Nissan Develops New Hybrid System with a 2.5-liter Supercharged Engine for FWD Cars

Not to be outdone by its Japanese and European rivals, Nissan has developed a new hybrid system for front-wheel drive vehicles, the first details of which were released today along with the announcement of its next generation XTRONIC CVT (Continuously Variable Transmission) for use with 2.0-liter to 3.5-liter engines.

Nissan came a bit late to the hybrid game and was forced to license hybrid technology from its Toyota rival for use in certain markets in 2004.

“It was a bit of a blow to our pride, but that was the right thing to do under the circumstances,” says Mitsunobu Fukuda, a senior powertrain engineer at NATC (Nissan Advanced Technology Center).

“Instead of rushing out a ‘copy-cat’ hybrid we wanted to take the time to develop our own hybrid, one that is clearly different – and better. I think we’ve managed to do that.”

Read more »

Slick Thieves Ride Off with a…Dozen Brand-New Nissans in Canada!

Unless you are enjoying a Fast and Furious flick on the couch, in real life, you rarely hear about car thieves stealing a bunch of vehicles from the same owner.

Yet this happened in the Canadian city of Calgary where some very slick bandits made off with not one, not two but a dozen (!) brand new vehicles from a local Nissan dealership.

The Calgary police said that the thieves broke in the Sunridge Nissan dealership on Sunday , July 24, and stole the keys from 20 different models including sedans, SUVs and trucks, but managed to drive away with "only" 12 vehicles.

Read more »

Nissan Working on New Hybrid System for Front-Wheel Drive Models

Earlier this month, we reported on Nissan’s plans to drop the Altima Hybrid from its lineup at the end of the 2011 model year because of poor sales in the States as well as the fact that it uses a hybrid system borrowed from its chief Japanese rival, Toyota.

On Monday, Japanese business daily Nikkan Kogyo said that Nissan has already began work on a new hybrid system for front-wheel drive cars that will be based on the firm’s rear-wheel-drive hybrid drivetrain that launched in the 2012 Infiniti M Hybrid.

Read more »

Nissan to Axe Altima Hybrid at the End of the 2011 Model Year

The current Nissan Altima Hybrid is counting days (well, more like months) in the U.S. as the Japanese automaker plans to drop the gasoline-electric hybrid model from its lineup at the end of the 2011 model year, according to a report from Autonews. The hybrid sedan hasn’t been much of a success for Nissan as only 35,000 units have been sold in the States since its introduction in the market in 2007.

Aside from the somewhat disappointing sales, Nissan’s decision may also have to do with the fact that the Altima Hybrid utilizes a hybrid system sourced from rival Toyota. Nissan has since developed its own hybrid system with a new lithium-ion battery that made its debut on the 2012 Infiniti M Hybrid.

Read more »

Fire Hazard from Garmin Nuvi Prompts Recalls from Suzuki and Nissan

After Garmin announced a voluntary recall of 1.25 million units of its popular Nuvi GPS system at the end of August amidst concerns that the batteries could overheat and catch fire, Suzuki and Nissan followed with a recall on several vehicles equipped with the affected Garmin Nuvi navigation systems including the 750, 760, or 765 models for the same reason.

Read more »

2010 Nissan Altima Coupe: Facelifted Model Fully Revealed and Priced

The subtly refreshed 2010 Nissan Altima Coupe was officially revealed today. In a nutshell, the Japanese automaker's two-door model receives minor cosmetic tweaks, new available colors and upgraded option packages while the 3.5 SR model designation replaces the previous 3.5 SE. The most obvious changes for the 2010 model year concern the redesigned front end that gains a sculpted bonnet with a pronounced 'bump' in the center, newly styled projector beam headlights, a different treatment for the grille and a new bumper design with three air inlets instead of one.

The refreshed 17-inch alloy wheel designs (18-inch with Michelin P235/45R18 tires for the 3.5 SR models) and the three new available colors (Crimson Black, Navy Blue and Ocean Gray) pretty much complete the list with the exterior updates.

The Coupe's cabin has been refreshed with revised interior fabrics and finishers, a new red leather-appointed interior color selection and a revised Blonde interior color while the instrument cluster has been tweaked to incorporate a new white illumination color.

Nissan says that the most important news inside for the 2010 Altima Coupe is a new premium audio system that includes a 4.3-inch color display, USB port with iPod connectivity, Bluetooth Hands-free Phone System, MP3/WMA CD-ROM playback and XM Satellite Radio. Furthermore, this package also includes a RearView Monitor.

Also new for the 2010 model year is a next-generation Nissan Hard Drive Navigation System with 6.5-inch VGA color display, USB port with iPod connectivity, Bluetooth Hands-free Phone System with audio streaming, 9.3GB Music Box for music storage and playback, advanced map data including speed limit advisories, Zagat restaurant guide, XM NavTraffic and XM NavWeather and an RCA input for auxiliary audio/video connectivity.

As with the 2009MY, the new Altima Coupe is available with two gasoline engines, a 2.5-liter 4-cylinder engine that makes 175HP and 180 lb-ft of peak torque, and a 3.5-liter V6 with 270HP and 258 lb-ft. Both engines are offered with a choice of a 6-speed manual transmission or Nissan's Xtronic CVT (Continuously Variable Transmission).

Prices -excluding applicable tax, title and license fees- for the 2010 Nissan Altima Coupe range from $22,400 to $29,600.

2010 Altima Coupe	Engine/Trans.	M.S.R.P.
Altima Coupe 2.5 S	2.5L I4 6MT	$22,440 USD
Altima Coupe 2.5 S	2.5L I4 CVT	$22,940 USD
Altima Coupe 3.5 SR	3.5L V6 CVT	$27,270 USD
Altima Coupe 3.5 SR	3.5 V6 6MT	$29,600 USD

2010 Nissan Altima Sedan Photo Leaks Online after Pre-Production Recall!

Nissan may have wanted to keep the 2010 Altima -mostly- under covers for a week or so, but a full blown picture of the redesigned version of the sedan made its way onto the internet today along with the news that the Japanese firm is recalling 26,398 Altimas and Maximas from the 2009 and 2010 model years, including some 2010 Altimas that never went on sale, due to a potential safety issue regarding the front struts.

The new photo confirms that the 2010 Altima sedan gets a new front grille, tweaked headlamps that look a bit like the ones featured on the now discontinued 350Z, a restyled front bumper with three separate air-intakes and a more sculpted hood plus new alloy wheel designs.

From what we've heard, it won't be long before Nissan officially released detailed information and photos on both the sedan and coupe variants of the 2010MY Altima.

Kudos to Mehdi - Via: Altima Forums , Motortrend and Autonews

2009 NISSAN ALTIMA vs 2010 NISSAN ALTIMA

Nissan Releases Teaser Photo of 2010 Altima Sedan Facelift

About a month after an example of the refreshed 2010 Nissan Altima was snapped on the road during a commercial shoot out, Nissan decided to sate our appetites with the release of a single teaser image of its redesigned mid-size sedan. From what we can tell by looking at the photo, changes for the 2010 model year include a new front grille, tweaked headlamps, a newly designed front bumper and the more sculpted bonnet.

Expect to see similar cosmetic tweaks on the coupe model while according to Nissan, the 2010 Altima range will also benefit from refinements to interior as well as from new or upgraded option packages.

The facelifted Altima is due to fully revealed within the next few weeks and go on sale in the U.S. sometime in November.

NYPD Introduces Nissan Altima Hybrid Police Cars

The boys in blue are going green in New York as the police department announced it will replace 40 of its squad cars with Nissan Altima Hybrids. They're the first gas-electric hybrids to be used as regular patrol cars by the largest police department in the U.S. The 40 hybrid vehicles -18 marked and 22 unmarked- will be used in patrol precincts and other units in all five boroughs of the city.

At $25,391 per vehicle, the Altima hybrids cost about $1,500 more than the conventional Impala. However, due to the fact that the hybrids return 35mpg for city driving compared to the Chevy's 16mpg, NY Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg said that they will cover the difference in a short period of time.

"These new patrol cars will help fulfill the PlaNYC goal of reducing City government's carbon footprint," said Mayor Bloomberg. "Through savings in fuel, these Altimas can quickly cover their additional cost, from then they will save taxpayers money – another example of how going green is good for our environment and our pocketbooks."

New York City officials said that after a after a year of monitoring the Altima Hybrids performance the Department will determine whether or not to further expand them into the fleet.

Photo: NYC

Nissan Altima "Hot Rod Hybrid" with 440HP by Braille Battery Premieres at SEMA

While the SEMA Show isn't exactly the sort of place you'd go to find the latest in green technologies, Nissan and Florida-based company Braille Battery found a way to stay true to the performance-oriented culture of the Las Vegas specialty show and at the same time, promote hybrid technology and alternative fuel usage with the presentation of the "Hot Rod Hybrid". "We were very honored that Nissan North America chose to select our battery company to build and power this forward thinking race car", said Brand Manager Ray Ferriera for Braille Battery.

Based on the factory Nissan Altima Hybrid, the Hot Rod Hybrid is a race car for use in the newly formed Hybrid/electric class in the Redline Time Attack Series and the Cannonball Run/One Lap of America race in April 2009. The race vehicle uses an electric supercharger to supplement the heavily modified drivetrain that comprises an E85-powered 2.5-liter 4-cylinder engine and an electric motor for a combined output of 440HP. According to the company, the Hot Rod Hybrid hits the quarter mile 12.9 seconds at an estimated 109.2 mph or 175km/h.

A race-style interior with "no-waste" ECO 2009 Sparco racing seats, along with an eco-focused paint scheme, Power Film flexible solar panels, energy conserving Yokohama tires and Stillen aero body paneling complete the long list of modifications.

Specifications and Performance

• Nissan Altima Hybrid – Braille Battery "Hot Rod Hybrid" Race Car
  
• Weight 2970.5 pounds (3485 stock)
  
• "Hot Rod Hybrid" System: 2.5 Liter Inline 4 Cylinder – Ethanol E85 Fuel Permanent Magnet AC Synchronous – Braille Battery Powered
  
• "Hot Rod Hybrid" Horsepower* 440 HP
  
• Modifications – Ethanol E85* Vortech Electric Supercharger DCHSEO-P1
  
• Modifications – Electric Drive* Braille Battery Carbon Racing Pack – Phase 1 Experimental
  
• Horsepower Peak – Ethanol E85* 270 HP @ Crank / 270 @ Crank - Estimated
  
• Torque – Electric* 240 lb/ft @ 0 – 1500 rpm, Voltage 650 Volt Max
  
• Battery Charging Regeneration Technology, Solar Panel Charging System
  
• Transmission Electronically Controlled Continuously Variable Transmission
  
• Chassis Unitized body construction with TIG Welded 6 Point Racing Cage
  
• Suspension BC Racing Aluminum Coil Over Suspension, Stillen Sway Bar
  
• Brakes Wilwood Lightweight Vented Disk w 4-channel ABS
  
• Seats Sparco "ECO2009" Made from waste materials, FIA Approved
  
• Steering Wheel Sparco 360 Suede Wheel
  
• Wheels Front/Rear: 18 x 9 Enkei Lightweight LF-10 Rims
  
• Tires Front/Rear: 255/40 18" Yokohama Low Rolling Resistance Neova High Performance Tires
  
• Acceleration Quarter Mile* 12.9 sec. @ 109.2 mph estimated
  
• Lateral Acceleration* 1.02 g
  
• Braking: 60-0* 97 feet
  
• Racing Fuel Economy* 35 laps at Sebring vs. 20 Laps at Sebring for Non-Hybrid
  

* Unverified Data. Information Calculated on Individual Manufacturers Specifications

Nissan Recalling MY’09 Altimas over faulty Alloy Wheels

Nissan has issued a recall for more than 3,400 MY’09 Altima vehicles equipped with 16-inch alloy wheels. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, some of the alloy wheels may not have been manufactured to the correct specification, something that could lead to one or more of the five lug nuts attaching the wheel to the vehicle to become loose. Nissan dealers will inspect the vehicles and if necessary, replace the faulty alloy wheels new ones. Owners can contact Nissan at 1-800-647-7261.

2007 Nissan Altima: 140.852 Cars Recalled Over Fire Fears

Nissan’s best selling 2007 US-model, the Altima is being recalled due to a problem with the air-filter that could result to a fire in the engine bay. More specifically, the recall affects 140.852 cars equipped with the 2.5-liter 4-cylinder engine. According to the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), on certain vehicles, if a sufficiently hot object enters the air filter housing through the engine fresh air intake system and contacts the engine air filter, the flammability characteristics of the air filter material are such that the filter may ignite.

NHSTA had opened an investigation back in May after reports of at least two fires breaking out in engine compartments while owners were driving. Nissan dealers will replace the air filter with a new one that has improved anti-flammability material characteristics. The recall has already began and will continue through October 1, 2007. For more information, we suggest that 2007 Altima owners contact Nissan USA at 1-800-647-7261.

Via: nhtsa