I have been wondering..... Why do you keep your Maxima?

I have a 2001 GLE with everything. I bought it new in May '01. I expected to keep it for 8 to 10 years. At the moment it has 41000 miles on it. It is garage kept and maintained regularly. At first (the first year) everything was fine with the exception of the harsh rear suspenion with four people in it. Then started a number of the typical things: Front break rotor problems every 10,000 miles (on third set of front brakes and second set of rotors and need a brake job now). Rear deck rattle (repaired by the dealer but came back cause it wasn't done right so I recently did it again myself). Terrible OE tires that only lasted 34000 miles. A Bose audio system that has bad reception (locks on stations that can just barely come through when the same stations can be heard fine by my Dodge van's radio). Rear suspension has gotten much worse because original springs were misdesigned and then Nissan posted a TSB that states to change them if the "bottoming" problem occurs (of course the dealer didn't tell me and I find this after my warranty ends and Nissan won't do anything). Cruise control that picks up and slows down constantly (after bringing it to the dealer twice and nothing, got a suggestion from someone on the org. and made an adjustment that made it at least bearable). Numerous creaks and rattles that drive me crazy, all of which are constantly descussed in the forums. Two O2 sensors dying at the same time. And they are just the things I have experenced to date. Not to mention the stuff I'm looking foward to, like the possibility of bad coils, MAF sensor failure and so on.

Don't get me wrong, I do still like the car. The look is great, the pick up is terrific, but as I stated, I expected to keep it for a long time (soon kids going to college). At this point I am wondering if I should just cut my losses and get something else. I do realize the any car will have problems, some more then others but this being my first Nissan and the most expensive at the time, I expected more. I certantly don't want to compare it to my '99 Dodge Caravan but I have had less problems with it in 85000 miles then my Max.

So, back to the question...... Why do you keep your's? Thanks in advance.

 

i got mine last summer because it had pretty much everything i was looking for - comfort, speed, size, and i was particularly looking for a 5 speed. always number 1 on my list would be an e36 m3, but right now thats not what i can have. i was looking to get an audi and had a neighbor going to auctions for me. after having trouble finding an audi i then spread my search out to getting a lexus or a maxima, he scooped a nice max from auction. i came by and drove it and loved every bit. im actually gonna be working for him this summer so im actually considering selling my max and getting something else, like a bmw. theyre so much nicer and i want rwd. so my answer is i keep mine because for right now its what fits.

 

double post

 

The only reason I'm still holding on to the Max is because I'm waiting for the BMW e90 coupe to come out. Then its seeya Max for good. I have the same problems everybody here have had. The one thing that really drives me nuts is the interior rattles. My Mazda3 that costs $10k cheaper is rock solid inside but unfortunately it will be the Mazda3 that will be sold and not the Max in a few months. I'm PCS'ing to Germany and the Mazda is so freakin' slow its not even funny (not to mention it is ecu speed governed to 119mph, even though I don't think it matters.. ). I've had 3 Maximas (96',00',03') in the last 10 yrs, all purchased new and all of them suffered from the paint chips, rattles and warping brakes and each time I was hoping (giving them the benefit of the doubt) Nissan would have addressed those issues. Needless to say, this will be my last Nissan.

 

I bought my 2001 SE new back in November 2000, and she now has over 113,000 miles. I have no plans on getting rid of the car at all. Overall, the car still looks and drives like new. I don't have problems with the suspension, my rotors warped once and I took care of those, I had Toyo tires originally on my 16" wheels which were later swapped out with the very nice Bridgestone RE950, I upgraded to the 17" wheels and slapped on nice Falken tires, I don't have any rattling problems, and most of everything else is good too.

The car has little quirks that I live with, but that's the same with almost any car. So I will most likely keep her until her last normally-asperated breath.

My family tends to go with Nissan, and we've never had major issues. My dad still drives a 1995 Altima GXE, I have my '01 Maxima SE and I just purchased an '01 Pathfinder LE used with less than 38k miles, my sister has an '02 Pathfinder SE, her husband has an '03 G35 sedan, and I did have an '02 Sentra SE-R before my girlfriend totalled it. Nissan tends to offer the best bang for the buck out of the top three Japanese car makers, and we appreciate that from them.

I'll stay with the brand until they give me reason to change.

Peace.

 

Because I'm buying a house and because I can't afford an M5 or a AMG S65.

61k and I love my Max Not gonna trade unless I really, really have to (over 100k maybe.)

 

Reliability.. 86K miles and no major problems other than the normal ones.... that every Max owner has... I will keep it until the engine -tranny dies and then I will get a new engine and a new tranny.... no more car payments for me.

 

I like it - it's a fast, comfortable, reasonably priced car. Plus my previous experience has been positive, my 4th gen ran like a watch for 130k miles.

It will be my last FWD car though, I think Max is about the limit in power for front wheel drive - with the timing advanced, even with good tires max throttle in 1st gear means spinning and twitching.

 

Because my last Max gave me 227k and still counting, trouble free miles and still does.

 

My family have always loved nissans. This is our 4th maxima. We stil have our 96 max that has 234K miles and it still runs great. We really haven't had a any bad experiences with them. My uncle has bought an @ Q45's so I think everybody is still satisified.

....the reason why I just bought one recently ...it has everything I need .....dont get me wrong if i had the money...i'd be at the bimmer dealership buying an m3 but.....for now this is great....

 

because it's roomy, and fast. and i use it for work. looking to buy an s14 to build up and driveon the weekends. and because there are too many damn camrys and accords on the road.

 

Because the only 2 problems I've had are the Bose cd player cutting out and enjoying the car too much....

No other problems whatsoever...

 

There's not a car out there that doesn't have any problems. Honda/Acura has had some major issues with their transmissions. I personally know 5 people who had their tranny's replaced. I purchased my 2k2 Maxima (auto w/ 56k miles) last month, so far I'm loving every minute of it. I plan on keeping it for 8+ years. Most used consumer guides give the Maxima a favorable rating and it's always on their best buy list. I've been a lifelong Honda fan who just recently switched over to Nissan and so far I've been very happy with my decision....

 

keeping max because:

1--Most horsepower on a 4 door sedan for the buck
2--Like the front design a lot (rear is gay).
3--It ain't played out like the civics or accords (there must be at least 2 hondas per 100 feet in ny)
4--I can't afford another car right now.
5--Spent a considerable amount of money in modding it (although no performance mods whatsoever) keepin it real ghetto, nice outside, $hitty inside, or the other way around)

now if i had to get rid of my max, it would be because:

1--Extremelly unconfortable seats, although it has a lot of room.
2--nissan customer service, stealerships, parts department, they all $uck.
3--suspension is extremelly crappy for a so called "sports sedan", as you all know the wheel gap is no joke.

surprisingly my 2k max bose system never failed on me.

i was wondering why everyone is complaining about the bose HU, so i asked Don and he said i was one of the lucky few.

In any case, the bose speakers are real crap, but as for the HU, never had problems with it.

 

best car i have ever owned... i have yet to experience any problems with my car... it looks great, drives great, has plenty of power, it puts a smile on my face every time i get behind the wheel. all in all nissan has been good to me a my family we own a murano which has also seen no major problems and i will probably purchase another when the time comes. the only problem that i have is after i found out about this website i spend all my time on here trying to find new ways to make this thing unique and because of that i have absolutely no money. the moding bug strikes again...

 

I keep it because the alternatives are much worse. I've had enough of POS American cars. Think the Max has problems? Try Detroit cars! Camrys and Accords are fine if you're height challenged. German cars? Friends have paid $2k for a brake job or tune-up. I think I'll keep the Max.

 

Look at it

I really like this car a lot. I have not had to pay but $50 for an extended warranty deductible once in terms of repair costs. The car runs, looks, and performs great. The question is, why WOULD I want to get rid of it?





Not to mention I'm like $3k flipped.

 

My family has owned Chevys, Isuzus (cars not trucks, really good cars at that too) and for bout 10+years now all Nissans. I paid 20K out the door for mine almost 4 years ago now, problem areas ? I can't say mine doesn't rattle, or has sh!tty paint- but alot of my friends is now trying to come up with $$$ for a 5th gen Maxima :P I have 110K miles on the odo, the interior wore out soo good that some 04 TLs that I work on look like they have more miles than mine- I tend to be very picky on my cleanniness, and thats why my car looks like brand new inside. What else will handle 100+K miles of redlines, 4 clutches, 10 sets of tires, countless races - autoXing the big boat rocks ! At the end of the day I relax inside my Maxima on the way home (from working on Acuras all day long). Put on my XM channel 81 or 82 via the Alpine sound system (no Bose here and my Alpine has been trouble free for 4 years now), chill back in the comfortable luxurious feelin cloth seats (that zap me with static charge everytime I get out of the car) and enjoy the spacious interior, 30+MPG on the highway. I never had to add oil to the engine, nor did it ever require anything else but oil changes, plugs, MAFs. I had a 3rd gen with 340K miles that I sold and it ran up to 400K miles on the original VG30E, I'm hopping to surpass that with my VQ. As for the cheap paint- I have had my front end repainted 2 times now from the rock chips and same thing happens over and over again, I'm getting my car repainted again this spring- complete paint job with dings taken out- 3M invisible bra on the bumper to keep my front end looking like new with 300K miles

 

I keep mine because the only thing else i would get would cost me 23k+ (a G35). I love the leg/hip room, the lights, and how good it looks at night. The interior space, and the potential it has, and just the speed it has stock is pretty solid. I mean granted it has a few issues from time to time, all ive had to do was just swap coils, but other then that everything has been more or less fine. Although, I really do wish the paint was better, I got 3 half penny sized rust spots on my roof, and nissan said they cant fix that unless the rust eats thru the metal. go figure.

 

To make a long story short....It has everything I could want at this point. It has a huge upgrade-ability (which ive started on). I actually just refinanced it. Im happy with it and its solid and fun to drive. I also get to be a member of this exclusive forum, what more could you ask for?

 

Keeping mine til she dies. Bullet proof reliability, I can't speak for everyone but I never had any problem whatsoever. The only thing that i had to replace was the tires since the OEM didn't last past 31k miles. She has 40k miles on the clock now.

 

Lease is up on my 2001 SE this month and it looks like I'm going to give it back.

It has been pretty reliable except that it has gone through three rf sway bar links that I guess are due to the lousy roads since I haven't heard of this as a chronic problem.

Commuting is starting to get pricey with the premium fuel though. Likely going to something smaller like a Mazda 6.

 

I` got my max, b/c my wife made me. don`t get me wrong i like the car is that i`m coming from a vw jetta vr6, and trust me this car was wonderful. So far the max has been pretty damm good i guess it`s a matter of getting used to it!

 

Less than 60,000 miles and less than 5 years old and your warranty is gone?

 

i'm waiting for the GTR to come out, then i'm gonna keep waiting until it's not $70,000, then i'm gonna try and bounce the max and get myself into one. so it looks like i'll be in this car for the foreseeable future.

honestly, i really like my car, and get lots of compliments on it. there are a few things that bother me but IMO they're just great cars overall.

 

I keep my car because a) its paid off, 2) at this point of my life, I don't want to have a car payment, 3) my Max is the most reliable (knock on wood) ride that I ever had.

One thing that I feel VERY sorry about, is not being able to afford a fully loaded SE back 4.5 yrs ago....

 

Basically what everyone else said.. my Maxima has not let me down yet. Other then the usual problems (maf, rotor warppage), my car has been SUPERB (knock on woods). My bose system is still thumping without a single problem, although I had indash tvs in my car but now back to stock bose. Engine still purrs like a tiger. Car still looks new (exterior/interior). I put about 102k miles so far and I drive about average of 200 miles a week. I also am **** about maintenance and keeping my car clean. Overall, i've never been happier with a car and i've owned about 4 cars so far.

PS- when I was in the market to buy my maxima, i've come across many GLE and GXE but had to let em go since SE was the only model I wanted.

 

I think it is probably one of the better cars for your money in it's class. You get a decent amount of power, luxury and exclusiveness... They are not played out like Accords, Camrys, BMW 3 series to name a few and despite whatever shortcomings (MAF problems for some, BOSE, rattling etc...) some have, it is all around a sexy and great car. I cant get over the sportiness and interior of my 5.5 gen... After mods, its a quick car without compromising space and useability. My car always turns heads wherever I go and it's exterior is pretty much stock...

Some pics:



tell me that isn't a sexy *** car...

 

All that car screams is SPANK ME SPANK MEEEEEEEEEEE

 

I graduate from school Aug. 2007 and my car is going to my brother. GTR here I come

 

because with any other car, i wouldnt have the excitment of waking up in the morning and seeing that my headlights are still there! its like a game to me


but seriously, ive wanted this max for a long time, with this color combo, and the Pros seriously outweight the cons for this car, IMO.

 

I just got the Max about a month ago (switch from Honda). I choose the Max because It was by far the best car in the class. I wanted a 4 dr, roomy, poweful, stylish, luxury, and most of all sporty, without dropping major coin. The Max fit my bill exactly. I love the car, of course im still very much in the novelty stage being such a new Max owner, but so far so good. Granted cars will have problems, but hopefully the good outweights the bad.

 

I am keeping mine prob, was thinking of getting a rex. I am just frustrated cause i have been experiencing all the probs of a 5.5 gen max in one year. Guess thats what i get for buying a car with 75000 miles on it a year ago. If it would just not vibrate for for more then 5 mins i would be happier. But I know once i get through these common problems the car will be great, right now i'm missin my 96 max (R.I.P.)

 

AMEN to everything you just posted!!!! I just paid off my minivan and the lease on my Maxima is up next month with a $12k payout (leased @ 15k/yr but have only 36k trouble free miles of the ~49k I paid for.)

My motto: If you liked when you made payments on it, you'll like it more when it's paid for.

 

I've owned a '94, '95, and now an '02 and I loved 'em all. the first one i took to 146k mi., the '95 went to 165k and then i killed it and now my 02 is still at a very young 39k. The rattles bother me, but it's because of my system. I drive pretty crazy, so the brakes don't last as long, and if i don't follow other cars too closely, I don't get any paint chips! **** ain't that hard, suck it up. Obviously that statement was for the cry babies. FAITHFUL MAXIMA LOVER TILL THE DAY I DIE! AND I GOT 20" CHROME WHEELS FOR ALL YOU HATERS!!!

 

I bought mine new in 2000 and just sent in the last payment...I likey that!...it is still in mint condition with a lil over 30k miles...I have a ford ranger 4X4 I drive most of the time especially during nasty weather.

It's still a good looking car and runs great except for the Idle drop and die issue.

I like not having a car payment so I will be hanging on to it untill something else really catches my eye

 

Good price point (or at least they used to be...now they have gone up with the last gen, I think?), fairly fast, comfortable, etc. It sounds like you have had a little more trouble with repeat problems than most, but as lots of people have mentioned, they took care of their cars and they lasted a long time. The nissan V6 is a bulletproof engine. As for the other stuff, things vary and there isnt too much in the same vehicle/price catagory to match. I think the question is not, why keep your max? but rather why keep your max instead of switch to _______?

 

88 Max. wagon (wife) , 89 Max. SE 5-speed (me) , 99 pathy (wife) , 91 Q45 (me), 03 M45 (me). Now looking for 02 Max for my daughter ( the 91Q45 is not 'cool')