Hello all...I do not post on here much but have been a member since 2006 when I bought my car. My wife and I just bought a new van to accommodate our expanding family and I'm trying to decide what to do with my car.

03 GLE, Auto, 215k miles, Silver exterior, Black interior
Body: Paint is glossy, front end is chipped up, few dings in the doors, rust in both rear wheel wells, Fuel door needs replaced
Interior: Excellent shape, few scratches, some wear on driver's seat
Mechanical: Engine burns some oil, transmission shifts great
Electrical: Bose CD player needs fixed, driver window has trouble going up
Brakes/Suspension/Tires: Brakes in good shape, tires have 15k miles on them, Illumina struts/Eibach springs

Does anyone have an idea of what this car might be worth? I'm trying to decide whether to sell my car or my wife's 2003 Neon with 68k miles. Her car is in great shape but I still prefer mine even with all the problems. The car is mainly used for commuting a whopping 7 miles a day to work so the practical side of me says ditch the Maxima and keep the Neon.

The other option I've considered is parting it out if I didn't think I could get enough out of selling it to make it worth my while. The only problem with parting it out is it would be a big hassle and would probably take awhile to sell all the parts.

Sorry for the long-winded post but I'd appreciate anyone's advice. Thanks.

 

Easy. Sell that Neon s**tbox. I rather push my Maxima than to be caught dead in a Neon, unless it was a fully built SRT that runs 10 second quarter miles.

 

I with ^, no twin snail SRT, no care.

 

your sig says you have springs and shocks, the partout shouldnt take more than 2 hrs..lol and a max with that kinda miles and issues, i dunno what its worth...

 

With rust issues, probably best to part out.

 

The rear wheel well rust issue is common with these cars that see road salts. Mine has the same problem. It's an inexpensive fix so long as it doesn't get too out of control. I wire brushed mine and hit it with some rust killing rattle can paint to stop the spread until I can get it properly patched up.

 

Good post OP.

IMO, sell the neon, you'll get as much or more for it in comparison to the Maxima in the shape it's in with those miles. I wouldn't think of parting out or selling the Maxima, if you're happy with it, drive it into the ground, or until the costof repairs outweighs the savings on a new(er) car. Sounds like your option to sell is LONG gone on the Maxima, in short, it's worth nothing.

 

I forgot to mention that my A/C compressor is making some strange noises too so it's probably on it's way out.

I know the Neon is a s**tbox, but I'd hate to sell it and then need to replace the Maxima within a couple years. I can live with all the issues that Maxima has considering how little I drive it, but things like having a working A/C would be nice.

 

maxima > neon

 

Keep the Maxima... its a bigger car and more comfortable to drive around than the Neon... I understand that the Neon will be much cheaper to keep up on the maintenance but as far as I know there are owners here who have more that 300,000+ miles on the VQ35 engines... There is a reason why this engine was on the Ward's 10 Best engine list for more than 10 years... Can't really remember seeing a Neon engine there
As far as the A/C compressor I consider that to be just an accessory... and if you are handy with the tools its an easy DIY job...

 

her new car is the van, sell her neon, keep your max

 

Sell both cars! Buy a different car...

 

Nissan is better than any dodge in general the neon sure has low miles but. Time has proven the maximal to be a better car all the way around keep the maximal do small maintenance to keep it movimg sell the neon its junk

 

With over 200k on the car, you probably won't get very much by selling the car, if you have the time, parting out the car likely will result in higher return overall, but selling the car is likely quicker and easier...

 

This entirely depends on what your time is worth to you. If you have a ton of time, and aren't concerned about upfront cash, then part it out. It'll probably take a while to part it out all the way. However, It doesn't sound like it's in THAT bad of shape. If you can take some time and work on fixing the rust issue, window issue, and other interior/exterior cosmetics I would venture to guess you could pull an easy 4-5k resale (KBB quotes 4890-6440 here). Oil consumption is more than typical of these cars, so I don't consider that a point of lesser value unless it's leaking, or visibly smoking.

This Maxima is no doubt, nicer than the Neon, but with regular maintenance on both cars from this point on, you would probably be able to get ~130k out of the neon (~200k miles total), and MAYBE 70k-80k more on the maxima. The maxima is likely to probably have a more major issue due to the high mileage assuming they are both maintained meticulously. While the 3.5 engine is a highly awarded engine and generally very reliable, keep in mind oil consumption is only going to get worse-- typically leading to failed pre-cats and other major repairs. Not to mention the cost of adding oil every week.

Honestly, I would sell the maxima, and then trade the Neon in for something with lower mileage than the maxima, and higher quality than the Neon.

 

I have the same problems. Other than oil consumption.

 

I have the same exact car model, year and colour. And I am in need of lots of parts for my car that i'm looking for. If you decide to part it out send me a message. Thanks

 

Sell me the Maxima...Seriously

 

Just make sure it doesn't suffer the same fate as your previous Maxima.

 

Oh believe me, I'm positive it won't happen again.

Next person to "take my car out for a spin" will have a nice little record..

 

I definitely agree that the Neon is nowhere near as nice as the Maxima, but I'm only putting 5-6k miles a year on the car so that doesn't matter as much to me as it used to when I was driving 20k miles a year.

My wife purchased the Neon brand new back in 2003 so really the only reason I would keep it is because I know its history and it's in good shape.

I basically put extra money down on the van that I planned on recouping by selling the Neon so I'm not really looking to sell both cars and buy something different.

I'm not hurting for the cash so I could part it out, but I'm not sure I want to deal with the work of removing and shipping the parts off the car. Also, I'm not really sure how much more money I could get out of the car by doing this as opposed to selling it.

I'm sure I'm capable of replacing the A/C but I think it'd still cost at least $400 in parts to fix myself. The rust looks bad enough inside the well that it'd probably have to be cut out and replaced and that's not something I could do myself.

tseng1023 - PM your offer and I'll consider it.

Thanks for all the responses!

 

Obviously, I'm going to vote you keep the Maxima. See sig.

 

Sell the Neon and the Maxima. Buy a low miles 6-speed 02/03 as a replacement. Problem solved.

 

That's a good idea as well.

 

Agreed...

 

4-5k for a 12 year old Maxima with 215,000 miles? No, I don't care if that car is MINT, like 10/10 in every aspect, it still wouldn't pull anywhere near that coin.


If you were commuting, keepingthe neonwould be a good idea. Because you're not, the idea of selling both and getting something else isn't a bad one.

I still think if you can deal with the car's current condition, you're better off running it into the ground or fixing it up and keeping it for a long time.