Edmunds.com | Inside Line | Auto Observer Your Account | Help | Directory
You are here:
![[F]](http://a332.g.akamai.net/f/332/936/12h/www.edmunds.com/media/townhall/webxicons/site.gif){kind=small}
Forums
Hybrid Vehicles Nissan Altima Hybrid An Altima Hybrid Buying Experience. Need advice
157 messages, Last post on Jun 06, 2008 at 7:44 AM
You are in the Nissan Altima Hybrid Forum. Your Host is pf_flyer
karolpl7. That was a good report. I can't wait. Have you tried to do Pulse and Glide to increase mileage at all? Let us know how things continue to go. I really enjoy reports like yours. I will do the same...whenever I finally get it. At least I have a VIN number.
|
|
|
Replying to: emgr (Nov 13, 2007 6:23 pm) ..but anyway, I don't think it will work on a crowded highway where everyone goes 70-80 and if you start slowing down for no reason you'll have some angry people zooming by. It might work on a long trip highway that's virtually flat over long run and there's no traffic to interfere with 'pulse and gliding'. I might try it on a long overnight trip one day. Main point is to ENJOY the car and don't go too crazy trying to save every drop of gasoline out of it. Nissan's site realisticaly states that hybrid gets 35/33mpg (I'm getting 33 overall so far) -that's still better then 23/31mpg for a 4 cylinder and 19/26 for V6! Enjoy the ride.
|
|
|
Replying to: karolpl7 (Nov 13, 2007 6:46 pm) Also there as been a lot written about the difference between the Camry and the Altima regarding how they respond to the swtich from electric to engine startup and back again. It is said the Altima shuttres compared to the Camry. How noticeable is it when the engine comes on and is it distracting?
|
|
|
Replying to: emgr (Nov 13, 2007 6:53 pm) Side walls say 35psi for all tires. My tires were 27-30 from the dealer (hence the low pressure warning light). I got them all to 35, warning light is off now. I did drive Camry hybrid so I can't compare both as far as difference in noise when switching from gas to electric. I liked the overall interior/exterior look of Altima so never bothered with the Camry (but that's only my preference). If you pay attention to the engine you will hear slight vibration when switching into the gas mode -it's like going over a tiny pathole. After a while you will forget about it. I do still try to drive on battery as much as possible, so I don't accelerate much and don't speed up if I know I will stop on the next block - so the gas engine doesn't kick in just to shut itself off again in next 5 seconds. Once the gas engine kicks in I don't drive that efficiently any more. I'm still toying with the car basicaly. I wish the car could run on the battery little bit longer but I guess you have to balance out the battery consumption, the heat it generates etc. Found this page with nice pictures of red hybrid. |
|
|
karolpl7 35 psi for maximum pressure listed on the side wall seems would have expected the side wall to say something between 45 and 50 psi. What type and brand of tires are on your Altima? Sorry if I am making you look.
|
|
|
Replying to: emgr (Nov 14, 2007 6:43 am) |
|
They aren't selling the hybrid in Minnesota, so I ordered it at the nearest dealer I could find. That was in Albany,New York. Picked it up in mid June, drove back to the TwinCities and have been in love with it since. It is a quality vehicle, and I have lots of new and used car experience, including the purchase of a Riveria - my last american car. Mileage is great, I am filling the tank once a month, and find the anger and stress of visiting a gas station is greatly reduced. I would buy this car again in a second. One funny experience I had driving the car to Minnesota, stopping one night in Indiana. There was a lot to learn about the car and so when I parked the car for the evening and unloaded suitcase etc. I did not have the radio on - unusual. Locked the doors, (the horn did not sound) which surprised me, but checked in for the night. In the morning there was a trail of water under the car, which I discovered was from the air conditioning - - the car had been running all night. As it was silent, this taught me to always check to be sure I have turned it off. It still took less than two tanks of gas to get from New York to Minnesota. And, the stereo (Bose) is the best I have ever heard- even my wife who does not care about music likes it and allows me to have it on louder than I have in previous vehicles. Buy one! 
|
|
|
Replying to: frankied (Nov 14, 2007 11:10 am)
|
|
|
Replying to: frankied (Nov 14, 2007 11:10 am) Frankied, how do do you find the switch between electric and gas? Is is noticable as some of the mags have suggested? |
|
|
|
|
Replying to: emgr (Nov 14, 2007 12:27 pm) The switch is noticeable, but not dramatically so. The car doesn't make major jerks when it turns on or off, but you can usually feel it. Frankly, I prefer it this way--coming from driving a manual prior to this car, it lets me keep "in tune" with the car similar to how shifting did previously. The complaint I do have is more when the car is stationary (ie, at a stoplight), particularly when the car is warming up. Sometimes, the engine will turn on (again, often when the car is warming up) and it seems like they didn't do a good job of engineering the switch when the car isn't moving; it feels like the car wants to start going immediately and doesn't realize for a split second that it should be in "neutral", so the car jerks briefly. It's a fairly minor complaint, I guess, but it'd be one thing I would hope they'd improve in the 2008 or 2009 models. I'm overall extremely happy with the car. I've averaged around 33-34 mpg, with a range of 31-36, while generally driving normally (not pulsing and gliding or similar tricks). I love the feature set the Tech package comes with. If I had to make my list of complaints, I'd say the one listed above, the common complaint that the trunk is too small and also that the build quality on the interior roof is sub-par, as I've gotten a number of occasional rattles from the roof area. That's really about it, though. |
|
You are here:
Forums
Hybrid Vehicles Nissan Altima Hybrid An Altima Hybrid Buying Experience. Need advice
New? Join Now!
Forum Tools
Search Forums
Browse by Vehicle
2010 Nissan Altima Hybrid
Browse by Board
Browse by Topic
Today's Chats
