Topic: Test Drive: 2012 Nissan Sentra 2.0

[Autos_Editor]

The 2012 Sentra is 'one of the most pleasantly inoffensive and user-friendly devices I've driven,' says Peter Bleakney.

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[JohnM]

2100 at 120km has to take the cake for low RPM in this segment and maybe a couple of segments higher.  That translates to ~ 1800 at 100km/hr.  Dynamite.  mpg must be really good on a long flat drive.

Sounds like great fogey transport.  Wait a minute, that's me!!  Quiet really counts for something as you age and the combination of ingress/egress and seat comfort and great visibility makes this a mandatory test drive if I were looking at sub compact or compact or even mid-size.  The good steering feel is a large bonus.

Does this make it the equivalent of a Buick designed by VW?

Solution for small button and interconnectivity mania in car design.   Hook the starter up to the HVAC and radio controls on test mules.   Take the development engineers and put them in the car 100km down a logging road from Yellowknife in January.  Glue thick mitts to their hands and leave them with the car turned off.  Every new car delivered by the surviving development teams will feature simple and effective controls.

Anyway, a very interesting package and something I will recommend trying to several friends.

Cheers,
John M.

[theonlydt]

We bought our Sentra SE-R in 2009. At that time there was no new Civic (though I don't like it anyway), nor the new focus, new Elantra, Cruze or the skyactiv 3s. At that time the Sentra was really competitive and we appreciate that it was by far the quietest of any car in that class on the road - it's impressively rigid and with good sound deadening. The speed sensitive steering is very well done, better than any other set-up I can think of. Two years later and I think the Sentra isn't as competitive, but its still a sound car. I wouldn't buy one without a discount, and I'd also like it if they could make the steering wheel telescopic as it's the only thing that compromises the driving position for me. Oh and the wing mirrors are tiny and stop the drive being so serene as you wonder how you lost an entire 18 wheeler in your blind spot...

[Thinking Out Loud]

     Wot he sed.

The C pillars are able to blind you pretty effectively...the 175 HP and the flippy paddles do me fine from a performance perspective of daily commuting at a big savings relative to other obvious go-to sporty compacts. 

The Sentra is getting long in the tooth though, since it's introduction, in ANY iteration.

I hope the new Versa sedan isn't Nissan's new 'design language', otherwise the next gen Sentra is likely isn't gonna be a lingo I wanna learn!   

[theonlydt]

The C pillars are able to blind you pretty effectively...the 175 HP and the flippy paddles do me fine from a performance perspective of daily commuting at a big savings relative to other obvious go-to sporty compacts. 

Ah yes - the C-Pillars. I've parked easier cars than our Sentra - as it's tough to see where the back ends, the C-pillars are large and the SE-R has a larger turning circle than my Mazda 5. It's pretty par of the course for modern cars though.

I'm not sure we've ever used the flappy paddles. We got the SER because it had enough power to get itself up a hill and out of trouble, it has disc brakes at the back (the SER has one of the best stopping distances of all compacts) and the ride was less floaty without being harsh. I do prefer it on 16"s rather than 17"s, but I have back ache... the SER is my wife's car!

We average 8.5l/100km on winter tyres right now - 8l during the summer, 50/50 mix of highway/city. We can get it down to 7.2 on a long highway run which isn't bad considering the 175bhp and 180lb of torque.

For the poster talking about rpms at 110km - the rental Sentra 2.0 I had pulled just over 2000rpm at 110kmh, and 2100rpm on the flat at 120kmh. Once you're above 80kmh the wind resistance really increases so engine speed rapidly increases between 80kmh and 110kmh (when I say rapidly I mean for a Sentra - 80kmh is a happy 1100rpm cruise, because if you ask for any more power the revs rise pretty instantly to provide it).

[Thinking Out Loud]

LOL - I just realized we must be separated at birth...I had an '07 Mazda 5 that I replaced with the '09 SE-R.

Is there a Wrangler in your future?   

The Sentra was/is great value in an invisible package for most consumers...even more so NOW with the great competition out there.

[redman]

Sounds like many cars in the Japanese stable " Good car, BUT... it pricing really sucks when comparative features are taken into consideration".
Japanese cars like this seemed somewhat acceptable a couple of years ago, but now that someone like Hyundai offers better fuel economy, better styling, latest D.I. engines and list of included options for practically the same price, one has to ask really....."a better quieter ride on a compact car; is that the mandate for this car?"
If I was in the market for this type of car I'd say thanks  for your this Sentra article!! The Elantra really seems like a no brainer.
On a personal note. Anyone have the pleasure of dealing with Nissan Canada ? (arrogant seems understated from my experience)

[newfoundradio]

I use my 2012 Sentra as a daily commuter from Guelph to Mississauga. It has one of the most comfortable suspensions in any car I've driven. Reminds me of the Buicks and Caddi's of the past.

The CVT is great, as the other posters have said. Low RPM's at any cruising speed. The lack of a telescoping steering wheel would be my only issue with the car as I find it tough to find a place to rest my elbow, while holding the wheel. (centre armrest sits too low and far back). Having done some racing in the past, I've learned to like having the steering wheel in my lap. 

Yes the other cars in the this class do offer better value i.e. Elantra. But in my opinion, if a car company can put so much of these features as standard, what's being taken away to keep the price competitive? I have driven 2 different Sonata rentals on two seperate occasions for work, both had between 8-10K on them, both had a mysterious pull to the right in the steering. And each had trim pieces coming off. I always question what corners are being cut to jam all of these features in there at the same price level. If your car can survive the abuse of being a daily rental you've built a solid vehicle. This speaks volumes for reliability in my mind.

[hemusbull]

The autor states that "2.0-litre four turning a sleepy 2,100 rpm at 120 km/h" and the car is "comfy and quiet". But I am wondering how much noisier is Elantra? In a class with fierce competition there must be measurement criteria, for example the German Auto Bild represents noise in the cabin measured at certain conditions in dBA scale. Otherwise all these relations like more, less, better and even the best sounds to me more or less subjectively. They are good for the general reader of Weels section of Toronto Star for example, but not for the Autos IMO!

[SaskSpecV]

Sounds like many cars in the Japanese stable " Good car, BUT... it pricing really sucks when comparative features are taken into consideration".

Except that Nissan typically has HEAVY incentives on their vehicles.  As a Nissan fan, I'd prefer that they simply cut their base prices with little discounting, rather than the Domestic strategy of inflated prices but cash on the hood.  But the whole car industry has been dealing with this issue for a while. 

On a personal note. Anyone have the pleasure of dealing with Nissan Canada ? (arrogant seems understated from my experience)

I haven't dealt with Nissan Canada, but the Nissan dealers I have dealt with (in SK at least) have all been excellent.  Which may be an outlier opinion, as Nissan dealers typically do horribly in USA customer surveys.

As part of a family that has owned 6 different Sentras [1984 Datsun/Sentra, 1992 Sentra XE (B13 - the Sentra high point IMO), 1999 Sentra GXE, 2003 Spec V, 2006 1.8S, 2009 2.0), I have a vest interest in this car.  Unfortunately, I just don't find it that appealing.  My BIL's 2009 is a very competant car, but SOOO boring with the CVT.  And the current generation feels more like a midsize than a compact, and that's not meant as a compliment (for me at least).  Which isn't surprising, because the current Sentras are virtually the same size as my Dad's first-gen Altima. 

The B13 SE-R has achieved cult status, and even the B15 and current SE-Rs have their merit (Spec Vs have never been the "best" sport compacts out there, but they are very entertaining for their price and reasonably economical to own).  But I worry that Nissan is moving away from their bread and butter cars with their focus on stuff that is "weird" (Juke, Cube, Murano CrossCab) or cash cows (SUVs).  Focus on improving your cars - they don't have to be best in class at everything, but at least continue to update and improve them more frequently.  But from what I've seen of the new Versa sedan, I'm not holding my breath.  I hope Nissan proves me wrong though...

[libraman]

I would definitely get the 6 speed manual if fuel economy is important to you. The real world numbers for the CVT are not impressive. Low RPM does not necessarily translate into good fuel economy.

[Spec5]

2008 2.0S is often my ride - though it is my mother-in-laws vehicle. Can't believe the styling hasn't changed since 2007 when the new one came out. That said it is very reliable and comfortable. I recall it being significantly quieter than both the Civic and Corolla - though the previous gen Elantra was pretty close. Pricing even back then was light years ahead of everything else in the category save for the Elantra which in terms of a monthly payment I believe was about $5 cheaper. I recommended the Sentra as Nissan at the time still arguably had the better track record vs Hyundai but it really was a toss-up. She much preferred the styling of the Sentra over the Elantra so that made it easy for her. Her sister ended up picking up the identical car 2 weeks later. Both have been flawless - though I'm not a big fan of our Nissan's service department as I've butted heads with them when I had my '03 Spec V over really ridiculous issues (ie. they swapped out the WW tank instead of putting some epoxy on the small hole a rock somehow managed to create and then promptly charged me $450 for it - all without notifying me first). However my dad seems happy with them as he drives a newer Alty.

Nissan does tend to be flaundering a little bit lately. All these "weird" vehicles lately and not much attention to their "bread and butter" sedans that are getting long in tooth - despite still being very excellent vehicles.

We get horrific mileage - 9.4L/100kms but average speed is only 45km/h. I blame the commute - not the car. And the fact that it MUST be run via the remote start for 15 minutes during the colder seasons if I'm not the one driving it.

Oh, the revs pretty much run at 2100rpm no matter how fast you're going which is nice. I have noticed that sometimes you can "catch" the CVT if you say lift and then re-apply power right away - takes a second for it to figure out exactly what your intent is - but really no different than a convential auto. The CVT that Nissan uses is stellar - definately industry leading IMO.

[Blueprint]

My 2008 2.0S now has a trouble-free 42,000km on the Odo.  It rarely gets out of town, but we got a 6.9 average on a NYC trip recently, and staying below 110 km/h on another trip I managed a 6.7 (RPM nearer 3000 at 120k in 6th).

My car is the gem of the line: mid-grade trim (S) adds more goodies than the pkged test car for less $$.  Trim is nicer, and cruise control is included in a better-looking steering wheel.  Yup, C-pillars are wide, but I got used to them ... this year.  Takes awhile.  What really makes my Sentra a gem though is the 6-speed manual tranny.  It's well-adapted to commuting, allowing 2nd-gear starts and 5th gear at 50km/h with no lugging.  Both help in keeping the fuel econ meter in the 8's (winter) or 7's (summer).

The manual car has some grunt (0-60 in 8.5 according to C/D), and handling I find to be just fine in mildly aggressive driving.

I bought it for the flat, wide rear bench (3 kids) and having a midsize interior in a compact body was just perfect.  Comfort and high seating comes from the platform mate, the Renault Megane, whose sedan version has the very same basic body shell when the Sentra came out in '07.

I test-drove a Corolla in '08.  It felt like an old rental car.  My Sentra is a Mercedes by comparison.  Not a flashy bride, but just like Pippa, she's a sweety still.

[JohnnyMac]

I think what is most surprising is how many Sentra owners are actually members of this website.  Who would have thought this vehicle would be so popular with the above average motor heads.  Not really much to say about the Sentra, I had one as a rental and it was okay.  It didn't really blow me away or offended me.  I can see why some would buy them prior to all the new vehicles coming out but now I think it's a lot like the Mitsu Lancer, they both need a serious redo to actually compete with the new products.

[ArticSteve]

Sentra is the official car of Mexico.

[kenm]

With the current $2500 incentive, it's a pretty good value. If one were to opt for the 6M version, the base model with value option package rings up at $16,565.00 before taxes, including the heavy freight / PDE charges and levies.

If you opt for the fairly well equipped S (6M) version, the tally is $17,965.00.

[dirtyjeffer]

ironically enough, i saw one of these on the way home from work tonight...looked like a decent looking car...not as "curvaceous" as some of the other new models, but it still looked good.

[Frontier1]

My 2008 2.0S now has a trouble-free 42,000km on the Odo.  It rarely gets out of town, but we got a 6.9 average on a NYC trip recently, and staying below 110 km/h on another trip I managed a 6.7 (RPM nearer 3000 at 120k in 6th).

My car is the gem of the line: mid-grade trim (S) adds more goodies than the pkged test car for less $$.  Trim is nicer, and cruise control is included in a better-looking steering wheel.  Yup, C-pillars are wide, but I got used to them ... this year.  Takes awhile.  What really makes my Sentra a gem though is the 6-speed manual tranny.  It's well-adapted to commuting, allowing 2nd-gear starts and 5th gear at 50km/h with no lugging.  Both help in keeping the fuel econ meter in the 8's (winter) or 7's (summer).

The manual car has some grunt (0-60 in 8.5 according to C/D), and handling I find to be just fine in mildly aggressive driving.

I bought it for the flat, wide rear bench (3 kids) and having a midsize interior in a compact body was just perfect.  Comfort and high seating comes from the platform mate, the Renault Megane, whose sedan version has the very same basic body shell when the Sentra came out in '07.

I test-drove a Corolla in '08.  It felt like an old rental car.  My Sentra is a Mercedes by comparison.  Not a flashy bride, but just like Pippa, she's a sweety still.

Yep, we test drove an 08 Corolla as well, bought the Sentra, my wife's decision.  My wife misses her Sentra, the only reason we traded it on the Juke was that it simply made more sense on wallet.

[Frontier1]

Sentra is the official car of Mexico.

could not care less....

[Spec5]

Sentra is the official car of Mexico.

could not care less....

He's right though - ever been to Mexico? You can't look anywhere without seeing one. Its the Mexican version of the checkered cab! One we took to a tourist attraction the guy even put in a rear seat DVD system so his customers could watch movies enroute to their destination!