James,
This isn't SR20DE related at all, but since you asked...
I love the Altima. The engine is a brute, a total beast. Motorweek broadcast their test of a 5-speed model running zero to 60 in 5.9 seconds and the quarter-mile in 14.4 seconds at 100 mph. I don't think the car is quite that fast, but add three-tenths to each of those figures while dropping four miles an hour from the trap speed and you'll be pretty safe.
The only major quibble I have with the car is the interior. It's cheap. I've heard rumors that the new SE-R suffers from the same problem. The design is nice, but the materials are strictly Kia-esque. Acres of flimsy plastic. Vinyl shift boot. Rock-hard cowl. Joint seams. Thin, unpadded carpet. Clearly, Nissan spent all the money on the engine, brakes and Skyline-derived multilink rear suspension and simply said, The hell with it, nobody'll notice if we stick a Korean interior in there.
Well, I did.

But I still love the car. I didn't buy it to be coddled in a Mercedes interior. And the exterior styling is a real knockout for a four-door family sedan. It makes Accords and the new Camry look dowdy by comparison. I do wish Nissan had dropped in a VLSD in the manual-transmissioned models, as you can induce wheelspin well into second gear without any effort at all.
But to answer your question, it's a fantastic car. Really great. I look at as an SE-R for family guys.
Jarrod K. Wright
'98 Altima SE 5-speed
'02 Altima 3.5SE 5-speed