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The 45-min, stop-and-go traffic-laden drive to the quaint town of Chagrin Falls, Ohio, to pick up the test-drive vehicle was all the encouragement I needed to ditch my car for a week. The sporty sierra-pine-colored Sentra SE (one of four new shades for 1998) sat waiting in the drive. I have to admit, at first glance the bright, mossy-green color is a bit daunting. However, after a few days, it grows on you, much like the popular avocado-green appliances of the 60s did. But enough of the girlie color stuff.
The Sentra SE has the same 2.0-liter, four-cylinder all-aluminum engine as the 200SX SE-R sports coupe. The power plant produces 140 hp at 6,400 rpm and 132 lb-ft of torque at 4,800 rpm. I have to admit I didn't have any trouble climbing the hills out of Chagrin Falls back into Cleveland as the Sentra responded nicely to my accelerator demands. The four-wheel disc brakes helped out on a few occasions when I was forced...