Looks like a Corolla from the back :(
We all know Nissans to be reliable. The 2013 Sentra adds to that fact its great fuel economy and its being within the reach of most people’s budgets. Its new styling may look familiar, as you can certainly see the family resemblance between it and its classier sister, Altima. Nissan tried to step it up for the 2013 launch.
Being a proud owner of the same Nissan Sentra for 15 years (this September), I can certainly attest to the Sentra’s reliability. Also, I prefer driving a down-and-dirty Sentra over any fancy, uppity luxury cars. I like knowing how fast I'm going without looking at my speedometer. There's something about a humble Sentra that makes you feel your speed.
So enough gushing: I will say that after my model year, I have not been a fan of the Sentra styling. I love Nissan and my family has a very long history with Nissans—from Z-cars to Stanzas, so they will always hold a place in my heart. But why would a company want to copy the stylings of its own model? Why the constant obsession to make things bigger? Bigger is not always better. What then is the point of having two separate models?
If you like the smaller, more modest Sentra, you buy the Sentra. If you like the roomier, more luxurious Altima, you buy the Altima. What's all this wishy-washiness? It’s contradictory to logic, but that's my opinion, and everyone is entitled to his/her own.
The interior feels like memory foam covered in Spandex, and that's kind of creepy.
It's slow.
It's not fun.
I file this under "do not buy."
I'm a Sentra fan from back in the day and had one of the original SE-Rs--back when they were new--but this one didn't thrill me. I hate to say it, but in today's compact car scene it's fairly generic. Plus, to be honest, I'm not a fan of the CVT transmission. I know Nissan is into them, but it just gives the entire car a soft, marshmallow-like feel.
The SE-R and Spec-V were great enthusiast cars that Nissan has walked away from. I get the need for mainstream profit centers, but how hard is it to drop a Juke engine into something and add some suspension? Jeez.
We tested a Sentra SL last week and were disappointed...no spirit left in this version of the Sentra. Nissan seems to go in cycles of sporty and boring. They are in their boring phase again...
I had one of these and the new Focus back to back as recent rentals. I don't think I have ever driven two cars in the same segment at the same price point that were so, um, different. The Focus was fabulous, even if I didn't like kookie over wrought dash/center console, and too busy auto clicking up and down all willy nilly in search of something apparently unobtainable. The Sentra simply sucked. bleh.
We all know Nissans to be reliable. The 2013 Sentra adds to that fact its great fuel economy and its being within the reach of most people’s budgets. Its new styling may look familiar, as you can certainly see the family resemblance between it and its classier sister, Altima. Nissan tried to step it up for the 2013 launch.
I wish Nissan would get its mojo back. What happened to the Spec V spirit? Why waste the Nismo thing on the ridiculous Juke? I wouldn't mind seeing a new Nismo turbo 6 speed Sentra like I'm driving now.
Displaying 1-7 of 7 commentsView all comments on the GRM forums
You'll need to log in to post.