red90se

Whats up guys? I'm seeking the opinion from my fellow org members. I'm in the market for a new car, and I have narrowed it down to a 98 and 99 gs400 and a 6 speed 03 Maxima. What do you guys think will be the best choice? Also, if I were to get the lex over the max would the 6 speed be able to toast me in the 1/4 and a flat out 2 mile race. My opinion is that the GS will win, but I don't place my faith in magazine stats. I have tried to search for this but for some reason I can't get the search function work. Your opinions will greatly be appreciated. Thanks!!

boo

Brand new Max vs. 4 to 5 year old Lexi. I would take the max.
As far as performance they are very close. But I would
take a 6spd over an auto any day.
Also, correct me if I'm wrong anyone, the Lexi probably
doesn't or won't have as many after market parts/upgrades
available as the Max. Warranty, New car smell, just owning
a Max, all of these can be considered too!!


boo

Blu

iTrader: (63)

gs400

Sam03

Around here, even the 99's are still over 30k, (along the lines of 33-35K). It's a great car, don't get me wrong, but there are a lot more brand new cars that can match it performance wise-and for less money.

UMD_MaxSE

iTrader: (1)

get the GS and bring it up to SRT here in MD...

red90se

I have found quite a few for 25 or less. What other cars beside the Maxima can even come close to the GS in regards to looks and performance? I love both cars which makes the decision more difficult. I have been looking around on the GS forums and those guys have some pretty serious rides. The GS has some serious performance mods that can make it a real beast! If I decide to go with the GS, I just may be taking a trip to MD. MO has one sick GS! Sorry about the indecisiveness I'm torn between to the 2 so I'm just looking for some advice to sway me in either direction. Thanks guys!

MaxSE03

iTrader: (1)

Gs400

Sam03

Cool, at least in my area, we aren't that fortunate
Does it have to be a four door?
The GS400 is a truly great four door, there is no arguing that. I have always liked them, but for me, Lexus's have always been a bit too isolated in the driving experience. Some people like that, and I respect that. But its just not my cup of tea. But, again, brand new car, or a older car with a tremendous reputation, you are right, its tough to choose

SteVTEC

GS400

bigdo26

iTrader: (3)

go with the GS400. awsome cars. lexus has pretty much the best quality product out there and the car you're looking at is awsome. I love my Max, but would trade it for one of those lexus's if i could afford it. I wanted a new car with out any miles on it personally, whcih is why i bought the Max. otherwise, i would have got something along the lines of that lexus. ever consider the BMW 540? bout the same pricing for a 98 i think and it will smoke most cars out there

jjs

In the long run the Lexus will undoubtedly be a better choice than a BMW, particularly with regard to maintenance required and the cost of said maintenance.

bigdo26

iTrader: (3)

go with the GS400. awsome cars. lexus has pretty much the best quality product out there and the car you're looking at is awsome. I love my Max, but would trade it for one of those lexus's if i could afford it. I wanted a new car with out any miles on it personally, whcih is why i bought the Max. otherwise, i would have got something along the lines of that lexus. ever consider the BMW 540? bout the same pricing for a 98 i think and it will smoke most cars out there

Cutler

iTrader: (3)

Get the GS400 and bring it to SRT in maryland as nauman said. They have built Twin-turbo gs400s, yes you read that right

red90se

I have considered the 540 initially, but that BMW quality,service, and labor rates have steered me away. I currently have a 96 740il that has been an interesting and expensive experience since I have had it. Believe it or not I like driving my 3rd gen max better though when its not on the jack stands. The 740 makes me feel like I'm driving a limo sometimes, plus its lazy off the line! I have been destroyed by an 03 maxima twice with a 3 car head start! Thats embarassing for anyone to see! It's just good for attention and highway driving. The 540 is awesome but aftermarket support is very expensive.

red90se

I have considered the 540 initially, but that BMW quality,service, and labor rates have steered me away. I currently have a 96 740il that has been an interesting and expensive experience since I have had it. Believe it or not I like driving my 3rd gen max better though when its not on the jack stands. The 740 makes me feel like I'm driving a limo sometimes, plus its lazy off the line! I have been destroyed by an 03 maxima twice with a 3 car head start! Thats embarassing for anyone to see! It's just good for attention and highway driving. The 540 is awesome but aftermarket support is very expensive.

red90se

I have considered the 540 initially, but that BMW quality,service, and labor rates have steered me away. I currently have a 96 740il that has been an interesting and expensive experience since I have had it. Believe it or not I like driving my 3rd gen max better though when its not on the jack stands. The 740 makes me feel like I'm driving a limo sometimes, plus its lazy off the line! I have been destroyed by an 03 maxima twice with a 3 car head start! Thats embarassing for anyone to see! It's just good for attention and highway driving. The 540 is awesome but aftermarket support is very expensive.

vqman

gs400

on these kind of threads I usually say I shopped the particular car, and ended up with the Maxima...

damn GS400 oversight, this is one I forgot to shop, and regret not looking into them.

RWD, 300bhp

anyone who is considering a Lexus is probably not thinking about modding the car. unless he is looking at the rISe300

-vq

red90se

I have considered the 540 initially, but that BMW quality,service, and labor rates have steered me away. I currently have a 96 740il that has been an interesting and expensive experience since I have had it. Believe it or not I like driving my 3rd gen max better though when its not on the jack stands. The 740 makes me feel like I'm driving a limo sometimes, plus its lazy off the line! I have been destroyed by an 03 maxima twice with a 3 car head start! I was embarassed to have my a$$ kicked like that! I had no idea of that cars power which really got my attention. The 540 is great but the aftermarket parts are just too expensive.

red90se

Sorry guys about all the posts, my computer at work seems to do whatever the hell it wants!

vqman

i want one...

-vq

Dave B

GS400, definately.

The Maxima isn't even remotely close to the class of the GS400. How can you pass up 300hp, sexy lines (for the most part), 5-speed auto with shift buttons on the steering wheel, low-14 second performance, insane highway acceleration, and one nice interior.


Dave

lcf

iTrader: (6)

I'm usually partial to new cars. But if the GS is in good condition I'd have to concur with the majority view in this thread. That car is just sw33t, man.

MadMax1996

iTrader: (1)

My thoughts exactly. I looked at a used GS400 and GS300 even. Turns out the insurance was the deciding factor. Those Lexus's are a TON to insure compared to the Maxima! I'm 27 yrs old with a fairly clean record (one no-claims accident that will be off my record in 5 months) and the rates were horrible.

I have no regrets about the Maxima I picked up last December. I say if you can afford the GS400 and you're the type that appreciates the luxury that the Lexus offers - go for it! If you want something that is a little more fun to drive, I think the Maxima is the better choice.

Good luck!

red90se

Thanks everyone for the feedback. You have allowed me make a decision to go with the GS. I will keep you guys informed! I may have to say good bye to the 3rd gen and sell it!

boo

I feel lonely!:attention
Sorry, I'm just not a Lexus fanatic!


Good luck with your new car!!

Sam03

Its beautiful and fast, thats for sure, but I like manual transmissions.

realtor

IMO you'll get no warranty with the Lexus although I know they are very reliable cars and no HID's either. With the Max you'll get a warranty,HID's, 6 speed tranny and almost the same performance as the Lexus. If you ever need to take the Lexus to the dealer for repairs they'll rip you off with their labor charge.

nice95GLE

Dude get The GS400

Once the new car smell and feel of the Maxima wears off and the shi*ty supension starts to kick in you'll curse the day you didn't get the GS.

Don't get me wrong the Max is a nice car but nowhere close to the GS quality and looks.

Got this from clublexus.com
MrSypher is the owner

Sam03

Actually, they were a $500 option for them back in 99'.

jjs

And 'wooopy f***ing do' about the HIDS!! If you can see well enough with conventional lights, so be it.

I will NEVER use the type of headlights as a deciding factor on a car purchase.

Sam03

I completely agree, they are neat options, but they aren't the singular reason I would buy a car.

Guru

iTrader: (1)

Since I myself have a 99 GS400 AND a 03 Maxima SE I'll pipe in. The Maxima is nice but nowhere near as fast as the GS400 particularly at higher speeds where the V8 torque kills the 3.5 liter. Keep in mind I have an auto Max. I love 6 speeds as well but the Max was for my little brother and I rarely drive it. I have an STi on order to get my 6 speed fix and is going to be much faster than any Maxima could ever be. As far as the rest of the cars, the GS400 suspension flat out sucks the big one. I'd swap it out for a Tein CS suspension as soon as possible. I'm working on doing that next year or perhaps this summer. I ordered a carbon LSD instead (GS doesn't have one available) and it should be here today or tomorrow. With that much power it is necessary even with only 300 HP. The brakes are very good and can be upgraded to LS430 brakes for even more stopping power. Comfort level, there is no comparison. The GS400 is a MUCH nicer interior. Not a big fan of leather but cloth would look out of place in the GS. The controls and quality of the interior is second to none and makes the Maxima interior seem rather simplistic and economy car like but that's what you expect I suppose. I have the Nakamichi and it sounds pretty good for a factory system. Two things missing on the GS400 (apart from the aforementioned LSD) are steering wheel mounted radio controls (no big deal since the radio is literally an inch away from your right hand) and heated steering wheel. The quality has been quite good. Some small things that were repaired in the 50,000 miles since I had her:
Rubber molding on both front doors starts falling off
Front brake pads would shift and clunk when cold (updated part took care of this)
That's IT.
It's a higher caliber car that's for sure but just remember, if something DOES go wrong with it, it's going to cost you MUCH more to fix it and also, the gas mileage is pretty bad at around 15 MPG city and 23 highway. big thing though, the dealer has been more than accomodating at Lexus whereas the Nissan dealer takes forever just to get an oil filter when I go in there. Why is service such a hard thing to comeby? Anyway, I'd vote for a GS400. The reliability is there and there is very little maintenance to do on it, just keep higher parts prices in mind.

Y2KMaxGXE-R

iTrader: (4)

What are your priorities? I would say it makes sense to pay the car off before it reaches 100K mark. With new Max, it is well reasonable. Now, how many miles are going to be on that 5-year old Lexus? About 60K miles, so by the time you pay it off, it may have 150K miles, and you will have a very hard time selling a car with that mileage. With V8 you are going to pay 40-50% more on gas. But then, do you care about aftermarket support, what do you plan on using the car for?

red90se

Iam not worrying about the gas mileage, I have a 96 740il so Iam use to it. I found a 99 with 36,000 miles on it. Since Iam deciding to go with the GS I will probably look into selling the 740. Iam not sure yet. I plan on using it as daily driver like I have been doing with the Bimmer. I need a car that can get up and go and looks good doing it If I was to go the Max route then I will be getting rid of my 3rd gen. I really like the aftermarket items available for the GS which has also swayed me a little more. Those cars are unbelievable modded, and their mods,parts, and service are way cheaper than for my 7.

slickrick

iTrader: (12)

gs400 without a doubt.

red90se

I have made my decision and I will be going with a 99 silver on black gs400 with all options. I can't wait to start modding. This means that I will not have to leave the best forum around and sell my 3rd gen. This is where its interesting. Now that my cousin has spanked my 740 his head is huge so now he thinks he is invincible, he says that he will eat my lunch in a head up 2 mile race. I'm not sure of either cars, so who will be taking home bragging rights and the $200?

rocktboy

99 with 36000 mi AND if it is less than $30k, definitely go for it!!!
i myself was 1 phone call too late from buying a 98 gs400 with only 27k niles and selling for $26k
the combination of late model, low mileage, low price gs 400's are not easy to come by. jump on them if you get the chance, or you'll miss it like i did.
i ended up buying an 03 se 6spd at good discounts, so no regrets

SkylineGTR

G35 6spd Sedan

spta97

iTrader: (1)

Actually, the HIDs were a big reason that I went with the Maxima. Funny thing is now I kinda wish I didn't have them with all the thefts!

However, after joining the .Org I realized that you can put HIDs on any car so it isn't really a factor for me anymore. I'm glad the thread starter is going with the car that he wants, but personally I wanted to get a new car for one reason...WARENTEE!!! I don't like owning a car that isn't covered by the dealer.

After surfing the BMW boards, they look at Japanese cars as "ricers". Not only Civics, but ALL of them (Infiniti and Lexus as well). I'm surprised that a BMW owner would actually not drive one again. If you look on their boards the BMW is the best car ever made…period. If you don't agree, you are not a "driving enthusiast" or you are too poor. The thing about the latter is it seems that most of these people had their cars handed to them by mommy and daddy. I am considering the M3 in a few years, but reading that board makes me think the old joke is true:

"What's the difference between a porcupine and a BMW?"
"With the BMW, the ****** are on the inside!"

UMD_MaxSE

iTrader: (1)

good choice

when you bringing it to SRT?