Nissan

Hey there campers, welcome back from the long weekend. Here we present for you a 2001 Nissan XTerra with a stick as today's Used Car of the Day.

Nissan is still struggling, even with a much-improved Kicks on the market and other new product on the way. So, I ask of you, if you woke up tomorrow as CEO of Nissan, how would you fix the brand?

Nissan has been in trouble for a while now. Dealers have sounded the alarm multiple times over the last few years, noting their troubles selling the brand’s aging vehicle catalog, but now, the situation appears to have reached a point of no return, so to speak. Nissan’s CEO Makoto Uchida recently said the automaker is in an “extremely tough situation,” noting that it would shed thousands of jobs and sell off some assets to stem the tide.

With the current Nissan Armada slated to be replaced by its global-market equivalent (the Nissan Patrol) in 2025, many on our market are excited about the prospect of the SUV receiving the Pro-4X version. However, North America also has a chance to lay their hands on the spicy Nismo variant if consumers make enough noise.

As its best-selling model, the Rogue has been a massively important vehicle for Nissan. Even so, the automaker hasn’t kept pace with the segment, leaving the Rogue as one of the few choices without an available hybrid, but that’s changing. Nissan recently confirmed that it would introduce two new electrified Rogue models in the next two years along its way to offering 34 electrified models by 2031.

Nissan has introduced a new Murano midsize crossover for 2025, appearing to take much in terms of styling choices from the all-electric Ariya.

Whereas the Toyota Tacoma has embraced many of the traits of other mid-size pickups as part of its redesign, the Nissan Frontier has stuck more closely to its roots. The former now offers hybrid power while the latter has become the only pickup in its segment offering six cylinders on the base trim.

Automakers are working hard to jam artificial intelligence features into new vehicles, but most of the technology feels kind of creepy at this point. Despite that trend, Nissan has figured out a way to use AI that is actually helpful and not as frightening as a full-fledged robot assistant in your car.

Last month, a tripartite of major brands announce the launch of ChargeScape, an endeavor intended to better integrate the charging demands of electric vehicles to the nation’s power grid. Now, Nissan has joined the fray.

We talked imports on the podcast today.

We often bemoan the demise of low-cost sedans and hatchbacks, but there are still affordable wheels out there – they just happen to be crossovers and utility vehicles

Such as the 2025 Nissan Kicks.

Nissan dealers have struggled with profitability amid a glut of inventory and diminishing buyer interest, but the automaker has taken steps to improve the situation. Earlier this year, Nissan implemented new incentives that helped clear some of the overstock, and now, the company is cutting production of two of its most popular models.

I am in southern California right now to the drive the 2025 Nissan Kicks.

Remember the Nissan Silvia/240SX? Pepperidge Farm and the entire automotive internet remember. The cars, which can be seen sliding sideways at drifting tracks around the world, hasn’t been sold in the U.S. for quite some time, but a Nissan executive’s recent comments suggest that we could see a return of the iconic rear-drive coupe.

Using more than a few items from the Infiniti QX80 toolbox, Nissan has rolled out a fresh Armada complete with turbo V6 power and a new PRO-4X trim.

Who’da thunk the Nissan Sentra would end up being a vanguard of affordable vehicles?

A starting price sliding in just under $30,000 will greet shoppers looking for a 2025 Nissan Rogue – plus $1,390 destination and delivery, of course.

Nissan dealers in the United States are living through a traumatic experience.

With the new-for-2025 Kicks, Nissan isn’t just pushing the model up the ladder. Like most companies, it’s asking if you wouldn’t mind going ahead and doing the job of two people now that one has stepped out the door.

Nissan has seen its sales numbers tumble over the last few years, with its market share, operating profit, and net income falling by deep double-digit percentages since 2019. The Japanese automaker now needs to cut costs to compensate for the fall and will offer voluntary buyout packages to a chunk of its older salaried workforce.

The Nissan Frontier was aging badly when it got a complete overhaul for the 2022 model year, but it’s got significantly newer competition from all corners of its segment. Nissan has another upgrade ready for the 2025 model year, however, which will bring new styling, a better camera system, more towing capacity, and an improved interior.

Honda and Nissan are reportedly interested in formally creating the EV and software alliance the duo hinted at earlier this year, with Mitsubishi apparently asking if it can come along for the ride.

Nissan and Honda signed a memorandum of understanding in March that confirmed the companies were actively considering joining forces on the development of electric vehicles and automotive software. That partnership now seems closer than ever, with sources claiming that Mitsubishi (34 percent of which is owned by Nissan) may also be getting in on the action.

Those of you with long memories will remember that one my first posts here, way back in Twenty Aught Seventeen, was a defense of sedans.

I may have been wrong -- Nissan is the latest OEM to reduce its amount of available sedan models. This is the same brand that once touted sedans to us assembled media during a press launch.

The Nissan Altima has become a meme for being super common and often in a state of complete disarray on the roads. The popular sedan might lose its spot in the automaker’s catalog, however, as Nissan reportedly plans to chop the Altima after 2026.

While there will surely be a flood of headlines today making snarky cracks at the 2025 Rogue Rock Creek and the propensity of its target market to keep the thing firmly on pavement, we actually think it is a smart move by Nissan – with a dash of retro reference thrown in for good measure.

It appears at least one brand is recognizing the importance of a well-informed owner, with Nissan choosing to offer a so-called Second Delivery for its all-electric Ariya. Interestingly, a dig into the program reveals that dealers can farm the duties out to a third party called Doppler Automotive.

The rivalry between Japanese and domestic automobiles was fairly intense. American muscle had fallen off and arguably failed to regain its swagger until the 1990s. While things have improved, we’re now confronting a situation where the 2024 Ford Mustang GT is running out of local rivals — so we have decided to pit it against the 2024 Nissan Z.

Nissan has announced the 2024 Nissan Z Heritage Edition which “celebrates a legacy of sports car excitement.”

Likely aware that true sports cars are becoming tragically rare and sentimentality sells, Nissan has launched a few special edition models recently. The GT-R is getting a couple of limited variants designed to play heavily into its heritage as a tuner car and the Frontier is being issued a “Hardbody” appearance package designed to create a sense of nostalgia for the original pickup.

The Nissan GT-R has been around for so long that it’d be easy to assume it would always be on sale, but that’s not the case. Nissan recently confirmed that the 2024 model year would be the car’s last, and to celebrate its sendoff, the automaker is releasing two limited-edition models.

We're going north of the border today for this 1982 Datsun 280ZX.

I both love and hate concise ads for the used cars I feature in this space.

I love them because they get to the point and make a little less work for me. I hate them because sometimes they leave too much unknown.

Such is the case with the ad for this 2009 Nissan XTerra.

The 2024 Nissan Leaf offers up an experience that leads to a bit of cognitive dissonance.

On the one hand, it’s a nice evolution over the first-generation car, especially following a refresh for 2023. On the other, it’s one of the few EVs that is CHAdeMO only on charging.

If you own a Chevy Bolt and have considered buying a Nissan Leaf, this could be your time to shine. Nissan is offering Bolt owners a $1,000 credit towards buying a Leaf, and nationally, the automaker has lease specials as low as $100 monthly.

Last week we brought you news that Fiat is bringing gas back -- and we also discussed Toyota, Mazda, and Subaru's decision to back off from full electrification.

Meanwhile, Nissan says it won't invest in any new gas engines.

What's going on?

In  further news about older Nissan vehicles getting the stink eye from regulators, the NHTSA is investigating over 74,000 decade-old Rogue Select crossovers for unexpected airbag deployment.

Nissan is bucking the trend of automakers hanging onto combustion engines for as long as possible. Speaking with the Australian magazine Drive, a company executive said its future lies in electrification and noted that it would not invest in new internal combustion powertrain technologies.

With automakers having lost the plot in terms of new-vehicle pricing and dealers still tacking on markups, there are loads of people in need of cheap, reliable transportation. While you may not believe it, there are still models to be had for under $20,000 (USD). But your choices are effectively limited to the soon-to-be-discontinued Nissan Versa and Mitsubishi Mirage, begging the question of which one should you buy before they’re gone.

In what is surely one of the oddest advisements from a major automaker in recent memory, Nissan has published a do-not-drive order for cars which have likely been recycled into tin cans some spell ago.

Cutting new-car prices is a great way to boost sales, but it’s not always kind to the dealers stuck with the inventory. Nissan gave its franchisees authorization to sell vehicles below invoice, but some stores are unhappy with the brand’s shifting attitudes toward their profitability.

We reported this morning on Nissan's plans to roll out new versions of the Armada, Murano, and Rogue as part of a plan to revitalize the brand and generate more sales.

Will it work?

Nissan sales have languished in recent times, but the automaker has a turnaround plan that leans on improved products that will debut over the next several months. Automotive News obtained information from a recent Nissan dealer meeting that includes outlines for an updated Murano, Rogue, Armada, and more.

Today we bring you a 1987 Nissan 200SX SE for $21,500.

The high cost of new cars is often bemoaned by consumers and keyboard warriors such as us alike. Sticker prices are high these days, no doubt. Enter the 2024 Nissan Versa -- a potentially decent set of wheels for under $25K.

Is the Versa a good entry-level ride or a penalty box?

Read on.

After more than 15 years, the R35 Nissan GT-R is reaching the end of the road, but there’s good news for fans of the iconic sports car. At this year’s New York auto show, an official from the automaker told Motor Authority that the GT-R and Z names would be sticking around but also noted that it could be some time before they are reborn.

Nissan and Mitsubishi have long existed side-by-side in the weird tri-automaker alliance that also includes the French company Renault. Even so, the two have never collaborated on a vehicle for the U.S. market, though that could be about to change. Nissan CEO Makoto Uchida announced that the pair would share vehicle tech and design knowledge to create a handful of new vehicles for American buyers.

When I'm sniffing around in car graveyards and I find a discarded Toyota or Honda with between 300,000 and 400,000 miles, I won't photograph it unless there's something interesting about it beyond just the odometer reading. With Nissan machinery, however, the bar is lower; today's Junkyard Find should make both Yokohama and Smyrna proud.

Today we bring you an insanely expensive used car -- it's so expensive because it's so rare.

It's 2002 Nissan R34.

The last decade hasn’t been the kindest to Nissan. Its former CEO had to flee Japan and is currently hiding in Lebanon, and several high-value employees left shortly after. Now, the company has reportedly backed out of a tentative deal to invest in Fisker and is eying the possibility that China could eat everyone’s lunch with affordable EVs. CEO Makoto Uchida recently outlined the automaker’s comeback roadmap, called “The Arc,” which he said would involve launching dozens of new models and enhancing the brand’s competitiveness in the EV space.

Leaning into the connection between its name and slang for sneakers, Nissan unveiled the 2025 Kicks in Brooklyn at the opening rounds of this year’s NCAA tourney at Barclays Center.

In what may very well be the  final round of drinks at the GT-R table, Nissan has rolled out a few changes to Godzilla for the 2025 model year.

Honda’s partnership with General Motors yielded the Prologue EV and Acura ZDX, and the Japanese automaker is now looking to team up with Nissan to do more of the same. The pair announced their fresh collaboration at a news conference earlier today.

Today's QOTD is an easy one: We mentioned that Nissan might kill the GT-R.

So the question is: Should it?

The automotive world is going electric while many companies are focused on keeping the lights on. Both are true for Nissan, so it’s not surprising to see that 2025 might be the last for its R35 GT-R sports car. The car hasn’t changed much in its 17 years on sale, but it’s hard not to mourn the death of another iconic gas vehicle.

The Nissan Leaf was already the most affordable EV on sale, but recent changes have made it even cheaper. The automaker announced that the car has regained eligibility for federal tax credits, though for only half of the maximum $7,500.

If you’ve rented a car in recent years, there’s a great chance you were offered a Nissan of some sort. Whether it’s the Altima or Rogue, Nissan has long relied heavily on fleet sales, and the company’s most recent sales numbers show that the habit hasn’t died yet. A whopping 44 percent of its February 2024 sales, or around 40,000 vehicles, went to fleets, so get ready to be a temporary Nissan driver the next time you rent a car.

A thesis will surely be written in the future about the yo-yo behavior of EV prices which are seeming to coincide with early adopters getting their fill while everyone else needs to be talked into the things. The latest? A round of cuts at Nissan on the tongue-twisting Ariya.

Things looked promising for Fisker at first, and the automaker actually delivered on its promise to design and manufacture a new EV. Even so, the automotive market is brutal and unforgiving, and Fisker’s fortunes have turned as it has had an uphill battle getting its new Ocean SUV out the door. The company recently announced a layoff of 15 percent of its workforce and said it would pause investments until it could find a new partner.

It now appears that help could come from Nissan, who, according to Reuters, might be close to investing $400 million into the struggling EV maker.

Today we bring you a literal barn find: A 2005 Nissan 350Z Anniversary Barn Find.

Today we take you back to the days of my youth and present this 1986 Nissan 300ZX Turbo.