Reliable and affordable two of my favorite words

After dealing with a 1997 Dodge Neon for over four years I went searching for a new car with one word in mind: reliable. Of course when shopping for a car you come up against other factors such as cost and pesky car sales people. When the Altima was shown to me (yes me, note sales people if the person looking for a car is a young female don’t ignore her and speak to her father who happened to come along for a second opinion, speak to her. After all, she’s the one you need to impress) I was intrigued. A car that I could afford that came with yes, a sunroof, air conditioning, CD player, adjustable seats, and a security alarm. Needless to say the Altima has been mine for over a year now.

There is a lot of wonderful things I can say about this car. In the year I’ve owned it the only thing that needed to be fixed was the power window control and a hanger on the muffler. Again in one word: reliable. Although the Altima has upgraded to a 6 cylinder this model is a 4. Now there’s a don’t-worry-I-can-handle-acceleration-and-hills-four-cylinder and there’s I-forgot-I-had-4-cylinders-because-it-feels-more-like-we’re-using-two and thankfully the Altima falls into the former category. It doesn’t quite have the zip of a six cylinder but you’ll have no problem getting up hills and around eighty year old women who can barely see over their own steering wheel. For gas mileage I get about 28 miles per gallon (although it has been said that if I didn’t accelerate quite so quickly and keep somewhere around the speed limit I’d do better).

The space in the car is comfortably ample. And although my friend Mary asks me if we can fit 5 people in my car every time we approach it I assure you that everyone is very comfortable in the back. They even include complete seatbelts for three people in the back instead of the standard middle seat lap belt. The leg room is great in the front and the rear, although it might be a tighter squeeze in the rear for taller adults. The trunk seems huge to me even when I packed in things for college. The back seats fold down to accommodate larger items but the opening is in the shape of an oblong. I would have preferred to have a larger space because the only items that work for this are long and thin, probably suitable for items such as skis.

Getting around town and the highway is a joy. The car is a midsize which gives it more room but gets rid of all those annoying comments about having a boar as a car. You’ll find that it’s easy to park and take around tighter turns. At stop lights it idles quietly so you won’t have moments of thinking “Oh God my car sounds like that?” On the highway the ride is comfortable and the seats really support you for longer rides. At higher speeds, such as around 60-70, there is some wind noise. It’s not so horrible that you can’t hear all your passengers clearly so sadly you can’t pretend not to hear any “Are we there yet?” questions. Also you’ll feel some bumps since the shocks don’t absorb everything. Although I haven’t done any quick braking with this car the brakes themselves are relatively good with this car. ABS came as an option, one that the previous owner of my car didn’t choose, but the standard braking system seems fine. Actually I do remember having to get used to the brakes in this car because they worked so well in comparison to my old car. Just a slight tap was enough for this one.

The enterior seems nice to me. There's faux wood around the stereo system. It looks better than some I've seen such as in the 2001 Mitsubishi Galant. The seats are covered in nice material and even though mine is light tan there doesn't seem to be any noticeable staining.

As for the negatives on this car, yes there are some. I cannot stress enough however that these negatives are not a reason to scratch these cars off your list. On an exterior level it is easy to admit that the 2000 Altima is not the flashiest car. In fact it looks like any standard sedan and not at all the sporty car of my dreams. Such as life though since this car makes up for it in so many ways. If you need a flashier Altima the newer models have that boxy sporty look that’s so popular right now.

The seating for the driver is a bit odd. The seat sits slightly off to the right. I find myself frequently weirdly positioned in this car. None to fear though since I’m told that some people don’t even notice it. If you find yourself in this position it’s easy to fix by bouncing around in your seat until you find a better angle.

Also in a weird position is the second of the two cup holders. Placing anything in this one makes your cup hard to reach while driving. Some contortionist moves are required to do so, so you may want to reserve this spot for your passenger.

The stereo lacks force, or rather the speakers specifically do. Probably designed for people who don’t blare their music, the stereo has none of that mind-numbing mirror-shaking bass you might want.

The Nissan quirk that I actually have a problem with is the configuration of the windshield wipers. There is a ridge running around the exterior of the windshield. When this ridge, snow, and the windshield wipers meet there’s a huge buildup of slush that occurs creating visibility problems. On long drives you’ll find this is a problem because you’ll have to stop to clear it away every so often.

This car has some fun additions that aid the driving experience. Items that Nissan added on and that you never knew you needed but find yourself quite attached to. There’s an exterior side light that is activated when you put your turn signal on illuminating the area you’re entering. The control panel is back light which I don’t suppose does anything special but just seems nicer than the other sort. Also there’s a sunglass holder so you can tuck them away when not needed, although it’s not designed for bulkier sunglasses.

When you’re looking for a car and the word you have in mind is reliable, look at the 2000 Altima. It’s comfortable and nice and importantly it seems holding its value over time.