Thursday, May 10, 2012

New York: The Redesigned 2013 Nissan Altima Makes Its Official Debut

By Marty Bay

The 2012 New York Auto Show served as the most appropriate venue for the release of the 2013 Nissan Altima sedan. In addition to this, the model is also celebrating its entry as the fifth-generation version which is sold under the Nissan Altima nameplate. Due to this significant event in the history of this mid-size sedan, Nissan has bundled some of the most exciting features into this vehicle to attract more customers.

First off, Nissan has subjected the Altima sedan to a redesign. This simply means that the vehicle's exterior layout and design were somehow revised to provide the Altima with a fresher and a more competitive look. The 2013 Nissan Altima has also obtained a new set of projector-style headlamps that provide the vehicle with a more imposing aura, a new grille, and the new LED taillamps that are offered as standard features for the model's upper trim levels.

But despite of the redesigns that were implemented, the 2013 Nissan Altima has retained the wheelbase of its predecessor which is about 109.3 inches in length. The vehicle's tracks in front and rear has also grown by about 1.4-inches and this particular change was basically intended to improve the Altima's road performance.

Aside from retaining the previous model's wheelbase, Nissan has also decided to use the same 3.5-liter V-6 engine that was used by the previous year's model. This engine is capable of producing a maximum power output of up to 270 horsepower. But instead of using the same 2.5-liter 4-cylinder engine on the 2013 Nissan Altima sedan, the company has revised this engine to further improve its performance. As a result, the maximum power output produced by the 2.5-liter 4-cylinder engine was bumped from 175 to 182 horsepower.

Both of these engines are currently mated to a redesigned version of the "Xtronic" continuously variable automatic transmission. The modifications made on the transmission were basically conducted to boost the Altima's fuel economy regardless of the engine used. Fortunately, the modifications obtained some positive effects. As a result the 4-cylinder models obtained the improved fuel economy ratings of 27 miles per gallon in the city and 38 miles per gallon on the highway. The V-6 models on the other hand obtained the ratings of 22 miles per gallon in the city, and 30 miles per gallon on the highway.

Nissan has also extended the range of the 2013 Nissan Altima sedan. The model is now offered in seven trim levels. The 4-cylinder versions are available as the 2.5, 2.5 S, 2.5 SV, and the 2.5 SL model. The V-6 versions are divided into the 3.5 S, 3.5 SV, and the 3.5 SL models.

Marty Bay is an Automotive Journalist providing helpful tips and advice which powers the Car Finder at the Car Finder Service website.

Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Marty_Bay

No comments:

Post a Comment