I was on my way home today, and saw the new Nissan Pathfinder...that thing looked amazing. Then next to it, I saw the new 4Runner, and between the two (at least in the cosmetic department), the clear winner was the Pathfinder. Saw the new Xterra on the way home and jumped on nissanusa.com to check em out. After looking at all the pics, etc... I conclude that Nissan got themselves out of the hole and now as it appears to me, make better products than Toyota.

Am I crazy or is this really true? For example, look at Murano vs. Highlander. Murano is much sexier, inside and out. Look at 4RUnner vs. Pathfinder - Pathfinder clear winner in terms of design and quality inside and out; Armada vs. Sequioa - Armada interior much more refined than that of the Seq. And so on....including the 350Z and the Xtrail (Competitior to Rav4 in Canada). And I think all Nissan engines are more powerful than the Toyota competition.

Now I come to my question: My friend has the best selling car in US - Camry... Compare that to the Altima, and the Altima comes out the winner - at least to me. Look at the interior...Or even the choice in the lineups: Altima has the 4 cyl engines, the 3.5L and the 3.5 Spec V... With such competition, how does the Camry keep its spot as the best seller???

That question goes to all the other aformentioned models (except the Sentra, maybe). I think Toyota is beginning to slack off in the design and quality department or maybe they are not counting Nissan as competition - and yes, I know they make very reliable cars, etc....

So why isn't Nissan gaining huge market numbers and sales???

Your thoughts...thanks

Al

Here are the comparo pics by the way:
Pathfinder v. 4Runner
http://www.nissanusa.com/m/cma/i/5pt/5pth_gal_med08.jpg
http://www.toyota.com/images/vehicle...ge/photo_4.jpg

http://www.toyota.com/images/vehicle...ge/photo_1.jpg
http://www.nissanusa.com/m/cma/i/5pt/5pth_gal_med01.jpg

Altima v. Camry
http://www.nissanusa.com/m/cma/i/5al..._gal_med04.jpg
http://www.toyota.com/images/vehicle...ge/photo_4.jpg

More at nissanusa.com and toyota.com...

 

anyone who buys a spec v altima is stupid as hell, as the G35 is at the price range

everyone has their preferencces, i don't know why you made an account to make this comparison

 

well, without driving the car and you can say which one is better already? yup that's wrong

you can't just judge a car by spec, pics, and description, you have to drive it, see it in person, and touch it, to know what's better

 

Because unlike Nissan, Toyota listens to their customers and builds what THEY want. Nissan Engineers just do what they feel. Customer service isn't all that peachy either. The difference between the dealerships is night and day when you walk inside.

Nissan still doesn't have an upscale presentation. It's like walking into a Ford dealership. They can make it as flashy as they want, it still doesn't produce the level of CS and quality Toyota does. Most Ford dealerships also own a Nissan dealership also. I have been to many towns and see the same name hanging above a Ford dealership and Nissan dealership and them be side by side.

That alone tells me something. It's a little too easy to buy into Nissan.

Like Henry said, drive them both. The Toyota will be much more solid. Nissan is the king of plastics. They use more on the outside than the inside these days!

 

I smell troll. But while we're at it, Toyota > Nissan..in assets, in world sales, prestige and reputation.

 

that's why penske will never buy a nissan dealer =P it's not profitable or ready for a good reputation yet...

You would only buy the newer Nissans because you like the VQ or you're a hardcore Nissan fan... just as most of us are hardcore Toyota fans... but I loved Nissan's older stuff A LOT more than the new crap they have.

 

Did you conveniently skip the Land Cruiser pics?




I don't think so.


Avalon XL
$26,350 MSRP
3.5-liter DOHC 24-valve Dual VVT-i V6
280 hp @ 6200 rpm
260 lb.-ft. @ 4700 rpm


Maxima 3.5 SE
Base MSRP: $27,500.00
3.5-liter DOHC 24-valve V6 engine
265 hp @ 5,800 rpm
255 lb-ft of torque @ 4,400 rpm

 

please let's not get into that. it could be a healthy discussion and we don't need to go into that right now

so let's keep on topic for discussion

 

It's pretty pertinent to the thread...it's all fact, no opinon there.

 

but i gotta give props to nissan tho. (not saying they are better than toyota)

they have 350Z and what does toyota have? celica? mr2? tc?

i want my SUPRA back!

 

Nissan / Infiniti's 3.5 L V6 is a well-designed engine, and they are the ONLY Japanese-nameplate company to make a TRUE full-sized alternative (Titan) to domestic-name pickups....the Toyota Tundra is marketed as a full-sizer but in fact is a mid-sizer with a big engine.
Other than that, I see no reason to choose a Nissan product over a Toyota. Nissan, unlike Toyota, is especially lacking in the number of small vehicles they offer in the U.S....only the Sentra is offered here, and that car has been unreliable by today's standards. Recent Nissan interiors IMO have been so cheap it is offensive...though Nissan is starting to address that problem with the 2005-2006 models. Even Carlos Ghosn himself, Renault-Nissan CEO, admitted in interviews that the recent cost-cutting got out of hand....and it showed.

 

In my eyes, I would pick Toyota over Nissan any day, based on the fact that I have driven both vehicles and come to know the differences between them in terms of the ride, comfort, performance, exterior, interior, etc. I've been in some of my friend's Altimas, and let me tell you, the interior in those things look so bland and cheap compared to a Camry or Avalon.

As far as the luxury brands go, I test drove a 1996 Infiniti I30 before, and compared to my former '96 ES300, the ES easily beats out the I30 in pretty much every category.

 

The guy has a point at least in terms of style. While I'm not a huge fan of the Nissan products style, I would pick a Maxima or Altima over a Camry myself just based on the exterior. Interior all are pretty equal IMHO. There is nothing outstandingly special about the Max or Altima interior , but that is true for the Camry as well. The new Avalon is a farily nice step up though, but topped out crosses the $30K mark. To be honest, this IMHO is were Honda shines. I'd pick the Accord over the Camry or Max/Altima, I'd choose a Civic over the Corolla, and at one point when it was still being made I'd pick a Prelude over the Celica. Personally, aside from trucks, I think Honda has better products than Toyora and Nissan, whereas, Lexus tops out over Acura and Infiniti. But that is just my perpective and what types of cars I rather drive. Everyone has different tastes.

 

I like the exterior designs of some of the Nissans over the Toyota counterparts, for example, I'll take the Murano over the Highlander any day, but the Toyota's are better built & you can see & feel the superior quality when you sit inside one.
Nissan's are on average more sporty whereas Toyota's are more comfortable to ride in, which seems to be what the majority of the general public prefer.

 

Only thing by toyota I would ever consider of course is Lexus other than the LC and the Scion TC. I'll bypass Toyota and Nissan and head straight for Honda. I've never been a real Toyota fan.