Nissan Altima
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In addition to North America, the Altima is available in the Middle East. In other markets, Nissan sells a related midsize sedan called the Nissan Teana built on the same FF-L platform.
History
In 1993, Nissan discontinued its much-criticized Stanza compact car, replacing it with the US-made Altima, making it Nissan's entry-level mid-size car. The very first Altima rolled off the assembly line on June 15, 1992 as a 1993 model. Until June 2004, all Altimas had been built in Smyrna, Tennessee. However, in June 2004, Nissan's Canton, Mississippi, plant began producing additional Altimas to meet high demand.
The Altima has had three design generations: 1993-1997, 1998-2001, and 2002+.
First generation: 1993-1997
The original 1993 Altima was a rebadged Japanese-market Nissan Bluebird (U13 series). The official name of the car was the Nissan "Stanza Altima", and the trunk lid had a sticker reading "Stanza" in stylized lettering.
The 1993 Altima had a single airbag on the driver's side, and used automatic shoulder belts for the front seats.
It came with the KA24DE I4 DOHC engine capable of developing 150 hp.
Second generation: 1998-2001
The second generation, codenamed L30, was an American market only version. It was designed in Nissan's California design center.
It came with the same KA24DE I4 DOHC engine as the first generation Altima. In 2000, the engine was upgraded to produce 155 hp. That year, the car also received a minor facelift: modified facia, one-piece head lamps with turn signals and new seats.
Third generation: 2002-2006
The third generation Altima, codenamed L31, first sold in 2002, has been well received by the press because of its design, power, and style. It was the first mass-market product built on Nissan's larger sedan platform. It is unique to North America and has no equivalent model in Japan, where smaller vehicles tend to be favored by buyers. The Japanese Nissan Teana is similar, but not identical and slots between the Altima and Maxima in size.
It comes with either a QR25DE engine - 2.5 L straight-4 DOHC engine with a power of 175 hp (130 kW) or a more powerful VQ35DE engine (the one used in the Infiniti G35, Infiniti FX35, Infiniti M35, Nissan Maxima and Nissan 350Z) - 3.5 L V6 DOHC engine with a power of 250 hp (186 kW). 2005 saw the addition of a sporty SE-R model making 260 hp (194 kW). The Altima SE-R became the first sports model for the lineup sporting 18" Forged Aluminum wheels, along with upgraded brake system, suspension, performance exhaust, lower body sculpting and more.
The Altima won the North American Car of the Year award for 2002.
Fourth Generation: 2007+
The fourth-generation Altima was announced at the 2006 New York Auto Show on April 12th, 2006. It is the first vehicle to use the smaller Nissan D platform, with a new front and upgraded rear suspension. The wheelbase is 1 inch shorter than the third-generation Altima, but interior space is said to be unchanged. The Maxima and Murano will continue on the larger FF-L platform.
The 2007 Altima will be the first to use Nissan's new 3.5 L V6 engine, and will also offer a continuously variable transmission. A 6-speed manual will be standard. The 2007 Altima will sport some more recent innovations in the market including, but not limited to, "Push-button start", Bluetooth capability for cell phones and a parking camera.
Hybrid
Nissan entered an agreement with rival Toyota to use some of its hybrid technology in the Altima 4th. generation. As a fruit of this, has appeared in 2006 Altima Hybrid model, that can be bought in early 2007. Up to 40,000 per year will by built at Nissan's Smyrna, Tennessee plant. Sales of the Hybrid model will be limited to the U.S. states of California, Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Rhode Island, and Vermont.
The Hybrid Altima features a 2.5 L engine QR25DE, CVT transmission, and electric motor/generator.
External links
- [Official Nissan Altima Website]
- [Altima SL AutoGuideWiki.com]
- [Review: 2006 Nissan
- [Modified Nissan Altima]]
Hybrid
- [Nissan Altima Hybrid].
- [Nissan Altima Hybrid in Greencar.com].
- [Atima Hybrid in Autobytel].
- [Nissan Altima Hybrid - Road Test & First Drive - Motor Trend].
- [Find the Nissan Altima - mySimon.com].
| Part of the Nissan series''' | |
|---|---|
| List of Nissan vehicles>Vehicles: 100NX | 1200 |200SX | B210 | 240SX | 240Z | 280ZX | 300ZX | 350Z | 510 | R390 GT1 | Almera | Altima | Armada | Avenir | Be-1 | Bluebird | Caravan | Cedric | Cefiro | Cima | Cube | Elgrand | Fairlady | Figaro | Frontier | Fuga | Gazelle | Gloria | Hardbody Truck | Laurel | Leopard | Liberty | Livina Geniss | Maxima | Micra | Multi | Murano | Navara | Note | NX | Pao | Pathfinder | Patrol | Pintara | Platina | Prairie | Presea | Primera | President | Pulsar | Quest | R'nessa | S-Cargo | Saurus Jr | Sentra | Serena | Silvia | Skyline | Stanza | Stagea | Sunny | Teana | Tiida | Titan | Urge | Versa | Wingroad | X-Trail | Xterra
| |
| List of Nissan engines>Engines: 4 cylinder: D | C | G | J | H | L | A | Z | CA | CG | CR | E | FJ | GA | KA | SR | QG | QR | HR | MR | MA Inline 6: L | H | S20 | RB | RD | SD V6: VG | VE | VQ V8: Y | VH | VK | |
| See also: Infiniti division | [http://encycl.opentopia.com/ Edit this template] |
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