What do you guys think? Based on upgrades + Overall performance with aftermarket parts. I can't decide at this point :confused:



Ok Given this is a Coupe Vs. a Sedan, but the Altima has a .5L larger engine... so that makes up for the somewhat small difference in wieght (and then some).


Based on Engine Vs. Engine and handling ect.

kind of a biased place to put this thread don't ya think?

Originally posted by Paonessa
kind of a biased place to put this thread don't ya think?

not like you can tell from the poll results

:lol: :lol: :lol:

Originally posted by KoRnboy
What do you guys think? Based on upgrades + Overall performance with aftermarket parts. I can't decide at this point :confused:



Ok Given this is a Coupe Vs. a Sedan, but the Altima has a .5L larger engine... so that makes up for the somewhat small difference in wieght (and then some).


Based on Engine Vs. Engine and handling ect.

I definately have to go with the Nissan Altima, I just bought one, and have been driving it all weekend, and I've gotta say................:bigthumb:

The nissan is already known to have quality issues: paint, fabric, dash, and controls. Overall the quality of the honda is far superior and it will definitley retain its value much longer. If you only care about performance and nothing else then go with the altima.

i'd go for the honda, even though it starts at about 4g's more

Originally posted by ThePRobed
The nissan is already known to have quality issues: paint, fabric, dash, and controls. Overall the quality of the honda is far superior and it will definitley retain its value much longer. If you only care about performance and nothing else then go with the altima.

You have no idea what your talking about. :rolleyes:

umm yeah i do, in autoweek their long term tester had these problems. They were all fixed under warranty but it was still a hassle. Also check the JD Power quality ratings. Im not saying this is a problem with all altimas, maybe it was just the first year of the new model. As far as i know nissan may have fixed the problem but you never know. My friends altima had to have 3 dash pieces replaced do to warpage and the ac controls wouldnt stay on either. Now if your talking about what i said regarding the Honda then go look at one, i did. The interior on the v6 coupe may be a little bland but its all solid and high quality. Honda has much higher resale value on similaraly priced cars than nissan or probably even any other manufacturer. :loser:

The 02's did have some quality interior issues. First year of a new
model usually have a few problems. Nissan did improve the
materials for 03, the dash, controls. There are some cheaper
looking plastics used on the doors. As far as paint quality, mine
has been exellent so far, but their paint has been the weak point
in the past. My car hasnt had one rattle or anything. It is so quiet.
I looked at the accord before buying the Altima. The coupe is fine.
The 4 door accord, I didnt like the rims, the roofline, and the back
end. It just dont have anything sporting to it. Plus the sound
system sounded much better in the Altima. The Altima was actually
quieter than the Accord was also during the test drives. Both the
Honda and Nissan dealer were right next to each other so I
compared them both together. Cant go wrong with either car, I
just didnt like the exterior that much on the Accord. As far as resale,
the accord and Maxima have always been about the same. Prices
for 02 Altimas seem to be right up there with accords. :biggrin:

Nissan owns honda....not like that is hard to figure out. I beat 2 door accords, both stick vs stick......they are sad cars.

Originally posted by JBL85
Nissan owns honda....not like that is hard to figure out. I beat 2 door accords, both stick vs stick......they are sad cars.

what??? i'm sorry, but i would take an Accord coupe v6 over a 5 speed Altima anyday of the week. way better build quality, transmission light years ahead. overall design blows the Altima out of the water

guess the same goes for your 03 Maxima. :biggrin:

Originally posted by thrasher


what??? i'm sorry, but i would take an Accord coupe v6 over a 5 speed Altima anyday of the week. way better build quality, transmission light years ahead. overall design blows the Altima out of the water

Thats not what motor trend though in 02.....:loser:

Originally posted by JBL85


Thats not what motor trend though in 02.....:loser:

eh??:confused: what did motor trend think?

Does the Accord blow the 02 and 03 Maximas too?:biggrin:

Originally posted by joeB
Does the Accord blow the 02 and 03 Maximas too?:biggrin:
hell mother-fuckin no

Originally posted by thrasher


eh??:confused: what did motor trend think?

Car of the year......dont you drive a Nissan?

i don't think there was an 02 accord there though, and they didn't test the maxima cuz the altima is so freakin similar with a little cheaper interior.

There was a 02 Accord. Car and Driver tested a 02 or 03 Maxima
though. Interior the Maxima may have better materials, its still
plastic on either car. The Altimas have the fresher look like 04
Maximas do.

Car of the year......dont you drive a Nissan?

yes, i drive the nissan that the altima strives to be :naughty:

Its already surpassed your car. :nono: :wave:

I havent raced against a Nissan Altima, but Im sure it will happen someday. They are nice looking cars, but Im really luvin my 6-Speed!!
Ive had good luck against a few Mustangs and totaly wasted most semi-tuned Hondas/Integras. Im not really into racin, just a newbie wannabe:)
As far as looks go, I really, really luv the Accord. Too bad though, I only get stares from guys:P Damn it ladies, its a sweet ride :biggrin:

Here is a pic (the insert is the only reason why Im parking it for the witner) :

Its already surpassed your car. :nono: :wave:ha, then why's the maxima still referred to as their flagship?
i don't like the front of the accord. but, the back looks like a mercedes, which i do like.

as far as accord vs altima 3.5/maxima
it's a race of one phat ass car vs another. the only real losers are the kids in the civic watching the taillights

Flagship doesnt make it better. But why dont you and thrasher stop
with the bashing of Altimas that way I dont need to reply????
They are both nice cars in thier own way and Nissans so drop it. :nono:

nice accord anim, nice color .

Whats funny is how the New Maxima is an exact duplicate of an Altima on Roids. Maxima may be better interior quality, but it definatley is not faster.

anim8: Well from the 1/4 times I have seen, the Altima has the upper hand, but it is still a drivers race, race one and let us know.

yes, i drive the nissan that the altima strives to be :naughty:
they shoulda just called the altima, a nissan minima

Why minima? The 04 Maxima is 2 inches longer than the Altima
and interior room is about the same.

i'm not bashing the car, it's just a lil maxima.

yea to the 04 it is. Inside is about the same though. :2cents:

what??? i'm sorry, but i would take an Accord coupe v6 over a 5 speed Altima anyday of the week. way better build quality, transmission light years ahead. overall design blows the Altima out of the water

Dude your an iidiot i smoke accords all the time in an a/t 93 altima all the time accords sux man your crazy

Altima's kick ass

OK all you who picked the accord can all piss off i smoke accords all the time with my A/T 93 altima so go sux a donkey

i agree the dude has no idea

if you're saying you beat a 240 hp accord in a 155 hp 93 altima you're full of shit. i have a 2k2 3.5 and it's close. you think you're ka24 altima can beat me? :grinno: :grinno: :grinno:

though so :thumbsdow

I went and test drove both versions, there really is no comparison, let's just say after 3 weeks my accord 6 speed just arrived and well worth the wait. C & D numbers:out of the box:
altima 5speed: 1/4 mile in 14.8
accord: 1/4 mile in 14.5 so whoever is saying the altima will blow the doors off, is mistaken.
Besides taking the fit n' finish, quality, resale value and amenities (decisive edge: honda)..oh baby, that sweet 6 speed!!!! the altima tranny feels like your mixing cookie dough.....still a head turner, but honda's got this one

Motor Trend got 14.4 for the 3.5 SE five speed Altima.
So it looks like a drivers race. Fit and finish is perfect,
on my Altima. The Altima was more quiet and has a
better ride than the accord does. Resale is about the
same on both cars. :grinno:

no they didn't.
http://www.motortrend.com/roadtests/sedan/112_0109_nissan/
14.7 QM, 6.3 0-60.

like we said, accord

Wrong again, February 2003 Motor Trend 0 to 60 5.9
1/4 mile 14.4. They also said - The Altima is the fastest
front-drive production car we've ever tested. If that
weren't enough, its quarter mile time (14.4 seconds @ 98
mph) is also a record-setter and nearly tied a 350z's 14.0
second run. :grinno: Look it up ..

Look it up ..
i did look it up, what do you think that link is? it's from the motor trend web page, did you even click on it before saying something stupid like "look it up?". it stands 6.3 0-60 14.7 1/4. if you're gonna be a magazine racer at least get the #'s right or show me the article with the "corrected" numbers

Im a pecker head? dawg, you brought up the Motor Trend
page, and thats the same as the magazine. your statement
show an Altima page from september 2001. The February
03 clutch players is on the Motor Trend page also dawg.

1) what changed then between the two cars tested?
2) why does every other mag have it right around 14.8 and 6.3?
http://www.caranddriver.com/article.asp?section_id=16&article_id=1859&page_number=1

http://auto.consumerguide.com/auto/new/reviews/full/index.cfm/id/37642

even the nissan manual for the car says 6.3 0-60

i've seen consistent reviews of the accord making 14.5 1/4 and 6.0-6.2 to 60mph. that's the ony magazine to get that time with an altima. and they only got it onthat one review, the review prior to that had the same times everyone else got. I've seen a magazine get a 12.76 with a new STI stock, but it's not common.

like i said on the first page, i don't dislike either car. it's one phat car vs another

Not to throw fuel on the fire....yes ultimately it's personal choice with a lot of these things, but fit and finish is not the same, nissan uses a tacky plastic with terrible cloth, it you get the leather it's not that much better. resale would not be the same.....

the accord 6 speed hasn't been out for that long so consumers are still hungry, the dealerships are selling everyone they get (up on canada we only get about 500 for the year), so there is a big premium on the car and due to it's scarcity it will carry over to the used car market.

the manual altima is uncommon as well, but having said that, the reason according to the dealerships don't really have as large of a demand to fulfill. so it's value may not hold true except to the few that covet it so.

The only plastic that isnt as nice is on the doors of the Altima and
so the new 04 Maxima. I wouldnt say the cloth is terrible either,
seeing how the altimas cloth is almost the same in new camrys
with cloth. One thing about the Altimas leather, I looked at a 02
3.5 SE with 75,000 miles, ( thats alot of miles,) but the black
leather looked like it had hardly been sat in, like older Maximas
Ive seen. Anyhow, bp2k, dont dont know what changed with
the cars, Ive seen it before though. In 95 C&D tested a Maxima
SE (base) , and they got 0 to 60 in 7.3 seconds. Later that year
they had a test of sedans and they tested a Maxima GXE and got
0 to 60 around 7.9 8.0. Maybe it depends on the weather and
other situations. I dont care really what car is faster, but like
I said it would depend on the drivers. Each car is nice in thier
own way though.

Shwannyboy, can you post some pics of your new accord? :cool:

I put a pic in the (my) gallery, it's pretty cold up here, so don't mind the gray skies or the snow....this is me picking it up at the dealership, I'll add some more pics when I have some time.

canadian models come with front splash guards, I hate the way they look but they're really necessary especially this time of year where the car gets covered in slush/dirt/crap:mad:

Also I don't really like the honda factory aero kit or the wing, I'd like to drop it a little but again.....crappy winters=crappy roads so for the meantime I'm gonna leave it stock and keep my kidneys intact over the winter

We havent had any snow yet, but Im not gonna drive mine this winter
black cars are so hard to keep clean. Ive had mine since june 03
and only put 3100 miles on it so far. I have a Tracker 4x4 for the
snow days, otherwise Ill drive our 98 Maxima. That is a nice accord
you have there, I like those rims, plus Id leave it stock, Im sure it rides
pretty nice, but that might mess the ride a bit lowering it. I did drive
the 4 door, but the coupe looks alot better. Thats prolly a good
color though for winter driving, may not show much dirt as other
colors. :cool:

When will Honda wake up and put the 6speed option on the sedan.

Nice accord!

I am here not to bash on Altimas but because I am considering getting one. I used to drive a 00 turbo civic sohc and never lost to either car but, the accord was always a lot closer then altimas were. The ONLY area that makes the altima stand out over the Accord is the MSRP which you can work down at a Nissan dealership. Good luck trying to get a good deal on the Accord. And the 6 spd Accord will reatin its value better than the Altima due to the limited numbers of the 6 spd Accord in comparison to the Altima. I would choose the Altima for insurance reasons and the money you save could go into mods and you would then be smoking Accords and still have paid less.

What year Altimas did you race? I think that a five speed Altima V-6
is just as rare or more than a 6 speed accord v-6 coupe. :sunglasse

joeB, the accord v6 is pretty rare, but its just as rare as one beating a V6 Altima.

By the way I am not biased because I own one, I actually hate the car, its a piece, but I just dont think a 240hp Honda can beat a 240hp Nissan, one reason, Honda just knows what horsepower is and forgot torque wins races. The altima makes like 246 torque and I think the honduh is like 212, gee, lets see which engine can pull a 3000lb car faster, ill stick with the Nissan.

i should say accord 6 speed, not v6, my bad

Here is why the Accord will win. I am not trying to offend anyone.

Honda Accord
http://www.aempower.com/pdf/dyno/24-6110%2003%20Accord%20V6%20V2%20CHP.pdf

Nissan Altima
http://www.aempower.com/pdf/dyno/21-545%202002%20Nissan%20Altima%203.5L%20V6%20CAS.pdf

The torque issue does not matter greatly when you are dealing with honda and a six speed. Honda has figured out how to go fast without the torque, it is just how the car is geared. I would rather go with the Altima, just not new. An altima w/ 15,000 miles or so on it would be a deal.

peak power doesn't mean everything. look how much more power the nissan makes at key rpms. at 3000 rpm the nissan makes 130 hp where the honda is making like 94. at 4000 rpm the nissan is making 147 or so. the honda is making more around 130. at 5000 the nissan is 186 the honda is at 166. just cuz it peaks out higher doesn't make it faster. it only puts out more hp for the last 1000 rpm or so and it's only making about 10 more hp. at a track the nissan would already be 3 cars ahead by the time that power arrived. v-tec makes for higher hp numbers which is what sells honda's cars. i like the new accords, they're definitely not slow, but i'd put money on the nissan.
if you have a torque curve to show that'd be nice too. i know the nissan is putting down plenty more torque too.

At least we can fully agree here BP2kMax ;)

At least we can fully agree here BP2k2Max ;)
you know it. the accord puts down some good numbers though and i still like the interior more than what i've got.

Dude, Id have to say that your Maxima with the leather still looks
better than the accords does, even with leather.. I looked (again)
at a accord v-6 ex coupe with leather and everything. I dont think
its everything everyone lets on about it. It was nice, but then
the exterior is plain. It was bright red with tan interior. Still nice,
but no Nissan.. :grinno:

well hows this, go down to the track with your accords, and your altima's and put them to the test, see what car really comes out on top. you cant even really compare accords to altimas, there are 3 levels of altimas. sure the v6 accord is going to take the 2.5 altima, and may give the 3.5 a good run for its money. ya the v6 accord matches the altima for 240hp. the torque DOES AFFECT THE ACCELERATION. accord w/212lbs and altima w/246lbs.dont forget about the se-r now. altima's pride and joy. and i have yet to see an accord that will beat my altima. only things that are beating me so far are subaru's and mustangs. ripped apart a few accords (a guy at work has a v6 with an intake, im runnin laps around his ass), 1.8t gti's a vr6 jetta, not sure if its the drivers. personally if i saw a line of accords and altimas, the altima just looks more aggresive to. and personally i think its a much better ride quality, the girls like 'em lots.. ;) oh. and tell me this, why does honda have to make a different motor for all there vehicles, while the altima has the same 3.5 in at least 4 of there cars? 350z uses the same exact motor (the VQ35DE). as does the lexus g35. does ur accord keep up with them?

Way too old to be voting in or resurrecting.
Closed.