Our long-term 2007 Nissan Versa SL has left our garage. In its year of service, the Versa struggled mightily to edge past the 16,000 mile mark (and win us over). When it wasn't parked in our garage, the Versa was relegated mostly to city driving, resulting in a final fuel economy average of 26.7 mpg, which is consistent with the EPA's 2008 city estimate of 26 mpg.
Read the Versa's Long-Term Wrap Up
During its year, we praised its feature content, compared it to the Honda Fit (a lot), did plenty of complaining about the wonky shifter, had mixed feelings (good, bad)about the keyless ignition, tried to give it a shot on back roads, and claimed it was better than a Porsche 911 Targa...
Continue reading 2007 Nissan Versa: This is the End.
Categories: 2007 Nissan Versa SL
I recently completed a 600-mile road trip with the Long-Term Nissan Versa. The interior is extremely roomy, and the seats are very comfortable, even after 200 miles of driving. I'm 6'3", so interior comfort is something I don't often find in a compact car. One minor irritation is the placement of the cup holders, which are placed in such a way that I had to lean forward and reach down every time I wanted to hae a sip of coffee...
Continue reading 2007 Nissan Versa SL: More Shifter Sorrow.
Categories: 2007 Nissan Versa SL
The subject of which subcompact is superior among the two in our long-term fleet, the Nissan Versa and the Honda Fit Sport, has been up for considerable debate. I have always found myself in the Fit camp. It's got sporty looks and its fold-flat seats make the most of a very small car. The Versa's kinda ugly, the cloth seats don't do it any favors, and they don't fold flat...
Continue reading 2007 Nissan Versa SL: The Good Things.
Categories: 2007 Nissan Versa SL
This Thanksgiving weekend, to my amazement, the Nissan Versa was able to haul an 800 pound turkey to my in-law's house.
Not really....but on the way back from dinner (as the ODO hit 15,000 miles...) my wife and I were reminicing about her '95 Nissan Sentra that she owned for over 7 years. I hated that car. The janky clutch, the tinny feeling when you shut a door, the A/C working intermittantly , and leaky weatherstripping all drove me nuts...
Continue reading 2007 Nisan Versa SL: Turkey Day.
Categories: 2007 Nissan Versa SL
When I asked for a car to drive to San Francisco last week I was told to "take one for the team," drive the 2007 Versa and try to get over 15,000 miles on it. You see, the Versa isn't as popular as, say, the Honda Fit which is now approaching 20,000 miles.
I really didn't mind driving the Versa; I drove it to Phoenix last year and was comfortable though unstimulated. On this trip I got it up to 14,566 miles and became reacquainted with this capable little car...
Continue reading 2007 Nissan SL: Take One for the Team.
Categories: 2007 Nissan Versa SL
Suddenly I don't know how to drive stick. At least that's what it feels like in our 2007 Nissan Versa. I stall the car, lurch forward in 1st EVERY time and even lurch upshifting from 2nd to 3rd. What's the deal?..
Continue reading 2007 Nissan Versa: Clutch Work Is Hard Work.
Categories: 2007 Nissan Versa SL
Since this is my first ever blog entry, I want it to be positive and happy. No negativity, just a pleasant recap of the car I had the pleasure of spending a three day weekend driving around.
I put a lot of miles on our Nissan Versa over the extended weekend, most of them being highway miles. I found the seats comfortable, the ergonomics agreeable and the ride relaxed...
Continue reading 2007 Nissan Versa: Think happy thoughts.
Categories: 2007 Nissan Versa SL
I looked at the Versa and the first thing I thought was that all my camping gear might be a challenge for the Versa. You might think I'm nuts, but when you're car camping you seem to bring a ton of stuff: tents, bags, blankets, coolers, chairs, stoves, pots and pans. It adds up quickly!
Since there was only two of us this time, I thought I could fit all our gear in without much trouble...
Continue reading 2007 Nissan Versa: The Hunch Back of Yosemite.
Categories: 2007 Nissan Versa SL
The four of us took he 2007 Nissan Versa out to see the tall ships at Dana Point harbor. I couldn't park close enough to pose the Nissan near one, so you'll have to imagine masts, sails and a general pirate-y atmosphere yourself.
I'd always thought of the Versa as a smooth-riding machine. It doesn't crash over bumps and it handles LA freeway joints easily...
Continue reading 2007 Nissan Versa: Ride Comfort.
Categories: 2007 Nissan Versa SL
The 2007 Nissan Versa was a pleasant companion this weekend. Not quite fun, but pleasant.
Didn't do very much -- a trip into Hollywood, a couple of runs to the grocery store. Its compact size made parking a no-brainer, which I appreciated...
Continue reading 2007 Nissan Versa: Pleasant Weekend Companion.
Categories: 2007 Nissan Versa SL
Last week, our little Versa finally made it to Santa Monica Nissan for a slightly belated 7,500 mile service appointment. (Hey, sometimes even the pros fall behind!) Included in the service was an oil change and a tire rotation. They also inspected the exhaust, steering, clutch, fluids, and brakes.
Cleared and headed back home with a clean bill of health in just a few hours, the visit cost us $89.95.
Mike Magrath, Vehicle Testing Assistant @ 10,107 miles...
Categories: 2007 Nissan Versa SL
I spent a fair amount in our long-term Nissan Versa last night. I used to not really care for the Versa, and while I suppose familiarity typically breeds contempt, I'm happy that it's quite the opposite in the Versa. I like the high-revving peppy little engine, and the shifter and I have become fast friends. It's not wildly powerful like my lover the Infiniti G35 Sport, but it's, dare I say, zippy?..
Continue reading 2007 Nissan Versa SL: Get up and Go.
Categories: 2007 Nissan Versa SL
I put another 100 miles or so on our long-term 2007 Nissan Versa SL yesterday, and it certainly met my needs. Its absorbent suspension soaked up the scored surface of the 101 freeway -- only the gnarliest bits clattered into the cabin. And having an extra overdrive gear (both 5th and 6th are O/D on this 6-speed) keeps the engine fairly calm at 75-80 mph.
Continue reading 2007 Nissan Versa: Agreeable Transport But Little More.
Categories: 2007 Nissan Versa SL
On the sheep-wolf continuum, I was tending toward wolf today -- and so it was that I found myself on California Highway 33 in a 2007 Nissan Versa. For non-Californianized readers, this secondary road runs up the center of the state, and the southern section, which cuts through the Los Padres National Forest, is twisty. Very popular with sport bikes...
Continue reading 2007 Nissan Versa: Unusual Punishment.
Categories: 2007 Nissan Versa SL
I was cruising the strip in the Versa looking for Mustang GTs to humiliate when I noticed that the low tire pressure warning symbol came on. It's that yellow icon in the middle of the speedo that looks like the letter W -- it's actually a cross-section of a tire with an exclamation point in it. So we checked the tires and found the right front was low -- 28 pounds versus the 33 it's supposed to be. That's cold pressure spec -- the car had sat for a few hours in the garage when we checked them.
We inspected the tire and saw nothing, the tread was clean and free of mean-spirited nail- and screw-heads. Checking the other three tires revealed that they were all at 30 pounds. So we aired 'em up to 33 and a few days later nothing's changed, so no worries.
Let this serve as a reminder to all of you in Blog land -- you should check your tire pressure even if your car has a rudimentary TPMS (Tire Pressure Monitoring System) as our Versa does, because they typically don't alert you unless a tire is five pounds or so low. And as you all know, low tire pressure can degrade handling and cause the tire to heat up (due to the increased rolling resistance and hence friction) -- not good for safety. Also, maintaining the specified pressure optimizes fuel efficiency.
Okay, now everyone put that coffee down, get off eBay and check your tires!
John DiPietro, Automotive Editor @ 10,195 miles.
Categories: 2007 Nissan Versa SL