San Francisco Chronicle

Nissan drums up anticipati­on for 2019 Altima with special Edition One model

- By Joseph Capparella

Luxury automakers love to employ special tactics such as launch-edition variants to drum up anticipati­on for new cars, and now Nissan wants in. Joining such vehicles as Mercedes-Benz’s Edition 1 cars and Jaguar’s First Edition models is an Edition One version of the redesigned 2019 Nissan Altima. This Altima offers early adopters a few visual tweaks and some extra services, along with a bit of exclusivit­y (at least by mass-market-sedan standards), since only 3900 of these cars will be produced in total.

The Edition One starts with a fully loaded 2019 Altima Platinum with the optional VCTurbo engine, a turbocharg­ed 2.0-liter four-cylinder with a variable compressio­n ratio, making 248 horsepower and 273 lb-ft of torque; this engine was introduced in the Infiniti QX50 crossover. In addition to all of the Platinum’s standard features, the special-edition car adds 19-inch dark-gray wheels, a rear spoiler, ground lighting, illuminati­on for the side sills, and identifyin­g badges. It will be offered in red, white, or black.

Buyers of the special-edition Altima also get three years of free Nissan Concierge services, allowing them to do things such as make dinner reservatio­ns and purchase event tickets either from the car’s central touchscree­n or within a smartphone app.

Online reservatio­ns for the Altima Edition One open on June 15, and the program also includes a choice from three gift selections: an Amazon Echo Show Alexa-enabled device that comes with a membership to Amazon Prime; a Bose Soundlink Resolve+ speaker, an Amazon Echo Dot, and Amazon Prime membership; or an Apple Watch. If you’re not willing to pay extra for the Edition One car — the premium has yet to be announced — reservatio­ns for the regular 2019 Altima models will open up the same day.

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