I am soooooo bad at making up my mind, I'm so friggen indecisive.

I am stuck between a 98 Maxima SE or GLE
or a 99 Toyota Solara SE loaded up like an SLE

Either way it'll be automatic...
I'm not into, well no, I don't really have the cash to put many mods into it so that's not a huge concern.

Both are about equal in engine departments
MAX: 3.0L 190hp @ 5600RPM, 205ft.lb. @ 4000 RPM EPA 21/28
SOL: 3.0L 200hp @ 5500RPM, 195ft.lb. @ 4700 RPM EPA 20/28

MAX: 3085lbs.
SOL: 3263lbs.

Both are rated "EXCEPTIONAL" reliability by Consumer Reports

MAX: 6 speaker 200Watt BOSE
SOL: 8 speaker (in 6 locations??) 200Watt JBL

Both have very good resale value

I don't know what to do... someone make up my mind.

I like 2 doors, but I also like the Max
They both require, for the most part, premium fuel.

Here's how I use my car:
To & from work... hilly straight country road, but 24 miles round trip a day, snowy and crappy in the winter... both are front wheel drive.

In the fall I will be driving about 80 miles round trip 2-3 days a week to college. I need something with decent gas mileage, excellent reliability -- something that will last me for the next 6-7 years because I don't plan on getting a new car until I graduate and start making $50/hour. (Infiniti I30 here I come...)

I don't carry more than 1 other passenger that often and being a large coupe the Solara is roomy in the back, actually it has more rear legroom than the Max. My TBird was very comfy for 2 people in the back.

So I dunnnooooo ahhhhhhhhhhh

oh and....
Other important details to me are Fit/Finish Squeaks/Rattles we have lots of crappy roads and rattles drive me insane (I HATE AMERICAN CARS!)

Both got about the same averages on Carpoint in the Owner Ratings sections

maxima
 

I love a maxima solara is good to but I would rather have four doors than two

i did the two door thing
 

with my 96 dodge avenger, they are nice sporty cars, but the two doors is very limiting, plus its very annoying to have to move your seat everytime someone has to get in teh back. get the max you'll be happy i will never buy another two door car unless its a viper or something else in that nature. besides what answer did you expect from us fellow MAXIMA.org members?

jules

I'd agree that it depends on whether you want 2 or 4 doors. If you are indifferent, I'd choose the Toyota since it is a more recent design than the Maxima. The 4th gen maximas are depreciating rapidly and will continue to do so. BUT it's usually easier to sell a 4 door car. Also the Max is costly to insure, but then again so are 2 door cars... Both should be reliable. It's a close call.

Hmmmph
 

:hmmph: LoL, 2-door/vs./4-door is really not an issue for me... I have a 2-door car now and getting in and out of the back isn't really hard because its a large 2-dr. car (Same with the SoLaRa--now if it was a 2-dr. Civic or something, yes that'd be much harder)

geez I hate decisions

Get the solara :nm
 

:nm

Drive then both and then decide.
Make sure you really "drive" it, don't just do the normal dealer test drive, try out some roads, see how they both handle, accelerate, shift, and brake.

Then make your decision based on what you like the best. Also, what feels more comfortable?

if you have a lot of bumpy roads on yr trip the solara will be better maxima's rear beam sucks on bumpy road.

I think your trying to get forced into buying a max..
 

Costcowholesale,

Deep down, I think you want the max. Think about it, why else would you be asking a Maxima forum what car you should get, especially when you are comparing a Nissan Max to a Toyota!?!?

Do your subconsious a favor and buy you a MAX:P

Do yourself a favor and don't listen to any of us. Drive both a lot, as much as necessary, until you get a really good feeling which one suits you best. It's all about how you feel about the car.

I spent a long time looking for a car. The cars I drove during that time were the Eclipse, Celica GT-S, Miata, Prelude Type SH, GTi, Golf, A4 1.8T Quattro, Pontiac Firebird Trans Am, Solara V6, 2001 Maxima SE, and '99 Maxima SE. All of those cars were the manual transmission versions. When I got to the 2001 Maxima I realized it may well have combined everything I was looking for, sportiness, power, practicality, and some semi-luxury features. The Solara felt too family-car-ish to me, the engine felt too isolated, the shifter was a bit balky, it didn't feel like it wanted to play. And I wasn't a huge fan of the dashboard. When I found the loaded '99 Maxima SE in the paper, I went to drive it and found it really had all that I was looking for. It was fun, it'll fit me and a bunch of my friends in comfort, it'll carry our stuff, it's fast, it's quiet, it's much more luxurious than I was used to, and it's reliable. Plus, it had all the options I wanted, but was maybe $9k cheaper than a similarly equipped 2001 costs. That clinched it for me. So I bought it two weeks ago. No one can decide for you, but like many other people, I did a lot of looking around and thinking, and finally decided the Maxima offered really everything I was looking for in a fun yet still practical car. Except maybe an independant rear suspension :) But I think I'll learn to live with that. I've had cars with 2-doors and with 4-doors, and I must admit, it's generally more cramped in the back of the 2-doors, it's tougher for people to get in and out of, and frankly it's annoying to have to re-adjust your seat everytime someone sits behind you. Good luck.

Re: I think your trying to get forced into buying a max..
 

str8maxin: what are you talkin about? I brought a brand new maxima october 1999 and I still have it I'm not the one thats gonna buy a new car. I think you mean TommyBoiSxty9
not me

the only thing with the auto is it has the possibility of going bad if you drive it hard. I've heard this and i'm unsure if it is true or not, but you might want to be careful. i agree go with the max tho, it's pretty much a perfect balance of everything you could want

The auto on the Max or the Solara?

IF you drive any car real hard the transmission is going to go. Test drive and decide which is the better deal and what you'd be happy with.

the trans on the max, but i guess everybody is right about driving the car hard and the transmission going bad, i'm not very experienced with it all, but i dont think thats true if it is a good transmission..after all they do make some porsches with autos, and they dont go bad..