2002 Nissan Altima 2.5S review from North America

I bought the car in December of 2001 as a 2002 model year. First thing that went wrong was the leather/vinyl cover around the shift knob. It came off and started to look really bad as you see inside the gear box. It was under warranty so dealer fixed it but it came off again after 3 weeks and had it fixed again under warranty. So far it is still in place for the last two years. An year later in March 2003, check engine light came on and took it to the dealer. Thankfully the car had 35,850 miles and was almost out of warranty. Dealer kept the car for 19 days trying to find the problem with the car but no clue. After replacing several parts such as spark plugs etc. the light went out. Dealer told me that one of the cylinders was mis-firing but was unable to tell me why. Since then the car has been running smoothly with no problems.

Even though the initial experience with the check engine light was bad, I am still in love with the car. In 30 months, I have logged 70k miles on it and it still runs just like brand new. Tire size is a bit awkward and hard to find. The 2.5 came with 205/65/16 which almost no tire retailer carried in the area and Continental was the only company making them. Another alternative is 215/55/R16. They also fit the 16 inch rim and perform better than the original ones since they are wider. Gas mileage is excellent. I get 475+ miles of all highway driving in a gas tank which translates into a round trip between New York City and Washington DC. Camry or Accord can never beat that.