Faults:

Right door speaker and one of the back speakers don't work.

CD player wasn't working when I bought the car, so I replaced it with the CD player from my old car.

General Comments:

This Nissan Sentra SE is my second car. I have owned it for 7 months, and put little more than 10,000 miles on it. This is the first car I learned to drive stick shift on. The gears on the car are not as refined as other cars I have tested (Honda Civic, Prelude, S2000), and you have to press the clutch all the way to the bottom. But, I got hang of it in a week.

I got the car for $3300 from a dealer, and after pre-inspection, the dealer replaced the starter, brake pads and rotors. I also replaced the spark plugs about 4 months ago, before my trip from Louisiana to Virginia.

The brakes on the car are real sensitive.

Also, the paint is peeling off.

It also has some torque steer and understeer when pushed to the limit.

Now, the good things about the car:

It has a fantastic motor in it. It is decently quick and real fun to drive. It is light and torquey, and I drive it really hard. I have driven it in the mountainous roads of the Appalachian Mountains (Blue Ridge Parkway, Tail of the Dragon, Cherahala Skyway) and pushed it to its limit. It handled curves like charm. I have also trashed it many times in dirt roads. Still, nothing has gone wrong mechanically.

I had heard SR20 motors are really reliable and quick, and I have to agree. I average about 28 mpg with all the hard launching, rev matching, and heel-toe shifting. So can't complain.

Looks: It looks decent from the side angle and front angle, but the bumper looks really ugly. Too bad the new Sentra SE-R looks even more ugly.

Faults:

Some rust on the bottom of the doors.

The CD player takes some time to work in very cold weather.

The tube that connects my windshield wiper on the driver side consistently comes unhooked.

General Comments:

I think this car is really great. I've driven it from Indiana to California and back twice, each time taking a different route. I've also driven it to DC. I've never had a problem.

States traveled - Illinois, Wisconsin, South Dakota, North Dakota, Montana, Idaho, Washington, Oregon, California, Arizona, Utah, Wyoming, Colorado, Kansas, Oklahoma, Missouri, Texas, New Mexico, Indiana, Ohio, Virginia, Kentucky, Nevada, and likely more...

On the highway, I was getting approximately between 29-36 mpg, depending on the climate, terrain, and speed. Gas mileage quickly plummets after 70 mph.

The other comments on this site seem either misguided or whiny. If you take care of this car - regular oil changes, rotate the tires, keep fluids filled, DO NOT flush the transmission, let it run in cold weather before driving - it should hold up.

I'm debating driving it to Florida for spring break. Northern Ohio to Key Largo, just to avoid having to fly. I have confidence it will make this trip.

Faults:

- 2 front OEM tire at 20000KM.

- Rear-view mirror turned black spots (dealer fixed for free).

- Brakes had to be changed at 60000KM (fix cost ~ $300).

- Driver's side power window broke down at 120000KM (fix cost ~ $250 with used car parts from junk yard).

- Flushed transmission fluid at 121000KM.

- Oil dipstick broke and got stuck at 121000KM (a very annoying experience).

- OEM car battery broke down at 122000KM.

- Driver side door started rusting at the bottom at about 80000KM.

General Comments:

The overall impression of the car is very positive. We used it as a working car, so hauling groceries from our restaurants was part of the weekly routine, which was no easy task with hauling cases of lettuce, potatoes and rice in the trunk and in the backseat, the car had enough power and reliability during the Canadian winter.

I will mention some negative aspects:

- My parents opted for the "rust proof", "fabric proof", and some other dealer special for a total of $3000. They did not consult me on this, and it was money wasted.

- The broken power window was not something we expected. I guess we never thought it's something that would break. Genuine Nissan parts would've cost something like $150 + labour, but we were lucky and found the needed parts from salvage yards for $30.

- The progression of rust under the driver's door was very aggressive. At first it was just a tiny spot no bigger than the size of a thumb (which nobody really noticed), and in about a year it developed bigger than a person's hand. This is something we regret neglecting, and should've dealt with right away.

We also did not keep a strict maintenance regiment for the Sentra. Oil change was mostly done on a 3 times a year basis.

Considering how much stress and workload we put on the car, and how little maintenance we put in, it's truly been a workhorse for our family. So overall, we are very satisfied.

PS: for anyone who's had their oil dipstick break at the plastic tip and stuck in the little oil-well tube, wait for the car engine to cool down, apply super glue onto chopstick or a wooden pencil, gently lower the chopstick/pencil into the tube and press gently on the stuck dipstick, wait 1 min and pull, the stick should be glued to the pencil for you to pull out.