Topic: Test Drive: 2012 Nissan Sentra 2.0

[sailor723]

I've never really looked at the Sentra as a remarkable car. Until reading this my only experience was as a passenger in my best friend's wife's old sentra which she drove so roughly that I didn't sleep a wink on the 2.5 hour road trip. But from this article I've really found a unique appreciation for this auto. With loads of interior space, a quiet and comfortable ride, it really does have invisible appeal that I'd never have tuned into otherwise. Thanks Peter.

You were with your best friend's wife for 2.5 hours and didn't sleep a wink??............cue Saf 

[sailor723]

At a steady 130kmh it pulled 2500rpm, it never wavered off that speed (most cars over-speed on hills on cruise) and averaged 8.8l/100km.

That doesn't sound all that impressive to me. Our 328iX does about the same with the cruise set in the mid/high 120's 

You have to realise where I live is incredibly hilly - as an example to maintain 110kmh on some of the hills on the highway my Mazda 5 with only one occupant will have to change down to 3rd. The run in question was completed on winter tyres, aircon on, three occupants (all adults) and after a section of heavy city driving. The difference in fuel consumption between 120 and 130 is quite significant in most cars.

I wouldn't describe southern NB as "incredibly hilly" (unless maybe if you grew up on the prairies )

I didn't realize your number was actually blended with some city driving...that certainly makes a difference. My high 8's was all highway (SJ-Halifax) and mostly around 125 KPH

[theonlydt]

At a steady 130kmh it pulled 2500rpm, it never wavered off that speed (most cars over-speed on hills on cruise) and averaged 8.8l/100km.

That doesn't sound all that impressive to me. Our 328iX does about the same with the cruise set in the mid/high 120's 

You have to realise where I live is incredibly hilly - as an example to maintain 110kmh on some of the hills on the highway my Mazda 5 with only one occupant will have to change down to 3rd. The run in question was completed on winter tyres, aircon on, three occupants (all adults) and after a section of heavy city driving. The difference in fuel consumption between 120 and 130 is quite significant in most cars.

I wouldn't describe southern NB as "incredibly hilly" (unless maybe if you grew up on the prairies )

I didn't realize your number was actually blended with some city driving...that certainly makes a difference. My high 8's was all highway (SJ-Halifax) and mostly around 125 KPH

Hadn't noticed you were an NBer

SJ to Moncton has some decent hills. I've driven it in several vehicles, with the worst economy being returned from an unsympathetically driven Oddy and the best being my wife's Sentra (7.2).

We'd made the mistake of trying to leave the Moncton mall just before the Santa Claus parade and ended up in serious traffic for the first 45 minutes of the tank - the rest after that was highway really.

I find with a decent 6 cylinder where it can be returning relatively low rpms at 120kmh they can give better fuel economy than a small 4 that's overworking. Even with 4s there's a difference - my UK Accord had a 1.8 and returned 40mpg at 60mph, or 37mpg at 70mph, 35mpg at 80mph (again, a 1.8 in that car is quite small), but my UK Civic with a 1.4 could return 50mpg at 60mph, 40mpg at 70mph and 33mpg at 80mph! It was turning over 4000rpm at 80mph. (Both were standards). The Civic could still hit 110mph on the Autobahn though, and the Accord 135mph. I miss European cars

[Blueprint]

Another thing to watch out for when trying to increase fuel economy in the current Sentra is the A/C.  Whenever you dial-up defrost or defrost+floor, and the fan speed is above "0", the a/c turns on.  On pure defrost, the a/c light won't come up, but it's still on (did some RTFM on that).  Push the a/c button to turn it off on defrost+floor, and the a/c will still be on even though the light turns off.

Solution: unless you don't have defog weather, use flow-thru (fan off) if you want the airflow from the defroster outlet.

Still, some of my best scores came from summer runs with a/c on.

Other Sentra attribute: on top of the roomy interior, the trunk offers a midsize-class 14 cu.ft.

[dirtyjeffer]

if you are using any sort of "defrost" setting for the front windshield, i believe it turns on the AC unit in all cars...i know that has been the case for pretty much every vehicle i have owned in the last 20 years...it is to remove the moisture from the air, which is what causes the condensation on the interior of the windshield.