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03-05 Nissan Altimas

R

RavenSEAL

Diamond Member
Yes, my search has yet to come to an end and up next is the Nissan Altima. I've also begun to notice some 04 Dodge Stratus R/T Coupes in my area and damn they look nice. I'm kind of scared because Dodge hasn't always build the best cars...but something inside of me wants it

I've been looking at a few models between 03-05, ranging around 90K miles and for around 5-9K.

I'm mostly looking for a reliable and economic daily driver that would undergo 60mi/day highway commutes.

Thoughts?
 
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I'm commuting 60 miles a day in a 2003 Nissan Maxima which has the same drivetrain if you buy the 3.5l equipped Altima. Original owner, 112,000 miles, no problems to speak of. Plan on keeping it at least 1 more year... maybe longer.

The Altima is slightly larger but the interior materials aren't as nice. Torque steer and the crappy rear suspension setup is my only real complaint. Not sure if the Altima carries the Maxima's rear suspension setup or not though. It is fine on smooth roads but over uneven pavement it is less than desirable. That's about the worst thing I've heard about them.

As a daily driver it excels.
 
Damn, I've begun to notice some 04 Dodge Stratus R/T Coupes in my area and damn they look nice. I'm kind of scared because Dodge hasn't always build the best cars...but something inside of me wants it 😵
 
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I support the Altima.
Just get one with a 3.5 and you're golden. That engine is the cats meow. Powerful, reliable, smooth, its just great. I had a 3.5SE 5 speed, I miss that car..
 
CraigRT said:
I support the Altima.
Just get one with a 3.5 and you're golden. That engine is the cats meow. Powerful, reliable, smooth, its just great. I had a 3.5SE 5 speed, I miss that car..
Click to expand...

3.5 is not a great option if fuel economy is your goal. The 2.5 will get 50-60% better MPGs.
 
Wife owns a 2005 Altima with the 3.5L V6. It's got great acceleration but her MPG is in the low 20s overall. Granted, her morning commute usually runs into some congestion. But even on road trips the best fuel economy we've gotten has been in the mid to upper 20s.

That said, it's been reliable so far. We picked it up with 80k miles on it and it's now at about 100k. No problems yet. And it's a very comfortable car. Great for highway cruising. The one complaint on road trips (other than the subpar fuel economy) is that air seems to come in through the glovebox and it always makes the passenger cold, although that could be an easy fix, we're not sure.

Consumer Reports rates the Altima as having above average reliability, but you'll want to avoid models from before 2003. My brother (a car guy) also tells me that the 4-cylinder models are less reliable than the V6 ones, but the CR ratings don't show much difference.

As for the Stratus, I wouldn't buy a Chrysler product made before 2010. CR rates the 04 and 05 models as below average in reliability, with far worse than average problem rates in the engine, transmission, suspension, brakes, and exhaust system. Speaking anecdotally, I've seen a lot of Chryslers of that era with sun-damaged paint, and I'm in freaking Minnesota.
 
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ExarKun333 said:
3.5 is not a great option if fuel economy is your goal. The 2.5 will get 50-60% better MPGs.
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It's true, but the 3.5 is twice the engine that the 2.5 is... I would not own a QR25 personally. It's because of all the problems the 2.5 had in earlier years. That and the 3.5 feels like it has 3X the horsepower when you drive both back to back.
 
CraigRT said:
It's true, but the 3.5 is twice the engine that the 2.5 is... I would not own a QR25 personally. It's because of all the problems the 2.5 had in earlier years. That and the 3.5 feels like it has 3X the horsepower when you drive both back to back.
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OP said reliable and econmical. The 3.5 Altima is not economical for 60mi daily commutes IMHO.

If you want economical + Altima style, thats the best choice...otherwise I would suggest looking elsewhere.

If the OP is OK with marginal gas mileage but wants reliable, then its a good choice. I love the VQ engines, but thirsty they are...
 
ExarKun333 said:
OP said reliable and econmical. The 3.5 Altima is not economical for 60mi daily commutes IMHO.

If you want economical + Altima style, thats the best choice...otherwise I would suggest looking elsewhere.

If the OP is OK with marginal gas mileage but wants reliable, then its a good choice. I love the VQ engines, but thirsty they are...
Click to expand...

Yeah fuel mileage is not the best. It's not terrible either though.
I used to do 90 miles per day commute in my '02 6 speed Maxima. It wasn't horrendous on fuel, but not as good as my Civic thats for sure.
 
We have an '04 3.5SE Altima and it's a great car. My fiance got it with ~75k miles and it's now over 130k. The only things we've done are tires, brakes, belts, a wheel bearing, crank sensor and oil changes. The car is powerful enough to spin the tires down the road, but is also capable of getting over 28mpg on road trips with the 4 spd auto. For reference, I was only able to get 26mpg out of the 4 banger Altima that we rented this weekend.

Some qualities that we like are the power, a lot of rear seat room, comfortable seats and low maintenance costs.
 
I think I'm set on an Altima. I've seen some really nice ones for around 6K with/ 100K Miles. 2.5s of course.

Now if I could just find a dark red one :awe:

EDIT: Just did, yay!

002-1.jpg
 
from what I've read the newer the altima with the 2.5 or the 3.5 the better as far as them working all the kinks out.

i have an 06' se-r model but it only has 54k on it so I can't tell you much from the long-term POV, all the fellow owners I've met have been pleased with their Altima's for what its worth.
o0uqg6.jpg


2.5 still has decent power and good MPG on ole 87
 
For the years you've listed, I would watch out on the nissans, I know they had some transmission issues around those years (automatics) ... I know Maximas were troubled by it, worth some time on google to check and make sure

...I really like the little tweaks of the SERs, hard to find though
 
Sidekicknichola said:
For the years you've listed, I would watch out on the nissans, I know they had some transmission issues around those years (automatics) ... I know Maximas were troubled by it, worth some time on google to check and make sure

...I really like the little tweaks of the SERs, hard to find though
Click to expand...

I've had zero problems with mine and I don't exactly baby it.
 
chin311 said:
from what I've read the newer the altima with the 2.5 or the 3.5 the better as far as them working all the kinks out.

i have an 06' se-r model but it only has 54k on it so I can't tell you much from the long-term POV, all the fellow owners I've met have been pleased with their Altima's for what its worth.
o0uqg6.jpg


2.5 still has decent power and good MPG on ole 87
Click to expand...

Yeah. I would love getting a 3.5L for the extra kick, but every gallon counts when half my paycheck is going to be the cost of the car.

Nice SE-R btw, I saw one in person today and it looks sweet. I really like the front detail.
 
chin311 said:
from what I've read the newer the altima with the 2.5 or the 3.5 the better as far as them working all the kinks out.

i have an 06' se-r model but it only has 54k on it so I can't tell you much from the long-term POV, all the fellow owners I've met have been pleased with their Altima's for what its worth.
o0uqg6.jpg


2.5 still has decent power and good MPG on ole 87
Click to expand...

Sharp car. SE-R Altimas have some of the best factory wheels ever made IMO.
 
Well, I'm going Altima shopping this weekend. Sealing the paperwork at the bank either Thursday or Friday!

All the feedback is much appreciated folks! I'll make a thread once I bring her home, hopefully I can find a maroon one laying around! 😀
 
Sorry about the 2.5 lol but chances are with 100k any engine work that needed to be done was done.

My dad has an 02 Altima 3.5, and he gets very noticeable 1-2 and 2-3 upshift flare from the auto tranny, which was a common problem too.
 
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