"The sole transmission choice is a CVT that's very smooth and responsive; under most driving conditions,
it feels more like a conventional unit."
That's not a good thing is it?
"All of that netted me a combined average of 6.8 L/100 km (42 mpg Imp), which fell shy of the published 5.8 (49 mpg Imp), but which was still very good for a midsize sedan - I averaged 10.7 (26 mpg Imp) when I drove the conventional Altima."
That's pretty good mileage out of the hybrid. To be fair, I doubt the writer drove the regular Altima as cautiously as she did here.
"It also comes standard with a proximity key, and uses an engine start/stop button - an unnecessary feature on any car, but downright dumb on a hybrid that stops running as you're pulling into your parking space. It simply isn't second nature to remember to hit an "engine stop" button when the engine isn't running. Just before going to bed one night, I happened to glance out the window and noticed headlights; the Altima was sitting in my driveway running. I'd forgotten to hit the stop button, which shuts off not only the engine, but all of the car's electrical systems. When it got dark, the automatic headlights came on, and when they'd sufficiently weakened the battery, the engine started up to recharge it. If I hadn't noticed it, it might have run all night."
That's funny.