Where each one leads
Nissan Sentra
- Against cars of the same year, the Nissan Sentra comes out better in New York safety inspections (fails 22% more often than average) than the Saturn ION (fails 33% more often than average).
- On Canada's official test the most frugal 2026 Nissan Sentra uses 7.1 l/100 km, the 2007 Saturn ION 9.0.
Saturn ION
Ahead on none of the like-for-like measures.
Only measures that do not depend on how many cars were sold: pass and failure rates against cars of the same age, ratings, fuel use and CO₂. How we compare
At a glance
| Nissan Sentra | Saturn ION | |
|---|---|---|
| Model years in the US safety record | 1982–2026 | 2003–2008 |
EEA new-car registrations (CC BY 4.0) · DVLA licensed vehicles (OGL v3.0) · RDW (CC0) · Traficom (CC BY 4.0) · generations: Wikidata (CC0).
Reliability and problems
| Nissan Sentra | Saturn ION | |
|---|---|---|
| New York safety inspections failed | 2.0% | 3.1% |
| … against cars of the same year | +22% | +33% |
| US owner complaints | 5,960 | 4,344 |
| Most complaints about | Power train | Steering |
| Model year with most complaints | 2013 (638) | 2006 (1,235) |
| US recall campaigns | 55 | 10 |
| Manufacturer service bulletins | 3,014 | 3,310 |
| NHTSA defect investigations | 40 | 15 |
Complaint, recall and bulletin counts grow with the number of cars sold and are not adjusted for it. UK MOT: DVSA anonymised MOT results (OGL v3.0); New York: DMV inspections; complaints, recalls, bulletins and investigations: NHTSA (public domain); odometer: RDW (CC0).
Safety
| Nissan Sentra | Saturn ION | |
|---|---|---|
| NHTSA overall rating | 5★ (2025) | — |
NHTSA New Car Assessment Program, most recent rated model year (public domain).
Fuel, emissions and price
| Nissan Sentra | Saturn ION | |
|---|---|---|
| Official combined fuel use, Canada | 7.1 l/100 km (2026) | 9.0 l/100 km (2007) |
Canada: NRCan Fuel Consumption Ratings, most frugal version of the latest year (OGL Canada). Europe: EEA monitoring of new-car CO₂ and on-board fuel meters (OBFCM), CC BY 4.0. Price: RDW catalogue price (CC0). Finland: Traficom (CC BY 4.0).