Faults:

Mass air flow sensor went out at 200,000 miles. I found one online to replace it for $100.

Alternator went out at 240,000 miles. Again I found one online for $80. I also went ahead and replaced the drive belt while the alternator was off; it cost $22.

Oil dipstick handle broke off at 250,000 miles. I had to go through the dealership for a new one. It cost me $10.

General Comments:

This 2000 Nissan Sentra GXE of mine has been an absolute great car for me! This car had been my every day driver for 8 years now. I bought the car in 2006 with 150,000 miles on it. It is now 2014 and the car has 310,000 miles on it, and is still running strong. Not bad for a $3,000 car!

If I had to find something bad to say about it, it would be the mass air flow sensor. About 3 months prior to it going out, it would idle rough and shut down in traffic sometimes. It would always start right back up every time it shut down.

Also, this car has never left me stranded the entire time I have owned it.

Faults:

I bought my car, new, off the lot. It currently has just under 85k miles on it. For the first five years, it behaved beautifully.

I've always had my vehicle serviced by Nissan dealership garages.

2 summers ago, on particularly hot days (by Seattle weather, anyway!) my car would stop, suddenly, in the middle of city traffic (never of the freeway). After a few attempts to restart it, the engine would sputter to life long enough to move it off the road before a tow truck could get me to the Nissan dealership. To the tune of $129 a pop, each time, they could not diagnose the problem.

Over the past 5 years, the service engine light has appeared almost daily. I've taken it into the garage several times, paid $129 for diagnostics each time, and have generally been told there's nothing wrong with the car (though, to be honest, once, they thought the gas cap was on too tight).

All that changed last week, when I took my car in for an oil change, heater check and a handy-dandy, "free" 100 point inspection. I was told I need a new catalytic converter - to the tune of $1029.66. (It may or may not be worth noting I've never failed an emission test).

Also, starting at the end of last winter, the heater stopped blowing hot air in stop/go traffic. Once I hit the freeway, it's fine. Last week, as part of the overall check up, I was charged $64.50 to diagnose the issue. They find no sign of leaks, but recommended a cooling system flush for $169.95.

Also, as part of said 100 point inspection, they recommend a valve cover gasket replacement ($176.04), a transmission flush ($230 - which I seem to pay for annually) and a throttle body service cleaning ($74.50, for a sticky gas pedal).

Today, I took my car to a local mom/pop shop to check out the service engine issue. They said it was either the 02 sensors (my car has 4) OR the catalytic converter. To replace the CC, they've quoted a price of $698. However, they confirmed it's as likely to be an issue with the O2 sensors as the CC.

In reading these boards, it may be one, both or neither issue and I'm not quite sure what I'll do next.

General Comments:

There are many things to love about my car, and I suppose I should be grateful it's performed so well, generally, for the last 10 years.

It still looks quite good; both the interior and exterior have held up very well.

However, with only 85k miles on it, it seems I should be able to expect more than quarterly visits to my local garage to troubleshoot issues they may or may fix.