Tweaked styling and content for the best-selling Nissan.

BY JAKE HOLMES AND STEVE SILER
October 2009

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The Altima, Nissan's bread, butter, and jam model, is getting a bevy of visual and equipment changes for 2010. The tweaks start with new hoods, sexier grilles and front fascias, and also include new wheels and paint colors. The rest of the body, including the rear end, is pretty much carried over, no bad thing as we've never complained about the styling of the current-generation Altima that's been with us since 2007. Indeed, the Altima as a whole has warranted so few complaints that it placed second out of seven in our last large-scale comparison test of mid-size sedans.

Some things we have taken issue with, however, were the interior fabrics and materials, many of which have been upgraded for the new model year. The option packages have also been reconstituted, and all Altima models now come with standard stability control.

Compared with its more conservative competitors from Honda and Toyota, the Altima has appealed to many a techie, and for them, the new optional audio system should be welcome news, as it now bundles a 4.3-inch color display; iPod, Bluetooth, and XM satellite radio connectivity; and Nissan's RearView Monitor. Equally appealing to anyone that can be described as perpetually hungry, directionally challenged, and/or a weather enthusiast, 2010 also brings a revised 6.5-inch touch-screen navigation system featuring Zagat restaurant ratings, XM traffic and weather information, Bluetooth connectivity, a DVD player, and a 9.3-gig "Music Box" hard drive for music storage.

Under the skin, nothing has changed. Both gasoline engines-a 175-hp, 2.5 four-cylinder and a 270-hp, 3.5-liter V-6-carry on with a choice of six-speed manual or continuously variable automatic transmissions, and the miserly and limited-availability hybrid powertrain returns with its own version of the CVT. The Altima 2.5S and Altima HEV, by the way, retain their nomenclature, but the 3.5SE trim has been rebranded "3.5SR."

Altima prices don't drastically increase over 2009 levels; the sedan's base price remains $20,620, while higher trims, the coupe, and the hybrid see slight bumps for 2010. The primped Altima line hits Nissan dealerships today, October 5.

COSTA MESA, California - Stillen has been hard at work perfecting its tune of the Nissan GT-R for the Targa Newfoundland Canadian road rally. After six months, the vehicle is finally complete and loaded with 620 horsepower - on 91 octane pump gasoline.

That horsepower figure was achieved thanks to a set of downpipes, race exhaust with center rear exit, K&N intake system, electronic boost controller, blow-off valves and the removal of the cats. Stillen also upped boost on the turbos to 15 psi. Those mods help cut Godzilla's 0-60 mph time to 2.9 seconds and quarter mile to 11 seconds at 127.9 mph.

Suspension changes include high-performance adjustable coilovers with Eibach race springs and Stillen swaybars and endlinks, while stopping power comes from an AP Racing carbon ceramic brake upgrade. Bridgestone 255/40ZRF front and 285/35ZRF rear tires contribute to the vehicle's impressive 1.1g of lateral grip on the skid pad.

Exterior-wise, the GT-R is dressed in Stillen side skirts, front spoiler and canards, while Password: JDM provides the carbon-fiber hood, trunk lid, wing and engine cover. BASF Carizzma Orange Sherbet Pearl paint finishes off the look.

The interior gets a Stillen roll cage, Status racing seats and harnesses, ChaseCam's onboard video camera system and a Nordskog GPS speedometer.

Inside Line says: Expect Stillen's Godzilla to be one of the top contenders in the Targa Newfoundland that starts September 12. - Mike Lysaght, Correspondent

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We usually assess convertibles in terms of structural rigidity, the square root of all vehicle dynamics. Rubbery bones don't enhance transient response, and there's the disconcerting phenomenon of dashboard and steering column jiggling to the beat of slightly different sambas.

But that's not the biggest concern of a team convertibilizing a fastback coupe. They're wondering whether their baby will be seductive. Makes sense, right? After all, a guy surveying the traffic at a hookup bar isn't thinking about structural rigidity (other than his own).

When it came along in 2003, the droptop Z car scored well on the rigidity meter. In our August '03 comparo ["The Blow Dryers"], we noted a "feeling of enduring solidity" and that "nothing flexes."

But the looks left us lukewarm, particularly with the top up. One pundit was reminded of the USS Monitor, the 1862 warship with a single turret perched on a long, flat deck.

Behold the 370Z convertible. Like the 350Z, it derives from a fastback coupe. But this convertible-which originated at Nissan Design America in San Diego-was more thoroughly baked into the new Z's development program. The result is a design that's much more integrated, much less a slab-sided afterthought.

In addition to its good looks, the new convertible is also easier to live with. The seating position is a little higher than before, providing a better view of what's going on ahead. (Being in the command center in the previous Z-vertible was like sitting in a foxhole.) With the top up, the view straight astern is also improved, though here the distinction is academic, and as with so many convertibles, the rear-quarter sightlines are blind.

Specifications

VEHICLE TYPE: front-engine, rear-wheel-drive, 2-passenger, 2-door roadster

PRICE AS TESTED: $44,040 (base price: $41,240)

ENGINE TYPE: DOHC 24-valve V-6, aluminum block and heads, port fuel injection

Displacement: 226 cu in, 3696cc
Power (SAE net): 332 bhp @ 7000 rpm
Torque (SAE net): 270 lb-ft @ 5200 rpm

TRANSMISSION: 6-speed manual

DIMENSIONS:
Wheelbase: 100.4 in Length: 167.2 in Width: 72.8 in Height: 52.2 in Curb weight: 3495 lb

C/D TEST RESULTS:
Zero to 60 mph: 5.1 sec
Zero to 100 mph: 12.7 sec
Zero to 130 mph: 24.3 sec
Street start, 5-60 mph: 6.0 sec
Standing 1/4-mile: 13.7 sec @ 104 mph
Top speed (governor limited): 156 mph
Braking, 70-0 mph: 156 ft
Roadholding, 300-ft-dia skidpad: 0.95 g

FUEL ECONOMY:
EPA city/highway driving: 18/25 mpg
C/D ?observed: 21 mpg

As you'd expect, the top is power operated-one switch does it all. It clamps itself to the windshield header with a resounding whack-a little too resounding, maybe, which also goes for the hard tonneau when the top stows itself. On the other hand, it's at the high end of the cloth-top quality scale: nicely lined and better than many at damping wind noise.

With the top down, the cockpit remains relatively serene up to about 70 mph or so; the standard wind blocker seems to live up to its name; and conversation is possible at decibel levels below the scream threshold.

Which brings us back to structure. Nissan makes some strong claims under this heading-60 percent improved in lateral stiffness at the rear, for example-and after terrorizing our favorite back roads, we're willing to believe them. Like the coupe, the new ragtop answers its helm with laser-guidance accuracy, grip is sticky at 0.95 g, and braking performance is very strong. Better yet, though the setup
is firm, ride quality suffers little.

However, more structure means more mass. Our test car weighed 3495 pounds, 135 more than the coupe that topped our April 2009 showdown ["SportsCenter"]. This adds a couple of 10ths to the 0-to-60-mph run, but 5.1 seconds is still pretty brisk.

Inevitably, this all adds up to more money. The base price-$37,690-is just $100 more than the outgoing 350Z roadster's, but our upscale Touring edition starts north of the $40K frontier, edging closer toward Porsche Boxster territory. Then again, the Z roadster will smoke a standard Boxster. And look good doing it.

Great things are happening at Bob Moore, and we owe it all to our loyal customers and dedicated staff!  In these erratic economic times, we are proud to live in this great state of Oklahoma, where positive attitudes and hard work have made us much more resilient to the changes that are plaguing the rest of the nation!

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