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2025 Car Mileage with the Best Gas Mileage2020 Nissan Sentra Review
The 2020 Nissan Sentra is one of the least expensive new cars on sale, but it feels much nicer inside and looks much better outside.
2020 Nissan Sentra – usa.nissannews.com | Shop 2020 Nissan Sentra on Carsforsale.com
What’s New for the 2020 Nissan Sentra?
For 2020, the Nissan Sentra is all-new from the tires up. It’s now in its eighth generation and gets more standard advanced driver safety aids, more power, and new styling that’s closer to the rest of the Nissan family. The suspension is also updated and provides a better ride. The manual transmission is gone in favor of a CVT. All of these changes aim to steal more sales from its competitors, Toyota and Honda.
The Breakdown
Great front seats
Good safety tech
Best Sentra ever
Drab driving characteristics
No knockout features
Spartan base model
More drivetrains would be better
2020 Sentra Specs
- 149 horsepower from base engine
- 145 lb-ft of torque from base engine
- 3 available trims
- 14.3 cu-ft of cargo capacity
- 360-degree parking camera is awesome
- 10 airbags is standard
- Average 3-year/36,000-mile limited warranty
2020 Nissan Sentra Powertrain
At its heart, the 2020 Nissan Sentra is a commuter vehicle that doesn’t try to be more than that. That’s almost courageous these days in a sea of cars that try to be everything to everyone. Look no further than products like the Lamborghini Urus or the Mercedes A45 AMG to see what we mean. Hopefully, that adds to the appreciation of Nissan using a tried and true 149-horsepower four-cylinder throughout the range of the Sentra.
Sadly, the jury is still out on the CVT found in this Sentra. There’s no doubt that Nissan has had some major CVT issues in the past, but we’re optimistic about the one in the 2020 Sentra. No, the CVT isn’t fun or fast or interesting, but that’s part of its beauty. Aside from some oddish behavior as you approach full stops, the CVT is hardly noticed. That’s what we like in a CVT. The less we notice it, the better.
Driving dynamics are not the strong suit of the Nissan Sentra. Acceleration and handling aren’t what it’s built for. Nevertheless, around town as an everyday cruiser, it’s great. It’s comfortable, quiet, and completely inoffensive. The new suspension tweaks help it handle poor roads far better than the outgoing Sentra.
2020 Nissan Sentra Fuel Economy & MPG
One benefit of using a single powertrain in the 2020 Nissan Sentra is that there’s almost no difference in efficiency regardless of trim or options. With that in mind, the EPA rates the Sentra at 32 mpg combined for the SR trim level and 33 for the S. That base model S gets up to 39 mpg on the highway too. It’s a properly fuel efficient car.
Interior, Comfort, & Cargo Space
The new 2020 Nissan Sentra is by far the most comfortable version ever. First of all, it’s far more spacious than the outgoing car. From the moment you take a seat in its new front buckets, it’s clear that head and shoulder room is vastly improved. The seats themselves are outstanding all on their own too. They’re what Nissan calls Zero Gravity seats. They’re relaxing, supportive, and comfortable for a long time.
The rear seats of the Sentra aren’t really suited for taller passengers, but beyond that, they’ll do great. Cargo space is slightly above average as well. The only real competitor that beats it is the Civic and it has less than a full cubic foot more. If there’s anything we’d like to see in here, it’s proper flat-folding seats and better materials. While we recognize that the Sentra is an economy car, it would do better to match efforts from Kia, Hyundai, and Honda in terms of how nice the interior feels.
Entertainment & Technology
Overall we think the 2020 Nissan Sentra has a very solid set of standard and available technology throughout the range. Both the 7 and 8-inch infotainment systems are solid options with fairly quick responses. We do prefer the larger simply because it offers Android and Apple connectivity. It does open up more premium sound systems but they don’t offer dramatically better sound quality to our ears. Buyers can add adaptive cruise control and one of the best 360-degree overhead camera views we’ve seen in this segment.
Safety Features
Nissan has built a safe car in the 2020 Nissan Sentra. It won an IIHS Top Safety Pick award and has been given a five-star crash test rating from the NHTSA. That’s a great combination and feels even better in the face of all the standard safety technology. The Sentra features a lot of advanced technology that will limit accidents and increase driver safety. That includes forward and rearward collision mitigation, blind-spot monitoring, and lane-departure warning.
2020 Nissan Sentra Trims & Pricing
S – $20,260
The base 2020 Nissan Sentra S gets 16-inch wheels, cloth seats, and a 7-inch infotainment system with four speakers. The Sentra also features blind-spot monitoring, automatic collision mitigation, and lane-departure warning. Every Sentra, regardless of model, comes with the same 149-horsepower four-cylinder engine and a CVT which drives the front wheels only.
SV – $21,320
Bump up to the Sentra SV and buyers will find alloy wheels, a leather-wrapped steering wheel, and a bigger 8-inch infotainment system. This larger system has Android Auto and Apple CarPlay connectivity included. It also adds two more speakers for a total of six.
SR – $22,600
The top-tier Sentra SR adds 18-inch wheels, LED headlights, and leather upholstery. Add the Premium package and you’ll get a heated steering wheel, a fantastic surround-view camera system, and an eight-speaker Bose sound system.
Warranties
When it comes to warranty coverage, Nissan is doing the bare minimum to keep up with its rivals. The 2020 Nissan Sentra comes with a 3-year or 36,000-mile limited warranty and a 5-year or 60,000-mile powertrain warranty. It offers no complimentary maintenance either. In both categories, rivals like Kia and Hyundai do far better.
What we think
2020 Nissan Sentra – usa.nissannews.com | Shop 2020 Nissan Sentra on Carsforsale.com
The 2020 Nissan Sentra could use more powertrain options and more standard technology, but it’s still a fantastic bargain considering its very low price. It’s also one of the most stylish and comfortable options at its price point, so price conscious shoppers looking for an eye catching vehicle should be on the lookout.
