Nice Hybrid, if You Can Get It
Nice Hybrid, if You Can Get It
The Altima Hybrid uses a Toyota system
TESTED 2008 Nissan Altima Hybrid. (New this year: standard mud flaps!)
WHAT IS IT? An eco-warrior in the guise of a mild-mannered midsize sedan.
HOW MUCH? $25,795 base including delivery fee; $32,625 as tested.
WHAT’S UNDER THE HOOD? A 158-horsepower 2.5-liter 4-cylinder gasoline engine and 40-horsepower electric assist motor. Torque-wise it’s a stump-puller, with 162 pound-feet from the gas engine and 199 from the electric motor. Let’s go tow somethin’!
IS IT THIRSTY? The federal rating is 35 miles a gallon in the city and 33 on the open road. With a 20-gallon tank, the car has a theoretical range of 700 miles.
ALTERNATIVES Toyota Camry Hybrid ($25,860 and 33/34 m.p.g.); Chevrolet Malibu Hybrid ($22,790 and 24/32 m.p.g.); and Saturn Aura Green Line ($22,790 and 24/32 m.p.g.).
IF you’ve ever owned a Nissan, you will totally get this slogan about the Altima Hybrid: “It’s the first hybrid that drives like a Nissan.” Non-Nissan owners will think this is just more marketing mumbo-jumbo — pretty lame, too, considering how much some advertising agency whiz probably got paid to come up with it.
But as a former Nissan owner, I get it, and I like this stylish eco-sedan.
The Altima Hybrid fit me like a pair of Tony Lama Black Label boots, which is to say something akin to house slippers. It was just a good, comfy fit. But that does not mean my time with an Altima Hybrid test car was without a rub here and there.
The Altima Hybrid shouldn’t be much different from the Toyota Camry Hybrid, because they share the same basic hybrid-drive system. Nissan did not invent its own system, instead buying a short-term license to use Toyota’s Hybrid Synergy Drive on the Altima.
Saying something drives like a Toyota doesn’t sound much like a compliment — more like an invitation to fall asleep at the wheel. Toyota is more conservative with the settings of its hybrid systems than the choices on the early-bird menu at a Florida cafeteria: bland, consistent, safe.
Nissan, however, decided to add a pinch of hot pepper to the recipe. The result is a spicier casserole: I found that the batteries can power the car up to about 40 m.p.h.; the Nissan gasoline engine has a bit more firepower, yet the fuel economy is a smidge better, not worse. It beats the Camry Hybrid at its own game; as hybrids go, it is just a step behind the Prius and the Honda Civic Hybrid. (The Altima also qualifies for a federal tax credit of about $2,400, while under the arcane sales-based rules the Camry does not.)
The Altima Hybrid is a bit of a wallower in hard cornering; it steers on the vague side. Its antilock brakes also seem a bit spongy. That has everything to do with the extra 300 pounds or so of nickel-metal hydride batteries and peripherals it is lugging, compared with the gas-only 4-cylinder Altima.
The hybrid kit actually weighs a bit more than that, and Nissan has tried to compensate by lightening up where possible: a lighter-weight interior part here, a little less insulation there.
It adds up, literally, and it becomes noticeable in the tactile areas of the cabin and with the amount of additional road and engine noise that leaks in. Is this a result of weight-watcher diligence or an excuse for cutting costs? You be the judge.
The fake wood accents, however, are among the best in the industry. The cabin is, over all, a roomy and pleasant place to travel. The seats are comfortable, although materials (including leather) are a cut below, rather than above. The controls are straightforward and well laid out. The driving position and visibility are first-rate. Styling, inside and out, again trumps the Camry, in my view.
The flat, thin rear seat cushion is a casualty of the battery pack beneath it; trunk capacity is also compromised (15.3 cubic feet for the regular Altima; just 10.1 here).
The powertrain switches from full-electric mode to a phase-in of the gasoline engine with the slightest shiver and does the same when switching back. The continuously variable transmission sometimes feels as if it is spooling out, like casting a fishing reel. Acceleration is commendable: about 9 seconds from 0 to 60 m.p.h. for this 3,450-pound sedan.
The biggest anvil around the Altima Hybrid’s neck is Nissan’s marketing. The car, rated an “advanced technology partial zero emissions vehicle,” is available only in California, New York and several other Northeastern states. Frankly, the company seems lukewarm about it.
Be that as it may, or may not, price is also an issue: the base price of almost $26,000 is competitive with its Camry counterpart, but good luck finding one at that price. Most come fully loaded, like the $32,000-plus car I tested. Want to special-order one? Expect a long wait, including a long boat ride from Japan.
But if you are still interested, act fast. Nissan’s agreement with Toyota for this hybrid technology is ending. The Altima Hybrid, as good as it is, faces an uncertain future. JERRY GARRETT
TESTED 2008 Nissan Altima Hybrid. (New this year: standard mud flaps!)
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HOW MUCH? $25,795 base including delivery fee; $32,625 as tested.
WHAT’S UNDER THE HOOD? A 158-horsepower 2.5-liter 4-cylinder gasoline engine and 40-horsepower electric assist motor. Torque-wise it’s a stump-puller, with 162 pound-feet from the gas engine and 199 from the electric motor. Let’s go tow somethin’!
IS IT THIRSTY? The federal rating is 35 miles a gallon in the city and 33 on the open road. With a 20-gallon tank, the car has a theoretical range of 700 miles.
ALTERNATIVES Toyota Camry Hybrid ($25,860 and 33/34 m.p.g.); Chevrolet Malibu Hybrid ($22,790 and 24/32 m.p.g.); and Saturn Aura Green Line ($22,790 and 24/32 m.p.g.).
IF you’ve ever owned a Nissan, you will totally get this slogan about the Altima Hybrid: “It’s the first hybrid that drives like a Nissan.” Non-Nissan owners will think this is just more marketing mumbo-jumbo — pretty lame, too, considering how much some advertising agency whiz probably got paid to come up with it.
But as a former Nissan owner, I get it, and I like this stylish eco-sedan.
The Altima Hybrid fit me like a pair of Tony Lama Black Label boots, which is to say something akin to house slippers. It was just a good, comfy fit. But that does not mean my time with an Altima Hybrid test car was without a rub here and there.
The Altima Hybrid shouldn’t be much different from the Toyota Camry Hybrid, because they share the same basic hybrid-drive system. Nissan did not invent its own system, instead buying a short-term license to use Toyota’s Hybrid Synergy Drive on the Altima.
Saying something drives like a Toyota doesn’t sound much like a compliment — more like an invitation to fall asleep at the wheel. Toyota is more conservative with the settings of its hybrid systems than the choices on the early-bird menu at a Florida cafeteria: bland, consistent, safe.
Nissan, however, decided to add a pinch of hot pepper to the recipe. The result is a spicier casserole: I found that the batteries can power the car up to about 40 m.p.h.; the Nissan gasoline engine has a bit more firepower, yet the fuel economy is a smidge better, not worse. It beats the Camry Hybrid at its own game; as hybrids go, it is just a step behind the Prius and the Honda Civic Hybrid. (The Altima also qualifies for a federal tax credit of about $2,400, while under the arcane sales-based rules the Camry does not.)
The Altima Hybrid is a bit of a wallower in hard cornering; it steers on the vague side. Its antilock brakes also seem a bit spongy. That has everything to do with the extra 300 pounds or so of nickel-metal hydride batteries and peripherals it is lugging, compared with the gas-only 4-cylinder Altima.
The hybrid kit actually weighs a bit more than that, and Nissan has tried to compensate by lightening up where possible: a lighter-weight interior part here, a little less insulation there.
It adds up, literally, and it becomes noticeable in the tactile areas of the cabin and with the amount of additional road and engine noise that leaks in. Is this a result of weight-watcher diligence or an excuse for cutting costs? You be the judge.
The fake wood accents, however, are among the best in the industry. The cabin is, over all, a roomy and pleasant place to travel. The seats are comfortable, although materials (including leather) are a cut below, rather than above. The controls are straightforward and well laid out. The driving position and visibility are first-rate. Styling, inside and out, again trumps the Camry, in my view.
The flat, thin rear seat cushion is a casualty of the battery pack beneath it; trunk capacity is also compromised (15.3 cubic feet for the regular Altima; just 10.1 here).
The powertrain switches from full-electric mode to a phase-in of the gasoline engine with the slightest shiver and does the same when switching back. The continuously variable transmission sometimes feels as if it is spooling out, like casting a fishing reel. Acceleration is commendable: about 9 seconds from 0 to 60 m.p.h. for this 3,450-pound sedan.
The biggest anvil around the Altima Hybrid’s neck is Nissan’s marketing. The car, rated an “advanced technology partial zero emissions vehicle,” is available only in California, New York and several other Northeastern states. Frankly, the company seems lukewarm about it.
Be that as it may, or may not, price is also an issue: the base price of almost $26,000 is competitive with its Camry counterpart, but good luck finding one at that price. Most come fully loaded, like the $32,000-plus car I tested. Want to special-order one? Expect a long wait, including a long boat ride from Japan.
But if you are still interested, act fast. Nissan’s agreement with Toyota for this hybrid technology is ending. The Altima Hybrid, as good as it is, faces an uncertain future. JERRY GARRETT
