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Nissan Sentra SE-R Spec V packs the racy gear of a sportster
Bob Plunkett
Date Posted: 5/10/2005
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MONTEREY, Calif. -- Heat waves ripple off black asphalt in pit lane at Laguna Seca Raceway, where the high-revving engine of a racy SE-R Spec V edition off Nissan's sporty compact Sentra sedan idles while we buckle up for some hot laps on the California track.
This new car looks hot too.
It hunkers low on enormous 17-inch alloy wheels capped by Z-rated low-profile tires below a wedge-shaped package that tips forward to suggest swift movement, even when parked in the pits.
A special front fascia, styled after Nissan's exotic and powerful Skyline GTR sports sedan, adds a crisp mesh grille and round foglamps. Body-colored sills stretch toward the pavement along each side, while at the tail a winged spoiler flies off the trunk's flat deck.
Beneath a sleek painted shell, the souped-up Sentra conceals special suspension tweaking with sport-tuned struts and strut tower bracing, plus a helical limited slip front differential aboard and big disc brakes for all wheels with optional four-channel anti-lock controls.
Steering, through a direct rack and pinion system, was designed to feel neutral but respond swiftly.
The engine -- bumping up from the standard Sentra four-pack at 1.8 liters to 2.5 liters -- produces 175 hp at 6000 rpm with torque skewed to 180 lb-ft at 4000 rpm.
And to handle that muscle, the Spec V version adds a tight but pliable six-speed manual stick shifter.
Sentra's cabin also gets the hot treatment in bad-boy black with red accents on seat inserts and analog gauges in the instrument cluster.
Front buckets, patterned after Skyline seats, have firm bolsters that pin the torso in place during hard cornering maneuvers. Leather wraps the steering wheel and shift knob.
As a whole, SE-R Spec V adds racy gear to the already sporty Sentra, transforming it into a street-legal little ripper but with a bottom line that won't break $17,000.
Other Sentras -- trimmed as the entry-level XE, upscale GXE plus a low-emission CA version available only in California -- host the 1.8-liter engine and list for figures ranging from $12,339 to $15,439, inclusive of a $540 delivery fee to a Nissan store.
SE-R issues -- new in Sentra's line for 2002 after an eight-year absence -- segment into two versions, SE-R and SE-R Spec V. Both carry the raucous twin-cam 2.5-liter four-cylinder plant, although ten more power points apply to the Spec V performance variation.
Spec V stocks the manual six-speed stick exclusively, while SE-R uses either a manual five-speed or automatic four-speed transaxle.
Since Nissan developed these special Sentras as affordable street racers, it seems only fitting to test them on the unfettered 2.238-mile looped track at Laguna Seca.
Our Spec V charges out of pit lane onto the finish-line straight as we wind through gears and build speed in a run over the first hill of an undulating course. Then we plunge down the backside and work the brake pedal while setting up a line to hit tricky double apexes through the sweeping Andretti Hairpin cutting to the left.
Now gas it and take the following three right-hand kinks at increasing speed for a long stretch until it's brake-time again at the tight left Turn Five. Spec V follows an arching line through the corner and out to the right-side rumple strip and we head up a rolling hill.
Another sharp left comes before the summit where you must crank the steering wheel left and veer into what seems like thin air as the track drops away into the fabled Corkscrew descent etched through a grove of live oaks. Sentra's big tires protest in the steep corkscrew wiggle and speed rises until time to rein it to make Rainey Curve and the run-out to a right Turn Ten in the flats.
The final corner, an acute left leading to the grandstand straightaway, requires more braking and also patience to keep all wheels on pavement. Now let it rip in a sprint across the finish line before heading for another lap.
Our Sentra transforms the demanding Laguna Seca circuit into a playpen and the empty track allows a forceful driver to extract every point of power for some quick lap times.
On real-world streets, like a stoplight-fettered Salinas-Monterey Highway leading away from the Laguna Seca track, you can't get away with such heavy-footed accelerations or tire-screeching turns.
However, all racy ingredients are on-board for those moments when traffic, road conditions and law enforcement officials don't conspire to squelch your playtime.
Foundation of this Sentra, which first appeared as year 2000 models, represents a fifth generational design for Nissan's small car and shows revisions in all aspects, from the structural system of the platform and sheetmetal styling to powertrains and interior fittings.
Compared with the former model, the body was stretched by 6.5 inches in length and expanded in width by almost an inch, with the roof raised by another inch.
Larger dimensions in all directions translate to more interior space for passengers, but particularly so for headroom in front and rear seats. The scale of front buckets in terms of height and width and seat position relative to the adjacent seat seems generous and comfortable.
Typically, small cars from Asian automakers promote interiors with dimensions comparable to the small stature of Asian drivers, yet Sentra diminishes any close confines, with fixtures and fittings geared to the larger stature of an American audience.
The expanded scale perhaps explains Nissan's plan to market this design strictly in North America.
All styling plans for Sentra stem from Nissan's California design studio in La Jolla, with engineering work derived from the Nissan Technical Center in Japan and Nissan Research and Development in California, Michigan and Arizona. Assembly occurs by Nissan Mexicana in Aguascalientes, Mexico.
Sentra XE provides many comfortable features for a price that dips below $12,000, and Sentra GXE at $13,749 adds equipment including air conditioning.
Sentra SE-R with manual five-speed lists for $16,999, or $16,799 with automatic transaxle, while Spec V with the six-speed stick hits $16,999 -- plus the $540 delivery fee.
Optional packages include ABS and side-impact air bags ($749), a Rockford Fosgate audio kit ($549), six-disc CD changer ($399) and power sunroof ($699).
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| Vehicle Specifications: |
| 2002 NISSAN SENTRA SE-R Specs |
| Description: |
Compact sedan
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| Model Options: |
Compact sedan
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| Wheelbase: |
99.8 inches
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| Overall Length: |
177.5 inches
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| Engine Size: |
DOHC 1.8-L I4
DOHC 2.5-L I4
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| Transmission: |
Sentra: Manual/5
Auto/4
SE-R Spec V: Manual/6
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| Drive: |
Front
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| Braking: |
Sentra: Power disc/drum
SE-R: Power 4-disc
ABS opt.
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| Airbags: |
2 (front) + opt. 2 (side)
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| Gas Mileage: |
1.8-L M/5: 27/35 mpg
1.8-L A/4: 27/33 mpg
2.5-L M/5: 24/29 mpg
2.5-L A/4: 23/28 mpg
2.5-L M/6: 22/28 mpg
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| Price: |
$ 12,339 to $ 20,035 |
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