co_maxima98

iTrader: (3)

The dealership told me the 98 maxima I bought last week was an SE. It has a spoiler, rims, fog lights, sunroof, etc. Seeimingly everything the SE should have, EXCEPT the white gauges. Does this mean it's not an SE?

Does anybody else have an SE without white gauges?

Supermachoman

Are your door handles and front grill chrome or body colored?

FortressMaximus

do you have chrome door handles and a chrome line across your grill? If you do, then it's not an SE...if everything is body-colored...then it's an SE

co_maxima98

iTrader: (3)

My door handles are chrome and my grill is body colored. Does that mean it's not an SE? That'll make me pretty mad, because it means the dealership misrepresented it to me.

Supermachoman

Probably not an SE. Give me your VIN number and I'll tell you exactly what you have.

tifosiv122

iTrader: (2)

Most dealers say it has all the "SE" options...leading you to believe its an SE. If he wrote SE on the contract or bill or whatever...you have a major lawsuit...

Erik

co_maxima98

iTrader: (3)

JN1CA21D1WM910817

KINGMAX

Do you have a middle brake light in you rear window? If so that means it is probably another model, SE's only have the middle brake light on the spoiler.

co_maxima98

iTrader: (3)

Nope, it just has the brake light on the spoiler, nothing in the back window.

spiff56747

iTrader: (-1)

check out this thread, the 3rd post from the top

http://forums.maxima.org/showthread....0&pagenumber=2

Supermachoman

You have a 1998 Nissan Maxima GLE.

KINGMAX

Thats what I said supermachoman(ooohh yeahh) SE's only have the spoiler brake light(I know I have one) GLE's & GXE's have both.

co_maxima98

iTrader: (3)

Thanks for looking that up for me.

If I have the GLE, shouldn't it have climate control? (or is that an option on the GLE)

Anyone know where I can get good white gauge face overlays? I found some at importintelligence.com, but they look kind of cheap - just stickers that cover all of the speedometer tick marks.

Can the Nissan ones be dealer installed for not a lot of money? I did a search but didn't find much information. I found a lot of information about the indiglo gauges, but that's not what I want. I want something similar to what would be in the actual SE Maxima.

Supermachoman

The brake light located in the rear window can be easily added, or easily removed. I have a program that will check VIN numbers and give a wealth of info on the car. Checking the VIN is the only sure way of identifying the model type. People like you who act like they know it all usually know very little.

KINGMAX

Dude chill!!! Did I say that I knew it all? Nooo! Who the hell would want to add the one in the window anyway? I'm just trying to help this kid!!!!!!

Supermachoman

Your côcky mannerism implied you did. Who would want to add one you ask? Well, look at his grill, it's painted the same color as his body. GLEs come with chrome grills, why would somebody want to paint it? People do all sorts of strange things, and as I've mentioned the only way to be certain is to check the VIN, which you didn't do.

BriGuyMax

iTrader: (1)

sounds like the previous owner was well on his or her way to doing a full SE conversion before they sold the car.

GLE with out climate control....that's wierd.

KINGMAX

Man I am not trying to diss you and sorry if I came off as cocky(did not see the pics). Where is the love man(why so angry)? BTW like the wheels, they look dope.

geo1317

iTrader: (17)

the car could have also been a theft recovery, and when they where putting it back they didnt find all the GLE parts(chrome grill, ACC, etc...). So they ended up mixing and matching. I have seen this done more than a few times.

maximachad

This whole car sounds pretty weird to me...I wouldn't go near it. Who ever heard of a GLE with a body color grille and NO automatic climate control!!?? Does the car have a wood grain dash and BOSE system? Those came standard....

Chad

Big_Ham

iTrader: (1)

Well, my thoughts are, the car CLEARLY isn't an SE, which is what he was supposedly sold. I would run a carfax on it and look for theift recovery as well as go back to the ******* dealer and ask him why in God's name he misrepresented a GLE as an SE ... then I would MAKE him put white face guages in my car as well as automatic climate control ...

Anachronism

Just about every GXE and GLE with a spoiler I have seen has had the third (fourth) brake light in the rear window. I guess most dealers didn't bother to remove it when sombody ordered a spoiler. Most of us know that the third brake light in the rear window is easily removed, but it is easy to see how a non-enthusiast would think all GXEs and GLEs with the spoiler had the rear window brake light.

This car definitly sounds suspisious, as geo1317 said I would check for a possible theft recovery or rebuilt wreck. Or the privious owner could have been working on an SE conversion.

dwapenyi

iTrader: (3)

You guys forget one major thing, the suspesnion

Since it's a GLE, your ride should be softish. Is it? I guess you can only really tell by riding in an SE. Anyways, find out, and if so, have them put in the stiffer SE suspension as well. I think the difference is stiffer springs, but the same shocks/struts.

DW

co_maxima98

iTrader: (3)

OK, here is what I found out from looking at my identification tag on the firewall:

The second line says BHLULE. From what that post says, the car would be a GXE. BUT, the NEXT line on the tag says "COLOR, TRIM: KH3, G" which would indicate that it is a GLE, right?

Anyways, I looked at my paperwork from when I bought the car. The only thing that says SE is the following: Vehicle Yr: 1998. Make: Nissan. Model: Maxima. Odometer: 74,006. Options: SE.

When it says Options: SE, does that mean it just has the SE options, or that it is actually an SE?

Also, do you think I should go back to the dealer and ask why it does not have climate control if it is a GLE? Maybe they have some record of it being removed...

Wills98MaxSE

That's a standard-fare feature on GLE, optional on SE

Big_Ham

iTrader: (1)

No matter what the case, you NEED to go back to the dealer and tell him you ran the VIN and the car is a GLE and that they misrepresented their car. At that point, you can make quite a few REASONABLE requests to make it an SE. If they say no, don't argue, just leave, then call your lawyer.

PhatBastard

iTrader: (3)

How did you do this?

blizz20oma

iTrader: (1)

Someone back me up on this one, but I believe at least some of the suspension bushings are polyurethane stock in the SE as part of the sportier suspension. Just trying to think of any other differences the guy can go back to his dealership and rattle off, because if I'm correct, install labor on a complete set of poly suspension bushings can get up there in price (my old shop told me it'd be at least $400 worth of labor to install an aftermarket poly suspension bushing set, and the guy was always real good afa working with me on things).


I would think in the "Model" that they should have the trim level, or a noted "Trim level" somewhere else on the info they gave you. Regardless, it sounds like misrepresentation any way you slice it.

mzmtg

iTrader: (11)

I don't know why there is all this debate. The VIN pretty much decides it. It's a GLE with wierd parts. Go back ot the dealer and get your money back.

The whole thing is suspicious.

co_maxima98

iTrader: (3)

WELL, I just got back from the dealership. I'm really ****ed off.

The guy who sold me the car wouldn't give me the time of day. He basically told me that it IS an SE, and that's the end of it. Of course I tried to prove him wrong by showing him the chrome door handles, the not-so-white gauges, and the ID tag on the firewall. He said that he had gotten underneath the car himself and checked, and that it had the sports suspension, and since it had a spoiler and a sunroof and the five star rims it meant it's an SE. Then he pretty much walked off. The manager was paged for me by the receptionist but I was told he was with "guests" and was too busy to help me.

I will be writing to Nissan as well as Auto Nation USA (the dealership chain I bought the car from), and the Better Business Bureau. I'll also be talking to my local news channel who investigates claims like this for consumers and almost always resolves them. A dealership usually does not want a reporter breathing down their back.

I just want my white gauges and whatever else it takes to make it an SE like they told me it WAS. My paperwork proves that they told me it was an SE. I got the finance officer at the dealership to admit to that much today.

mzmtg

iTrader: (11)

That's funny. Ask them if they would put 2 cars up on a lifts so they can point out the differences in the sport suspension. (They look exactly the same) It's all black under there anyway, regardless of trim level.

Anachronism

I would be moe worried about owning a rebuilt wreck than a few SE options. A gauge cluster could be picked up relitivly cheaply and the suspention difference is pretty small, most people here go with aftermarket springs anyway. Did you run a Carfax on it?

maxstyle98

I couldn't agree with you more, f@#$ the white gauges and the SE options.


Drive that thing(whatever it is) back to the dealership. Go in their and make a big f%^*@#$ stink right in the center of the showroom(make sure their are alot of people around). They will give you the time of day then.

blizz20oma

iTrader: (1)

And bring an attorney with you.

You could have one in a normal, intimidating well-cut black suit & briefcase, but I'd personally recommend the Dr. Gonzo of fear and loathing fame style for this occassion.

Seriously though, the whole deal sounds shammy. Definitely have a carfax ran to see if there's some dirt you can take back up there with you. If you're younger, take someone like your dad to back you up. It's amazing how differently you can be treated if you're under 25 at a dealership.

ericdwong

This is not true. The only difference in the suspension between SE and non-SE is the rear coil springs, as indicated by my FSM.

On Page FA-25 for the front suspension it differentiates the springs as "MT and "AT" for auto and manual transmission. The coil for the AT is .2" thicker and 10mm longer. I wonder if this is a typo, instead of MT and AT it being "Except SE and SE". Anyway the strut and the front sway bar are the same for all models.

Now on page RA-13 for the rear suspension it differentiates the spring as "Except SE" and "SE". The SE is .2 mm and 10 mm longer once again. The strut says for "all".

Tifosi

iTrader: (1)

This is absolutely unacceptable!!! And with the expertise of you guys in this org, I seriously think we should flood their emails with complains about this car. Swcello, do you have the dealer's email address? I would like to write to them. To help out a fellow maxima.org member.

co_maxima98

iTrader: (3)

I just ran a carfax. Guess what... It's a salvage. Do they have to tell me that by law when I purchase the car? I'm SO ****ed off now. I'm making a call to them right now.

MdMaxDrvr

Let them know that since they decided to brush you off so easily, you decided to write the BBB, 7 on your side, Nissan (they probably won't care about that though), and that your laywer is working on all this for you (even if you don't have one). I would definitely return the car and get my money back, but still report them. Thats just not right. They should let you know that its a salvage, by law as far as I know.

co_maxima98

iTrader: (3)

I ALSO found out that it has a commercial registration found (which they don't have to tell me, but STILL)

So, it's a salvage AND a former commercial vehicle. I called the used car sales manager at Auto Nation USA (where I bought it) and he said he'll call me tomorrow, because all the finance officers are gone for the night and he can't get to my registration information.

I signed this paper in my contract that said I won't return the car. Hopefully that won't make it too difficult to get my money back and return this car. It should be voided because of new information found.

I think they were witholding information or something by not telling me about the salvage... I think that's illegal. Jerks.

I will definitly be trying to return it, but don't worry - I will be getting another Maxima.

ripper7

check this site out...I asume you live in Denver CO(profile)

http://www.ago.state.co.us/CONSPROT/...w/LEMONLAW.HTM
http://www.ago.state.co.us/CONSPROT/autos/BIGDEAL.HTM
http://www.ago.state.co.us/CONSPROT/autos/10CMDMTS.HTM

There are phone numbers to call, I suggest you call them 1st thing in the morning. Hope this help..also post the dealer ship name or webpage. We can all do an email blitz.