# Are you happy with your SE-R?



## Asleep (Jan 19, 2003)

so now that youve had your SE-R, what are your likes and dislikes?


----------



## YES SER!! (Dec 3, 2005)

I love the torque and overall power delivery. The interior is really roomy and user friendly. The suspension could use a little tightening up to reduce some of the body roll but I think the EBD does a great job of reducing pitch under hard braking. 
I think that Nissan has done a good job of giving the SER some useable upgrades rather than useless or after thought bolt ons.
Of course, there's that rev limiter that smacks you in the face in all of their cars but if you get the ECU flashed, you can safely squeeze a few hundred RPM's out of the VQ motor. 
I think the shifter could use some shorter throws to give it a sportier feel but the stock one is far better than most in the market.
I also noticed that the seats could use a little more bolster support for the thighs because with the leather, one tends to slide around during spirited driving.


----------



## GAJ2003 (Apr 8, 2003)

I love everything about the car except it is a major need of a limited slip differential. The cars tires tend to break loose very easily on a corner when you are accelerating. But other than that the car is awsome.


----------



## SR20AL (Apr 19, 2002)

I'll start with my dislikes: 

1. The interior still looks a little cheep for a $30K car despite the 05 improvements.
2. Minor squeeks and rattles
3. The Bose stereo is a POS but that's been true for their systems in every car I've been in.
4. 3rd gear engagement is sometimes notchy.
5. The wide tires transmit a bit of road noise but who would want to give up the tremendous handling of the S03's?

Likes:

1. Just start the engine and you'll fall in love.
2. The power is always there. It's truly a lazy persons stick shift. You can leave the car in 3rd and it has no problem pulling from 10 mph.
3. The wheels, brakes and suspension offer a huge improvement over the SE and it's a car that doesn't beat you up.
4. The seats are wonderful.
5. It's fantastic to have the torque to out perform most cars on the road.
6. Drive the Mazda 6, Camry, Accord and then the Altima SE-R. This is the enthusiasts car.
7. This is one of the few car's I could consider leaving bone stock.


----------



## Altima SE-R (Mar 15, 2005)

AsleepAltima said:


> so now that youve had your SE-R, what are your likes and dislikes?


I Bougth one on March, I'm in Love with it.

I did the following upgrades:

1) Nismo Intake
2) Eibach Lowering Kit (only on the front)
3) Front Brake Upgrade to 350Z Brembo Calipers (looking to do the rear!!)
4) Front Grille fron Active Tunning

I'm reasearching for the Headers, Race Pipe, Computer, Etc, Etc...


----------



## altyser (Sep 30, 2005)

my favorate part is the attention you get from other people going down the road or in parking lots. People love the Alty

worst part is ignorate people saying "nice maxima". dang it, it's an altima lol


----------



## NISSAN-GAL (Jan 2, 2006)

AsleepAltima said:


> so now that youve had your SE-R, what are your likes and dislikes?



HEY... I PURCHASHED A NEW ALTIMA SE-R 2005, A COUPLE A MONTHS AGO! I LOVE IT. IT DRIVES GREAT, HAS A GREAT FEEL OF THE ROAD HOWEVER... THE SUMMER TIRES THAT IT CAME STOCK WITH ARE NOT ANY GOOD FOR THE WINTER MONTHS!


----------



## MortSilver (Jan 7, 2006)

I purchased my 2005 Altima SE-R late in October 2004 and consider it to be overall the best vehicle I have had the pleasure to own. It is still exciting to drive even after a year plus of ownership. 

The rev limiter is a nuisance. I have purchased a shift light and intend to add it as soon as I figure out where to connect to the tachometer feed. I will mount the unit to the dash removable fuse panel and remote the lamp indicator part to a small LED on top of the steering console cover.

Other possible future mods may include a cold air intake kit.


----------



## MortSilver (Jan 7, 2006)

Altima SE-R said:


> I Bougth one on March, I'm in Love with it.
> 
> I did the following upgrades:
> 
> ...


Hi, 
regards your Nismo Intake install, what is the Nismo Part Number you used? Also, any tips on doing the install?
Thanks.


----------



## QuickNick7486 (Jul 29, 2005)

*altima ser*



NISSAN-GAL said:


> HEY... I PURCHASHED A NEW ALTIMA SE-R 2005, A COUPLE A MONTHS AGO! I LOVE IT. IT DRIVES GREAT, HAS A GREAT FEEL OF THE ROAD HOWEVER... THE SUMMER TIRES THAT IT CAME STOCK WITH ARE NOT ANY GOOD FOR THE WINTER MONTHS!


I purchased an Alt SE-R last may and havent not been dissatisfied since... every aspect of the car just makes your mouth water, simply from the great sounding exhaust to the just the overall look of the car... modifications or not this vehicle is a pleasure to drive


----------



## Asleep (Jan 19, 2003)

QuickNick7486 said:


> I purchased an Alt SE-R last may and *havent not been dissatisfied* since... every aspect of the car just makes your mouth water, simply from the great sounding exhaust to the just the overall look of the car... modifications or not this vehicle is a pleasure to drive


isnt that like a repetitive negative statement? lol


----------



## GMTURBO (Jan 16, 2006)

Almost like saying "I have been dissatisfied..." Or is it a triple negative?  j/k

I have about 1500 miles on it so far...

I certainly can't complain. I wish it were a bit warmer/less wet so I could really drive it.

We'll see once I get a few more miles on it - I've been trying to keep the RPMs to a normal level - but it sounds sooooo wonderful about 5K.

I'd buy again without question.


----------



## codered (Feb 14, 2006)

I love it. Other than the odd defect sound from the dashboard. And I wish it was rear wheel drive. Great car, good bang for your buck.

Paul.


----------



## PLracing (Feb 21, 2006)

Altima SE-R said:


> I Bougth one on March, I'm in Love with it.
> 
> I did the following upgrades:
> 
> ...


Hey, how dose you car handle with just lowering it in the front? Which springs did you use? I was thinking about doing that as well. thanks


----------



## QuickNick7486 (Jul 29, 2005)

AsleepAltima said:


> isnt that like a repetitive negative statement? lol


lol wow thats what happens when you don't look over what you write... my bad everyone for my lack of common sense towards posting my threar... but yea the SE-R is a great vehicle, its got everything a young guy can dream for... speed, a great look, and the best part is when ppl have to just stop and ask, umm is that a maxima? or wow nice body kit or something to that effect lol... still want to put an intake to give it that more of a beast-like setting


----------



## jcb272 (May 9, 2006)

Just got a 2005 Altima SE-R... I HATE IT!!! It is too fast, handles to well, and the styling goes above and beyond. Now I spend the majority of my time driving it, shopping for mods, and drooling over it. Thanks for ruining my life Nissan.


----------



## Redman60 (May 25, 2006)

AsleepAltima said:


> so now that youve had your SE-R, what are your likes and dislikes?


Had a car with a five-speed before (relevant?) and I'm having a little trouble with the 5 to 4 shift; hitting 2nd as often as not. You can tell that happened pretty quickly, but I have to think it's not doing the drivetrain a lot of good.

Any guidelines for a quick 5 to 4 shift?

Otherwise, the car is a monster.


----------



## YES SER!! (Dec 3, 2005)

What kind of speed are you doing when you're doing your 5-4?


----------



## WATSON1 (Jul 9, 2005)

YES SER!! said:


> What kind of speed are you doing when you're doing your 5-4?


You should familiarize yourself with your car, as opposed to seeing what other people are doing and acting on it. Pay attention to your speed and RPM and what gear you are in. Know the limits of your car, and learn them slowly. After a while you should be able to determine what gear you can downshift to safely. 



Downshifting Is Cheating!!!


----------



## rhcpgirlaji (Oct 22, 2005)

Overall, yeah, I love my car. But then, I loved the '96 Maxima GLE I had prior to the '05 Alt SE-R, so my list is mostly based on a comparison of the two.

Likes:
1. Handles great on curves
2. Sweet acceleration (makes merging onto freeways fun!)
3. Fun to drive (obviously...)
4. Lots of trunk space (I'm a photographer so I need the room to shove my equipment in and keep it out of sight)
5. Nice fuel tank capacity
6. The 60/40 split rear seats

Dislikes/Things That Need Improvement:
1. I HATE the A/C vents on it. I'm 5'3" and it seems impossible to get some air circulating without it blowing directly in my face, which I can't stand.
2. The gas gauge is hypersensitive to the point where it tells me I'm out of gas when I have almost 5 gallons left. I wish they could lower this warning to 2 or 3 gallons.
3. Though the fuel consumption is still pretty good, the Maxima I had would sometimes get 35-40mpg. I guess basically the city mileage isn't as good as what I'm used to and hasn't improved much even now that I have 15k miles on it.
4. While I love that the Bose sound comes standard with it, it's still not as good as the Bose sound/speakers in my old Maxima. 
5. I wish it had a tape deck or a direct line in for an iPod (damn the '07 Altima models for having this!).
6. Considerably more noise heard in the cabin of the Altima than that of the Maxima on highways.
7. I wish I had gotten the 6 speed manual. Due to an amazing price and having been in the Los Angeles area when I bought the car, I went with the automatic with tiptronic or whatever Nissan calls it that the dealer had in stock. Now that I'm out of LA I wish it was a stick every day...


----------



## MickeyKnox (Jun 17, 2006)

how is handling?
can you make U turn with hand break.
it seems like a huge car, and wouldn't handle well.
I wish they made smaller new generation altimas(about the size of 1993-2001, or maybe
even tiny bit smaller).

what's the point of making to Maxima size cars and naming them differently?
I think it's kind of stupid.


----------



## Shishpanik (Jul 28, 2006)

Don't mean to threadjack, but how are the luxury amenities inside?

I'm trying to help my dad choose a car and he either wants to buy an Acura TSX, honda accord V6, or a Nissan Altima, and his main concerns are interior comfort/quality, sportiness, fuel economy (cause he drives a nissan xterra now and hates SUV gas mileage), and reliability. What would you guys say are the strong and weak points of the altima in comparison to the TSX and accord?


----------



## MickeyKnox (Jun 17, 2006)

nissans are generally softer cars(handling suspension everything). altima would be 
best choice for older people.
I would personally chose acura tsx. it's just the best of all three.
new accords are ugly.


----------



## rhcpgirlaji (Oct 22, 2005)

Honestly, I'm pretty impressed with the interior of the SER. Mine is pretty much fully loaded--the SERs come with a lot of standard upgrades that the regular Altimas don't. That said, you should look at Nissan's website and preview the '07 Altima. It looks like it's going to be really nice, but I don't know how long you can wait to get the car and I believe it's actually going to be an '07 & 1/2 (December release). My only main complaint with the SER interior is that I detest the AC/Heater, but I think part of that is because I'm 5'3" and there's no way I can angle it to keep me cool in the summer but not blast my face with gale force winds.


----------



## rhcpgirlaji (Oct 22, 2005)

I agree with you, MickeyKnox, about making both the Altima & the Maxima. Five years ago there was a real difference between the two, but it seems to me that Nissan is turning the Altima into what the Maxima used to be.
Pulling a u-turn with the hand break? Hah! Okay, maybe it's possible if you have sufficient space to do so...that car has a 44' turning radius!


----------



## xNismoSE-Rx (Oct 5, 2006)

I LOVE my SE-R...i just got mine OCT 1st.. with only 9000K miles... I love the torque and the power it gives. GreATTT carr.


----------



## McMissile (Dec 24, 2012)

sorry to revive an old thread but i just got my '06, and i love it but it seems to be down on power 

is there a rev limiter or a top end governor that i can disable??


----------



## MortSilver (Jan 7, 2006)

There is a rev limiter that prevents over revving to protect the engine from harm. This kicks in somewhere around 7000 RPM. When it does, the engine stops running until the RPM decreases to a safe limit. Below this limit, it does not effect power. I.E., 'Down on power' should not be related to the rev limiter? How many miles are on the vehicle?


----------



## McMissile (Dec 24, 2012)

76,500mi. Like I said I did just buy it so some cleaning may need to be done like new air filters...

It just seems like it won't accel as fast as I think it should, also at hwy speed it won't go over 3000rpm and takes forever to go from 70mi to 80mi, I'm not sure it would hit 90


----------



## MortSilver (Jan 7, 2006)

Well that is definitely down on power. I bought my 2005 Smoke Grey SE-R new and now have around 24000 miles on it. It is a road rocket. Acceleration in 1st gear is so fast it is too easy to hit the rev limiter and had to train to avoid it. Stock specs for the SE-R were 0-60 in less than 5.5 secs with a top end around 140 plus. It has a sweet spot around 75 with a tendency to run up to 100 almost too easy. Mine is stock with Castrol Syntec engine oil since 10000 miles and last year I finally got around to adding a K&N cold air intake. 

Back to yours, is the 'check engine' light on, and if so, what codes are presented? I think AutoZone auto parts will read these for free? Difficult to diagnose remotely. Any unusual noises from the engine? Is it running smooth? in addition to the air intake filter itself, check the air passageways for blockage. The feed to the air filter intake box is somewhat narrow and restrictive over the radiator. 

Mort


----------



## Barry Chan (Sep 21, 2012)

Try cleaning your MAF sensor and reset the code, hope this help


----------

