2009 Nissan Altima Hybrid User Reviews

Pros

Good fuel economy, low emissions, high saftey rating and reliability, sporty engine and handling

Cons

No fog lights or ipod docking bay, small trunk

Purchased As New

I recently purchased a 2009 Nissan Altima Hybrid (NAH) fitted with the technology package in Oregon. The final cost was about $24K after a fat $3,500 Nissan rebate, a $2,350 federal tax credit, along with a $1,500 state tax credit, and there is no sales tax in Oregon. The dealership experience was very good. The staff was friendly, professional and well informed. The only issue was simply availability: There was just one NAH in stock when I arrived for a test drive.

My fully appointed Altima is very comfortable, handles well on the road, accelerates strongly for a hybrid, and produces very low (AT-PZEV) emissions with good fuel economy, averaging 34 MPG so far. The car is fun to drive and has an overall sporty feel. Steering is accurate and it corners well, with very strong brakes and an overall solid feeling on the road. Noise levels in the cabin remain fairly low in nearly all paved driving conditions, except when gunning the engine all-out. The electric motor is eerily quiet as the car begins to roll, and there is a distinct growl whenever the gas engine eventually starts.

Inside the cabin, the first thing I notice is how comfortable the leather seats are, and the car?s excellent front, side and rear visibility. There are 6 air bags and most impacts zones have a 5-star safety rating. The navigation system works well, especially XM traffic monitoring and the rear-view video camera. The Bose sound system uses 9 speakers to produce strong and clear sound throughout the cabin. I trained two Bluetooth phones and downloaded both contact lists in less than 10 minutes. Communicating with others hands-free is now safe and simple: When a call arrives, the XM radio programming fades away automatically; after the call finishes, the radio quickly returns. Small misses include the lack of fog lights in the hybrid model, the lack of a full iPod docking bay, and available trunk space is limited because the main battery is stored there.

I also test drove the Toyota Camry hybrid and Prius, Honda Civic and the new Ford Fusion all on the same day. In general, the prices, warranties and incentives are approximately the same for these vehicles when similarly equipped, so my final judgment mostly depended on the test drive. For me, the Nissan Altima hybrid was the clear choice.