From the Honda Civic Kind R to the Hyundai Elantra N, Toyota GR Corolla and even the Subaru WRX, we stay in a time the place mainstream compacts provide actually unbelievable efficiency in your greenback. Nissan, nonetheless, is not even within the dialog and hasn’t been for years. I imply, it kind of tried again in 2017 with the Sentra Nismo, instantly obtained beat at its personal recreation by the Elantra Sport after which gave up. However again within the day, the Sentra was a reliable sport compact, and the most effective of the bunch was the Sentra SE-R Spec V. And now there’s one on the market on Automobiles & Bids.
With a 2.5-liter inline-four beneath the hood making 175 horsepower and 180 pound-feet of torque, you will not be successful any drag races on this automobile, until the individual racing you drives, I do not know, a Toyota Echo. However there’s additionally extra to sporty automobiles than straight-line velocity, and this factor has autocross champ written throughout it. That is partly as a result of the Spec Vs obtained sportier suspension setups than the common Sentra SE-R, however Nissan additionally caught a helical limited-slip differential in there, which was nonetheless an enormous deal again within the early 2000s. Not unhealthy for a automobile that value about $18,000 when it was new.
So yeah, it could nonetheless be a front-wheel-drive Nissan Sentra that is down on energy in comparison with a brand new Prius and nonetheless has a Sentra inside, but it surely’s nonetheless the Cool Sentra, comparatively uncommon and set as much as be an absolute hoot on an autocross course. Oh, and you may’t overlook the six-speed handbook transmission. As MotorTrend mentioned on the time:
The Spec V’s customary Torsen-type limited-slip differential makes the entrance finish really feel as if it is actually digging for traction, irrespective of how a lot throttle pedal you throw at it. Whip the steering wheel backwards and forwards, and the facility help retains up along with your enthusiasm (a uncommon factor on this class). The brakes are efficient, and the non-obligatory ABS would not intervene too quickly.
Lower than 1,500 miles a yr
Nonetheless, we’re speaking a few two-decade-old Nissan Sentra right here, so it is comprehensible in the event you’re involved about the way it held up. The excellent news is, whereas there may at all times be a number of gremlins in there that you simply’d should take care of, it appears to be like completely unbelievable for its age. There are a number of scratches and chips within the paint, some inside put on and somewhat rust right here and there, however the earlier house owners took unbelievable care of this automobile (contemplating it is nonetheless a Sentra on the finish of the day).
A part of that has to do with the truth that it solely has 31,100 miles on it, which works out to rather less than 1,500 miles a yr. Additionally they saved the inside about as near showroom situation as you are going to discover on a 22-year-old Sentra. That mentioned, it is not completely inventory. In line with the itemizing, it now comes with an aftermarket air consumption, a cat-back exhaust, an engine oil catch can and LED bulbs within the headlights and foglights. Fortunately, not less than primarily based on what you possibly can hear within the video the vendor included, the brand new exhaust did not utterly smash the automobile. Nonetheless, you’d most likely not less than need to have the headlights checked out so you do not blind oncoming drivers with the LED bulb swap.
As for the inside, it could have felt low-cost again in 2004, however somewhat nostalgia goes a good distance in 2025, particularly in the event you’re uninterested in screens and contact controls. There is a small show that reveals the time and the radio station, in addition to a digital odometer, however that is about it for screens. Even higher, there’s an precise, bodily management for each single operate. Wish to flip up the radio quantity? Flip the knob. Need colder air blowing out of the vents? Simply flip the knob. Need instructions to that new restaurant? Print ’em off your pc or convey your telephone, as a result of this pet positive as hell would not have a navigation system.
Is that this automobile going to be for everyone? By no means. However in the event you’ve been in search of a typically inexpensive autocross automobile, you possibly can positively do an entire lot worse than this 2004 Nissan Sentra SE-R Spec V. In spite of everything, odds are, this factor will not even hit $10,000 by the point the public sale ends.
