I am thinking of getting a third car for my wife and myself. I dont wan't her to have to drive the MR2 next winter, and I was thinking of the Sentra GXE 5sp. Other than the styling, I have heard all good things about the SE. What about the GXE? I have never seen any numbers on the weaker engine, or read any review of it. But the mileage seems great, and my wife is not a hot-rodder. (With the exception of going 80 on the expressways)

Any thoughts?

 

go ahead and get the SE....Sentras are good cars.....

 

I had a '94 Sentra GXE, it was a pretty reliable car. I would think that they only got better, but I would get the SE instead

 

there is not a huge price break in getting the GXE. The extra power of the SE can be used for those 80Mph freeway blasts

 

We still have a 88 Sentra at my house. That thing will never die!!!!!!!!!!

 

check out the www.sentra.net www.b15sentra.net

i think the gxe 0-60 is somewhere in the 8's

SE- sport suspension, 145 hp pretty nice

 

I recently bought a GXE and for the money, there aren't many other cars that can come close. It's very quick off the start and it's built so sturdily that you won't realize that you're hitting 60 mph. Springs are really soft too, so it can cushion a lot of the bumps. I love the inside because it's so comfy. The only downside is the lack of rear passenger space...but then, that's why you have a Max, right? Edmunds.com recently had a glowing review about the SE, (using the classic sr20de engine) so check it out. The closest competitor is the Protege...really nifty handling, apparently.

 

wait for the sentra ser-vspec this fall... yummy

 

I have a friend that got a 2001 Sentra. It's not a bad little car, only problem is it's like all Nissans. He had a coolant leak fixed under warranty with only 1,000 miles. Plus side it's like all Nissans--he got it below invoice back in December, so if you're going to keep the car you're in good shape. if you want to resell it the resale is very low. it's how nissan seems to make their money, for those who don't know better they pay above invoice while everyone else isn't bashful, goes on Edmunds, and buys the car with Nissan screaming "you're into my holdback! At least buy some rustproofing and fabric guard!"

The other choice is the Hyundai Elantra. Has more hp (14) and everything standard, but you can't get as good a price as the Sentra. Hyundai is improving their stigmata and the funny thing is their cars are more in tune with 2001 styling.

 

In a year or 2, the new VSPEC is out.

If you like the Maxima, then you will love the 190 hp, SIX SPEED Sentra

It's got all sorts of suspension mods too...

 

The way I figure, I can take a GXE out the door for 14500. The specV is going to be close to 20 I imagine. I could almost buy a base Max for that. And the SE is going to be over 16k. I already have a Max for power and room, and we have the MR2 spyder for ***** out fun, that is why I am content in looking at the GXE Sentra. Great fuel economy, bigger interior than most compact cars, plus power windows, CD and all that stuff. Plus, I dont want to get anything too nice because it wont have a spot in the garage.

Anyway, thanks for the advice guys.
Jimmy

 

Dont get a Hyundai.

Ive heard nothing but bad things about those cars. One of my friends has a 1999 or 2000 Elentra and theyve already had it back to the dealer like 3 times. They put 10 year warranties on them for a reason...They are that cheap for a reason...

 

About a year ago my sister got a completely loaded SE for $18K out the door. . . This was when the car was pretty new also. . . I have driven her car a couple times and I think the 145HP 2.0L engine is needed, this might be from my experiences driving 6-cyl cars though also. Her's is a slushbox though and this might be part of the probelm. I think the GXEs come with 135HP or something similar to it. It is a fun car and is fun in traffic as it is very manuverable. Only thing she has a problem with is at speeds approaching 80 MPH there is an sound like wind going through 2 pieces of metal. I don't know if this is typical though.