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Sedans Midsize Sedans 2.0
13340 messages, Last post on Dec 06, 2009 at 10:12 PM
You are in the Sedans Forum. Your Hosts are pat & karens
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The Altima is my favorite of the bunch. It is amongst the fastest and best handling of the group, is priced well, and has all the gadgets. The 2007 model is the best looker of the bunch, IMO. My second choice is the Ford Fusion. The things I don't like about it is the lack of punch, and it is gadget-free compared to the Altima. It is still fun to drive and is very nice looking inside and out, though. I hate the Camry's interior, and the Accord's seats. The Camry also feels a lot slower than its HP rating suggests, and the Nissan's motor wails on the Accord's whiny V6. Both Camry and Accord are kind of expensive for what you get. The Aura looks neat, but I've never driven one so I can't comment. The Mazda needs to be replaced. Not a bad car, but generationally it feels like a 2002 car and not 2007. I'll take the host's advice and spare any comments on the Hyundai and Kia. 
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Replying to: perna (Apr 13, 2007 11:49 am)
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Buick LaCrosse Passat(Audi A6 in non-lux trim) Volvo S40(not really a luxury car, either, and not sporty like the S60) Jeep Compass(hard to tell if it's a car or a SUV wanna-be) Plus a few others, like the RX-8 and such that are technically sedans(a few two door sedans and hatchbacks would also qualify, IMO, if it's the only way they come) P.S. the CVT in the Altima has to be driven like a motorcycle. You need to floor the pedal until you reach the speed you want and ease off. Very binary behavior - and the opposite of a normal transmission. If you ease into it progressively harder, like you are used to, it accelerates like your grandmother.
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Replying to: mike91326 (Apr 13, 2007 12:05 pm)  My daily driver is an '03 Maxima, and the '07 Altima does feel faster than the Max, though not by a ridiculous amount. It's pretty clear to me that the new Altima is the true successor to my car, and not the "redesigned" '04 and up Maximas.
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Replying to: plekto (Apr 13, 2007 12:18 pm) I think since "sedans" is in the title, the Compass (which is too small to be midsized anyway), wagons shouldn't count, gloried as a wanna-be SUV or not. |
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Replying to: perna (Apr 13, 2007 12:24 pm) Its interesting how that happens. There is no real successor to the Contour, and I think the Mazda6 (V6/MTX) is the closest thing available from Ford. I personally found the Altima to be great looking but a bit pricey.
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Replying to: plekto (Apr 13, 2007 12:18 pm) Heh, maybe that's why I didn't notice a problem with the CVT. Typically, in rush hour traffic you don't really notice it, but when I'm going up an entrance ramp, for example, I will point the Maxima in the direction it needs to go, give it just a bit of gas so I don't spin the tires, and ZOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM. It's a lot like an airplane turning onto a runway for takeoff. That's how I drove the Altima, and the CVT must be a pretty good match for my driving style. I see people driving Maximas and Altimas like Buicks, and just shake my head. It's like, why didn't you just save $10k and buy an Impala?? They're four door sports cars, and I have the insurance tab to prove it (despite having zero accidents or tickets in my 15 years of driving). |
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Replying to: lilengineerboy (Apr 13, 2007 12:32 pm) I personally found the Altima to be great looking but a bit pricey. I really, really like the Fusion. More than the Contour, that's for sure! I just couldn't get over the Fusion's lack of power compared to what I was used to, and could Ford put any more basic of a stereo into that car?? The car drove VERY well, and I really liked the interior/exterior of the thing. I suspect that when I go to replace my Maxima in a few years, I will get sticker shock. I got a tremendous deal on it since the redesigned '04s were like 2 weeks out, and the dealer wanted to get rid of the '03s BADLY. The Altimas are much more popular cars, and I'm sure my discount won't be nearly as nice. Then again, maybe I will be able to swing a G35 by the time my Maxima needs replacing. 
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Replying to: mike91326 (Apr 13, 2007 12:05 pm) depends how you drive it. Its computer controlled with 300 or so algorithms progamed into it. It kind of adapts to you. Personaly, I think it's incredible. But, you don't need to "stomp" on the gas to get it to go. durring the break-in period, I found myself having to watch the RPM's so as not to go over the 4000 the owners manual says to stay under. If you were to give it full acceleration, you'd go over 5000 rpm's and hit 60 mph in about 6 or 7 seconds. But, because it's so damn smooth and quiet, it doesn't feel like its moving that fast. But a quick look in the rear view, will show you how fast it's actually going. But in addition to that, you get much better acceleration at higher speeds, and it will employ engine braking on it's own when going down a steep incline. It deffinitly takes a couple hundred miles to get used too, but the CVT is undoubtly the future of transmissions. look for everybody to swithch to them in the next 5 years or so. The cvt will do to automatic transmissions what fuel injection did to carburators.
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Replying to: plekto (Apr 13, 2007 12:18 pm) I agree with other posters that the Malibu should certainly be mentioned in the banner of this discussion, and DC should be represented by the Sebring at least, if not by its Dodge cousin (even though I personally think they are woeful vehicles). |
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