Styling

The Sentra's tall stance and short hood and trunklid make the car look a bit stubby in profile. It's not nearly as sleek as the Civic, which is still futuristic looking even though it's been around in its current form since the 2006 model year — an incredible feat. I like the Sentra's design more than the Corolla's, which is about as bland and nondescript a car as you'll find these days. For a side-by-side comparison of the Sentra, Civic and Corolla, click here.

Not everything's right with the Sentra's design. A couple of our editors, myself included, weren't fond of the car's clear-lens taillights. This design cue was a fad a few years ago, and it's time for Nissan to ditch the look.

The Sentra comes standard with steel wheels, but our 2.0 SL had 16-inch alloy wheels with an eight-spoke design. Alloy wheels always dress up a car's exterior, and 2.0 S and 2.0 SL models get chrome door and trunklid accents that serve the same purpose.

    See also:

    Parking brake break-in
    Break-in the parking brake shoes whenever the stopping effect of the parking brake is weakened or whenever the parking brake shoes and/or drum/rotors are replaced, in order to assure the best brak ...

    Changing a flat tire
    If you have a flat tire, follow the instructions below. ...

    Blocking wheels
    Place suitable blocks 1 at both the front and back of the wheel diagonally opposite the flat tire 2 to prevent the vehicle from moving when it is jacked up. WARNING Be sure to block the wheel a ...