Faults:

Welds on the muffler broke. Had those welded. Then the welds on the flange on the other side broke; cut the flanges in and attached them together with a section of pipe and clamps.

Coil spring broke, thankfully at low speed. Shame on Nissan for not fitting coil spring insulators on the coils. Powder coating cracks, corrosion sets in, and they get stress cracks and will eventually break. Rather than trust the stock ones, I put on H&R springs (made in Germany). Shocks and struts are completely worn out, they will need replacing too.

General Comments:

Build quality is just really poor. So sad because practicality wise, it's brilliant, and the CVT transmission is really nice. At 130k it feels like it has about 300k on it. Body rigidity is so bad that if you park it with one wheel up a slope, the rear hatch binds up when you close it.

We also have a 98 Protege, which despite being slower, noisier, and having more km on it, feels like 10x the car quality wise.

I know a lot about cars and do all my own work. I definitely would not recommend the Nissan Versa.

Faults:

The car has 60,200 miles and the transmission is blown... no warning, just a screeching noise and done... Nissan will not help with the repair (200 miles over the power train warranty). Nissan does not "fix" transmissions, but wants $3000 - $4000 to replace it. Opened a case with Nissan, but was told they could not help at all. I guess they really don't stand by their product.

Have to have the car towed to a different transmission shop for repair.

Will NEVER purchase another Nissan, used or new.

General Comments:

The car itself was a great little hatchback... nice and roomy. Drove well until the transmission blew.

Faults:

Nothing wrong so far.

General Comments:

The best way to describe this car is: A "Good" car. I really can't complain too much about anything, although many parts do leave a lot to be desired.

On the positive side, the car does have a lot of room for how small and fuel efficient it is. I've averaged around 32 MPG, and that's with my heavy right foot.

The CVT transmission is fun to play with once you get used to it. It's a little weak in the power department, although it doesn't do too bad in Chicago traffic.

The heating and cooling system is very hard to get to a comfortable spot, and the defroster is VERY weak.

I previously owned a 2006 Ford Focus ZX4 5 speed, and would call that a GREAT car - The Versa - A GOOD car.

Faults:

None.

General Comments:

This car is so much more than I anticipated; I bought it to commute when gas prices went up, but it has been so much more.

It's economical, spacious, zippy in traffic, responds well and comfortable.

With a removable roof rack, I can carry two kayaks.

The trunk, while it looks small, actually fits a decent amount of gear. (4 people, a dog and a weeks worth of luggage for each on a 1,000 trip and no one complained!)

I have found that by removing the front passenger head rest and pushing the seat all the way forward, it WILL lay flat if I get caught in bad weather while camping.

Get better gas mileage in winter when not running the A/C of course.

Only thing I would change about this car is the lack of arm rests on the front seats.