Hey all, I’m looking at a 2019 Nissan versa, and a 2021 Nissan versa. Both are manual transmissions.
Both vehicles have had normal oil changes done.
The 2019 versa has 66,370 miles on it.
The 2021 has 47,263 miles on it.
Obviously the 2021 would seem like the right answer but my issue with it is it’s a push to start. I know electric key fobs can be pricey, and I’m assuming getting a push start fixed if it has issues is also pricey.
I currently live in Daytona, and plan on getting a job in st Augustine. That’s about an hour drive, I’m looking to see if either of these versas would be reliable to handle that drive daily. It would also be my daily driver outside of work too. If I were to go with the 2019 would I still have a reliable vehicle? Or should I suck it up and go with the 2021? Thanks in advanced.
I’d go with the push start. It shouldn’t be too bad if it needs to be replaced, which isn’t for a while.
Even hard keys will experience problems when it gets old.
Car complaints shows 1 issue with the 2019 and 0 issues with the 2021 Versa… So either should be OK…
Have them both checked out by a pro mechanic shop of YOUR choosing not there’s…
Also one thing that nobody pays attention to most of the time is the tire size, check the size difference between the two and then check on there prices… as well as mileage, the 2021 has an optional low pro 17" tire that can/will be a much harsher ride plus less mileage then the 15"/16" tires… Both have 15" and 16" options… SO driving at least 2 hours a day will make a difference with the tire size down the road, both on your back and your wallet… lol
Why would somebody get rid of a perfectly-good 2 year old vehicle with less than 50k miles on the odometer. I suspect that the previous owner was dissatisfied with it.
Demo car for one of the sales staff??
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If the OP can confirm that this was the case, then… sure… it would probably be a decent candidate for purchase.
I cannot. It’s only had 1 owner carfax says so I’m not sure why the vehicle was sold. It doesn’t state it’s had any accidents so no clue why the og owner got rid of it.
From what gets discussed here, I don’t think this is really a problem for any car. In fact, there are probably more issues with keys and lock cylinders reported here, now that I think about it.
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That’s good to know. I’ve never owned a push to start so wasn’t sure on how reliable they were.
I am betting this is a leased car that went over mileage traded for another lease car that will go over mileage.
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Consumer Reports does not have a rating for Versa’s reliability… probably because of small numbers of Versa owners among their readers who respond to their car surveys.
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You never know why people trade in vehicles. I trade in a car every year or two just because I like driving a different, newer vehicle. My wife goes 4-5 years. There’s nothing wrong with the vehicles I’m trading in, I just generally get tired of driving the same vehicle for more than a year or two.
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I suppose that this is another possible explanation.
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I was faced with a similar situation in 2012. I needed a new car for my youngest daughter to drive at school and found a 2 year old Cavalier with 14,000 miles on it. I checked the CarFax in it and it was maintained by a dealer and all information was available. Still, I was concerned. My oldest daughter said that many of her friends bought a cheap car when they graduated from college to get them through a couple of years then bought something they liked more and could then afford. The Cavalier worked out well and maybe this Versa will too.
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It’s good to hear that at least some young people make the right financial decision here. That seems to be getting rarer these days.
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Repo’d is another option… 
The owner could have had knee issues and had to sell…
I think the Lease thing makes the most sense…
Or, previous owner worked for a company that provided a car allowance, up to XXXXX dollars, buy what you want. Cost more, you pay the difference.
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I doubt the 2021’s push-button ignition switch will be much of a problem. Looks like a pretty simple design, fairly easy to test & repair. If you want to worry, me, I’d be focusing more about the extra gadgetry the 2021 may have that the 2019 doesn’t. You might want to do some comparative research on their backup cameras, radar, sonar, adaptive cruise control, infotainment systems and the like. Then there’s the price factor. With manual transmission, both are very good cars. The mileage wouldn’t be of much concern to me as long as the pre-purchase inspection was ok. If the 2019 was $2-4 k less, I’d chose the 2019.
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These are simple cars and generally reliable, except for the automatic(CVT) models. The manuals are quite rare and should generally be decent cars. Push button key fobs are kind of pricey if lost, but they don’t really have any other issues
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Thanks for the info everyone!