The 2020 Nissan Sentra is a Sensible Compact Sedan | MotorWeek Road Test
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 29 ส.ค. 2024
- Despite many fantastic new options, midsize sedan sales remain in a slump. And, like many things in the auto industry, that trend has started to trickle down to four-door compacts as well; as more and more crossovers gobble up the market. But Nissan has been on a mission to keep the sedan alive and relevant, and now they’ve taken that ethos to a new Sentra.
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Sentra finally has the looks to compete in its segment.
Most Definitely
Looks aren't enough. Zero to 60 in 9.1 seconds and a CVT are deal breakers. The power train is hideous.
It might have the looks to compete but the anemic, abysmal, horrible, rubbery, power-robbing CVT (continuous various trouble), belongs in a landfill. This pathetic excuse for a transmission should not be on an automobile. But Nissan uses them because they're cheap and over half of them come from China where there is.... you guessed it, lots of cheap labor. But don't take my word for it, just Google it.
Road test are done at 75-80 dragway in Monrovia, MD
Rented a 19’ this weekend, what a pile, would floor it and it would make a lot of noise but would hardly move making passing dangerous. Hopefully this one has a better engine and transmission.
Everyone is commenting about the CVT, but I can guarantee y'all have not owned or even properly maintained a Nissan CVT. I'm on my third Altima and I change my fluid every 30k miles.
My 07 Altima was totaled at 201,734 miles with the original CVT...
My '15 Altima is at 100k miles and has the original CVT. Maintain your car and it'll take care of you.
AGREED!!!!!!!! My family has had 3 Nissans with CVTs and never had a problem (2 of which went well over 100k miles). Just do your basic maintenance and you'll be fine
I have a '17 Lancer with a CVT as well.
Important thing is not to do hard launches from a standstill (Do Not try to launch with full gas). Accelerate gently for a couple of seconds then when you're moving, then you can give full gas if you want to.
It'll be nice if they at least offer a manual transmission option for those who don't like the CVT this car is available with six speed manual in Canada
I cant believe this john davis has been doing this for 40 years even blindfolded 😎
He’s legendary, no question!
I remember watching this show back in the day with my dad (I still watch this show), my dad passed away in 2000, but he would yell out, for me to come watch it with him, whenever a cool car was on. He would argue or yell at Pat Goss on the TV !! (in a good way of course) hahahah !! I also remember the outro was the tail lights of a TransAm.
He’s a great host and narrator for the road and comparison tests from the Versa to this, and GT-R
Bet that 8-inch Bose stereo rocks.
I drove this new Sentra about a month ago as a rental. It’s much more upscale than I thought.
Nissan needs to get rid of the CVT transmission across all of its lineup and start adding 7-8 gear transmissions
FUCK YES ! !
ABSOLUTELY!!!!
So a 1991 Sentra SE-R had 140 hp and 30 years later they can only get 9 hp more from the same sized (2.0 liter) engine?
True but that engine was great and the basis of the formidable sr20det.
Beb152 The horsepower in previous generations has been even lower
It was not designed for power it was just a soccer mom saden
It's a sadder story when you look at the Infiniti G20 from the early 90s, which had the same two liter engine producing 150 horsepower. Meaning it was one horsepower stronger than this 2020 Sentra is... with the same size engine and modem tech. 😬
Jo LC the first generation Infiniti G20 had 140 hp (same as the SE-R) at least here in the US. I owned a G20, unfortunately for me it was auto, that engine needed a stick.
As long as Nissan still puts that CVT in things I’m not interested. That transmission is garbage from everything I’ve read and seen
Agreed. I don’t mind regular CVT’s, but the “fake” ones however should never be put in another car from now until the end of time.
Or they need to abide less to A to B transport people or people who think cars are nothing but transportation. And we need to relax Fuel economy regulations.
Nissan Has Been Using CVTs Since 03 . Let It Go. No One Is Forcing You To Buy It Smh
Manual in the base trim! Well at least in Canada.
Ben1014 well the d step logic is only half fake. If you use light acceleration it doesn’t actually shift. A moderate gas press causes the simulated shifting, but if you ever floor the throttle than it the engine holds redline and uses the CVT at its full potential. Essentially its a fine compromise, using the variable gearing in cruising and no torque loss in hauling while allowing for a familiar operation everywhere in between
Never buy a Renault/Nissan CVT. They haven't changed the design of their CVT since 2013, which means it still has the same DEFECT that forced a recall and Lawsuit. That CVT will burn up and possibly fail around 56k miles. You have been warned.
I have 294k miles on my cvt so not everyone has issues m
@@occckid123 this is true and you beat the piss out of your car! The problem is that the failure rate of JATCO CVTs is higher than average.
They definitely changed the cvt on this car if you stop talking about how bad they even if haven't driven one Drive this car
@@occckid123 They just don't know you have to take care of you care and don't race it and press the gas all the way down at every light lol
Good looking compact, good options, nice fuel economy...with the same CVT garbage. Yeah, that's gonna be a No from me dawg
Doesn’t look like a rental car anymore but Nissan USA is still drowning.
@@Butchcub75 The rumored split fell through. The Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi-Daimler alliance still exists.
Best looking sedan in the segment
No that would be the Mazda 3 sedan.
Hands Down! I get so many looks! Even caught maxima drivers looking lol
@@Revo2Evo Nah. And that stupid knob interface on the 3 is terrible too.
Beautiful car with good suspension and more safety features.
The engine and CVT are acceptable.
PS. I hope Mazda 3 can get multilink rear suspension.
Slap a manual transmission in and you got a great car.
Wut? Its 149 hp. Its slow asf
@@Sasquatch304 naw that's enough in cooler weather with pull nicely. But i think they should an se-r model with just over 230 hp and 6 speed they will be perfect sleepers.
They do come in manual in Canada and other places.
Manuals are very stupid , nobody buys them , an its the sloth ridden morons way to think their cool an know cars.. " Put Leeches on the brain tumor ".. Then Ill buy it!
Allan Desmond well first off a manual will last a lot longer then an automatic, second off it’s peoples preference, it’s not stupid, I prefer a manual because you’re more engaged with the car and the road. People who drive automatics most likely drive because they have to go to work everyday. U my friend are not a car person if u think manuals r stupid😂
Nissan is soooo close to making this car perfect.... Ditch the CVT!
Never NEVER with a CVT. Omg Nissan stop please!
The new Maxima would be sweet with a 6 speed. I'd definitely buy one.
It's seriously nothing wrong with the CVT trans . It's ignorant drivers who do not understand how to care for it and use a CVT at that that tarnished the reputation of CVT trans. Along with the problems of earlier models.
Crap is crap, even without CVT.
@@aayonce4 Nah, those CVT transmissions are trash. Even when maintained and driven carefully they still fail. A friend of mine that drives like a grandmother has destroyed two of them so far.
Aayonce Most ppl don’t ever service their automatic transmissions. Often times you can get 150,000 miles give or take. Yeah it’ll slip for a while before it goes out but ppl just keep driving. A cvt transmission has to be serviced every 30-40k miles. This is the reason why so many of them fail way before 100k
I don't know who chose the music for this video, but...don't let them do it again.
Nice looking car. Terrible CVT. The way John describes the CVT’s performance on the track was pathetic. Is Nissan even watching any of these videos?
I don’t know why they don’t make the se-r model with the standard base engine from Altima .. 175+ hp
Great looking car.
Great car overall, just needs more power and a non CVT transmission
Doesn't look like they like this car there are too Manny negative comments such as brake fade. With this and the CVT problems I'm reading I'm surprised Nissan is still in business.
That's a very stupid comment, Brake Fade".. after multi runs from full power to panic Stop over an over again.. IS that how you or anyone in the real world drives, ever..In a subcompact Affordable Car???
I bought my 19 sentra with 5 miles.. I got 50,000 and no problems. All I do is change the oil.
How is it so far?
Nissan of the past had bulletproof engines but not today unfortunately
I appreciate that John was honest about the accelerating sucking on this car. A 6 speed would help that 0-60
The Canadian market models are available with a six speed
I'm on 98 Sentra 5 speed US version, love it, I likely never sell it because it just works. I even recently repainted put factory aero kit, rims.
This new one must be nice but CVT...
Nissan use to make cars that were sporty, reliable, and fun to drive. Nissan started going downhill with Carlos Ghosn at the helm and teaming up with Renault.
Now that Ghosn is gone hopefully Nissan will get back on track starting with the new Z car.
They should also bring back the 240sx with 240 hp to match its namesake with a nismo version making 300 hp. Available six speed manual in both versions is a must. To make it more economically feasible they could make a sport sedan off the same platform.
But Renault still owns 43% of Nissan. So it'll be business as usual.
Wow you didn't mention the sports button, the sports button is a game changer!!!!
That made me laugh. My GF had a '13 Sentra with the sport button. . .what was the point other than to make the engine rev and be louder.
This is 90s-style production and delivery in 2020. I absolutely LOVE this.
Because they got it right in the 90s. Why change it.
It's sensible until the transmission breaks
Exactly...
It's a Nissan why would it break?
@@ExSkyCyclePilot As if Nissan engineered it wrong.
Almost at 300k on my cvt. I don't care what others say. I know from my own experience and not just after a short test drive the benefits of having a cvt and its shortcomings. I prefer the car to have a cvt. Its a feature for me actually that started when I 1st drove 1 in 2007.
Put the Variable Compression 4 cylinder found in the Infinity and you have a nice SE-R variant! Or at the very least a more competitive SR spec car. Nissan almost did it right, almost.
Hopefully an SE-R version will come out later with 200 plus hp and a SIX SPEED MANUAL.
Nissan will always be in denial about their CVT transmission which they have shown no effort to improve it or replace it altogether and it'll be their downfall along with several other issues the company has.
So there is zero improvement in the cvt??? Zero?
@@occckid123 that is correct, Nissan still uses the JATCO CVTs which are still utter garbage. I will never buy another Nissan as long as it has a CVT, either bring back the 6speed manuals or a competent dual clutch trans.
@@s3trios so the muranos still have exactly the same issues it had when it 1st came out? They barely fail! Have the 2016+ macima have severe trans issues? Does the pathfinder have issues anymore? No improvements? Keep telling yourself that.
Some Nissan owners report that If the CVT fluid is changed at around 60K miles they can last to well over 100K. My Subaru had an issue at 80k with the solenoid pack. Replaced under warranty, but after 100K the coverage ends. Best auto trans for these small cars was a four-speed, but no one makes these any more.
@@mossmiller i have 311k on my cvt altima but unfortunately I broke my gas pedal 2 hrs ago lmfao
It's like a mini Altima and I would like to drive something like that but then again I could get a Forte LXS
for the love of god get the Forte lol
Get the Forte. Any Nissan with a CVT is a basket case of issues.
They're all Mini Maximas if you really look at them. But I'd def go for the Forte.
Is Forte LXS way much better? In what aspects?
I'm considering both both Sentra and Forte for the price.
Any feedback appreciated.
I was looking for a review on this car. Love motor week!
Hopefully Nissan will come out with a Nismo version with a 6 speed manual and turbo.
Nismo RS with 260hp and AWD.
Armada Gaming that’d be wild
I had a 2002 Sentra GXE that I loved. I like the new ones, but i won't touch one with that damn CVT.
I drove my aunts 2006 sentra with the 4spd while I had my 2008 versa hatchback with cvt and i thought it was decent until you floor it at 60mph and you don't get much rpm.because its stuck in 3rd gear while I can get 6k rpm more easily in the cvt versa. Dead spots were terrible in the sentra compared to the versa cvt.
Bring back the manual transmission. CVT is made of glass.
True. My Honda that I drive also has a moped gearbox and I don't have any hiccups with it and it made their gearboxes feel like John Cena in comparison.
If they got rid of the Jatco CVT and replaced it with either a good Aisin/ZF trans, or even a more reliable CVT, I’d care. But for now, it’s too much of a liability
Its 2 much of a liability when multiple dealers in my area have 10 year unlimited miles powertrain warranty its not a liability. If you're that afraid then buy from a dealer that has that automatically!
Corolla SE has 20 more hp but no 360 camera option. I like 360 camera because you don't scrub the wheels & lower valances on curbs.
no manual shifting? No Sport mode? I'll stick with my 300 hp V6 Maxima
Nissan get your stuff together. My GF's '13 Sentra was a chore to drive. Get it together! Ditch the CVT.
I'd rather go buy a used hyundai genesis or Equus fully loaded for less than that, would last longer too.
First Nissan car that actually looks good that I want to own.
it's weird with Nissan. "would you like an ugly car with a manual or a good looking one with a garbage cvt?"
Should make a good rental car.
That’s a really good looking Sentra
I am so sick of look a like vehicles just like this one that looks identical to the Altima and Versa.
Now how about 1.8t with 200hp to 220hp to compete with civic si with a manual? Limited production. How bout it Nissan??
This Sentra and the Altima look great front and back.
Just bought this exact car! Damn well please with it for sure.
It's a shame such great exterior styling and interior design is hampered by the horrendous drivetrain. This crucial if you want to compete with competition like Honda.
I mean is it any worse than a 2.0 civic?
@@occckid123 It is slower to 60 and through the quarter than the 2.0 Civic.
Has the looks, lack the go power, I've driven it, I feel just having a normal 6 speed auto (or why not a 6 speed manual), would improve the acceleration and driving fun.
The sad thing is this car is available with a six speed manual transmission, but in Canada only
They need to go back to the old B13 technology, man those things could run forever and still get well over 40 mpg driven easy on the highway. Still miss mine. Conventional Automatics were strong!
Even though the sr trim is rated for 37 it will easily get 40mpg at 70mph on the freeway. The other trims are rated for 39 i think. Its just the newer gas mileage are more strict but from my experience it is very easy to get the 2019 sentra which is rated at 37mpg hwy to get 40mpg.
Get a Kia instead!
Toyota*
What happen to the 2.5 dual pipe
For a grand or two more, i could get a forte GT with the 1.6 turbo, 201hp
I was prepared to bash this car until I saw the price, for $22K before negotiations, that’s not bad at all. If I had to cut back due to budgetary reasons, I’d check this out.
0:21 They need to be on a mission to keep their damn transmissions alive, Instead of dying in the first 30,000miles
Katrina Balanchuk My first car was a 2000 Maxima and it was great, but every person I met with the Nissan after that point when they went to CVT has had nothing but trouble ,,, Not to mention the lawsuits Nissan just doesn't give a shit anymore and that's why I am hard on them,,However Marano/Maxima owners have told me they haven't really had any issues, and I know someone with a manual 2013 Sentra, no issues but keyword is a manual transmission
Mark M poor kid, wish her the best
@@Mark-eu6mc totally agree I have a rogue with a CVT that is failing next time getting a Honda
Well it's a 2020, so you don't know if it's reliable or not until at least a few years go by. But Nissan's track record has been pretty bad since it merged with Renault 20 years ago especially bad CVT transmission. The first step Nissan can take to improve itself as a company is to get rid of Renault.
SE-R with manual transmission perhaps .
9.1 seconds to 60mph?
This Sentra must be kind of heavy?
Number Two They keep getting lower, wider and longer........ and definitely heavier
And it’s only got 149 HP. Whether it’s 1990 or 2020, ya just ain’t going anywhere too quick with only a 149 horses on tap. Or at least I hope you have nowhere important to be haha.
And i here people saying the mazda 3 need more power its too slow but i sure there is no complain here with a car a full second slower
Nice looking but CVT is a deal killer.Nissan looks like it may disappear in next 5 years if they don't get there finances together.
Scotty says no.
Good review & great Sentra.
Looks good but I would never buy it. Junky Jatco transmission. Yuck.
I wish y’all would get over it.
Same old junk Jatco cvt. Nope!
A 0-60 time of 9.1 seconds is unacceptable for a 2020!!💯
Is an economy car what do you expect ?? Its job is take to work and save gas get a ser or gtr and you'll forget about the 0 60 slow times
I LOVE it but it doesn't have enough power or manual transmission.
i do like the look of Nissan cars in general but is the new trans here going to be better then the old ones
put a 4spd auto and ill buy it. had a shatco cvt blow on me.
Nissan please get rid of that darn CVT!
Mercedes?? Hey say what you like but Kia and Hyundai are making the best cars. I own a 10 year old Kia that still looks great, the Forte, and it's been problem free for 10 years. I'm brand agnostic I'm just looking for the best value, which doesn't mean cheap, rather how much car you get for the price. I still can't see better value than Korean on the market. Well, all their products, smartphones, electronics, industrial products from Korea are all great quality and among the top selling i.e Samsung so i don't really get why there's still a bad rap on Korean cars.
There's a bad rap on them because of the direct injection crap they have been using for years now. Unfortunately Hyundai/Kia, for all their improvements, have never had the drive to make reliability number one. Until they do, Toyota will continue to reign king. I don't buy into "initial quality" studies. I'm actually a bit disappointed in them in the sense they didn't go the route of the Japanese in the '80's and '90's.
WoW!...So even Nissan upgraded their Sentra to have Rear Independent Suspension now unlike what Mazda did to the 3 by down grading it to a Rear Torsion Beam Suspension...
Shame on Mazda for making that choice!!!...
....and the Mazda still drives better.
Cry me a river, at least they don't have that god-awful transmission.
Sorry but I like the previous look so much better. This look is a deal breaker for me.
Nissan is garbage now, get back to the original japanese formula and they will recover.
Hopefully they will now that Carlos Ghosn is gone.
@@marvinmurakami8828 It is now pronounced "Hadi Zablit". ;)
@@marvinmurakami8828 I remember a number of years ago, he was considered the greatest auto company CEO out there...lol
It's annoying that motor week allowed me son to give them the highest trim Level model considering only about 5% of 2021 Nissan sentras Will be sold in SR trim.
I drove a 2019 sentra as a rental car just last year. There wasnt enough leg room, the dash gauges sucked and didnt display enough info, the infotainment was extremely lame with zero thought put into the layout, and the CVT was the worst transmission I have ever driven. You have to redline the motor at highways speeds, just to get it moving for a passing maneuver. That is completely unacceptable. You couldn't give me one of these cars.
It could've been the cvt or maybe it was the 120hp lmfao???
Nissan's problems have never been about looks. It's more about reliability. Let's see how good this car looks in five years.
This would be a fun car wth a turbo and a manual transmission or dsg transmission
Nissan hasn't try much harder to get away from CVT transmission.........since Nissan is in a deep trouble they are scrambling to bring out new cars out in a short amount of time.....this is what I heard in the Nissan conference.
scrambling to bring out new cars out in a short amount of time. . .they aren't trying too hard. It took them 7 years to get the 2020 sentra out the door.
What a great option at a very competitive price!
Probably a great car until the cvt takes a crap
I would about pay Nissan to take the fake shift out of my Xtronic. You're right, they are random. My wife has an 11 year old Jeep with a CVT that fake shifts way more consistently. It remains to be seen how may Sentras stay on the road. Hertz bought droves because they could rent them as mid-sized cars.
More hp, more torque, 5 mpg worse gas mileage than a Forte and still a second slower to 60? Nissan needs to throw in the towel with their Jatco CVT nonsense and merge with a Korean company. God help them!
The other trims are rated at 29/39. Its more in the engine than the trans. Thats what 2mpg below the forte? This looks wayyyyy better than the bland looking forte though
The kia could've been tested in cooler temps requiring less ac use hence the mpg difference and potentially speed difference in hot weather.
Looks like Nissan is trying to recapture their glory days of 2001 this is pretty decent looking
Sorry but without a manual transmission Nissan is going to drop sales even more.
Yes because the 200 people per month will make a difference
Wait a few months and all Nissan dealerships will have rebates. No one is renting cars so there won’t be a need for the rental car companies to stock up
Uber great looking car let down by a lackluster engine and crap cvt. Come on Nissan...🙄
It's all about SUVs in the States - Nissan have 4 saloons. Meanwhile in Europe not a single one.
That's because Renault doesn't want any competition against its Talisman (basically a European Altima).
I don’t know if the boots are necessary really is summer in the US
Crossovers are cancer.
Vc turbo and a 6speed please
1:12 I literally did a spit take there 😅
Public access TV laws demand that they poll the blind for diversity reasons.
Best looking compact sedan. Too bad it has a CVT.
CVT CVT CVT CVT CVT CVT don’t buy don’t buy don’t buy don’t buy don’t buy don’t buy don’t buy
It’s looks really good but it does NOT look like a Mercedes 😂
Hey look it’s the Brie Larson car
Yeah, that will help move a few units 👎🏾
"Sensible" and "Nissan" don't belong in the same sentence unless there is a negation in there somewhere.
Nice looking car, but COME ON Nissan!! In this day and age 9 Seconds 0-60??!! And 145 Horse Power.. Try Sick Dog Power!! A Gramma with a Walker could beat this thing down the road!!! I've had a 240Z and a 240SX and they both would have laughed at those numbers!!