You are right about Nissan. They were at the top of their game in the late 80’s through about 1999. Then it was downhill from there. They cost cut because of the Japanese economic situation, but they cost cut the most and did not put the money where it counted.
Agree. I owned alot of Nissans late 80s thru 90s and loved them. My last was a 04 Armada and that was the last Nissan I owned.... I felt the same 80s thru 90s were great and cool vehicles from them.
I agree. I really like Nissans up until the early 2000s when the French really took hold and quality and design took a hit. My mom is an American car buyer through and through but she had a few Nissans in the late 80s/early 90s and really liked them. I've always preferred them to most Hondas and definitely Toyota. It's sad to see where they are today. Leave it to the Europeans to ruin a good company, just like what happened with Chrysler.
Morning Jon, my beverage is a final beer at 0030. These were very desirable little cars, Nissan was on a roll. I think it looked amazing & still does, this is a fine looking car. It was at least one class below the Eunos 30/MX3 here, so not really a fair comparison. =( I love these cars. Thanks Jon.
I was interested in this review as I owned an all black 1985 Pulsar just like the one in the opening segment. Mine had grey cloth interior which felt like burlap but was relatively light and airy feeling. Had sharp red and white pinstripes that stood out nicely on the black paint. When I traded her in I got an ‘89 Chrysler New Yorker Landau- white body, quarter rear roof, red velour interior. Very soft and plush. The newer NX in the review; the headlights remind me of a librarian looking over her half glasses lol. Thanks for the memories Jon I enjoyed it.
I had a 89 pulsar nx , I loved that car. I thought about getting this new Nx when it came out but I ended up getting a VW Corrado vr6. BRING BACK THE T- TOPS!!.
I would love to see a UA-cam video where you talk about which American company builds the best V6 engine. Your insights about cars are truly unique and fascinating.
Appreciate the kind words. That would be a dangerous video to do! The only upside would be I'd make someone who's a fan of a manufacturer mad! And here's the kicker - just recently or in the past? I think GM's 3800 is one of the best engines ever, period. Recent Ford V6's have those who swear they're terrible, but is GM better? I liked the old 3.7L Chrysler engines, but they could gunk up easily. And is Toyota and "American" company? If so maybe their V6, or Honda's..... What a minefield to wade into!
@AllCarswithJon , that reply got me even more excited! Can't wait to see the comparison, especially how the new engines stack up against the German and Japanese competition.
I would love to hear youdoa video on a 1984 Dodge Colt Turbo. It had a one year only split transaxle that basically gave you 8 speeds. One setting was for sport and the other for economy. I had one and i really enjoyed it.
Before I got my Juke, the last Nissan I drove was a 89 Pulsar 🤣 I thought it was a lot of fun. Wasn't mine, was moving it for a buddy who had a dozen cars.. but I remember it was a lot of fun. Way more fun than a Fiero, altho the Fiero had more power.
Especially now that all the manufacturers insist on using screens on almost everything. There's no excuse for not having more engine information available.
I never cared for these. The Pulsar and Sentra SE-R were cooler cars in my opinion. And I’m with you on the return of T-tops. I remember loving them on my uncles ‘87 Monte Carlo. I’m sure modern roof crush standards would make them a costly engineering effort today.
John, you're the man with the insights and thoughtful opinions. So much going on in automotive this week. Stelantis being sued, Nissan's profit down 99% this past quarter, Honda closing plants worldwide, state governments raising fees on EV's and hybrids to make up for lost gas taxes, the EV market evaporating, dealerships closing, used car market firming up while new car sales are tanking, etc. And, not a word about any of this from you. Am very disappointed. Is it all passing you by?
Sorry you're disappointed! It's not all passing me by (although I haven't heard of a couple of those, but several other items in the news have grabbed my attention), but I don't have the time to address all of them. The old "day job" is keeping me busy so I have to pick and chose where to put my efforts. And while I've tried the daily news or a 'news roundup' before, they've never gotten great views or done overall well (it's been very hit-or-miss), and believe it or not they're on the time consuming side. So "news" style videos like that have to be lower on the priority list. I may do one about Nissan because their profit results, poor sales, dealerships going backrupt and the fact they have far, far too many dealerships is very interesting to me - and their public statements are "it'll be better, just later". :)
Good job! 👍 I was a big fan of Nissan at this time as a mechanic. I was a happy driver of a 89 Hardbody 4x4. 80s thru 90s they had reliable and cool stuff and I owned a bunch of Nissans until our last Armada in 04. I liked the larger Pulsar and modular concept. I never liked this one, just came across feminine like the Cabriolet and Del Sol. The ones I know were owned by females as a matter of fact.
I remember seeing this car and thinking: "That looks like a mini-Porsche 928". I could see Tesla tinkering around with T-tops. I don't understand why Honda or Acura don't take the chance with them in their sporty line-up. By the way, I can't remember exactly what year model it was, but I had a Datsun 210 Wagon around 1990. Little thing ran great.
The 1980s Maximas are some of my favorite cars. Very boxy with luxury interors and button controlls everywhere. Nissan really took a nose dive in the mid 2000s. The cheap ultimas with terrible cvts did not help. I just traded my 2019 Civic hatchback with a cvt for a 23 Elantra N. I will say that honda makes a cvt like no other, car drove great. Some of my friends who drove it could not believe the civic had a cvt. It even had fake shift points. Nissan on the other hand is like there engines are reving wating for their CVT to catch up. I apologize for the loaded comment- just typing what was coming into my head.
I sure wish that we could buy relatively cheap and reliable, vehicles like these today. My friend drove an NX2000 from new, and it lasted her for years. At around this time, Nissan started to build the Mk2 Micra in Britain - a bit small for you guys in the States - but the build quality is legendary. The Bluebird was another boring, but incredibly reliable old bucket. Sadly though, Nissan seems to have fallen on less glorious times.
IMO my favorite small econo/sport hot hatch from this particular era is the Volkswagen Corrado. What do you think about the Corrado Jon? Much appreciation for your channel
@@AllCarswithJon I am sure there are Retro Reviews on the 1990 Corrado G60(with a supercharged 1.8 liter inline four) and the 1992 Corrado SLC(with the 2.8 liter VR6).
Lots of good insights. Will agree. When Nissan was Datsun it had pizzaz. After it became Nissan it seemed to take itself too seriously, and like U.S. car manufacturers bean counters replaced the engineers. Seems a 'normal' evolutionary trait.
Thanks for the chat back. I understand. Just to let you know, I value your opinions and insights greatly. And, understand the demands of being a normal American with a hobby and love of cars. LIke your stuff.
I didn't understand the point of Nissan having both the NX2000 and Sentra SE-R. Always thought one cannibalized the other's sales, even though they had different body styles. The SE-R was the more appealing model, to me. Then, when it came time to replace the two cars, we got...200SX. 🤨 It was sad to see Nissan unravel the way they did. Their products made less sense as the 90s unfolded. By 1999, Z was gone, Maxima was dull, Sentra was uncompetitive, Altima & Quest were also-rans.
@@AllCarswithJon the b12 and pulsar were sold until 1990. The b13 came out in 91 until 94 when the b14 came out and thats when nissan dropped the sentra seR and gave us the 200sx.
Nissan used to be such a great company. They even convinced my mother, who is a LOYAL American car buyer, to buy a Maxima in the early 90s. Ive always favored them to Toyota. I like Honda and have respect for them, and im a loyal Honda motorcycle and small engine buyer, they build great cars but i have a hard time accepting them because theyre a symbol of the downfall of the American auto companies. I hate Toyota. But i would rock an early 2000s and earlier Nissan. The Europeans ruined Nissan just like they ruined Chrysler.
You are right about Nissan. They were at the top of their game in the late 80’s through about 1999. Then it was downhill from there. They cost cut because of the Japanese economic situation, but they cost cut the most and did not put the money where it counted.
Agree. I owned alot of Nissans late 80s thru 90s and loved them. My last was a 04 Armada and that was the last Nissan I owned.... I felt the same 80s thru 90s were great and cool vehicles from them.
I agree. I really like Nissans up until the early 2000s when the French really took hold and quality and design took a hit. My mom is an American car buyer through and through but she had a few Nissans in the late 80s/early 90s and really liked them. I've always preferred them to most Hondas and definitely Toyota. It's sad to see where they are today. Leave it to the Europeans to ruin a good company, just like what happened with Chrysler.
10:29 Davis loves his full instrumentation
They don't call him John "The Instrument" Davis for nothin' 😂😂
Morning Jon, my beverage is a final beer at 0030. These were very desirable little cars, Nissan was on a roll. I think it looked amazing & still does, this is a fine looking car. It was at least one class below the Eunos 30/MX3 here, so not really a fair comparison. =( I love these cars. Thanks Jon.
I was just telling a coworker last week that t-tops needed to come back. My goal is a 80”s corvette with them.
I love me some T-tops! I had one car with them. A 1987 Dodge Daytona. They were freaking great.
I was interested in this review as I owned an all black 1985 Pulsar just like the one in the opening segment. Mine had grey cloth interior which felt like burlap but was relatively light and airy feeling. Had sharp red and white pinstripes that stood out nicely on the black paint. When I traded her in I got an ‘89 Chrysler New Yorker Landau- white body, quarter rear roof, red velour interior. Very soft and plush.
The newer NX in the review; the headlights remind me of a librarian looking over her half glasses lol. Thanks for the memories Jon I enjoyed it.
I had a 89 pulsar nx , I loved that car. I thought about getting this new Nx when it came out but I ended up getting a VW Corrado vr6. BRING BACK THE T- TOPS!!.
I would love to see a UA-cam video where you talk about which American company builds the best V6 engine. Your insights about cars are truly unique and fascinating.
Appreciate the kind words. That would be a dangerous video to do! The only upside would be I'd make someone who's a fan of a manufacturer mad!
And here's the kicker - just recently or in the past? I think GM's 3800 is one of the best engines ever, period. Recent Ford V6's have those who swear they're terrible, but is GM better? I liked the old 3.7L Chrysler engines, but they could gunk up easily.
And is Toyota and "American" company? If so maybe their V6, or Honda's.....
What a minefield to wade into!
@AllCarswithJon , that reply got me even more excited! Can't wait to see the comparison, especially how the new engines stack up against the German and Japanese competition.
I always found this car to be very nice looking.
I would love to hear youdoa video on a 1984 Dodge Colt Turbo. It had a one year only split transaxle that basically gave you 8 speeds. One setting was for sport and the other for economy. I had one and i really enjoyed it.
Before I got my Juke, the last Nissan I drove was a 89 Pulsar 🤣 I thought it was a lot of fun. Wasn't mine, was moving it for a buddy who had a dozen cars.. but I remember it was a lot of fun. Way more fun than a Fiero, altho the Fiero had more power.
10:33: "Performance oriented cars should have complete instrumentation." In a perfect world, ALL cars should have complete instrumentation!
Especially now that all the manufacturers insist on using screens on almost everything. There's no excuse for not having more engine information available.
I remember those nx2000 cars.
I never cared for these. The Pulsar and Sentra SE-R were cooler cars in my opinion.
And I’m with you on the return of T-tops. I remember loving them on my uncles ‘87 Monte Carlo. I’m sure modern roof crush standards would make them a costly engineering effort today.
John, you're the man with the insights and thoughtful opinions. So much going on in automotive this week. Stelantis being sued, Nissan's profit down 99% this past quarter, Honda closing plants worldwide, state governments raising fees on EV's and hybrids to make up for lost gas taxes, the EV market evaporating, dealerships closing, used car market firming up while new car sales are tanking, etc. And, not a word about any of this from you. Am very disappointed. Is it all passing you by?
Sorry you're disappointed! It's not all passing me by (although I haven't heard of a couple of those, but several other items in the news have grabbed my attention), but I don't have the time to address all of them. The old "day job" is keeping me busy so I have to pick and chose where to put my efforts.
And while I've tried the daily news or a 'news roundup' before, they've never gotten great views or done overall well (it's been very hit-or-miss), and believe it or not they're on the time consuming side. So "news" style videos like that have to be lower on the priority list.
I may do one about Nissan because their profit results, poor sales, dealerships going backrupt and the fact they have far, far too many dealerships is very interesting to me - and their public statements are "it'll be better, just later". :)
Good job! 👍
I was a big fan of Nissan at this time as a mechanic. I was a happy driver of a 89 Hardbody 4x4. 80s thru 90s they had reliable and cool stuff and I owned a bunch of Nissans until our last Armada in 04. I liked the larger Pulsar and modular concept. I never liked this one, just came across feminine like the Cabriolet and Del Sol. The ones I know were owned by females as a matter of fact.
Notables were the Civic CRX (the ones that had a window underneath the spoiler) and gen 2 Toyota MR2
Auto manufactures don't want to make small cars like this because they are less profitable then SUVs.
I remember seeing this car and thinking: "That looks like a mini-Porsche 928".
I could see Tesla tinkering around with T-tops. I don't understand why Honda or Acura don't take the chance with them in their sporty line-up. By the way, I can't remember exactly what year model it was, but I had a Datsun 210 Wagon around 1990. Little thing ran great.
The 1980s Maximas are some of my favorite cars. Very boxy with luxury interors and button controlls everywhere. Nissan really took a nose dive in the mid 2000s. The cheap ultimas with terrible cvts did not help. I just traded my 2019 Civic hatchback with a cvt for a 23 Elantra N. I will say that honda makes a cvt like no other, car drove great. Some of my friends who drove it could not believe the civic had a cvt. It even had fake shift points. Nissan on the other hand is like there engines are reving wating for their CVT to catch up. I apologize for the loaded comment- just typing what was coming into my head.
If Tupperware made a car it looks like this. It was just above my budget and at that time I needed a little car to do a mobile job.
I sure wish that we could buy relatively cheap and reliable, vehicles like these today. My friend drove an NX2000 from new, and it lasted her for years. At around this time, Nissan started to build the Mk2 Micra in Britain - a bit small for you guys in the States - but the build quality is legendary. The Bluebird was another boring, but incredibly reliable old bucket. Sadly though, Nissan seems to have fallen on less glorious times.
IMO my favorite small econo/sport hot hatch from this particular era is the Volkswagen Corrado. What do you think about the Corrado Jon? Much appreciation for your channel
I always loved the Corrado. :)
@@AllCarswithJon I am sure there are Retro Reviews on the 1990 Corrado G60(with a supercharged 1.8 liter inline four) and the 1992 Corrado SLC(with the 2.8 liter VR6).
Lots of good insights. Will agree. When Nissan was Datsun it had pizzaz. After it became Nissan it seemed to take itself too seriously, and like U.S. car manufacturers bean counters replaced the engineers. Seems a 'normal' evolutionary trait.
Thanks for the chat back. I understand. Just to let you know, I value your opinions and insights greatly. And, understand the demands of being a normal American with a hobby and love of cars. LIke your stuff.
I didn't understand the point of Nissan having both the NX2000 and Sentra SE-R. Always thought one cannibalized the other's sales, even though they had different body styles. The SE-R was the more appealing model, to me. Then, when it came time to replace the two cars, we got...200SX. 🤨 It was sad to see Nissan unravel the way they did. Their products made less sense as the 90s unfolded. By 1999, Z was gone, Maxima was dull, Sentra was uncompetitive, Altima & Quest were also-rans.
Jon. The sentra seR was sold at the same time as this. 91 this didn't replace it.
I stand corrected! I remembered the SE-R was dropped and the NX was introduced as it's replacement. Oops
@@AllCarswithJon the b12 and pulsar were sold until 1990. The b13 came out in 91 until 94 when the b14 came out and thats when nissan dropped the sentra seR and gave us the 200sx.
Nissan cars just aren’t engineered as well anymore. I miss Nissans like the NX.
Since Renault bought Nissan, Nissan has gone downhill in quality and relability
Nissan used to be such a great company. They even convinced my mother, who is a LOYAL American car buyer, to buy a Maxima in the early 90s. Ive always favored them to Toyota. I like Honda and have respect for them, and im a loyal Honda motorcycle and small engine buyer, they build great cars but i have a hard time accepting them because theyre a symbol of the downfall of the American auto companies. I hate Toyota. But i would rock an early 2000s and earlier Nissan. The Europeans ruined Nissan just like they ruined Chrysler.
I'm sorry, Jon. I cannot recommend this car. It looks too weird to me. The previous Pulsar NX was much better for me.
ISUZU Headlights anyone?
Toyota's are most the reliable cars, but boring
The Honda Del Sol