we know Nissan's aren't that reliable, but for the most part, it's minor things. try dealing with electrical problems when the warranty is over....
I believe Willy meant that the 2.5L motor in the 2.5 Altima has been less than reliable and has been plagued by pre-cat failures (among other things) since '02. Not Nissan's reliability in general.
I believe Willy meant that the 2.5L motor in the 2.5 Altima has been less than reliable and has been plagued by pre-cat failures (among other things) since '02. Not Nissan's reliability in general.
Yes
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*Bumper Plugs
Garage:
* 91 MR2 31K miles 4 Sale
*02 SE Auto (AT Upper Lower Lux. Grills) 4sale
*04 Honda Odyssey (9.67mpg)
*04 GTO 6MT(Beater) Gone
that's all well and fine until the dome light shorts out and when you go to the VW dealer, they tell you the chip broke your light, please hand us $2000 to fix what you did
Actually almost every chip program is completely invisible to the dealerships scan tools when it comes to vw's. Volkswagens are definetely a love/hate relationship though. The best definition I ever heard for a VW went as such. "Driving a Volkswagen is like being in an abusive relationship, you keep getting your ass kicked, but you always come back for more". They are incredibly fun cars to drive and all of them kick the shit out of any Altima in the fun to drive category.
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05' Altima SE 5AT - A little of this, a little of that.
I believe Willy meant that the 2.5L motor in the 2.5 Altima has been less than reliable and has been plagued by pre-cat failures (among other things) since '02. Not Nissan's reliability in general.
lol, nissan's have problems here and there, i remember a carpet replacement for my sentra because the accelerator gets stuck, haha
but i think that the coil packs for the VW's = to the problems of the 2.5L motor...
then you add in the window regulators that broke (i also will add VW doesn't bother with preventative recalls...one of my sisters windows "dropped", they went to VW to replace it, then a week later the other one "dropped"
her jetta goes in and out of the dealership quite constantly
but yeah, the cars are pretty fun, they feel very sturdy, those german's know their tooling, they just don't know their electronics
but yeah, the cars are pretty fun, they feel very sturdy, those german's know their tooling, they just don't know their electronics
I concur
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07 Altima SE 6MT, Sport Package Black on Black, kick plates and wind deflector, 22% tint all around
93 Civic (previous car, now donated to 16yo sis)
2000 Frontier Crew Cab (in Nicaragua)
2001 Maxima (Mom's Car)
2004 Sentra (Medium Sister's Car)
Yeah... my Fam is kinda into Nissans
I believe Willy meant that the 2.5L motor in the 2.5 Altima has been less than reliable and has been plagued by pre-cat failures (among other things) since '02.
I noticed that they revised the exhaust on the 2007 models. Does that redesign extend all the way to the front - possibly resolving the pre-cat design flaw?
as much as i hate the 07 altima, the way it looks, do not get VW. they are very unreliable and brake very often, and if you decide to get one and you are out of warranty, expect to pay double for German parts
Since this is an Altima forum, everyone is of course biased, myself included.
Before I purchased the Altima I seriously looked into getting a VW GTI but decided against because I need a reliable car to get to and from work/school. I frequently visit another car forum where two members have the new GTI. One member was very satisfied, had very minimal problems with his. The other guys with the GTI has had his in and out of the shop almost every month. I remember this one post he made where he was heading to school and his car died causing him to miss a test AGAIN. After I read that I decided it was time to look into another car.
All car manufacturers do make lemons every now and then, it just seems like VW makes more lemons than others.
With either car you decide to purchase, please try to re-negotiate. That's a really high price for a 2.0T Passat and for a 2.5SL. Check the 07 price thread if you do decide to get the Altima. I think the avg price for a loaded 2.5SL is 25,000 or less.
Here's a recent thread about the VW owner I was talking about. The other guy with the GTI actually chimes in and says how his car is relatively problem free.
Since this is an Altima forum, everyone is of course biased, myself included.
EXACTLY what I was going to say. If you ask this on the Passat Forum, I'm sure they will tell you to go with the Passat. You have to make the decision based on your own needs/situation.
I'm not sure about the ridequality of the SL models but the SE is very smooth (even with the sport tuned suspension) and the car is very quiet.
~SB
My vote also goes to the Altima, we test drove the passat as well for my wife, but the altima just had a little more bang for the buck.
As far as that quote goes up above, i wish my SE was very smooth, they way spaceboy describes his ride on an SE makes me think something is up with my suspensions with only 450 miles on it. Because the ride is no where near smooth.
I just traded in my '02 Passat for an '07 Altima last month. PLEASE DON'T BUY THE PASSAT unless you have a second car to drive around while the Passat is being repaired. I knew my service manager by name (Alfred) because I was in the dealership so much. I didn't even want to buy a new car this year, but I had to because I needed CV axles ($1,500), brakes ($900), etc. etc. etc. Also, I had to get my oil changes at the dealership because if I got them done anywhere else, the car would leak. And I had to get my wheel alignment done at the dealership because no one else could do it. Oh, and did I mentioned the $100 battery that you have to buy from the dealership because NO ONE carries batteries that fit Passats? (not to mention the $100 dealer installation cost, but Pep Boys agreed to install my battery for free since they didn't realize until they took my car apart that none of their batteries would fit a Passat).
They do too much to force you to go to the dealership for repairs, then overcharge you once you get there. Also, Passats take premium gas, Altimas take regular unleaded (20 cent/gallon difference). Did I mention the reliability? And the fact that the insurance on my brand new Altima is only $5 per month more than on my 5 year old Passat?
My Passat was entry-level, the Altima has EVERYTHING, and yet they were around the same price. You can get the Altima now, or get the Passat and trade it in for an Altima in a couple of years - I promise, you WILL trade it in in a couple of years.
As far as the comment goes about us being biased, I would understand someone saying that if this was an Altima vs. Accord or Camry question. But we're talking about a car that doesn't work vs. one that does. PLEASE visit the Passat forums (especially Edmunds.com). You'll see so many complaints it's RIDICULOUS. I wish I had read those posts before I purchased my car. You'll see everything from cv axles to every other problem you can imagine. It's crazy.
The comment about VW's being like abusive relationships is soooo true. But at some point, you just have to walk away...
Passats are like low-budget Jaguars - they're cars you get if you have the time and money to sit around in the dealership's service department, chatting it up with the receptionist or service manager about Junior making honor roll, or what their family plans for vacation next month. But if you have more important things to do, get the Altima. If you just have to have something sportier, get the Infiniti. But PLEASE, for the love of life DO NOT GET THE PASSAT!!
Last edited by swhite : 08-21-2007 at 01:21 AM.
Reason: addition
All car manufacturers do make lemons every now and then, it just seems like VW makes more lemons than others.
From the forums I've read about the Jettas, GTIs and Passats, they are very fun to drive. It's been a while since we've owned a VW (except for my parents Westfalia Vanagon), but from what I remember they were fun cars but the reliability is what kills me. It seems like VW should get into the lemonade business.
.....
As far as that quote goes up above, i wish my SE was very smooth, they way spaceboy describes his ride on an SE makes me think something is up with my suspensions with only 450 miles on it. Because the ride is no where near smooth.
I think your suspension is okay. The 3.5 SE will react somewhat harshly to bumps. It's ride quality is also very sensitive to tire pressure. Even a couple pounds over the recommended cold pressure will be very noticable in terms of the ride.
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