1996 Nissan Sentra consumer reviews

I bought mine with 49K in October 1998 and it just died in January 2008 with 203K. I had no real repairs, beyond standard maintenance, until about 150K when the alternator went out. I also had to replace the mass air flow sensor, parts of the exhaust system, and the front crankshaft seal around 180K. When the car would not start after passing 203K, I decided it was not worth repairing. I was still pulling over 30 mpg when it died. The body and interior do not look like they had seen so many miles. My only real complaints are the lack of power, which was a common problem for Nissan, and it was uncomfortable for long trips. But overall, the car was great for me through college and law school.

I got a '96 Sentra when I got out of the Marines and didn't want to (or have) a lot of money to spend. It is a 5 speed manual and had 62k miles when I got it for $3500 in 2003. I used to drive on average 85 miles every day. It's now June 2007 and the car has 145K miles on it. Other than oil changes and brakes, I had the change the axel boots and the transmition (I went ahead and changed the clutch system too because I might as well). The transmition went out at around 134K miles because I made the mistake of changing the axel seals and didn't check them afterwards for leaks. The transmition fluid leaked and it fried my transmition. Total cost ($600). I think that if I had not made that mistake, the car would not have needed major repairs until around 180k miles. I was NEVER stranded. I was always able to drive the car home. The point is: if you want to get miles out of a car and save gas, the Sentra is a good car. Keep in mind that mine is a '96, the first year of the new model. It's supposed to have a lot of problems but for the money, it is a great car. I still have it and drive it every day. Thanks to my Sentra I was able to work and go school and save money and I'm now on Cars.com looking for new car. Anyways, think about it....Sentra will do the job if that is all you want.