OK guys, I need some advise, here's the situation. I bought a 2000 Maxima SE about a month ago. White exterior, black leather interior, moonroof, Bose system, 27,000 miles, extended warranty, ugly pinstripes (lol), and more scratches than I noticed right away...some on the lower rear bumper and lower right side painted over with the really wrong shade white paint. The thing is...without getting into exact numbers...I OVERPAID for it big time. The engine knocks slightly sometimes when you accelerate hard (above 4k RPMS). The dealership says it's because they accidentely put 87 octane gas in before they gave it to me. But I've had 4-5 tanks of 93 octane in by now and it still happens, although less than before, so who knows. The service engine soon light went off last week and they just said it was a computer malfunction and reset the computer. It has been OK since then, except for the occasional slight engine knocking.

Now, the dealership knows that I'm not happy with this car or the salesman that sold it to me at all and they've offered me the chance to get out of the 2000 Maxima completely and get a White 2003 SE with Titanium package, Bose system, chrome wheels, power sunroof, and leather added for about $1,800 out of pocket right now. The difference between the Blue Book value of the 2000 right now and what I still had financed is ALOT more than $1,800, so to walk away at that price isn't bad I don't think. With each car financed for 6 years, the total difference in price paid after financing and everything would only be $4,400 to get the 2003. The original down payment on the 2000 is gone either way so I'm not even factoring that in.

So the question is...do you think it's worth an extra $4,400 total over 6 years and $1,800 out of pocket now to get out of this 2000 and get into a nice 2003 SE? Thanks guys...hopefully this makes sense .

 

YES

 

To be quite honest with you, 4400 over six years really is not that much. 1800 right now is not chump change, however its a very small price to pay to have piece of mind. I would absolutely go with the 2k3 which sounds like a bad *** car with the titanium package, etc.

 

Get the 2k3 if it has super low miles and you can come up with $1800 right now and your budget will sustain $85 more per month car payment for 72 months

It sounds like your money is tight, then why don't you get a low-mileage 4th gen instead, that way you don't commit to 6 yrs of financing? 72 months is an awfully long time to be paying for a used car. Your 2K will be 9 yrs old at the pay off.

 

Hell yeah. It sounds like your car might have issues that could be a nightmare from here on out. Dump it while you can. The 2k3 will be much more fun for you.

 

I think the proper response is:

]HELL YEAH

 

Yeah, like he said!

 

Is this a brand new 2003 that he's offering you? If not, how many miles does it have?

Either way, if it has few miles, then you should DEFINITELY dump the 2k. The 2k3 is going to be much more fun, and the 2k seems to be showing potential of serious problems.

 

Bust out the ol' credit card. It's times like these that plastic was invented for.

 

Yes, this is a brand new 2003 Maxima SE with under 20 miles on it. Also, I should clear up something I said...it will be $800 to walk away from the 2000. The extra $1,000 was for a down payment on the 2003. So $1,800 total. I'm leaning towards doing it, thanks for your input guys!

 

In that case, WITHOUT A SINGLE GRAIN OF DOUBT GO FOR IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

GO FOR IT!!!!!!!!

I was in a similiar circumstance with my 02 Altima 2.5 that I was unhappy with. I ended up getting my 03 Maxima for less $$$ than I paid for my 02 Altima 2.5!!!

Besides, you know you're getting a quality car. 03 is the last year they are made in Japan. The 04s are made in Tennessee alongside the new Altima....you know the build quality can't be equal!!!

 

It appears your 2000 SE was driven hard and not well cared for. But with an extended warranty, a great idea in your case, you may want to stick with it to get the bugs out at Nissan's expense. Otherwise, you would be throwing more money at a 2003 that's already been replaced by a 6th generation version. Don't make your initial overpayment worse by changing cars so quickly, resulting in even more undesirable expenses.

Remember the law of holes: "When you're in a hole, stop digging."

 

You should opt to get the 2003. But with the current market, the sales reps are in a hurry to get the 5th gen max's out of thier lot to obtain the 6th gen maximas. The sales guy should be in your favor. Milk him to lower the price even lower, or even go ask other dealerships for how much they will give you a 03 5th gen max trade in. I will guarantee you that another dealership will give you a better price if they know your interested. Don't tell them that your car is f*#@ up, just let them tell them you want the bigger engine and a newer car It's your money and you should pay for what you feel comfortable at.

 

Thanks everybody. I got the 2k3 SE today...and for less money overall than I was paying for the 2000! I dealt with the sales manager directly, he got me out of the 2000 and with rebates and 1.9% APR over 5 years instead of the 6 year loan I had on the 2000, I'm paying less in the long run for the 2k3. Slightly higher payments, but less overall.

 

Glad everything worked out, and you're happy. Enjoy the car--I know you will!!!