Considering a 2010 Altima 2.5S - this weekend

[YipMan_Style]

Please help me with a few questions. I've not kept up.

1. QR25DE was revised. Has it proven reliabile so far? As a owner of B15 Spec V, I'm familar with past engine issues.

2. CVT. This issue is beaten to dead. Many have said it's different and you'll get use to it. The delay people talk about. Does it make you feel less confident in city traffic where it's full of OMG and WTF situations?

3. Reliability of CVT in your experience. I'm sure if we look hard enough, we can find cases of any problem on any car. Nissan backs it now with 120K mile warranty, so I should be ok, right?

4. Anything special about CVT maintance? Or is it still a Stealership service only type of thing cause no one will (or can) work on CVT?

5. Intelligent Key. It will unlock the door when you get near. Get in start the engine. What if I have to get out of the car? Will it lock my car and the engine still running? Example of warming up the car in the winter, but want to keep the doors lock. I know some cars, you "can't" lock the car with the key in.

6. LATCH. Is it easy to hook a child seat? My B15 Sentra was a real pain because the hooks are so deep into the seat.

7. I used to wire the fog lights to work with the car starts. Sort of like day-time running lights. Can I do that with the Altima? Anyone done it?

8. Get the 3.5SR. You are thinking of doing wheels and suspension, so why not? You won't be disappointed. True?

Anything else you want to say about the 2010 model?

Much Thanks
Modified by YipMan_Style at 6:55 AM 2/2/2010

[QR25DE]

1. QR25DE was revised. Has it proven reliabile so far? As a owner of B15 Spec V, I'm familar with past engine issues.

Boosted with 7psi, working fine for over a month, beat it daily. WIN.

2. CVT. This issue is beaten to dead. Many have said it's different and you'll get use to it. The delay people talk about. Does it make you feel less confident in city traffic where it's full of OMG and WTF situations?

CVT Fail.

3. Reliability of CVT in your experience. I'm sure if we look hard enough, we can find cases of any problem on any car. Nissan backs it now with 120K mile warranty, so I should be ok, right?

Yep.

4. Anything special about CVT maintance? Or is it still a Stealership service only type of thing cause no one will (or can) work on CVT?

You can change the fluid.

5. Intelligent Key. It will unlock the door when you get near. Get in start the engine. What if I have to get out of the car? Will it lock my car and the engine still running? Example of warming up the car in the winter, but want to keep the doors lock. I know some cars, you "can't" lock the car with the key in.

You wont be able to lock it with the key inside, it has a prox sensor. It wont auto unlock the door when you get near. You need to push a button on the FOB.

6. LATCH. Is it easy to hook a child seat? My B15 Sentra was a real pain because the hooks are so deep into the seat.

Never tried, some people said it's fine!

7. I used to wire the fog lights to work with the car starts. Sort of like day-time running lights. Can I do that with the Altima? Anyone done it?

Rewire required.

8. Get the 3.5SR. You are thinking of doing wheels and suspension, so why not? You won't be disappointed. True?

True. Or boost the 2.5.

Anything else you want to say about the 2010 model?

Get the 6 speed manual. You wont regret it.

[Keyan]

I just traded in for a 2010 SR and it's a nice refinement even from the 2007 SE.

The CVT is great, esp when mated to the V6, and yes the warranty should cover you.

The Intelligent key does not unlock the doors when you get close or lock them when you walk away. You walk up to the car and push a little button on the door handle to lock/unlock the doors and there is a button on the trunk to open that. Alternatively you can push the buttons on the keyfob to lock/unlock/open trunk/wake up neighbors when you lean over just right and set off the panic mode. The car will not auto-lock when you walk away, you need to lock it yourself by pushing the lock button in the car, pushing the door handle button, or pressing the lock button on the key fob.

LATCH is not hard, however I did find that my particular car seat takes a lot of pressure and some wiggling to get it to fully ratchet down. This is more the seat though than the actual car, and the seat is now very secure.

As far as anything else, I really like the SR. The suspension has been changed slightly from the older SE - it is less rigidly stiff. The SE was so hard even stock that some bumps and rough road was jarring and honestly the car felt like it was unsorted to the point of having less control on rough roads. It was also almost jittery, it felt the road so much that there was almost a constant shaking in the car, even on smooth pavement (of course, that could also be the lingering tire balancing issue that the dealership was fighting the entire time I owned the car). That said, the SR is still great in maneuvering/cornering, with little body roll, so Nissan managed to find a good blend of stiffness in the corners and give over rougher pavement. Overall it just feels more refined. Not sure what you are looking for in terms of options, but the fully loaded features are extensive and things you would expect to find on luxury brand cars.

I would personally go with the 3.5 right out of the gate if the price difference is not a concern.

[jungleboogie]

or buy mine, i've considered selling it... you can pm me if interested.