Thinking of buying a 5th/5.5 Gen? Please post all questions and info here....
03-19-2008, 07:38 AM
#41
Junior Member
Join Date: Feb 2007
Posts: 80
Bought my 02 SE Feb 07 with 79K on it. A year and 30K later and the only problems are related to the transmission - and this is just starting. I've yet to investigate this issue further. It maybe a cheap sensor, or it maybe an expensive assembly.
Gas mileage mixed for me is 24 - 27.5mpg and I get on it often.
Gas mileage mixed for me is 24 - 27.5mpg and I get on it often.
03-19-2008, 08:02 AM
#42
Oil consumption seems to be the biggest issue, the poll here shows that about 10% of the people with a 5.5 gen have problems with excessive oil consumption. Wheel bearings are also an issue, IMO because if the bearings are repacked or the rotor is removed to be turned or replaced, people cheap out and reuse the locknut or don't tighten it to factory specs (250 ftlbs).
Only issues I have had with mine since I got it about 4 months ago was the wheel bearing problem that appears to be a reassmbly issue (so it really can't be considered a design fault) and a bad thermostat, which was $22 to replace.
Only issues I have had with mine since I got it about 4 months ago was the wheel bearing problem that appears to be a reassmbly issue (so it really can't be considered a design fault) and a bad thermostat, which was $22 to replace.
I could have sworn the center lock nut did not have to be removed to replace the rotors on out cars.............
Maybe I'm just wrong.
03-19-2008, 02:23 PM
#43
03-19-2008, 03:09 PM
#45
sorry to hijack.
give your car a good tune up if it hasn't had one in a while: plugs, fuel filter, pcv valve, air filter, check what is rattling it's probably a heat shield, i don't know if 5th gens throw a code for a bad knock sensor 4th's don't so check that with a dmm, other then that they don't need much in terms of routine maintenance.
in all honesty they don't get amazing gas mileage.
good luck
03-19-2008, 06:15 PM
#46
03-19-2008, 06:44 PM
#47
Member
Join Date: Jan 2008
Location: Billerica MA
Posts: 93
I dont know about you guys but I get about 420 to a tank highway and about 315 on city roads. I drive it hard too
I too have a dash rattle not rattling all the time just when cold and going over bumps sounds metallic metal against metal real quick. Doesnt bother me..I also have NOISY tires.. sounds like an airplane taking off
P1320 SES CODE and the wonderful P0430 are the only ones Ive had to worry about still havent found the p1320 Bad coil yet, Just keep clearing it until Spring gets here when I can work outside and not freeze to death
I too have a dash rattle not rattling all the time just when cold and going over bumps sounds metallic metal against metal real quick. Doesnt bother me..I also have NOISY tires.. sounds like an airplane taking off
P1320 SES CODE and the wonderful P0430 are the only ones Ive had to worry about still havent found the p1320 Bad coil yet, Just keep clearing it until Spring gets here when I can work outside and not freeze to death
Last edited by 00MaximaGXE; 03-19-2008 at 06:49 PM.
03-19-2008, 08:15 PM
#48
Member
Join Date: Aug 2005
Posts: 31
WTF am I doing wrong, any one else getting anything close? Problems I occured thus far
$ Bad O2 Sensor(blue one can't think of the more descriptive name)
$ Passenger wheel bearing and hub assy
*Radiator (road hazard It had nothing to do with Nissan quality)
Bose 6 Disc (POS honestly the main reason I don't drive much) Annoying
Some random bogging problem which went away after Nissan raped me for a diagonistic and told me I had a bad coil and they couldn't troubleshoot or test coils and recommed all 6 be replaced total cost 700 dollars. I told them they are full of **** and drove the car until the problem arose again 2 years later still hasn't come back.Thank god I'm not a woman or ignorant.
$= Removed and Replaced
All in all I'm happy with my Maxima and will only trade it for a G3?,M?5 or something German.
Last edited by MADE; 03-19-2008 at 08:20 PM.
03-22-2008, 08:30 PM
#49
Member
Join Date: Oct 2003
Posts: 75
Looking at an 01' Maxima tomorrow, couple problems..
Well, only one problem that I know of. The AC/heat doesn't work indicating a blower motor from what I could tell from talking to the owner. Is this an expensive problem and how hard is it to fix myself? I typically do all work myself.
Car has 160,000 miles, auto and leather. What are problems I need to be aware of or are there specific areas to check out? I had a 96' I30 a few years ago and it was bulletproof. I'm assuming these 5th gen Maxima's are fairly solid as well?
Thank you for your advice.
Car has 160,000 miles, auto and leather. What are problems I need to be aware of or are there specific areas to check out? I had a 96' I30 a few years ago and it was bulletproof. I'm assuming these 5th gen Maxima's are fairly solid as well?
Thank you for your advice.
03-23-2008, 09:06 AM
#51
blower motor resistor maybee the culprit? Anyways, these are good cars, as long as the previous owner was on top of the maintanace, you should be fine, look at the shocks, maf, coil packs, o2 sensors, make sure all have been replaced by now, personally I wouldn't buy a car with 160k miles but thats just me. I hope you're getting it for a good price...
03-23-2008, 09:43 AM
#52
Member
Join Date: Oct 2003
Posts: 75
blower motor resistor maybee the culprit? Anyways, these are good cars, as long as the previous owner was on top of the maintanace, you should be fine, look at the shocks, maf, coil packs, o2 sensors, make sure all have been replaced by now, personally I wouldn't buy a car with 160k miles but thats just me. I hope you're getting it for a good price...
04-01-2008, 08:41 AM
#54
Looking at 2003 Se Te 6spd Today
Hey guys,
I'm going to look at the car mentioned in the title. It is a one owner vehicle black w/ black leather, heated. The car has 50,000 miles on it and the seller is asking $13,999. Is that a reasonable price. I've seen its under Kbb value for the car.
I don't know much about 5th gens but have driven my 4th gen since 2002. Is there any thing I should look for specific on the car? To my knowledge it has never been modified.
Thanks for your help and if I'm lucky I'll be posting much more often in this part of the forum!
I'm going to look at the car mentioned in the title. It is a one owner vehicle black w/ black leather, heated. The car has 50,000 miles on it and the seller is asking $13,999. Is that a reasonable price. I've seen its under Kbb value for the car.
I don't know much about 5th gens but have driven my 4th gen since 2002. Is there any thing I should look for specific on the car? To my knowledge it has never been modified.
Thanks for your help and if I'm lucky I'll be posting much more often in this part of the forum!
04-01-2008, 09:06 AM
#55
indeed, read the stickies because there ARE a few things you should be looking out for.
At the end of the day, this forum could tell you the car isn't worth more than $10,000, but how does that help with your negotiations? The dealer doesn't care. You should always try to get the car for less than it's posted but whether we say its worth $11,000 or $12,000 won't really impact on how things play out
At the end of the day, this forum could tell you the car isn't worth more than $10,000, but how does that help with your negotiations? The dealer doesn't care. You should always try to get the car for less than it's posted but whether we say its worth $11,000 or $12,000 won't really impact on how things play out
04-01-2008, 09:15 AM
#56
before you begin negotiating for a price, make sure it doesn't have major problems, have your mechanic put it on the lift and go through it thoroughly. Price is always negotiable.
04-01-2008, 05:29 PM
#58
Senior Member
Join Date: Mar 2008
Location: Tolland, Connecticut
Posts: 347
the kelly blue book values is always overpriced, because it is what dealers use to determine what to charge, thus resulting in inflated prices...a better site is www.edmunds.com, they're values are more reasonable...on kelly my 2000 GLE fully loaded in fair condition with 83,000+ miles was listed in the high nines, while edmunds said it was closer to $8500...got the car, completely registered with new brakes for $8800....however that is a very good price for a 2003 titanium edition with that mileage...i would try to lower the price, but if they are unwilling to budge, i would shell out the extra coin and get it anyway
04-01-2008, 07:24 PM
#60
Junior Member
Join Date: Apr 2007
Location: MD
Posts: 27
04-01-2008, 11:11 PM
#61
04-03-2008, 01:54 PM
#63
04-03-2008, 06:17 PM
#66
Depending on who you ask, TE are hard to buy. Not too hard to find. But you fuq around and low ball, someone will beat you to it. Happened to me at least 3 times, bfr I bought mine.
03 anniversary edition eh?
04-04-2008, 02:07 PM
#68
I was lucky to find my 03 6 speed TE. Didn't even know it was one until I got to the Nissan dealer. The description online was so vague.....But I knew the car wouldn't last long so I brought it right on the spot.....
04-12-2008, 03:06 PM
#69
Supporting Maxima.org Member
Join Date: Mar 2004
Location: Rochester, NY
Posts: 100
Do I really want a 5.5 gen max??
Hey guys~
I spent the last few weeks studying the 4th, 5th and 5.5th generation maxima, trying to figure out which would be the best for me. I settled on the 5.5 for the sweet VQ35 motor and set up a test drive. Today, I went to drive a 2k3 SE with 110k miles on it that was for sale. I know that is a bit high, but I with all the praise that the motor gets, I should be fine for another 100k, right? The engine was veeeerrry nice and so was the ride down the road, BUT there was a check engine light that came on a day before I drove it. The owner had taken the car to a shop and they read the code as a malfunctioning lifter. The owner said it would be about a $1000 job to get it fixed. You've got to be kidding me!!! Are there many problems with the motor? Is this a serious problem?
Help me keep interest in the VQ35!
I spent the last few weeks studying the 4th, 5th and 5.5th generation maxima, trying to figure out which would be the best for me. I settled on the 5.5 for the sweet VQ35 motor and set up a test drive. Today, I went to drive a 2k3 SE with 110k miles on it that was for sale. I know that is a bit high, but I with all the praise that the motor gets, I should be fine for another 100k, right? The engine was veeeerrry nice and so was the ride down the road, BUT there was a check engine light that came on a day before I drove it. The owner had taken the car to a shop and they read the code as a malfunctioning lifter. The owner said it would be about a $1000 job to get it fixed. You've got to be kidding me!!! Are there many problems with the motor? Is this a serious problem?
Help me keep interest in the VQ35!
04-12-2008, 04:55 PM
#72
Supporting Maxima.org Member
Join Date: Mar 2004
Location: Rochester, NY
Posts: 100
how do the 3.0 and 3.5 compare with respect to reliability?
PS- I don't really want that guy's car becuase it had scratches all over it and he admitted to being a leadfoot. I'm sure he didn't take very good care of it.
PS- I don't really want that guy's car becuase it had scratches all over it and he admitted to being a leadfoot. I'm sure he didn't take very good care of it.
Last edited by n1_saxman; 04-12-2008 at 05:08 PM.
04-12-2008, 06:00 PM
#74
Thinking of buying a 5th or 5.5 Gen? Please step in....
This is a thread for all those interested in buying a 5th or 5.5 Gen and are trying to do some research, so please lok through this thread and/or post all questions you have in here.
I've merged a handful of the most recent discussions on this to kick start this and hope that ALL questions regarding potential purchases can be kept to this thread. If you have some information you'd like to share with potential buyers, please feel free as well.
Consequently, all other new threads on buying 5th/5.5 Gens will be locked or merged into this one.
I've merged a handful of the most recent discussions on this to kick start this and hope that ALL questions regarding potential purchases can be kept to this thread. If you have some information you'd like to share with potential buyers, please feel free as well.
Consequently, all other new threads on buying 5th/5.5 Gens will be locked or merged into this one.
04-12-2008, 06:55 PM
#75
there was a check engine light that came on a day before I drove it. The owner had taken the car to a shop and they read the code as a malfunctioning lifter. The owner said it would be about a $1000 job to get it fixed. You've got to be kidding me!!! Are there many problems with the motor? Is this a serious problem?
04-13-2008, 07:30 AM
#76
Senior Member
Join Date: Apr 2004
Posts: 174
Deciding between 02 or 03..
Since ive been outta the maxima world for few years now, ive lacked on all info. Im looking to get me another maxima as soon as im able, and ive narrowed it down to wanting only a 02 or 03... Now from what im reading I am understanding that there are a few differences? If you guys wouldn't mind bringing me up to date as to what these differences are so that i can either narrow it to an 03 only or still possibly both... Thanks in advanced guy, I'm looking forward to getting back into a max. 
P.S. I just noticed there is a somewhat of a thread about 5gen/5.5 gen that might have my answer... Ill read through it, but if anyone still knows specifics I would appreciate it.
P.S. I just noticed there is a somewhat of a thread about 5gen/5.5 gen that might have my answer... Ill read through it, but if anyone still knows specifics I would appreciate it.
Last edited by MoMax00; 04-13-2008 at 07:34 AM.
04-13-2008, 09:04 AM
#78
Senior Member
Join Date: Apr 2004
Posts: 174
Not really worried much about cosmetics or interior things like that... I'm interested in knowing differences in engine or tranny.
