Just picked up a new 2k3 SE - Polished Titanium/Frost Leather w/ EVERY option but NAV. This is our 5th Maxima SE - and we still have three of them (the new one, a Super Black '95 (148k miles) and a Pearl White '96 (108k miles).

This replaces a 2k SE/Gray Lustre/Black Cloth (every option you could have without leather). Some initial 2k3 vs 2k thoughts:

• Maybe its just the newness, but the 2k3 appears to be bolted together just a little better than I remember the 2k being when new, especially interior trim pieces.

• The motor is the obvious difference, but I need to let it break in before I really check it out. The demos I beat on were much stronger than the 2k, but not quite as strong as I expected or hoped for. Maybe its the nonlinear feel of the electronic throttle... we'll see.

• The trans shifts much better in the 2k3, but its still too soft for my taste. The 2k was definitely one with the trans problem, but the dealer (for that car only) refused to do anything about it - said it was "normal" - yeah, for a 2k it was normal! By the time I got hold of the TSB, there were only 8 mos left on the lease so I never brought it back again. Many people think the '95 Max shifts too hard, but my 95 still shifts perfectly for my taste, even after 148k miles. I'd take it any day over the soft slides they now call shifts. I do like the gated shifter on the 2k3, but really wish it had a true "auto-stick" instead. Every other car we looked at had this.

• Preference for the minor exterior styling differences depends greatly on color choice. Lets face it - the tail lights are not a strong point of 5th gen styling - the gray lustre disguised them on the 2k and the polished titanium helps the 2k3's blend in. In general, I also prefer the 2k's simpler grille and smaller grille emblem, but the wider titanium bars on the 2k3's grill don't look too bad with any of the silver colors. The big chrome Nissan emblem is ugly with any color. On the other hand, the Titanium package wheels with the exposed lug nuts are a vast improvement over 2k wheels. Small changes but they look much better. The HID headlights are a functional improvement, but I prefer the styling of the 2k lights - the orange signal lights on the 2k3 are awful. The sill extensions are nice on the 2k3. Body color splash guards are OK too, though the black ones blended in well on the gray lustre 2k. I liked the black chrome emblems on the 2k much better than the chrome on the 2k3... if it wasn't a lease I'd take them off in a heartbeat.

• Inside, I really prefer dark cloth interiors and the 2k's cloth held up very well. Unfortunately, Nissan (and others) force you take leather to get other options you might want. So we ended up with frost leather to get auto climate control, memory seats, traction control and Meridian package. I like the radio controls on the 2k3 steering wheel but prefer the style and feel of the 2k wheel. I especially detest the hideous chrome Nissan emblem on the airbag. Trip computer, auto dim mirror, compass and CD changer are nice features on 2k3. Gauges looked better on the 2k - mismatched gauge colors on the 2k3 look like somebody pulled the wrong parts out of the bin when they built it. Stainless steel door sills look nice now, but I wonder what they will look like in three years.

• Best part of the 2k3 is that with all the model end incentives, lease price was only $6/mo more than 2k lease, even though it has much more equipment and and a nearly $3k higher sticker ($30.5k vs $27.8k)


Before we decided on Maxima #5, we also looked long and hard at:

• '03 Acura TL-S - Honestly, this was my first choice (motor felt stronger, less torque steer, trans shifted better, ready to try something different, phenomenal lease deal) and I was just about ready to call the salesman and tell him to prep a black on black one for us. However, my wife, who drives the car 90% of the time, thought the TL-S was too much of a "guy's car" and felt more comfortable with another Max. She would have deferred to me if I pushed it, but I know that if the slightest thing ever went wrong with the Acura I would never hear the end of it, so...

• '04 Max SE - Liked a lot (except "tooth" and fugly dash), but no deals yet - dealers in NC/SC had 3-4 cars on lot at best and didn't seem anxious to part with them. Nice black (minimizes the tooth and mail slot roof) 3.5 SE w/ driver's package stickered about $31,500. This was only about $1,000 more than sticker on our '03, but lease price was nearly $100/mo more.

• '03 Audi A4 - My brother sells them and I would have loved to help him out, but the A4 is too slow, too small and too expensive. The 1.8T was horribly slow and still would have been $20/mo more lease price. The 3.0 was merely adequate and and WAY too high in price.

• '03 Mazda 6s - We REALLY liked this car - If we were buying instead of leasing its $5-6,000 price advantage over the others might have made us give it a try. However, they have real ****y residuals so lease price would have been same as 3.0 A4 (~$460/mo).

 

how much does the list on 2k3 cost, if you dont mind em asking? What are the mileage limitations?

 

why do u hate the nissan emblem tho? and i personally like the steering wheel what happens to the emblem on it if the airbag deploys?

 

The 2k3 stickered for $30,514. The lease deal was as follows:

39 mos, 15k miles/yr
$1,500 total out of pocket at signing(includes 1st payment)
$392/mo including taxes

This was best deal offered from 7 dealers I internet shopped. Offer was originally made by Modern Nissan in Winston-Salem and matched by Independence Nissan here in Charlotte. (Independence actually traded Modern for the same car!) Modern has a strong internet sales presence and I was treated very well by them. They even offered to deliver the car to my door (~80 miles). Once Independence matched it, however, I went with them. They are around the corner from my business and they are a customer of my business. The dealer I got the worst treatment from was the other Charlotte Nissan dealer, Superior Nissan. They never even responded to my inquiries until NNA got involved after they sent me a survey asking how well my internet inquiry had been handled - and I let them know! By then it was too late and they wanted $405/mo for the same car. Besides, they were the same dealer that refused to do anything about the 2k's trans.

Up until the last minute, all of the '03 Maxima lease deals were in the $410-$425/mo range. That's why I was ready to jump on the TL-S.
The incentives increased late March (though the rebate on leased cars is only $500 vs $1,500 for purchased cars).

The deals on the other cars I looked at (same mileage & down payment):

'03 TL-S ($31,800 MSRP) - $401/mo
'04 Max 3.5 SE ($31,500 MSRP) - $485/mo
'03 Audi A4 1.8T CVT ($31,300 MSRP) - $415/mo
'03 Audi A4 3.0 CVT ($35,600 MSRP) - $460/mo
'03 Mazda 6s 3.0 Sport($26,400 MSRP) - $460/mo

 

I don't hate the Nissan emblem... just BIG chrome ones - actually chrome in general looks so damn cheap to me. Just my opinion.

Long before it was called "shaving", I've been dechroming my cars since my first cars in tha late 70's. I would on this one too if it wasn't a lease.

 

how long are u leasing. its usually at least three years so u can just return it to stock afterwards