He posted this in 47 forums. This one is done.

 

Great with preventative maintenance. Very easy to work on. And with This place it gets much easier to work on. Parts are fairly abundant.

 

Get a 4th Gen, 5-speed and try to obtain the work history.

I am not sure what you can get for $3K, however.

 

A 3rd or 4th Gen Maxima can be a good daily drive a long with many other cars as well.

I'll re-state the obvious

the main concern when purchasing a used vehicle the particular vehicles history, accidents, what parts were replaced, the area it was driven in, how it was driven etc.

As for the Maxima specifically, and I'll touch more on the 4th gen since I've never owned any other. Its a good car, pretty easy to work on, parts and always available, the transmissions on the manuals for some havent lasted as long as desired and many have had to replace then numerous times. Most other problems that might occur will be a fair quick and easy repair. Some sensors go bad, but are easy to change.

Over all its a good, strong, durable car as long as its maintained. Preventative maintenance would go a long way with this car. If you could find one for $3k I'd go for it and enjoy.

 

If you find one in good condition, get it. It will probably be a 95 with a lot of miles. Maximas are very reliable but, just as any car, only as long as maintenance is kept up so MAKE SURE THE PREVIOUS OWNER TOOK CARE OF IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Good luck!

 

I got 98, i bought it at 173km not miles, and now its at 206km. The car runs like a dream. The previous owner had all records, and I could tell the car had bin taken car of. Because of this, my younger brother also bought a 4th gen. They are reliable cars, and for the value, its hard to beat it. good luck.