Faults:

Decent car, looked good, was inexpensive when I got it, low payments, big engine and low KMs.

It was very quick off the line, but it lost power in the upper band really badly. Also the paint and interior quality was kinda cheap. Also a lot of the components were cheap. Here's a list of things I did over the years:

Radio stopped working ($300+ for an aftermarket and kit).

Brakes, all 4 corners, rotors and pads ($800, around 50,000 kms).

Headlight (plastic clip melted, had to replace bulbs and bend clip back into shape; still had issues long after).

Battery died, wouldn't charge any more ($100 for replacement, around 60,000 kms);

The biggest problem was the engine; seems like everyone with the 2.5L had issues with them failing. Mine needed a new head gasket at just under 80,000 kms. That was a unexpected $2000 expense; but I think I saved myself needing a new engine because I caught the oil/coolant levels early (radiator was almost empty, and there was no oil on the dip stick).

Not long after that, I was rear ended at a red light. I have to give the car good marks for safety; both my girlfriend and I walked away from the accident. The SUV that hit us made contact at about 50kms, the entire back of the car was punched into the backseats, the rear bumper turned into dust, and the side panels were wrapped around the rear tires. But even though the car was a wreck, anyone inside would have been OK.

General Comments:

If you own one, watch your coolant and oil levels. If you start to get low, you probably need your head gasket replaced like I did. Even though it sucks and is a waste of money, a $2000 head gasket bill is better than a $5000 engine replacement.

Other than that, the acceleration was awesome, and the handling was unreal, super tight in the corners, go-kart like. If you can, get the stick shift though; the automatic really limits the fun of this car, and it kills the gas mileage.

Faults:

We purchased the car brand new in Dec 2001. The first several years were OK, but the car absolutely fell apart as soon as it hit 100,000. The transmission went out, the computer failed, and other major issues that cost a lot of money.

The car was dealer maintained during its life. I contacted Nissan USA with no results. I will buy a Toyota next time.

Faults:

After I bought the car, I drove it to NC from MA, and it was leaking oil. I had to stop about every 200 miles to fill it back up, just to get it to where I was going.

On the way back home to MA, I was left stranded on the side of a highway, because the oil was all over the engine. It wouldn't start/stay started. I ended up having the car taken back to NC, and the spark plugs needed to be replaced.

When I got back to MA, about 3 weeks later, the engine blew. It was replaced with a motor that had about 88000 miles on it. Haven't had a problem since with the motor.

Now, I'm having a problem with the speed sensor. When the car is driven for a while or there's frequent stops, it revs up like crazy and won't go over 20mph. I have to pull over, shut the car off, wait, start it up, and usually it'll go again. Lately, it gets me two seconds down the road and does the same thing over again. What a bad car!!!

General Comments:

It's a decent car without the problems it has. It's nice looking inside and out, but with the mechanical problems and the costs, it's just not worth it!