300kmileprius
09-03-2009, 11:13 AM
I recently had a chance to rent a Nissan Altima Hybrid (NAH) for about a week and a half after a friend got into an accident with my 2005 Honda Accord. I was very impressed with the vehicle and would not mind owning one at some point down the road. The model I rented was the regular model without the sunroof or the big LCD screen. The vehicle was 55 bucks per day through enterprise of Waltham MA covered by my insurance company.
The car is very quick in fact the quickest of the 3 when compared to the FFH and TCH. Car and driver says 0-60 in 7.1 and at top speed of 119mph which I verified on MA rte 140. At a steady 65mph, I was able to achieve the original hwy rating of 36mpg very easily. At 55-60mph, even with the AC on I was in the mid 40's range according to the LCD. When I was in town, I could easily get 50mpg, (original 2007 rating was 42). Using the pulse and glide techinque between 30-40mph I could get about 70mpg. I suspect Wayne could do even better. The Altima has warp neutral over 42mph just like my 2005 prius. The fusion and escape hybrids turn on ICE about 47 and 40mph respectively no matter what you do. Handling was very good for such a big car and flooring it around a corner you can easily squeal the tires. As I said earlier the system is limited to 119mph but with 198 hp, it seems like it could push over 130. My 2005 4cyl auto accord has been up to 130mph and only has 166hp. Overall, the car is very fuel efficient for all the comfort and power you get but if driving like a moron, it can easily suck down a lot of fuel. At full throttle, the instantaneous mpg is under 10mpg. I think Nissan did a great job building the car and is it too bad that it is only available in the California emmisions states.
The car is very quick in fact the quickest of the 3 when compared to the FFH and TCH. Car and driver says 0-60 in 7.1 and at top speed of 119mph which I verified on MA rte 140. At a steady 65mph, I was able to achieve the original hwy rating of 36mpg very easily. At 55-60mph, even with the AC on I was in the mid 40's range according to the LCD. When I was in town, I could easily get 50mpg, (original 2007 rating was 42). Using the pulse and glide techinque between 30-40mph I could get about 70mpg. I suspect Wayne could do even better. The Altima has warp neutral over 42mph just like my 2005 prius. The fusion and escape hybrids turn on ICE about 47 and 40mph respectively no matter what you do. Handling was very good for such a big car and flooring it around a corner you can easily squeal the tires. As I said earlier the system is limited to 119mph but with 198 hp, it seems like it could push over 130. My 2005 4cyl auto accord has been up to 130mph and only has 166hp. Overall, the car is very fuel efficient for all the comfort and power you get but if driving like a moron, it can easily suck down a lot of fuel. At full throttle, the instantaneous mpg is under 10mpg. I think Nissan did a great job building the car and is it too bad that it is only available in the California emmisions states.