Two things seem to be almost completely absent from the US auto market these days: manual transmissions, and two-door versions of four-door sedans. They used to be everywhere, though, and I for one miss them. So today, we’re going to check out a couple of them, one that’s kinda sporty, and one that’s more economy-minded.
On Friday, I showed you two cars with a gossamer-thin connection between them: both were red, and both had soft tops. The Nissan 240SX won in a landslide, with quite a few of you grumbling about the Citroën Méhari’s price. So few of them come up for sale that it’s hard to establish a baseline value, but I don’t think it’s outrageous, considering what 2CVs often go for. It may not be worth that much to you, but I have no doubt that someone will buy it for that price.
The Nissan is the one that felt overpriced to me, but I have very little interest in it. If I wanted an automatic convertible, I’d rather just look for a Mustang or a Sebring and save a bunch of money. But that Mehari is exactly the kind of dumb thing I’d buy if I were ridiculously wealthy. I’d keep it at my villa in the Caribbean, and drive it down into town to the local bar on karaoke night.
Looking back at all the cars I’ve owned, a whole lot of them have had two doors, and a whole lot of them have had manual transmissions. I guess I have an automotive “type,” and it’s one that’s hard to find new unless you turn to sports cars or muscle cars, and even some of them don’t offer manuals anymore. Luckily, new cars aren’t my type either. Three grand is pretty much my limit. Both of today’s choices come in well under that, and both have more pedals than doors. Let’s check them out.
1995 Oldsmobile Achieva S – $2,450
Engine/drivetrain: 2.3-liter DOHC inline 4, five-speed manual, FWD
Location: Longwood, FL
Odometer reading: 190,000 miles
Operational status: Runs and drives well
For a while in the 1980s, Oldsmobile had three different cars called the Cutlass: the A-body Cutlass Ciera, the W-body Cutlass Supreme, and the N-body Cutlass Calais. If you just said you had a “Cutlass,” nobody knew what the hell kind of car you drove. To eliminate some of the confusion, when the second-generation N-body came along in 1992, Olds changed the name of the Cutlass Calais to the Achieva. It wasn’t a great name, and it was sort of a lackluster car; the nickname “Underachieva” seemed inevitable.
But if you ticked the right boxes on the option sheet, you could make the Achieva a lot more entertaining to drive. This one is powered by Oldsmobile’s Quad 4 engine, which powers the front wheels through a Getrag 282 five-speed manual transmission. I had a Calais with this same Quad 4/five-speed combination, and it was tremendous fun, more so than you’d expect from anything with an Oldsmobile badge. There isn’t a whole lot of information about this one’s condition; the seller says it’s “nice” and the air conditioner works. You’d have to test drive it to find out more.
Inside, it’s standard-issue GM gray, but it’s not in bad shape. It’s an S model, with manual windows but power locks, if I’m seeing things right. You used to be able to pick and choose options like that, instead of springing for a “Preferred Equipment Package” or something and getting a bunch of stuff you don’t want just to get the one thing you do want.
The outside looks nice and shiny, and though the photos in the ad aren’t great, I don’t see any damage other than a scrape on the front bumper. Of course, it’s sometimes hard to tell on a black car. It has aftermarket wheels that you may or may not like; I think they look pretty good on there.
1994 Nissan Sentra – $2,900
Engine/drivetrain: 1.6-liter DOHC inline 4, five-speed manual, FWD
Location: Santa Rosa, CA
Odometer reading: 164,000 miles
Operational status: Runs and drives well
There aren’t a lot of inexpensive cars left on the market. But I am happy to see that the humble Nissan Sentra is still hanging in there. It has never been a great car, but it has been a very good, inexpensive, and reliable car for decades. What we have here is the very last two-door Sentra that Nissan offered. The seller has it listed as a 1995 model, but the ’95 was a different design, and four-door only, meaning this must be a ’94 – or a Mexican-market model. This bodystyle stayed in production in Mexico for many years after it disappeared from the American market.
This generation of Sentra is powered by a 1.6 liter GA16DE four-cylinder engine, in this case backed by a five-speed manual transmission. It’s not all that powerful, but it is reliable. This ad is very terse as well; the seller just says it will take you anywhere. That’s as good an endorsement as any, I suppose.
Another thing that makes me think it’s not a US model is the lack of an airbag, combined with the door-mounted seat belts. US-market 1990-94 Sentras had motorized belts, and 1995 models had an airbag. It’s a very plain model, with no power options inside, and nothing but a speedometer, fuel gauge, and temperature gauge in the instrument panel. It’s everything you need, if not everything you might want, and it is in good condition.
It’s in good condition outside too, a little faded, but straight. The gray plastic bumper covers are another throwback; none of the few remaining economy cars on the market have such bare-bones finishes. I like it. It’s honest. This car has aftermarket wheels on it as well, but they look like the stock size, or close to it.
The terse descriptions of these cars make it harder for me to tell you about them, and harder for you to assess their condition, but from the sounds of it, you could hop in either one and drive off without much trouble. But which one would you hop in? Would it be the uncommonly fun-to-drive Oldsmobile, or the possibly south-of-the-border Nissan?
For largely inscrutable reasons of personal preference, I have always had a visceral reaction to the Oldsmobile Achieva. I thought it was spectacularly ugly when first released no matter how many doors it had, and I still think it is spectacularly ugly. I thus scrolled down to vote for the Nissan before scrolling back up to read today’s piece.
I remember one of my car magazines at the time had a contest to win an Achieva. I remembered entering and wondering whether I’d drive it for a month, a week, or take the paltry cash payout and buy something I actually wanted. Even brand a new model release and potentially free, I didn’t want it.
Old GM products are less of a car and more of an assemblage of parts that sometimes moves in a direction together. Especially with that Quad4 shaking things apart for 190k miles.
Or…peak Nissan boring-mobile. Which will be impeccably assembled, but slow. Given that the ad lists the transmission as an automatic whilst it is obviously not, I doubt the year is listed correctly either, so its Mexican ancestry might not be the conclusion I’d worry about.
Hola Nissan.
I am Intrigued by the Achieva.
Is it because you like its Silhouette?
Can’t really stand the thought of dealing with the passive restraints in the Nissan, so I guess it’s the Olds by default. Though I don’t know of anyone in the family that ever had an Olds except maybe the grandparents.
I can feel the disappointment of that early 90s GM interior from here
I went with the Sentra. I can remember checking these out 30 years ago. Specifically the SE-R version. It handled well and had a nice engine. But the new car that I test drove had something loose so that every time we’d hit the smallest bump, there was a loud metallic clang. in the back.
I just don’t want an Olds. A friend had one right out of school and it had trouble from the start. Also, was damaged in a flood. This car is also in Florida and I am very leery of Florida cars from that part of the state and whether they have had water damage.
Against my better judgement I voted for the Achieva. I had an ’89 Grand Am with this drive train and when it worked it was a lot of fun for a FWD GM. Since this is the next generation car hopefully it’s not plagued by the oddball electrical gremlins and imo GM interior quality while still not great took a big jump by the mid ’90s.
I never thought I’d say this, but I kinda like the cut of that Sentra’s jib. The aftermarket wheel even do it for me. So much for my Nissan is never the answer policy.
Years ago I looked at Cutlass Ciera with that drivetrain. Someone Dad knew from work was selling it. I wanted it until I got inside and saw/smelled he was a heavy smoker. Pile of butts overflowing the ash tray and some burn holes in the driver’s seat. No thanks. Also looked at a Taurus MT-5 (4 cyl, 5 speed.) I kinda wish I bought that now but ended up with a 5 speed Ranger instead. It served me well.
I doubt a south of the border car would pass California smog testing so if its got a CA plate its probably a US car.
Yes it is. Motorized seatbelts and a MPH speedometer are dead giveaways. Airbags were optional
I voted for the Sentra – I actually like the styling of this car. It is plain, but it works. Modern cars have way too many unnecessary styling features. I miss simple but nice designs like this one. I also like the basic but functional interior. Overall, I like that the Sentra is honest about what it is – basic transportation. Nothing more and nothing less.
I am less enthused about the Olds. This car looks okay from the back and sides, but the front end styling is just plain ugly. It has the correct number of pedals and is in good condition, but I don’t have much else positive to say about this car.
Honestly, I would be content with either car. If I was younger, I’d go with the Sentra, but older me would appreciate the comfort of the GM product. GM made some of the most comfortable seats from the 90’s to early 00’s
Sentra. I’ll trust a pre-CVT Nissan over an A-Body, this was back when Nissan wasn’t a joke. Seems to be in better condition anyway, with an unwarpable dashboard, and the airbag-free steering wheel is just a nice reminder to drive carefully lest you be snacking on it in a front end collision.
If the Achieva were in good shape I’d roll the dice on it for the extra power and less spartan interior. But I’m not sure I want a “4 cly eng” (really, 3 clys is too many already), even if it is paired with a “5 sped” and is therefore a “nice clasic car”.
The only Achieva I would ever consider, is a 2-door Quad-4 5-speed. And since that’s what this is, I’ll have a go.
Hmm. I voted Olds thinking the Sentra would run away with this. My fellow Autopians can be an unpredictable bunch.
I see something to like in each of these, and either one would make for an out-of-the-ordinary project car. As others have mentioned, the Sentra SE-R showed that this platform definitely has potential for a fun little ride. But the Quad4/5 spd combo of the Olds begs for attention too.
Learned to drive on that style Sentra, and I can attest to the surprise to see the Tsuro rolling around into the 2000’s in Monterey Mexico as Brand new 90’s styled cars. In Cali, I imagine the Sentra is an easier flip. I kind of like it for nostalgia, and the Olds is not all that much better if at all for everything, but I would probably still choose the Olds if they were side by side and I had to pick one.
The Sentra is the better car. Remember, this was made before the Ghosn/Renault era, and 90s Nissans were every bit as good as Honda and Toyota 🙂
So it easily wins by default.
Now if the Achieva was an SCX or even an SC, it might be worth more consideration 😛
One of the way my Dad and I used to spend time together was car shopping, even when we weren’t actually car shopping. I think he was trying to show me how things worked without the risk of getting taken for thousands of dollars. Anyways, on one of these trips we visited a Nissan dealer and I got to test drive a Sentra SER (I think that was their sporty trim back then) and I thoroughly enjoyed it. Had I been earning enough to spring for the payment and insurance at 21 I Would have bought it. This isn’t that, but I bet it’s 75% of the fun.
SE-R was the sporty one. The later ones had the 2.5L I4 from the Altima (it’s a fantastic engine, assuming it’s not dropping butterfly valve screws or the pre-cat’s not self-destructing, but both are fixable), with the Spec-V having even more hp, a 6spd manual, and LSD, plus other suspension upgrades.
Yeah, this was a few years before we were graced with Big Altima Energy.
It could be a 1994.5 Sentra that they or a VIN decoder rounded up (or depending when production for US models ended, the build date on the door reads ’95). Tough to read in this free version but the early version of the ’95 Nissan full-line brochure references it, and “available airbag.”
Nothing wrong with the Olds but the Nissan reminds me of my old one and they’re really great dependable cars.
“This bodystyle stayed in production in Mexico for many years after it disappeared from the American market.”
Oh, yeah, from 1992 to 2017!! Long production run!!
The Tsuru was still in production when my elder kid was learning to drive and looking to buy a car; my kid really liked that particular model, the two-door ’91-94 Sentra, which was actually still relatively common on the roads here in East Tennessee despite being around 20 to 25 years old, but then we saw a bunch of videos on YouTube of Mexican crash safety testing of Tsurus conducted throughout the Tsuru’s production run and the results were disconcerting, to say the least, lol, so my kid looked elsewhere for a first car to buy. In fact, IIRC, the testing agencies determined the Tsuru to be among the worst, if not actually *the* worst, in terms of crash safety on the roads.
i always wanted a ZR2 Blazer, then i saw the crash tests for the 2dr blazers lol.
Yeah… around 2005 an acquaintance bought a late-model or outright new 4-door Blazer and then the Magliozzis did a segment on Car Talk about how astonishing the disparity was between the 4-door Blazers and the 2-door Blazers in terms of fatality rates in crashes with the 2-door actually turning out to be among the deadliest (like in the top 3, egad) on the roads in the US while the 4-door was quite decent so it was a good thing the acquaintance’s Blazer was a 4-door especially since her second baby was on the way…
It’s worth noting that crash performance of the Tsuru isn’t indicative of crash performance of US-market Sentras. They’re the same body shell, but they’re not assembled the same way. It was common for a long time (I don’t know whether it still is) for what I’ll call third-world-built versions of mainstream Japanese cars to differ in ways such as less welding on the unibody, missing reinforcements, different steel grades, etc. in additon to visibly obvious things like missing airbags.
I feel like that Sentra is more rare and therefore interesting, so it gets my vote.
That Sentra is a perfect candidate for an SER conversion or homage. That first gen SER, with ots light chasis, an SR20 underhood and the LSD equipped 5 speed was pretty legendary in its time for offering a sports car driving experience with grocery getter looks.
I just have to make sure I get my SR20 at least a week before Race Wars, because after that those SR20 motors will pull a premium.
Also, the SR20 from the FWD cars is less desirable, as they aren’t a drop-in for the Sylvias. I remember a few disenchanted form posts of people figuring that out the hard way.
That’s good to know. I wonder if anyone has stuffed a Pulsar Gti R drivetrain into one of these
QR25DE swap!
Be careful cause if Tran finds out you have your SR20, he will roll up with his goons and rough you up. He’s got quite the temper.
I’m not afraid, I drink motor oil everyday
Hell yeah! Kick his ass C Bass!
Went with the Olds. They look like the sort of cars a teen on a tight budget would buy for a first car and the Olds looks like the better car to be in an accident in.
Small Sentra Energy for the win.
I had to take the Sentra, the upright 3-box styling aged a lot better than the Wish-I-Was-A-Fastback GM lines in my eyes. The Olds interior design is definitely more interesting, though.
The Nissan’s lower displacement should let me enter it into a low-displacement rally class, and its size should make it competitive in-class, the power and weight are very similar to the Fit and Neon, both common and successful entry-level rally cars, and by all accounts I’ve heard, the Sentra has a good chassis for spirited driving and an ample aftermarket. I might actually win an event some day with it.