**Updated 2/3** 2005 Nissan Altima pics (new interior and "freshened" exterior)

[NFS4]

Originally posted by: SuperTool

Originally posted by: NFS4

Originally posted by: mAdD INDIAN
Wow. You guys can tell the quality of plastics from looking at pics?

My beef with the interior has been fixed; they finally fixed the inner door panels. It looks elegant now. I hope this trend goes to other Nissans as well. I'm loving the front end re-styling. It looks AWESOME! Very sleek and very attractive. Too bad they didn't update the rear lights. I read that instead of having shiny silver in the tails, it would be black or body-coloured. That would have looked awesome.
You can't tell me that this doesn't look good
The Altima looks awesome from this angle


Yes, the new Legacy has a better interior, but its more expensive as well. And the JDM Legacy looks way better than the one we are getting (the front bumper/lower valence is different..and it makes all the difference). Of course, I'd pick the Legacy over the Altima...mmm...Legacy STi.

Better looking than before? Yes.
Luxurious? No.

Shiny fake plastic wood does not make it look luxurious. Especially in that color:

http://www.nissannews.com/multimedia/nissan2005/altima/800px/07_2005_Altima.jpg

Man, so much hate. You expect real wood in this segment? Does Accord or Camry have real wood? This is Nissan, not Infiniti. They put any real wood in it, it'll look like the q45 interior.

I don't expect real wood. The fake stuff looks just as cheap on the Camry. I'm just saying, it just looks out of place in that interior (as it does on the Camry) . THe Altima is NOT a luxurious car

 

[SuperTool]

Originally posted by: NFS4

Originally posted by: SuperTool

Originally posted by: NFS4

Originally posted by: mAdD INDIAN
Wow. You guys can tell the quality of plastics from looking at pics?

My beef with the interior has been fixed; they finally fixed the inner door panels. It looks elegant now. I hope this trend goes to other Nissans as well. I'm loving the front end re-styling. It looks AWESOME! Very sleek and very attractive. Too bad they didn't update the rear lights. I read that instead of having shiny silver in the tails, it would be black or body-coloured. That would have looked awesome.
You can't tell me that this doesn't look good
The Altima looks awesome from this angle


Yes, the new Legacy has a better interior, but its more expensive as well. And the JDM Legacy looks way better than the one we are getting (the front bumper/lower valence is different..and it makes all the difference). Of course, I'd pick the Legacy over the Altima...mmm...Legacy STi.

Better looking than before? Yes.
Luxurious? No.

Shiny fake plastic wood does not make it look luxurious. Especially in that color:

http://www.nissannews.com/multimedia/nissan2005/altima/800px/07_2005_Altima.jpg

Man, so much hate. You expect real wood in this segment? Does Accord or Camry have real wood? This is Nissan, not Infiniti. They put any real wood in it, it'll look like the q45 interior.

I don't expect real wood. The fake stuff looks just as cheap on the Camry. I'm just saying, it just looks out of place in that interior (as it does on the Camry)

So don't get it with wood. Some people like it, you don't. That's why you can get it with or without.

 

[mAdD INDIAN]

Originally posted by: NFS4

Originally posted by: SuperTool

Originally posted by: NFS4

Originally posted by: SuperTool

Originally posted by: NFS4

Originally posted by: mchammer187
http://www.nissannews.com/multimedia/nissan2005/altima/800px/19_2005_Altima.jpg

great pic

still not a fan of the rear but at least there is no tooth

from the front it looks great tho

BAH! Give me this instead

http://www.subaru.co.jp/legacy/bt/gallery/ex014_wp_s.jpg
http://www.need-desire.com/WallpaperLegacy/800x600/Legacy3.jpg

With a WAY nicer lookin' interior as well

http://www.subaru.co.jp/legacy/bt/gallery/in003_wp_s.jpg
http://www.subaru.co.jp/legacy/bt/gallery/in001_wp_s.jpg
http://www.subaru.co.jp/legacy/bt/gallery/in004_wp_s.jpg

Mechanical
- 2.5-liter DOHC intercooled, turbocharged 16-valve 4-cylinder Subaru Boxer engine with AVCS
- 250-horsepower @ 6,000rpm & 250lb-ft of torque @ 3,600rpm
- Symmetrical All-Wheel-Drive (AWD)
- Reinforced 5-speed manual transmission
- Optional 5-speed electronic direct control automatic transmission with SPORTSHIFT manual control
- 4-wheel ventilated disc brakes with ABS and Electronic Brake-force Distribution (EBD)

WHO-AHHHHHHHHHHHH!

http://forums.vwvortex.com/zerothread?id=1196272

Nice car, but bound to be a niche player in this market. With AWD it can't compete with Altima and Camcords on price or fuel economy.

It's a turbo-4...it'll compete when it comes to fuel economy

turbo 4 bangers and AWD are a niche market play. You should know that. Unless people need the AWD, they aren't gonna pay more for it. And if they are gonna pay V6 prices they expect 6 cylinders.

The Subaru Legacy is just about as niche as a V6 Altima SE (especially the 5-speed models). They probably sell in about the same numbers as well. V6 Altima sales are not that hot

Yeah true. But the Altima has the cheaper 4-cyl and lower-end V6 models as well ( i think..not sure if its only SE and SL for the 3.5). And thats the point. For the best selling trim, the interior is pretty sweet.

If the Legacy (fully loaded) is in the same price range as the Altima 3.5SE, I'd def go for the Legacy. But I somehow doubt that. Isn't the Legacy gonna be in the 30k USD zone? Because Subaru has stated time and time again that they wanna move upmarket in the US.

 

[Eli]

Go Subaru!

 

[RagingBITCH]

Seems to look a lot better - more like my coworkers Murano - however, I'd still take my Accord's interior anyday over that.

And I don't see the Legacy beating the Altima V6 in terms of sales - Subaru doesn't have the effective capacity or the power of the name brand to really pull in sales like Nissan does. Subaru's market with the Legacy might draw more away from Maxima owners than it would Altima - I think the Legacy is slightly too upscale to be considered a direct competitor to the Altima, regardless of what Subaru claims it as. If I were going to compare the Legacy to something it'd be the Maxima first before the Altima.

 

[prontospyder]

The '05 Altima 3.5SE and SL will now have 250 hp/249 lb-ft of torque.

Link

 

[SuperTool]

Originally posted by: prontospyder
The '05 Altima 3.5SE and SL will now have 250 hp/249 lb-ft of torque.

Link

Woohoo. 5 speed auto with manual shift mode for the 6 banger.

Backing either engine is a choice of 5-speed manual (not available on 2.5 SL 4-cylinder models), 4-speed electronically controlled automatic (4-cylinder models) or 5-speed electronically controlled automatic with manual shift mode (standard on 3.5 SL, optional on 3.5 SE).

Seems like they got all the bases covered. Great styling, interior, drivetrain, performance, and handling.
I am giving the Altima another test drive come summer.

 

[WinkOsmosis]

Fake wood is no good. It should have glossy black plastic like that concept Fugu. I love the way that looks. Clean and simple. Reminds me of Star Trek TNG consoles.

 

[rh71]

Not bad... nice subtle changes. It definitely needs a spoiler.

 

[Maximin]

The interior/console design still could have been much better.
Mazda 3, RX-8, and Accord are the best, IMO.

 

[bolido2000]

Looks pretty nice. I love when people start arguing about something they haven't even seen yet. The accords interior does look better IMO.
The Legacy is not that nice. Sure the pictures posted make it look awesome. The new legacy is already out in south america. It didn't look that nice as I thought in person.

 

[Babbles]

I like the exterior styling except for those stock Altezza break lights; it just screams stock rice to me. I am not too impressed with the interior, well it just does not seem up to par with what I would expect from Nissan. The grey/black interior looks cheap however the tan interior looks better. I am sure it is the same materials, but the coloring seems to just cheapen it.
Not a big fan of the steering wheel and gauge cluster.
I like what I see in Toyota and Honda much more.

 

[SuperTool]

Originally posted by: Maximin
The interior/console design still could have been much better.
Mazda 3, RX-8, and Accord are the best, IMO.

Yes, only VW ripoff interiors allowed.

The interior on the Altima is great, IMO. It's a more oriental style than european, but I think it's great on its own merits. Also, Nissan knows how to design dashes to optimize the interior space.

 

[psteng19]

I can't tell by the pics but hopefully the grade of materials used this time around is up a few notches, and the rattles and built quality is higher.
If so, what's left for Nissan haters can complain about?

Also, I find the bump up in horsepower very suspect.

 

[SuperTool]

Originally posted by: psteng19
I can't tell by the pics but hopefully the grade of materials used this time around is up a few notches, and the rattles and built quality is higher.
If so, what's left for Nissan haters can complain about?

Also, I find the bump up in horsepower very suspect.

It's prolly BS. They probably underrated it in the first place so they can bump it up a few times without lying.

 

[BigSmooth]

I just noticed on Edmunds that this thing will be on sale in mid-February as a 2005 model (other sources say early March). We're barely even into 2004! I think calling it a 2005 so early kind of sucks because later on it will confuse and mislead used-car buyers. They should have called it a 2004.5 or something, that's not unprecedented.