1997 Nissan Altima GXE 2.4
Summary:
Extremely reliable
Faults:
Outer CV boots at 120k, which is normal for the environments this car was in. A whole 20 bucks for those.
And the only kinda big thing that went wrong with this car was the alternator at 140k, but that's pretty normal as well. Let me know right away with the battery light, took it to Autozone, machine said it was the alternator, bought a rebuilt, took her home and got the alternator replaced and the core back to the store within an hour. Very easy and $100 bucks later. And really all the old alternator probably needed was to clean the brushes; I drove down a lot of dirt roads and such, so not sure if that would cause it.
And that's it, extremely reliable. So in 7 years of ownership I've only had to spend 120 bucks for non-routine maintenance on her, now I did the work myself, but even if I hadn't it'd be a whole 300 total with parts and labor maybe, still a great deal. Not bad for a used car. Got her for 6k so I more than got my monies worth for her.
General Comments:
Bought her in 02 with 70k, now she's at 165k with no oil burn, no leaks at all, and no sign of letting up. I just keep up with the routine maintenance, which really is just oil changes. And I don't take it easy on her.
Good mileage too, get around 23-25 in town and 30-32 on the hwy. Handles fine for a family sedan.
Before I owned her according to Carfax report, she spent some time up north with some company, so I'm sure it was driven like a rental, then a one owner, then I got her in 02. Got stationed in Germany for 4 years and drove all over Europe doing autobahn speeds. Usually cruised at 110mph for several hours at a time. She's been to Germany, France, Belgium, Netherlands, UK, just all over, and all kinds of roads and conditions and she never faltered. And she handled the 4 years of the German winters and summers no problem. And then we got stationed back stateside.
Just an absolutely ridiculously reliable car. I'm actually really bored with her, I like working on cars but with this thing the only thing she ever needs is an oil change. That's all right though, my buddies GM's, Ford's, Chryslers, and a Kia need some TLC quite often. So I get my fix on and hands dirty often with their vehicles.
She is showing her age with the paint fading some, which is normal, especially since I've never had her in the garage except for 30 minutes every 5k miles for an oil change. Interior is holding up very well, even with my daughters spilling stuff in the back. Just a bunch of stains from them.
All around a great car. Even if something goes wrong with her right now, I wouldn't be able to complain due to all the problem free years. I know I'll get over 200k out of her with no problems.
Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes
Review Date: 28th February, 2009
12th Aug 2009, 18:16
You should get even more than 200,000 miles with this car. My 1997 Nissan Altima GXE has 222,500 miles and runs like a top. I've had it for 4 months now and all I had to replace was the serpentine belt, just a normal wear and tear part. Love my Altima!