some of you still know who i am and that i had a 99 maxima se auto for about a year or so before i had to sell it because all my day to day expenses, loan payment, insurance, baby stuff ect were just to much. i missed it every day until i picked up a 95 eclipse gst 5 spd. i really really love the car to death but it just isnt working out because im 6'7 and its hard to get in and out let alone get my 1 year old daughter in and out, groceries dont fit well, and i had to make two trips just to get all my daughters birthday presents home which really pissed me off that i could even fit 4 med sized bags of toy stuff in the car. Well it came time i advertised my eclipse fs on all the DSM websites just yest and sense then have had 3 emails and 2 calls on it. just now somone came all the way from milwaukee (over 100 mile drive) and called when he got here mind you i had no idea that he was coming at all so i was shocked that he came seeing as that i didnt even want to really sell it yet. Well he is meeting up with me in about an hour and has $4000 cash in hand to pick it up from me.... i bought the car for $3000 so its more that what i got it for and everything but i still just dont want to let it go. Sense i really wanted another max i found a 96 maxima Se 5spd green tan interior fully loaded with heated leather dual powers auto climate ect for $4690 so i figure if i sold my eclipse that i could offer the dealer $4000 cash and i have enough in my bank for tax title and lisance. the only thing i see wrong with the maxima is that it has 144K on it but it is a very very clean car and shiny paint no downfalls at all cept the miles. i will be able to drive my moms car for another 4-6 weeks because shes off work for surgery she had yest so i have about a month to find another max for no more than 4K. the real question is should i take this guy up on his offer and just do it and find a max or get the green one. or look around or just keep my car and stick it out until i9 have somthing else lined up? any help is greatly greatl appreciated. -Ryan Joosten

 

Sell the Eclipse if it doesn't suit your purposes. Drive your Mom's car until she needs it back.

What kind of mileage is on the 96 Maxima? Check is over thoroughly, particularly for rust, given you are from Wisconsin. See if you can find a work history for the vehicle and run a CarFax on it. If the car checks out, I wouldn't let the fact that it has 144K on it deter you too much from buying it. It should be good to go for some time.

There are 4th Gens on this board with 265K plus on them and they aren't babied by any means.

 

You're too big for that eclipse, plus you have a kid,..I'd sell it and grab the max. The mileage is of no concern since our cars run forever as long as you keep up with the maintenance. Since you've owned a max before, I'm sure you know what to look for before the purchase. Good luck with that.

 

personally sense my last maxima had 155K and my 95 has 187K and both ran strong as new that shouldnt be a problem heres some pics of the 96.... also im not too much of a fan of the green or tan but hey its everything i want so im not going complain about the color of the darn thing

 

The car is identical to mine, except mine is a 95 just coming up to 60K, mostly highway miles. That is a super clean car. I would buy it.

I added the aftermarket dark wind deflector for the sun roof which looks nice with the DJ2 paint. Remember the paint looks black on a dull or rainy day and is a nice touch on a sunny day, IMHO.

How did you manage to get so many miles on your 99 Maxima? What 95 are you referring to - the Eclipse or another Maxima? If the latter, you didn't mention it.

 

95 i was refering to is another maxima i currently own that is out of commision that im selling for $700 lol. it has no cross member for the engine and was basically a junker that i tried bringing back to life but lack of funds prevented that and now its sitting in the backyard. anyway my 99 had so many miles because my fiance had to go to school 200 miles away and i took her everyday sense she didnt want to live there so they racked up fast as heck lol. anyway yea the 96 looks pretty good and i think im gonna go sell the eclipse then time to leave and ill see more responses and let you guys know when i get back how it went ect. thanks for the help so far. -Ryan

 

Are you saying you drove your fiance to school 200 miles each way 5 days a week? For how long?

Since the Maxima is a great highway car and should last for years, I would be inclined to baby it over the Wisconsin winters in your garage and drive a beater for 4 or 5 months of the year or whatever and keep the Maxima miles down and quality in nature.

 

The milage isnt a factor on the 96 your looking at, have the car completly look over to make sure you dont have to do any additional repairs and it would be a lovely addition.

If not check the for sale section here, check ebaymotors, autotrader, etc. You bound to find a good max for around $4k, dealers will try to get more.

 

You must really love this girl. I have yet to find a girl that I'm willing to beat my car for.

 

I'd take that Maxima in less than a heartbeat.

Not flaming, but you are a big bastard, have a kid and are posting this on a Maxima board, common sense alone should tell you to get the Maxima being more practical and safe ... much less posting it on a Maxima forum

Get the Maxima ... Sell the small eclipse ... be smart and take an English class sense you can't spell lisance.

 

Get the Maxima ... Sell the small eclipse ... be smart and take an English class sense you can't spell lisance.

[/QUOTE]

And you can't spell either! It's "since" not "sense" in that context, lol!

 

license?

10fokenchars

 

Ryan, having read your priorities, I would suggest sell the GST and get the 5 speed Maxima. I guess since your 99 auto was gone, so was the Stillen intake, eh?

I used to drive to Madison every weekend from Milwaukee for the same purpose as yours, but nothing like driving 200 miles each day. With gas prices these days, I probably would not be doing the drive though.

Check the 96 Max carefully, probably it's even better to take the care to a Nissan dealership to check the codes. Sometimes they disconnected the lamp on the dash so you won't know you have codes. Look underneath the car to spot any oil/coolant leaks, plus inspect the CV. Do a test on the suspension to find out whether they are a goner or not.

I would probably take it down to $3700 cash if I were you, simply because the age of the car and its mileage.

Best of luck!

 

Can't you see sarcasm : Well, we know you don't know how to quote someone, ever ....

 

very good point by everyone and im back and sold the eclipse for $4000 so im gonna go look at the maxima on sunday when closed because thats the only day that i can make it down there. after that if it looks to be in good shape ill go back on tuesday for a testdrive and offer no more than $4K for it if they bauk they can keep it and ill look elsewhere. also i will be bringing my little screwdriver to pull any codes from the ecu dont worry -Ryan

 

Ryan:

I don't think they will allow you to check the codes with your screwdriver because you will break the seal. Plus, if they take out that little bulb from the dash, you won't even see it blinking 0505.

If I were you, I would just use Nissan dealership and pay them half hour labor to check with consult. Thus, you would know if you need to replace anything pricey after that. Half hour labor might seem expensive, but I would rather spend it rather than taking a risk of changing stuff, especially pricey stuff on the car.

 

Buy a minivan

 

That 96 is REAL clean. Check the underbody - especially for a leak coming from the tranny and surrounding seals (driverside axle seal to be exact). Make sure the tranny is in good shape, or that car could very well set you back another grand in a year or less. It looks like a very good car, and as long as everything else checks out (I'M REALLY STRESSING THE TRANNY, look that ****e over or you might be sorry.) you should buy it. My current transmission is the fifth in my car so far as I know. I bought the car, and the tranny leaked THAT DAY, pouring fluid out of the seal. The dealer took care of it, but it was a lot of down time since all but one tranny that they tried to use had some sort of problem with it.
Congrats on getting a profit on the Eclipse. I wouldn't hesitate to spend over $4k on it though, especially if it's as solid as it looks from the pics.

 

Don't fret over a few hundred $ with this car as it looks pretty darn clean, perhaps cleaner than the vast majority of cars you'll come across. I would jump on this one and not wait until Sunday and next Tuesday, with people going back to college etc and requiring cars. The early bird gets the worm.

Edit: Also, for interest sakes, how much did you sell your 99 Maxima with 155K miles on it? What kind of condition was it in relative to the 96 Maxima you are dragging your feet on? It seems to me that if you can get that car for under $4,500 you're getting a pretty good buy.

 

 

i see a huge crack in the hood
is that it or shadow or something
anyways, im trying to get a max too
but i'm 17and i have to go to college starting this friday
but i can't find the damn thing
i might end up with 2gen altima slow as **** though
i love the 5spd max freaking fast
lol i can't get manual cuz my dad might use my car sometimes,
by the way, enjoy and peace

 

I was very lucky to have ryan drive me to school everyday. it was alot of driving but worth it also he had to drive me for every doc appt for when i was pregnant with our daughter which was also a 200mile drive. because i couldnt get a doctor up here where we live now. its a very complicated story.

 

Well it sounds like you are in good hands with ryan. All the best! He should get the Maxima and keep it in good shape. He should also get a reliable beater for those 200 miles drives in the dead of winter.

 

you drove 400 miles every day? Whats wrong with you?

Make sure your children go to a good school district.

 

lol anyway back to topic, how can there not be any 5 spd max's for sale for around 4K around here milwaukee or chicago area on the classifieds. i looked through every single post and there was only like 2-3 cars and 2 were sold or not features i want and the last being too high of price. cmon somone come from the woodwork to sell me your car lol-Ryan

 

Lets stay off topic, we wanna keep talking to your girl.

I'm joking. Or am I

 

If after looking the car over as everyone has stated, and it's all OK, then whip out 3500. cash from the sale of the GST and tell the dealer you'll "buy the car RIGHT NOW, here's what I'll pay", "now do you wanna sell that car now?". Money talks and BullSt walks.

As for the miles, well I was in a cab in Chicago yesterday, a Frodo Crown Vic - had 327, 6XX miles on it. If a Frod can take 327K miles, a Maxi sure can.
JM2Cents

 

GoodLuck finding another Max Ryan. I'm sure everything will work out for you.

 

Actually, it seems Ryan is in a good situation if his girlfriend also belongs to Maxima.org...

Edit: LOOK AT THE TRANNY. NO JOKE.
(just thought I'd reiterate what I said above)

 

buy that one. it is 5 spd and will last forever. you had a 5spd so you wont fry the clutch to much either. it is more reliable, better insurance, you are starting a family, and it will be slightly slower of the line, but was faster after sixty. also, you can recieve the satisfaction of roasting ricers with a sedan. oh but if you lose you cant blame it on people in the car.
and that isnt a crack that is the reflection of the flags above the car.

BEFORE YOU BUY IT GET UNDER THE CAR AND SEE IF THERE IS ANY PLAY IN THE DRIVE SHAFTS. IF MORE THAN 2MM DO NOT BUY. ALSO, START CAR AND HAVE DOOR OPEN, IF YOU CAN HEAR A WHINE, THEN PUSH CLUTCH IN, IF IT GOES AWAY THAT IS BEARING GOING OUT TOO.

 

That 96 looks like its in great shape and the price seems decent. Just keep in mind the recommendation for 91 octane gas, especially when gas prices are rising so high. Maybe its not an issue for you but I know I'm sort of wishing I bought more of a fuel efficient car!

 

Ryan, my car now has 231,000 miles on it, with the majority of those miles being commuting 1.5 hours every day. My commute isn't that long now and I bought it used with 65,000 on it. I firmly believe highway mileage is one of the best things you can do for a car. Everything gets warmed up, there's no real stress on the car (unless you're REALLY rolling). The ONLY major mechanical failure I have had (knock on wood) was a tranny failure at a little over 100,000 miles, but I think it was already going when I bought the car (was sometimes hard to get into first gear). A used tranny with 25,000 miles on it went in at that point. So I would would echo the other poster that said get the tranny checked out, change out fluids and happy motoring.

 

going 60 you get 32.x miles a gallon, on a v-6 sedan. you think thats ineffecient. your only supposed to get like 27.

 

if you do buy change coolant and trans fluid right away, its stick so even if trans fluid is burnt you need to change anyway. you never know how long the fluid was in there.

 

I don't think the Maxima is inefficient, but there are several cars that are much more fuel efficient and run fine on 87 octane to save a little more money. Of course you don't get the performance of a V6 or as much size, but its just a point to consider.

 

thats true. makes you consider getting a beater doesnt it? i think about buying a mr-2 or something just so that i can get good gas mileage.

 

lol maxima's are very nice cars and are fast when u want them to be. i have a 95 maxima but we are deciding on selling it or keeping it since it needs tires and i dont have a job(stay home with our 1year old). ryan wants me to keep it, so yea who knows.

 

About the tires, I have one Aquatred III with about 90% thread on it. If you could use the tire, I would be glad to give it to you for free. It has no rims though, rubber only. The size is 215-65-15 (stock size).

Lemme know

 

It was stated earlier that the 95 has no cross member and is to be sold. If it can be fixed for relatively cheap and some 2nd hand tires obtained, then use it for the winter beater I keep on suggesting and buy the Maxima.

Where else are you going to find a car in that condition and of that quality for around $4,000? Ryan is trying to get this car for cheap. He just sold an Eclipse for $4k and the Maxima is certainly worth more and has a lot less mileage on it.

In business, they call this paralysis by analysis. There is another expression as well: **** or get off the pot. Check the car out and buy it before someone else does and we get to hear: shoulda, woulda, coulda!

 

You need to checkhttp://www.cars.com

There's a 96 SE, black, 5sp, 170,000 miles, asking $4500. Says car has new brakes, rotors, tires, shocks/struts, exedy clutch.

97 SE black, 5sp, 120,000 miles, asking $4850

both in the Chicago area