håkan Matson, President of the Jury, Car of the Year. "Nissan LEAF is the first EV that can match conventional cars in many respects."

A jury of 57 automotive journalists voted the Leaf to the top spot.

Nissan <Read More>

   2011 Nissan Sentra SE-R Spec V Road Test Review

Nissan's Sentra SE-R might not be the sportiest OEM compact tuner on today's market, even in top-tier Spec V trim, but for the

Nissan's Sentra SE-R Spec V epitomizes the word "sleeper." (Photo: Trevor Hofmann, Canadian Auto Press)

price it delivers a decent dose of performance plus the option of an automatic transmission with paddle-shifters, something none of its competitors offer.

The latter car starts at only $21,998, and the only direct rival I can think of at around that price with similar performance specs is the Kia Forte SX. Move up to the SE-R Spec V and the price escalates to $23,398, which might seem like a fair chunk of change for a four-door compact until comparing it to the Honda Civic Si that starts another two and a half k higher.

That Si is probably the SE-R Spec V's arch nemesis, and Nissan should be glad the full-kit Civic moves into 2011 unchanged as the Sentra in all its trim levels does likewise. Unlike Civic, Sentra is only available as a four-door sedan, which limits sales <Read More>

   Nissan turns over a new LEAF

The automotive industry has had several flings with electric vehicles – from the early battery powered vehicles of the 20th century

Nissan is the first major automaker to offer an all-electric vehicle to consumers. (Photo: Nissan)

to efforts to meet California's aborted zero emission vehicle (ZEV) standards more than a decade ago. All these efforts eventually met with failure due to the electric vehicle's limited range, greater weight and costs compared to an internal combustion engine car.

That dynamic is changing, noted Nissan Americas Chairman Carlos Taveres when he spoke in November 2010 to the Automotive Press Association at the Detroit Athletic Club about the automaker's 2011 Nissan LEAF. By 2014 the Japanese company also plans to introduce an all-electric commercial vehicle (the Nissan E-LCV) and an Infiniti electric vehicle – the first luxury EV from a mainstream manufacturer (the Tesla Model S may beat the Infiniti EV to market if it meets its production target as it is expected to go into production sometime during the third quarter of 2011, with initial deliveries commencing in early 2012).

Nissan's sales have grown during the past 18 months thanks to a number of refreshed or new products for its namesake and Infiniti brands, including the new Nissan Juke, a small crossover vehicle.

Zero Emissions Mobility

Nissan's <Read More>

   Hyundai Sonata takes third place from Nissan Altima in US

Japanese automotive brands have long ruled the midsize roost in the U.S., but it appears not anymore. Certainly, Toyota holds

If all the Sonata were to offer was great styling it would be a top-seller, but this is one brilliantly executed family sedan. (Photo: Hyundai)

title to top spot with its segment dominating Camry and Honda remains number two with its Accord, but August saw Nissan's Altima defeated by the all-new 2011 Hyundai Sonata, a feat the South Korean branded car repeated in September as well.

Hyundai sold 21,399 Sonatas in August and 20,639 in September, which not only eclipsed Altima sales of 18,491 and 20,016 respectively, but nipped at the heels of the Accord's 25,148 in August and 24,127 in September. In case you were wondering, the Camry was sitting pretty with 30,764 sales in August and 30,769 in September.

Just the same, Camry sales were down 34% in August of 2010 compared to August last year thanks in large part to last year's U.S. Cash for Clunkers (CFC) program. For the same reason Accord sales were down by an almost identical 33%, while Altima sales dropped too but not as dramatically at 27%. Of the top four midsize models, the Sonata's August sales total was the only one to climb compared to 2009 with a 50% improvement. What's more,

The 2011 Sonata is one of few cars that look as good from the rear as from the front. (Photo: Hyundai)

the Sonata was the only midsize sedan to increase month-to-month sales from July 2010, and by a whopping 81% thanks to a stylish new design that's striking a chord with North American consumers.

While Sonata sales are stimulating, Hyundai has a way to go in catching up to both Toyota and Honda when it comes to top-10 dominance. Toyota had two cars on August's 10 best-sellers list with the Corolla's 20,280 sales only a fraction behind the Sonata's 6th place overall position, while the other Japanese hotshot, Honda, had a stellar three models in the top-10 including the aforementioned Accord as well as the Civic in 5th with 22,803 sales and CR-V in 8th with 19,451 sales.

The big winners continue to be trucks, with Ford's all-conquering F-Series remaining top-dog thanks to 47,652 units sold in August and Chevy's Silverado in 2nd with 34,084 sales. Don't feel too bad for GM mind you, as their GMC division didn't make the top-10 at 19th but nevertheless added 11,640 Sierra sales to August's top-20 tally <Read More>

   2011 Nissan Juke Road Test Review

"And now for something completely different," or so a classic Monty Python's Flying Circus segue goes. But looking at the

There's nothing at all like the Juke, and it's very, very good! (Photo: Trevor Hofmann, Canadian Auto Press)

new 2011 Juke, maybe "something completely different" is an understatement? Something radically different is more like it!

Nissan is certainly forging new ground with its Juke, in the same way that it did with the sporty EX35 when its luxury brand Infiniti took on BMW's X3 et al in the premium segment. Nissan aptly names the Juke's all-new segment Urban Sport Cross, and when put up against other compact crossovers it's understandable why the Japanese brand felt it needed its own classification.

First and foremost it's a lot smaller. At 4,125 mm (162.4 inches) long, the Juke is about 50 cm (20 inches) shorter than its own Rogue, which is already classified as a compact crossover. It's even shorter than the Versa hatchback by 18 cm (7 inches), but it's 10 cm (4 inches) longer than the cube. To put it into perspective outside of the Nissan family, the Juke is about 35 cm (14 inches) shorter than a Mazda3 and 25 cm (10 inches) shy of a Toyota Matrix, and about 14 cm (5 and a half inches) longer than the upcoming Mini Crossman. <Read More>

   2010 Nissan Titan King Cab PRO-4X Road Test Review

Breaking into the full-size pickup truck segment has been an arduous task for the Japanese, but you've got to hand

The Titan is still a great looking truck, especially in PRO-4X trim. (Photo: Trevor Hofmann, Canadian Auto Press)

it to Nissan for not only bringing a great looking, well made, tough-as-nails workhorse to market, but for hanging in there while dyed-in-the-wool domestic pickup buyers watch from a distance to see how well the new truck fares.

Well folks, despite a depressed truck market and a drop in sales since its initial market strength, the Titan has fared pretty well after seven model years, and has garnered its fair share of fans in the process, evidenced by sites like titantalk.com. Those fans will be happy to hear that Nissan's largest retail vehicle will not only continue on after some speculation of whether or not the automaker would reinvest for an updated model, but that a heavy duty variant based on the new NV2500 HD and NV3500 HD commercial vans will arrive in 2014.

The Titan 2500 HD and 3500 HD models, as I expect them to be called, certainly won't need an engine transplant in order to get motivated off the line. <Read More>

   2010 Nissan Frontier King Cab PRO-4X 4X4 Road Test Review

As a mere statement of image, compact pickup trucks make more sense than larger, more expensive to buy and operate full-size

A rugged little performer, the Frontier shows that there's no need for a full-size truck if hauling and pulling aren't your thing. (Photo: Nissan)

pickups. If what you are trying to say is, "I'm a rugged, adventurous individual," a compact pickup speaks just as loudly as a full-size pickup, and for less cash. Of course size and work capability are compromised with the choice of a compact pickup, but for an owner who doesn't need to tow a battleship or cart masses of supplies to the job, a compact pickup may be the more sensible choice. It certainly is if urban commutes will comprise the bulk of its duties.

A variety of manufacturers offer smaller pickups. The pacesetters in the segment, however, are Toyota's Tacoma and Nissan's Frontier. I recently spent a week with a $28,510 Nissan Frontier King Cab PRO-4X 4X4.

You can spend as little as $24,098 on the base price of a Frontier or as much as $34,683. This is a big pricing spread influenced by cab <Read More>

   Redesigned Nissan March Hits Streets of Japan