Hi all,

I have been searching for a 5.5 Maxima for a few months and I had convinced myself to get a 4th gen instead to save a few bucks, however that fell through for the time being.

While poking around online, I found a 2002 Maxima SE 6 speed in black/black with 57,000 miles. The seller and I got the price down to $11,000 over the phone, but here's the catch. The car has no airbags. Supposedly, he bought it 2 years ago right after it had gotten hit in the front bumper. When he bought it, the bumper had been replaced and repainted (which may have set back the problem of rock chips a few more years). He claims the car is perfect in every other way. In the price, he is including brand new OEM airbags that he bought online and he told me it would cost $3000 to install them at a dealer (which sounds about right to me). I am dubious as to whether I want to accept the airbags, but...

The question is simply this: how much of a pain are airbags to work with and does that $11,000 buy me a steal of a car or a lemon?

Much appreciated!

JTW

 

don't get it.. he is going to ripp you off.. that car was hit hard in the front. No airbags.. big accident. move on .....my .02

 

dont buy it...you can find one with no damage like that for a little more.
who painted the bumper before he bought it? any legit place would have reistalled airbags since its illegal not to. i think he wrecked the car not long ago, got his insurance check and is keeping it.

 

Couldn't I tell somehow if I went to see the car? Could I scoot underneath and see if the frame was bent or something like that? For what it's worth, this sounds like the real deal to me and not a con artist. At least it's not a Nigerian offering to give it to me for free if I only send a processing fee of $1995 to Africa.

 

if you know what you are doing you can look for cracks or ripples in the paint around the crumble zones

 

wow stay away from that max its tempting 6psd and all but i gotta say no

 

How about if I get him down to say.... $12700 is average book price of that Maxima minus his quoted $3000 for repairs... to $9700.

 

Oh yeah, this is it:

www.reg63.com/car.html

 

so now ur gonna drive around with no airbags in a salvaged car?? hmmm....

 

well you sound like you have made a decision since you are trying to talk us in to it

 

Hmm... maybe I'm trying to con myself?

 

you said it had 57,000 miles
http://www.reg63.com/pages/image015.html

 

Meep. Guess I'll just keep putt-putting around town in my beater. That's alright. Thanks for the input all.

 

Those pictures are a bit older, but I was pretty sure I wasn't going to get this car anyway. I just had a weak moment there. I really think this is just a stupid kid, not a con artist, but I just wanted to triple check with the good members of this forum as to whether it would be worth it to get it cheap and build it up.

 

yea i would stay away from anything like that, no airbags?!? something was f**ked up big time, probably by the kid in the picture with no shirt on and his hairy chest showing lol

 

Dont go with it, I bought a salvaged 98 maxima...not worth it at all. IMO once the airbags are used....the car should just be put in the junkyard and left there.

 

only thing is....i'd die to have that car because its 6speed first of all..and has all the extra features that i have now and could not live without. i really want another car for my next car...but its so tempting to go for a 3rd maxima and get a 6speed. :/

 

i was gonna say the exact same thing

 

Test drive the car and see how it goes, it doesn't mean if the car was it then it's a bad car!!! I say that's a pretty good deal if the car runs alright!!!!
Air bags are not a big issue like some ppl think, and no it shouldn't take $3000 to install, lol do it yourself and it's all set, not hard at all!!!

 

Also consider if the airbags are deployed that the control unit has to be replaced also. This unit for this car is about 865.00 list. I'm sure it probably didn't get replaced if they didn't do the modules.

 

and by people you mean car companies and safety law makers!!!
they are a big deal...they are there for a reason

 

me and soonerfan finally agree on one thing, this car is a no go! Move along and have some other moran buy it.

 

Don't get the car.

My friend freakin' CRASHED a curb HELLA hard with his 2k 5-speed GXE, like, the whole underside was f'd up. The airbags didn't go off. It was a HARD impact too.

So if the airbags were deployed already on this car, definitely think about what you're getting.

 

I would stay away. I paid 10,700 for my 02 with higher miles (87k) and a few MINOR problems. Missing airbags is far from being just a minor problem plus you know the car was definantly hit from the front. Find an accident free car and you'll be much better off in the long run (unless it's DIRT cheap).

 

I think he means as far as replacing, he should know he has done it and a good job of it at that

 

that pic was funny as hell, laughed till I cried.

 

It's not worth the money at all. If it has a salvage title the value is only a few grand. You could also have trouble financing and insuring a salvaged vehicle.

I sell cars and if you brought that in and tried to trade it we'd only give you a couple grand for it. You may think it looks good but any experienced car guy will spot paint and body work from a mile away and run a car fax. I've seen it happen several times.

Also look at these pics of my wifes car. Her airbags DIDN'T go off. It takes more than a small hit to the bumper to make the airbags go off.

 

how easy ppl get scared here... that's an easy fix.

 

well, my car does not have any airbags... and i'm not planning on installing any either. What happens to the bag if i put in a Momo steering wheel? Ever thoght of that? What if i throw out oem seats with side bags and put in any aftermarket race-style seats? I see my car as a metal shell with everything else removable/replaceable. So, as long as that shell is straight/true/no rust, i don't care about anything else -it will be modified at some point anyway. But that's just me. Besides, how many cars out there have been into accidents - 9 out of 10 for sure.

 

No where near 9 out of 10 cars have been in accidents.
I agree that if you want to run with out airbags that's your business. I've owned several cars without airbags and survived a pretty nasty head on in a 74 Zcar.

The thing he needs to be aware of are the financial issues. If that car has a screwed up title he could end up owing 10 plus grand on a car worth maybe 2 or 3 grand. More and more people run Car Fax reports before buying a car. If he were getting the car for the low to mid thousands I'd be all for it. Sounds like a great car to modify because that messes up the value any way but it has to be the right price.

 

right, but...
even if such a car "worth" 2-3k, no one sells them for that much (or else i'm there the same day with cash ready... i'll take two of those) So i really don't see how that "worth" thing works.

 

why is the interior 2 tone? is that normal for black interior?

 

Just like you said, for the right price with cash it's a great deal. That's just not the right price.

The problem with selling a car like that is you have to find a sucker who doesn't know any better. That limits your customer base. If the buyer is financing, the bank will most likely do their own vehicle history report and choose not to loan the full amount on the vehicle.

Now you're looking for a sucker with a large amount of cash. Most people foolish enough to pay near full value for a salvaged car have already been seperated from their money several times over and can't finance any way because their credit sucks. A fool and his money...

I've been selling cars for several years and I know how this works. Even with airbags a wrecked and repaired car isn't worth average book. That car should be well below rough book AFTER factoring in the air bag repair. Not to mention 4 years of Minnesota winters. That car isn't worth average book even without being smashed.

Juno13, if you are still considering the car at least send me the VIN and I'll run a history report on it. I'm telling you though, this would be a very bad investment.

 

you have no idea what you are talking about

 

airbags come on at over 40mph.

you do that math..

yet, it could have been a simple case of a bumper smack (along with fenders and hood, radiator, condenser, fans, horns, headlights...) and that could have been repaired but at 1k a piece, airbags might have never been put in, or they could have and he could have sold them for cash if the insurance covered it.

in any case, you are looking at a wrecked frontal impact maxima.

beware

 

i agree with everyone here and im probably repeating it, but it looks really shady. and like most of the people here said, its not the fact that the airbags arent there, its the price, and the factor of maybe having to fix more problems along the line because of the possibility of a huge accident that he's maybe trying to cover up. if he wont tell you necessary history of the car up front, who knows how many other things he's hiding from you so you could buy it. keep lookin around because im sure another great car would turn up soon. doesnt hurt to wait

 

dont even get close to a salvaged car...trust me from personal experience

 

i say buy it if the price is right for you and you know how to work on cars. Airbags should take an hour max to put in yourself. And its not illegal to not have airbags installed in your car. Its funny hearing people say all this stuff. I'll post some pics someday in this thread of some cars i've fixed up. That'll make you think twice before buying a used car. But from the sound of this one it's nothin.

 

Sounds like someone's trying to unload a problem. Although, an independent inspection may reveal no real issues. I would have him at least meet you half-way on replacing those bags.

 

Noticed your location... And I find it offensive.

Just have to say, don't be misled by the lack of snipers on the border as an open invitation...

Rant over.