If Ford had some technology that General Motors needed, would the Blue Oval sell it to its cross-town competitor?

You bet. Business is business.

Another example: If you have a five-speed automatic in your late-model German-engineered Ultimate Driving Machine
BMW, chances are it was built in France by GM.

So when Nissan was looking to get into the mid-size hybrid sedan market, it faced a choice: spend billions developing
its own system; or buy the expensive electric bits, lock, stock and continuously-variable-transmission (CVT), from arch-rival Toyota.

Mate them to Nissan's own 2.5 L four-cylinder engine, stuff it all into the new-last-year Altima, and Ichiro's your uncle.

Whatever can be said about the new Altima Hybrid can be broken down into how it is similar to the regular Altima
and how it is different.

What you see inside and out is pretty much identical, apart from subtle badging. Nissan has decided as a corporate
objective to make its cars stand out from the crowd.
Yes, Toyota sells a lot of beige Camrys, but Nissan is looking for a different kind of customer.

So Altima is an almost in-your-face good-looking car, with jewel-like headlights and taillights, and a low, sleek silhouette,
which sacrifices some interior space, notably rear seat headroom.

A further sacrifice is made in the hybrid version because approximately one-fifth of the regular car's 370 L trunk has been
axed to accommodate the big battery. The resulting space, though, is fairly usable.

Efforts were made with the new-generation Altima to upgrade interior trim quality – trying to remember back far enough to
the last regular Altima I drove, it seems as if they have done so, although sonnets will not likely be written on this topic.

I don't recall in the regular Altima the foot-operated parking brake dangling down so scarily close to my left shin like it does
in the hybrid, but I can't imagine it's any different. It must pass crash standards, but it looks like a threat, as most such pedals
are closer to the left footwell kick panel on the side.

At least Altima, as do most Nissans, has active front seat head restraints, perhaps the most cost-beneficial safety system in
the car business.

Nissan is also trying to distinguish itself as the "handling" company, implying that its cars are more fun to drive than the competition.

This translates into Altima having a firmer suspension than most. It may have gone too far in that direction, because the ride is
knobbly without much in the way of compensatory handling prowess.

All Altimas now have push-button start. In the Hybrid of course, it simply awakens the sleeping electric giant under the hood.

Unlike Toyota's Prius and more like the Camry Hybrid, there isn't a huge computer graphic display telling you where every
electron is flowing. I think the idea is to make the Altima Hybrid seem as normal as possible.
A small Ready indicator suggests the car is, well, ready.

I drove the car mostly in cold snowy weather, and this may not be the best environment to illustrate the benefits of a hybrid.

For example, the car almost always seemed to be operating with the gasoline engine running; electrics don't love the cold that
much, so the fuel consumption advantage may not be maximal.

Acceleration is strong and the car runs quietly, even when cruising with the four-banger pumping away, only getting a bit raucous when accelerating hard.

Interesting that the hybrid four-cylinder's output is much lower than the regular car's – 158 versus 175 hp, and 162 lb.-ft. of torque
versus 180 (very interestingly, virtually identical to Camry's base four-cylinder).
The electric motor more than compensates, adding approximately 140 hp and 199 lb.-ft.

The CVT doesn't shift as such, and so is seamless in operation.

Various groans, wheezes and whistles emanate from the car, front and back, ignition on or off, because there are cooling
fans and pumps that run under the control of a computer somewhere.

There is a noticeable shudder when the gasoline engine switches on or off and, as with all CVT transmissions, changes in road
speed do not always correspond to changes in engine r.p.m.

One downside did raise its ugly head during my test: like many, and perhaps all hybrid vehicles, it is not possible to turn off the
Traction Control system.

I know that some hybrids don't allow this system to be deactivated because excessive wheelspin can damage components of the
CVT. Not sure if this is Altima's issue or not, but not being able to shut it off was, I'm sure, a big factor in the car getting stuck
in my driveway.

For some, driving a hybrid is a statement, not an economic decision.
Fair enough.
Nobody buys a Porsche in Canada to be able to go 250 km/h on the 401.

Interesting, though, to look at Altima Hybrid's financials versus Camry Hybrid's, from which the Nissan acquires most of it
hybrid technology.

According to Transport Canada's calculations, Camry's regular four-cylinder automatic will cost you $1,440 per year in fuel,
while Nissan's larger, more powerful 2.5 L four costs only $1,386.

Hybridize them, and the advantage swings the other way: $1,026 for Camry, $1,044 for Altima.

Marginal sure, and only truly relevant if your driving matches Transport Canada's assumptions (20,000 km per year,
55 per cent city driving, 90 cents a litre for fuel). Higher gas prices (guaranteed) and more city driving might force the
advantage more toward the hybrid.

Also, comparing the V6 numbers (Camry $1,620; Altima $1,840), which may be more relevant because the performance is
closer, bolsters the hybrid's case.

Any way you slice it, the fuel savings will be in the hundreds of dollars per year – about what you'd save by twice-daily
switching from a venti to a grande latte.

Calculating the actual payback is made (deliberately?) difficult by the manufacturers, because they don't offer exactly the
same specification and equipment, hybrid versus regular, for apples-to-apples comparison.

In Altima's case, the hybrid has the highest base MSRP in the range: $33,998, versus $25,698 for a CVT-equipped base
Altima four-cylinder, or $32,498 for a CVT-equipped V6.

You'd have to go through the standard-versus-optional equipment lists for all variants, factoring in whether you'd actually
want some of the stuff you have to take on the hybrid, to determine whether the fuel savings make up for the extra capital cost.

The various (ill-advised, in my view) government grants may swing the balance toward the hybrid, but resale value might slam
that pendulum back.

I don't know that the market has enough experience yet with older hybrids to really evaluate their long-term worth, but a couple
of anecdotal situations with which I am familiar suggest it will take a while before the used-car market warms to hybrids,
probably due to uncertainty about long-term reliability.

Suffice to say that if a hybrid mid-size sedan appeals to you, Altima has to be on your shopping list, because there are really
only two other options. Now that the Accord hybrid has been dropped, it's Camry or the new Malibu, and the latter is really a
mild hybrid, hence really isn't in the same game.

If you want some style and ride firmness to go with your green suit of clothes, the Altima Hybrid is probably your choice.

PRICE: $33,998

ENGINE: 2.5 L inline four, hybridized with permanent magnet AC synchronous electric motor

POWER/TORQUE: Gas: 158 hp/162 lb.-ft.; electric motor 141 hp/199 lb.-ft.

FUEL CONSUMPTION: City 5.6; hwy., 5.9 L/100 km

COMPETITION: Nissan Altima non-hybrid, Toyota Camry Hybrid, Chevrolet Malibu Hybrid

WHAT'S BEST: Excellent fuel usage depending on driving conditions; strong performance; attractive styling

WHAT'S WORST: Ride quality and interior space below class standards; financial justification dicey at best

WHAT'S INTERESTING: Gives hybrid mid-size family sedan intenders a sportier, better-looking alternative.