Used 1990 Nissan Sentra Consumer Reviews
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368,000 and going
las27563481, 03/11/2013
1990 Nissan Sentra 2dr Coupe
3 of 3 people found this review helpful
Bought the car with 70K on it in 1994? I have driven it 300,000 miles since and have had only one failure where I let it run out of water (hose leak) and ran it hot. Threw a head gasket on it (this all around 340,00 miles and running fine now. I've put one clutch in at 180,000 and two DS and one PS front axles, both rear wheel bearings and one set of 4 struts over the entire time i've owned his car. BTW, when I had the cylinder head off to replace the head gasket (again, at 340,00 miles) there was NO ridge at the top of any of the four cylinders. I've torn down many motors and have seen wear and cylinder wall ridges at 80,000. This engine has 5 times that in miles and was smooth.
This car will not die!
SG, 01/13/2010
1990 Nissan Sentra XE 2dr Coupe
2 of 2 people found this review helpful
This car is phenomenal on gas mileage. My husband (to be, at the time) bought this car before I met him. We've now been married 15 years. A few years back, we thought it might be time to get him a new car, so we did, and I inherited this as I was driving a pickup at the time. Well, that was 4 years ago, and I'm still driving this little car. It looks terrible - the paint's starting to fade, the door has a big gash in it that's starting to rust, the interior ceiling cloth has disintegrated and is coming down in sheets, but I cannot bring myself to get a new car. This car drives great. It gets incredible gas mileage. I fill it up ONCE A MONTH. I have a 12 mile commute to work.
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familycarman, 03/01/2002
1990 Nissan Sentra XE 2dr Hatchback
2 of 2 people found this review helpful
Don't be fooled by the "no maintenance" theology of Nissan cars. I purchased this one from a dealership. The previous owner (traded it in for a Ford) had used it to commutte several miles each day-- and I believe never bothered to do hardly any maintenance. The car was low-priced and worked great-- until one day it all came falling apart at about 130,000 miles-- much less than what I would expect for a Nissan.
GREAT CAR!!
Horseowner, 02/24/2003
1990 Nissan Sentra XE 2dr Hatchback
2 of 2 people found this review helpful
Mine was actually the the '89, but basically the same. Bought with '91K, had 196K on it when slid into the back of a Saturn. Always got 30mpg or better on Calif. gas (33mpg before that), virtually no repairs until 180K miles (timing chain tensioner & alternator went). Fixed accident damage, but bad front suspension - (from the accident?) would be a $500+ repair & the valves & cv joints are threatening to go, so regretfully "retiring" it. Finding it VERY hard to hard to replace, & will be spending a lot more than I paid for this one.
$200.00 goes a long way
james4750, 08/23/2008
1990 Nissan Sentra 2dr Coupe
0 of 0 people found this review helpful
I drive this car everyday to work 25 miles round trip and it has never failed me yet. It has 238,000 miles on it and still runs like new. It does not burn a drop of oil. Other than a new timing chain at 211,000 miles, nothing other than regular maintenance has been done to the motor and still runs like new. Other than 2 clutches I have had no tranny problems. It's 18 years old and I bet it runs another 18 years. I am the car's 2nd owner.
300K
katwman, 05/13/2002
1990 Nissan Sentra 2dr Coupe
0 of 0 people found this review helpful
My Sentra has 307,000 miles! It has the original clutch and timing chain. It looks rough now, but it has been nothing but dependable! No car will ever be able to compare!
Great Car
Diablo_75, 06/05/2002
1990 Nissan Sentra XE 4dr Sedan
0 of 0 people found this review helpful
I've actually owned 2 of these cars (the first being a 2 dr XE). The first car's timing chain guide wore out at about 220,000 miles. I scraped it out for little parts, and use them to replace the occasional need for the one I'm driving now. It has a remanufactured engine in it, so there's no telling how far this one will last. It's a good compact car.
20 years and getting old
Dennis Fudge, 08/19/2009
1990 Nissan Sentra XE 4dr Sedan
0 of 0 people found this review helpful
I carpool and cycle whenever I get a chance so the mileage is low (156000 km) in which 85000 km was originally on the vehicle when I purchased it in 1994. But now the car is getting old and the cost for repairs is starting to be almost as much as the vehicle is worth. With two tires needing to be replaced,lower ball joints worn and the gas gauge not working, it is time to upgrade. Plus my children are getting bigger which means a larger vehicle.
My first Car.
Roman12, 11/22/2002
1990 Nissan Sentra XE 2dr Hatchback
0 of 0 people found this review helpful
Since the day i bought it i loved it,it has only 117,000 miles on it i bought it month ago for $1,000
Still going strong
LAS27563481, 10/27/2003
1990 Nissan Sentra 2dr Coupe
0 of 0 people found this review helpful
I bought this car at 70K miles. It's now up to 300K and getting over 36 MPG on the highway W/O overdrive or cruise. Have replaced clutch once (teaching daughters to drive a stick) and both front axles (boots cracked). Other than timing chain guide replacement, all repairs were to me typical wear items such as brakes, struts at 250K control arm bushings, etc. I have replaced nothing else inside the engine other than oil every 3K miles.
My Sentra
AJ, 06/17/2005
1990 Nissan Sentra XE 2dr Hatchback
0 of 0 people found this review helpful
I bought my sentra with 210,000 miles on it in 2005, every thing was original, its past time for it to recieve new shocks, and probably struts, other than that, the regular oil changes from the original owner i boughtit from has saved it from any noise that indicates a worn older engine. this car gets the best gas mileage of any car ive ever owned. it really great for califonia where i live when gas prices are 2.80 a gallon for regular. i dont like the interior so much, its too plain and plasticy, but thats what you get for a 90's car of any kind. i also own an 88 honda accord hatchback, more comfortable +8hp alot faster, and had more options, honda= $1000, a deal, sentra=$1175 all original
26 years old and still on the road as a daily
Tyler, 05/15/2017
1990 Nissan Sentra XE 4dr Sedan
0 of 0 people found this review helpful
My MR2 died unexpectedly so I had to pick something up really quick. Found this car on craigslist and jumped on it immediately as it was in good running condition for 1k bucks. It handles well and gives good feedback, though it has tiny wheels and tires on it. I'd say with some wheels from a b13 it would do wonders for the handling. The seats are actually really comfy and well padded, wasn't expecting that from a car this old. Gets pretty good mileage though I ended up with an automatic so it's not exactly as good as it could be as it's only a three speed. The car has been pretty reliable, though has a lot of little issues related to how old it is, I can't complain too much. The rear doors don't open anymore, the driver's side window doesn't roll down and the weather stripping is shot. Paint is surprisingly good, but the car definitely has some rust on it. The motor is strong and has an iron block so I expect it to last a long time but has idle issues, and it blew a head gasket at 150k (previous owner). Parts for it are nonexistent though they are cheap if you can find them. The differential is starting to whine and chatter, and the front axles need to be replaced. The transmission shifts just fine though, but OD is starting to slip on hard throttle inputs. Overall for a 1k dollar car that I bought just to get me around temporarily has exceeded my expectations really. I'd say with proper upkeep it should last me until about 200k miles but I don't expect the transmission to go much longer than that (I really hope it proves me wrong). Really wish that I would have ended up with the manual version of this car. If you're looking at getting one of these today as a beater, just be aware of how hard parts are to find and get a manual. These things are solid, they certainly don't make them like this anymore.
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