2019 Nissan Altima 3.5 SL

2019 Nissan Altima 3.5 SL

2019 Nissan Altima 3.5 SL welcome to our site find great offers on Nissan’s full line of reliable sedans, versatile crossovers, capable trucks, and SUVs. Bill Clinton was in the oval-shaped room, Nirvana was on the radio, and the first Nissan Altima was rolling off the assembly line in Tennessee. Twenty-five years ago, Nissan was primarily concerned with selling its rivals since, but in 2018 it has more problems. Crossovers eat in the sale of the medium-sized sedan as Altima. With the redesigned 2019 model, Nissan tried to make a case not only for Altima but for then itself.

Meanwhile, Altima fights for sales in one of the automotive industry’s most competitive segments. The mid-size sedan segment is managed by Honda Accord and Toyota Camry, but there are smaller fish such as the Chevrolet Malibu, the Hyundai Sonata / Kia Optima twins, the Mazda6 and the Subaru Legacy and the aging Ford Fusion and the Volkswagen Passat.

Nissan called for digital trends to Santa Barbara, California, to try out its latest challenger. The 2019 Altima is available in trim on S, SR, SV, SL and Platinum levels, with standard Apple CarPlay and Android Auto compatibility across the board, starting at $23 750. Front-wheel drive is standard, but for the first time in an Altima, there is four-wheel drive as an option. We took one of the 3 900 editions one models, which get special trim pieces and three years free Concierge service for $35 750.

2019 Nissan Altima 3.5 SL Specs

The 2019 Altima is also the latest model to get Nissan’s ProPilot to assist the driver-assist system. ProPilot Assist combines adaptive cruise control with steering assist to keep the car centered in its lane, but drivers must keep their hands on the steering wheel at all times. We have previously experienced the system in the Nissan Leaf, and this second impression does not change our opinion.

ProPilot Assist works well within the parameters Nissan has set (Lane-centric function is much better than systems we have seen in more expensive cars), but these parameters are very limited. The system needs freeways with clearly marked queues and weather conditions that allow onboard cameras to see these queues. If all these conditions are met, the driver is still left to hold the wheel even when the car controls. On that occasion, we feel that we can just as easily do the control itself.

Read more: 2019 Nissan Maxima Platinum Specs

The 2019 Altima also features a Safety Shield 360 and higher floor levels at SV. Safety Shield 360 is Nissan’s response to driver-Assist Tech bundles offered by Ford and Toyota, combining forward and reverse autonomous emergency braking, driving beam Assist, Lane departure warning, blind spot monitoring, and rear cross traffic alert. A driver attention Monitor is standard as well. Navigation-equipped models get traffic character recognition.

2019 Nissan Altima 3.5 SL Interior

The previous generation of Altima was a comparatively weak effort, but it was clear to open the driver’s door that the 2019 model was a major improvement. While the interior is still a bit subdued, everything is sensible as indicated and, apart from some grainy plastic trim makes a bad impression of wood, materials feel high quality. Unlike many modern cars, the dash sits quite low, giving a feeling of airiness to the cabin.

Nissan also held NASA-inspired Zero gravity locations from the previous generation Altima, which was designed based on the space organization’s research on human bodies. They felt both supportive and comfortable, with a lot of cushioning, but not so much that we sank into them. Altima offers slightly less total passenger and luggage space than most competitors.

Another area with great improvement is infotainment. When the previous generation of Altima was launched as a 2013 model, a 5.0 display was considered satisfactory. That isn’t the case today, as the 2019 Altima gets a standard 8.0-inch display screen sticking out of the top of the dashboard, as well as a 7.0-inch instrument-cluster display and four USB ports: a type and type on a-C for both front and back.

The infotainment system is not the most elaborate one around, but it covers the basics with a responsive touchscreen and clean, intuitive graphics. Nissan also offers three years of the free map (for navigation-equipped cars) and head unit software updates, as well as Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant Connectivity. Owners who subscribe to Nissan’s telematics services can get real-time traffic information from SiriusXM, and a door-to-door Navigation feature that interfaces with the driver’s smartphone.

Read more: 2019 Nissan Maxima SR Midnight Edition

Our test car was one of the 3 900 edition models that will kick off 2019 Altima production. Special versions, along with a free three-year concierge service, offer a tool that enables drivers to talk to a live person who can do things like concert tickets or find the closest Starbucks and beam paths to the car’s navigation system.

This is a feature that is normally only on luxury cars, so it is rare to find it on a mainstream medium then as Altima. Even though we had trouble connecting to the Call Center (something a Nissan representative attributed to our test car’s pre-production main unit and spotted cell reception on the device route) The person we eventually talked to was friendly and polite. However, since the service will only be available on a limited number of cars, it is not really relevant to the average buyer.

2019 Nissan Altima 3.5 SL Engine

2019 Altima bought two new engines as part of its redesign. The standard engine is a 2.5-liter four-cylinder engine that produces 188 horsepower and 180 lb-ft of torque. Compete with engines of other mid-sized sedans. Front-wheel drive is standard but offers an optional (1 $ 350) all-wheel-drive system from Nissan, Murano, and Rogue. A first for Altima, then you must help in the cross-fighting task. Other medium-sized sedans with four-wheel drive are Ford Fusion and Subaru Legacy (standard on Subaru).

Buyers can also opt for the 2.0-liter VC-Turbo four-cylinder previously seen on QX50 crossover from Nissan’s Infiniti luxury brand. The “VC ” stands for “variable compression, ” denotes the engine’s ability to change its compression ratio on the fly to emphasize either fuel efficiency or power. Many companies – including Saab – have tested the technology before but Nissan is the first to figure out how to get it into serial production.

Nissan claims VC-Turbo, which is front-wheel drive only, offers power comparable to V6 engines such as that offered in the previous-generation Altima with four-cylinder fuel economy. In the 2019 Altima, the VC-Turbo produces 248 hp and 280 lb-ft, compared to the 270 hp and 251 lb-ft of 2018 Altima’s naturally aspirated 3.5-liter V6. It is a close match for the 2.0-liter turbo Four-cylinders offered in the Honda Accord (252 hp, 273 lb-ft) and the Hyundai Sonata/Kia Optima (245 hp, 260 lb-ft). The Toyota Camry is still available with a 3.5-liter V6 producing 301 hp and 267 lb-ft, Subaru offers a 3.6-liter Boxer-six in the legacy of 256 hp and 247 lb-ft, and the Ford Fusion V6 Sports 2.7-liter turbocharged engine boasts 325 HP and 380 lb-ft.

2019 Nissan Altima 3.5 SL

On the way, the VC-Turbo feels like any other turbocharged four-cylinder engine, which is quite an accomplishment considering its variable-compression party trick. The engine is smooth, responsive and delivers power in a linear way. Both the VC-Turbo and BAS 2.5-liter four-cylinder are chained to a continuously variable transmission, but this at least behaves better than most. Overall, the driving experience is quite unremarkable. The Altima rides comfortably and is not a liability in traffic, but it does not offer anything exciting or even memorable. VC-Turbo is almost too well made for its own good, the electric power steering is so lifeless it feels like the wheel is not connected to anything, and the suspension is not up to the task of corner carving.

Nissan predicts the 2.5-liter engine will return 32 mpg combined (28 mpg city, 39 mpg highway) with front-wheel drive, and 30 mpg combined (26 mpg city, 36 MPG highway) with all-wheel drive. The VC-Turbo engine is expected to get 29 mpg combined (25 mpg city, 34 mpg highway) in its single front-wheel-drive configuration. Both sets of numbers are near the top of the medium-sedan class, but the Chevrolet Malibu, Ford Fusion, Honda Accord, Hyundai Sonata, Kia Optima, and Toyota Camry are all available with hybrid powertrains as well.