My wife just wrecked her accord and I want to get a Maxima as a replacement.
How reliable is the 4th gen? I've heard these were bulletproof? What about MPG? Do they need prem or regular will suffice?

 

I've used premium since I got my car. High compression call for it... YMMV

I've also used Mobil 1 since the get go.

I am approaching 200,000 miles of spirited driving and I haven't had any real problems with the car. Total cost of repairs has got to be less than 250 dollars in 6 years. (Maintenance parts aside)

I'm kind of biased since I own one though. Great cars overall IMO.

Edit - Although there are thirty gazillion threads on it - I get about 28MPG highway (80-85mph, 80 mile round trip)

 

Overall, i think its a good ride.....ride a 95 GLE A/T. Plus, got to .org to get things done by myself when need it....save like 80% from the mechanics.

 

Great!
How do you think I should expect to pay for good-cond 97-98 base model with about 70K on it?

 

well first off, good luck findint a 97-98 with low miles. good condition base model like that, prolly 5-6 grand???

 

I'm thinking 6-7 but you may get lucky.

The 4th gen is a reliable car at a great price considering its pretty decent engine. It will take regular, but really it is designed to work optimally with premium.

 

I got 176k on my Max, and it takes one h3ll of a beating.

 

Very reliable car. I bought a second Maxima after my first one got totalled. My cars get nothing but Chevron 93 Octane.

I don't know about your area, but it might take a while for you to locate a 70K-mile Maxima. It took me 6 weeks to get a properly equipped, low-mileage replacement Maxima.

 

One of the most reliable cars/engine produced, even check consumer reports. I used premium gas in mine, and with only 64,000 miles i plan on having it for much longer.

 

Are there any weak spots I should watch for? What is the timing belt changing schedule?

 

We have timing chain. No need to replace, it SHOULD last longer than hte car. Only prob is Knock Sensor. Some years have alterantor(97-98but had recall) and starter(needs to be regrease, easy fix) probs.

 

usual problems with maxima are. some incabin rattling, ignition coils go bad, starter sometimes fail to start starting. alternator recall for some 97-98. premium bose speakers fail to work(amps) and lots of rattling if your wife is going to get a system. and most important of all, cup holders suck.

 

Well, these all sounded like minor issues to me.

 

Oh trust me, when you get that Large size dring from McDs, you'd realise how big of the problem small cupholders are

 

uhmmm....that high?? im not sure. im actually planning to sell my car sometime early next year. i have a 97maxima se, fully loaded w/ leather, climate control, automatic seats, pretty much everything and i was thinking about selling it for 6.5 - 7 grand. maybe i should bump up my price huh?
oh btw, car has 125k but new engine in there with 70k in it right now.

 

hey, on the recall for these 97-98 maxima, can i just go to the nissan dealer and have them check it out still? or was it just while back ago?

 

Hey man, Just did this a few weeks back. Call up a nissan dealership and give them your VIN; they should be able to tell you right then adn there if you need to get it done or not....

Later..

 

oh shoot! sweet, thanx bro.

 

I have 116k KMs on my 96.....which I think is pretty low, and have not had one serious problem yet *knock on wood* the biggest problem was needing a complete brake overhaul, but that have nothing to do with with engine.

- Steve

 

Thanks guys, i just called nissan and i need to come in and have the servise for my altrernater for the reacal

 

yeah only problem iv had with my 96 GLE is really just a couple of struts. Other than that still rides like a Cadi

 

You can have this recall done at any time and no matter which owner you are, first, second, third, etc. Get it checked, you'll be glad you did.

 

i never had problem with mine

 

very reliable car, i have two maxima's right now, and my brother just bought another and did a successful engine transplant.

for my 95 maxima, got 124k miles on it, alternator just went out. changed it and it works fine now. it's a 5-speed,too. bought it with 3600 three months ago.

for my 96 maxima, got 180k miles on it, starter just stopped turning. changed it and it works fine now. it's a auto. bought it with 3700 in early january. it's got high milage, but the car runs smooth like new car, and when i need power, i punch the gas pedal, it becomes a beast on the road.

i spent big money in maintenance: mobile1 synthetic oil and mobile1 filter only, redline tranny fluid and redline coolant. i'll change these redlines once every year along with the major tune-ups ( spark-plug, o2 sensor, etc...), i also only use the V-Power gasoline from shell. love these maxima's like worshippng god.

i have also taken some mechanical engineering classes in LSU. I did a graduate level refined research on some engine components, the most outstanding advantage with this VQ engine is the piston heads: they are micro-finished and covered with Mb compounds. these pistons are working at a high mechanical efficiency with low frictional resistance. for japanese imports, this is by far the best engine setup i have ever seen besides the v-tec in hondas.

 

in no way reliable, thats why we all waste our money on them

 

hehe, believe me, very reliable, reason why i put so much money on them is because i want it to run perfect for a loooong time. though i am going into performance upgrades for the 5-speed, everything will stay N/A. these engines won't fail you as long as you don't fail to maintain them regularly. "regularly" won't cost much, but i just like to spend big bucks buying synthetics for it. maybe i am being too wasteful, but at least i feel good about doing it. it's just me.

 

I havnt had to deal with the incabin noise just yet, anyone with the problem?? anything to do to get rid of it if it comes my way?

 

My car has almost 140,000 and sitll runs perfect.