We've only got 3,000 miles on our Altima Hybrid, so obviously the jury is still out on the reliability of the car to some degree - but is anyone else here getting the feeling they've "lucked out" by choosing the Altima Hybrid. What I mean by this is that there were a lot of "ifs" associated with going with the Altima Hybrid as opposed to some of the other hybrid choices that had extensive track records for MPG performance, relability, etc... It made buying it a bit of a scary proposition as opposed to going with a safer more established choice.

And then, as we drive it, we've been feeling better and better and safer and safer about our choice. We are getting great MPG. The car drives like a dream. And we always thought it was the nicest car of the hybrid choices... and if we could get past the "ifs" it would actually be the nicest of the hybrids to own.

Now that we've had it for a couple months and have put a few thousand miles on it... we are actually feeling like we lucked out and by chosing the Altima Hybrid when it was still relatively little known... we actually chose the best of the hybrids... at least the best for us. It's sporty. It's fun. It's beautiful... and we get great MPG. I don't think I can say that about any of the other hybrids the way I can about the Altima Hybrid.

We really love our car.

 

Yep I think my kids are the best and brightest too

Though I would have been test driving a NAH if there had been any for sale in the "flyover states"

 

I drove every hybrid there is BUT the NAH, I live in Az so I had to settle driving plain 2.5 ALtima 2007. I read and read and narrowed it down to the Toyota Camry Hybrid and the Nissan Altima Hybrid. Man it was tough I made comparisons sheets.
Plus for NAH Rear View camera, MP3 disk player you get the idea the NAH had superior electronics I felt in a number of ways.

Plus for the Camry Passenger seat electric adjustment.

Then you get to the handling and drivability The NAH has the edge, The Camry has more cushion but it is definitely my Fathers car (an I am 72)

Now to the important stuff. Engine size, Patter size, Torque range of engine. highest speed for EV mode, you get it I really did the retired multi degreed engineer on this thing I though I would drive my wife crazy. You must add in we are driving the King of all cars now a VW Phaeton, can mot be improve upon. Anyway back to the selection. So I give the nod to the Altima Hybrid but I want all the goodies, Tech package the works. AND I am in Scottsdale. I can't even see it on the INTERNET aha unless i but a California zip code into the Nissan site voilà then I can "Build my own" and start searching inventories. Wow I searched over 18 dealerships to get my color and a Tech pack.

When I found it I immediately called the Internet sales manager and asked do you really have Vin# in stock and does it have etc. Yup! I said go this minute I'll hold on and put a sold sign on it. Come back to the phone and we will complete the deal. The rest was simple and history. In about a week a motor transport rolled up and we off loaded my wonderful NAH.

So Do I feel I lucked out. NO I feel I am ecstatic!

 

We were exactly the same way. We AGONIZED about getting this car more than any vehicle we've ever researched. I was lucky in that we didn't care two hoots about a lot of the bells and whistles, and we were happy pretty much with just the base model. We also got lucky in that we saw on the lot a color that we thought was better looking than what we went there looking for. And now we are feeling pretty ecstatic about our choice.

 

We really didn’t agonize, in fact we weren’t even looking for a car.

We had just finished the umpteenth repair on the world’s worst Honda ever. (Make no mistake; the 2001 Civic is the worst Honda ever made.) My wife had been stranded many times on a terrible central New Jersey commute. Surrounded by huge SUV’s and huge potholes she could not take it any more.

We wanted something bigger, safe and able to fight the mess. In short, we wanted an SUV. Nether of us were truck drivers and had been used to small cars so we looked at the small ones first. Honda was out, but we had tried the CR-V before and didn’t care for it. The Rav4 and the Land Rover Freelander were way too tight for me and way too expensive. We ended up trying to choose between a Subaru Forester and a Mercury Mariner. Although we liked the Forester (and almost purchased one) one feature of the Mariner caught our attention, a hybrid option that gave good mileage. Sadly we could not afford the Mariner Hybrid at that time, but also could not let the good gas mileage go, so we dropped SUVs from our list and switched to mid size cars.

After several months, we were down to 5 cars: the Toyota Camry and Prius (we were going to give it a try, why not?) the Mercury Milan, The Volvo s40 and the SAAB 93. The Volvo and the SAAB were off our list fast because of their high price and the fact that they are a Mazda 3 and Pontiac G6 in disguise. We checked out the Milan and really liked it, particularly the all-wheel-drive option. We then went to Toyota and looked at the Prius and Camry. No one helped us. We didn’t like the look of the new Camry with its chubby dimensions and Jimmy Durante nose grill. We left uncertain.

I talked with some co-workers about cars and discovered two of them had Nissan Altimas and loved them. I had never even considered them. When we were researching SUVs, we had read horror stories about the X-Terra, so we never bothered. However, on our way to Toyota again we decided to stop at a small local Nissan dealer and give the Altima a shot. The very first car we saw when we got out of our car was a lone Nissan Altima Hybrid. I didn’t even know there was one. We sat in several Altimas and were quite impressed at the features that came standard, but nothing prepared us for the Hybrid. This car drove like a dream, it came with Anti-lock breaks, traction control, curtain air-bags, separate climate controls, push button start and a bunch of other things that were extra on the regular Altima and Camry. It shot to the top of our list.

When we finally got to Toyota, the cockiest salesman I had met in my months of searching sat us in the gaudiest Camry I had ever seen. My wife hated it almost instantly and kept hitting her leg on the center console. Our last hope for a Toyota was the Prius. It was OK, but by this point we were used to something bigger, and even though it had ok leg and headroom, the lack of a telescopic steering wheel made the extra leg room next to useless. Nether of them drove like the Altima.

It took another week to make up our minds, but an upcoming trip to Vermont, that we knew the Honda would croak on, forced our hand. We went back to dealer and purchased the very basic one we had tested a few weeks earlier. We were the first customers to purchase the only Hybrid they had.

My wife and I were not looking for the best hybrid in our range, we were looking for the best over-all car and the Altima Hybrid was both.

 

I have a hunch that our little known car is going to become something of a "cult" thing over the next year. We aren't known... aren't talked about or advertised... but it seems everyone I've talked to so far who somehow wandered into getting the Altima Hybrid is thrilled with it. It almost makes me wonder why Nissan doesn't put anything into advertising it. I think they have a car that would compete very well in the market. It drives better and looks better than any other hybrid we looked at... and the longer we have it the better we like it.

 

I agree a cult car. To be honest I already have a cult car the VW PHAETON. never advertised or heard of after 3 years only 3000 sold and then withdrawn from the USA. To be honest there are downsides to it. No aftermarket items. At least we can use most of the plain Altima stuff. But if you are looking for Hybrid service it might be bad especially for me as I am out of the 8 state honored regions. I only hope that Nissan sells it statewide before they truly kill it. The Toyota Camry is selling in huge numbers partly because the Altima is not there to compete, But dasent that anyone would ever question the God Ghosen and his on the mount declarations of truth. To tell the truth I am beginning to doubt the wisdom that I have bought it and if I had the chance to drive them both side by side and examine them closely again, knowing what I know now with the Nissan statement that they are dropping the Toyota technology it and going with their own technology (will their even be a 2008 Hybrid?) I would probably get a Camry, not for one thing having to do with the actual vehicle but because of the perferial reasons. So I am feeling a bit bam boozled by Nissan. I have owned 2 Nissan products in the past and liked them but not the company. This has rally zinged me off. We are so minor we can't even get the owners of the forum to give us our own mailage sheet so our signature shows the correct name or a picture of the vehicle. Look at the number of reply on the Camry forums as compared to the number on ours. WOW IT just dawned on me I don't like a cult car if that means their are only a few folks (including nice you) to talk to about it.

How do I feel so switch in a day, Well I did not drive in 2 days and spent a lot of time on the internet reading stuff from that idot that run Nissan and seeing all the great milage and things folks are saying about the Camry, Led tail lights etc.. Hope when I go out later that I'll feel better but right now blue.

 

Of all the things I've worried about the NAH, repairing it has not been that big a concern. The fact Nissan went with the same Toyota system used in all Toyota and Ford/Mercury hybrids means its using the standard. I would be more concerned if Nissan had gone with their own. You can already get a Prius serviced almost anywhere. The parts will always be available until Toyota abandons them. Repair folks move around constantly and here in NJ, most car dealerships are all part of some Mega family of dealers often representing 20+ brands and trading mechanics like playing cards. What difference does it make, if the same people own the Toyota dealer and the Nissan Dealer? I have already had Jiffy Lube change my oil, and I have no doubt that Midas, Pep Boys, Sears, AutoZone and the rest already have folks who can repair these systems, or will have soon. Even if Nissan goes out of business, we will still be able to get the parts and make repairs. Nissan will not have their own hybrid system in place until 2009-2010 and that may still not be on the Altima and may not happen at all. Remember Ford tried to do the same thing and ended up back with Toyota. Nissan can't drop the hybrid or they will lose markets like California. Please don’t listen to FUD from Honda and Toyota owners or that horridly bad report from Car & Driver (I haven’t found any of their complaints true yet.).

 

tHANKS FOR THE GOOD ADVICE I AM GOING TO GO FOR A DRIVE NOW IN MY GREAT nah AND FEEL REALLY GREAT.

 

Ditto Ian...

At first I was very hesitant that Nissan had a new Hybrid, once I discovered in was the Toyota Synergy Drive, it qualified for a tax incentive, it is big enough for my 6'3" 275# butt and it is a very nice car at a reasonable price....

Yes, I think we all have made a good investment!