The September 2001 edition is Nissan-laden. It includes test drives of the new Altima and Sentra SE-R as well as articles on the G35 and a brief mention of the Maxima. There's an interesting note regarding the new Maxima on page 36:

"The bad news is that although the Maxima offers an extra gear to play with, shifter feel is poor and the lever requires a purposeful shove to engage a gear."

 

THe Maxima's manual was criticized even on the 2000 model. I can't believe they still havent elminate the problem. But of course, they can't compare Nissan's gear box with Honda's.

 

sometimes i cant get it in R.. i have to pop into another gear then it will pop into R.. wtf?!

 

new car n driver has very much info, i think the sentra se-R v spec is a very good 4 banger for the buck now too, i would get that over the civic Si.

 

The shifter changes from the current rod linkage to a cable type. Not ideal. So the current 5 speed should be better in that regard.

 

I've owned four Honda products and now a Nissan. I have had this problem with every one. I'm no engineer, but I think this is normal. I've found that if I engage the parking brake and then let the clutch and brake out, there is no problem. Don't ask me why, maybe someone more technical can comment.

 

ok good, i thought it was just my car that did that

 

Just double clutch. Basically, what your doing, but you don't need to use the parking brake. Just release the clutch, then push it in again and try for reverse. Otherwise, just put it into first and move an inch or so forward, then put it in reverse.

The most reasonable explanation I've heard is that the synchros/shift forks aren't lined up properly from the last time your car settled and therefore need a little help moving things to get into gear. Not a technical answer, but the most reasonable explanation I've been told.

 

And make sure you check out the night vision mention on the table of contents.

 

Good point. I drove an integra gsr for 3 years and the gear box is just smooooth. All I needed to do was just push easily from 1-2-3-4 then over to 5 - no forceful shoving needed (unless of course you're racing then you just wanna get in gear as fast as possible). Why can't nissan get it right?