GTP Cool Wall: 2005-2006 Nissan Altima SE-R

[GranTurismo916]

2005-2006 Nissan Altima SE-R nominated by @JTB10000

Engines: 3.5L V6 (Nissan VQ35DE)
Power: 260 hp
Torque: 251 lb-ft.
Weight: 1485 kg
Transmission: 6-speed manual
Drivetrain: Front engine, front wheel drive
Body Styles: 4-door sedan​

Spoiler: Additional Pics

View attachment 423165 View attachment 423166 View attachment 423167 View attachment 423168 View attachment 423169

 

[GTRacer22]

Don't have any feelings for it. Meh.

 

[GranTurismo916]

Cool because bias.

 

[AudiMan2011]

350Z engine is all the credibility it has, but you'll need to say that to people and that's Uncool.

 

[JR98]

Cool

 

[Adamgp]

Family car trying to be a performance car.

Uncool.

 

[SlipZtrEm]

Uncool, like the "sporty" Camry SE it would likely be cross-shopped with. It's a bit like adding a racing stripe to a loaf of plain white bread. Would've made slightly more sense had Nissan kept the SE-R tag for the second-gen coupe, but even then, why not just buy a year old 350Z?

 

[Roger the Horse]

Early 2000s car design is going through its "my god it's hideous phase" these days.

 

[Wiegert]

However it was perceived in the US, I can at least say that it's cooler than that one hot FWD V6 mid-size motor we had around the same period.

 

[Dagger311]

Cool, not even sure why.

 

[Jahgee]

Nothing says Seriously Uncool quite like a 4 door FWD car with a spoiler

 

[Sage Ages]

I'll give Nissan some credit. They didn't ruin it.

 

[GranTurismo916]

Nothing says Seriously Uncool quite like a 4 door FWD car with a spoiler

Does the thing on the back of this car even qualify as a spoiler?

 

[Doog]

I'll never forget the fact that the performance-oriented Altima was actually slower than the regular car it was based upon.

Granted, the SE-R's output, 260 horses and 251 pound-feet of torque, won't be remembered as a turning point at a time when it takes 500 horsepower to make a headline. But the SE-R lunges down the drag strip, putting 60 mph behind it in 6.1 seconds, rattling off a quarter-mile in 14.8 seconds at 97 mph. The 12.6-inch front discs and 11.5-inch rears bring it to a halt from 70 mph in 168 feet, and double-D soles get it around the skidpad pulling 0.86 g. That's fairly rabid for a family car carrying 3380 pounds and a $29,930 base price. It is 0.2 second slower to 60 than the last 3.5SE we tested, but the SE-R also picked up 160 pounds.

 

[JAHHAJ]

I do like the looks of this car a lot, combined with a fair amount of power, I'll give it a low cool.

 

[TheCracker]

Can't think of any cool reasons why you'd take this over a 350z. It doesn't look bad for that sort of thing. But that sort of thing is a FWD family saloon. Uncool.

 

[edawg456]

Yawn. Meh.

 

[Cowboy]

Meh.

 

[synchromesh]

A sweet car driven by the wrong people. Meh.

 

[bremics]

I'll never forget the fact that the performance-oriented Altima was actually slower than the regular car it was based upon.

Seriously? How much power does the non-performance version have?

 

[SVT Cobra GT]

Wouldn't really notice it. Would just think the owner put those wheels on it.

On the plus side, it does look quite good. Meh.

 

[Stotty]

Quite like the styling...but it's not cool.

 

[Cano]

I have always loved how these look, more than once it made me look at it in the street, and I'm not talking about the SR-E, but the normal car. I've only seen two SE-Rs on the street and my first tought was "whoa, one of those!"... sadly followed by "someone actually bought one".

As much as I like the car, how it looks, and the concept behind it, it's not cool.

 

[Sp3edst3r]

Hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha-- Volvo.
That first additional pic just screams Volvo to me.
And I'll pass on having a 4 door fwd sedan, I'll take a Ford Falcon or Commodore which can be more entertaining and fun to drive, as well as more appealing to look at
It's got the same engine as a 350Z, but it belongs in... Let me say, the 350Z.
Uncool

 

[CDailey]

Before I bought the Abarth, I was looking for one of these but couldn't find one. I always really liked them. Cool.

 

[Doog]

Hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha

Are you okay?

 

[niky]

These are actually rather good to drive, for front-wheel drive barges. Great motor, too.

-

Doesn't make them cool, however.

 

[Grandea GTR]

It's better to get the 3.5SE instead. Meh.

 

[YSSMAN]

I guess it really comes down to how you want to qualify it.

At the time, there was such a strange trend of the different brands trying to enter the affordable sport sedan market, and I don't know if there was any particular reason why. Sure, the Mazdaspeed 6 was doing reasonably well, and the Legacy 2.5 GT was doing whatever it was doing. But, for some reason, Nissan decided to do a truly sporty version of the Altima 3.5 SE, and came up with a car that was legitimately fun, and spooky quick. The same car would inspire Mitsubishi to do a Ralliart version of the Gallant (which hardly anyone remembers), which in of itself was a credible sport sedan somehow.

I dunno. I mean, can an Altima ever be cool? Maybe not. But seeing one of these is special, particularly if they've been well taken care of. I'll call it cool.

 

[Grandea GTR]

I guess it really comes down to how you want to qualify it.

At the time, there was such a strange trend of the different brands trying to enter the affordable sport sedan market, and I don't know if there was any particular reason why. Sure, the Mazdaspeed 6 was doing reasonably well, and the Legacy 2.5 GT was doing whatever it was doing. But, for some reason, Nissan decided to do a truly sporty version of the Altima 3.5 SE, and came up with a car that was legitimately fun, and spooky quick. The same car would inspire Mitsubishi to do a Ralliart version of the Gallant (which hardly anyone remembers), which in of itself was a credible sport sedan somehow.

I dunno. I mean, can an Altima ever be cool? Maybe not. But seeing one of these is special, particularly if they've been well taken care of. I'll call it cool.

I honestly loved this generation Altima, but they could've done lots better with the SE-R. There wasn't much about the SE-R in my eyes that made it... er... "wantable".

Nissan can do sports pretty well. I just felt they didn't do that well with this as they did with the Sentra SE-R.