Alright...my turn for a review
Alright...my turn for a review
Test drove:
Spirited Bronze/black interior 2004 SE
5speed auto
-Sensory package
-Premium audio package
-Driver preferred package
Exterior: First off, this color is AMAZING. It looks very classy but you can still see all the cars lines beautifully. Both SL and SE tires seem to fit the aggressively flared fenders well. It gives the car a squat look. The quad-pipes are a nice touch but could have bigger tips and the taillights still look like a Hyundai Elantra's. The grill actually blends well but I still don't like how wide the lower intake grill is. The engine bay is very tight and the trunk is spacious. Skyview looks neat-O and spoiler doesn't belong there. So far, no early signs of poor fit and finish and orange pealing in the paint. Projector HID's are cool.
Interior: Black leather isn't gathered like the 2k2-2k3's which is my biggest gripe. It doesn't look as cozy but nonetheless, it has the typical Nissan high quality leather. The graining is even Germancar-like but not as pronouced. Like the 5th generations, only the upper portion has soft-touch panels. They have similar graining like the leather seats. The suede inserts aren't something I care for, especially for long-term abuse, but they aren't bad. Better than the Altima's though, where the entire door panal is hard plastic with only the cloth/leather insert is soft. Also, like the 5th gens, only the upper portion of the dash has soft-touch plastics. The center console is still all hard plastic, but at least the graining looks high quality and consistant. The guages are suprisingly legible in the day and look awesome with the white faces. The bose system sounds muffled, not alot of highs but produces ALOT of bass
The buttons are VERY confusing, but it didn't take long to figure most of them out. I especially think the auto entry/exit is a nice touch, it moves the seat back and the steering wheel tilts. Skyview is too small and because of that I prefer a regular sunroof. Doors shut with a quiet/solid WHOOMFF and the exterior door handles feel very solid and straight out of a BMW's or MB's. Dual zone climate is awesome! The plastic panel on the passenger side, next to the cup holder/lid, half of it peeled off
Test drive: Started the car, RPMS still jumps to 2,200rpms and I CAN ACTUALLY FEEL ENGINE VIBRATION on the steering wheel, pedals, seats. WTF?
I let it warm up and I still felt the engine was "cobby". Put the thing in drive and the engine smooths out. Off I go! I never knew the VQ could be this smooth and FAST to rev. Very effortless and the transmission is very quick to shift and choose a gear. Brakes obviously would feel better than my warped ones. Suspension feels more damped than the Altima's, more quiet than the Altima's and has better control. Steering wheel feels ALOT better; its not feather/twitchy like, has a nice weight, but still slightly darty like the Altima's. Tires are suprisingly quiet. On the highway you only hear them as a slight hum, everything else is muted.
Will I buy it, I'm thinking about it, though not this tester. The loose interior panel might be a sign that other things in the car isn't assembled correctly. This one has all the options I need and the price is 31K. I'm pretty sure I can get it retail or close to it.
Spirited Bronze/black interior 2004 SE
5speed auto
-Sensory package
-Premium audio package
-Driver preferred package
Exterior: First off, this color is AMAZING. It looks very classy but you can still see all the cars lines beautifully. Both SL and SE tires seem to fit the aggressively flared fenders well. It gives the car a squat look. The quad-pipes are a nice touch but could have bigger tips and the taillights still look like a Hyundai Elantra's. The grill actually blends well but I still don't like how wide the lower intake grill is. The engine bay is very tight and the trunk is spacious. Skyview looks neat-O and spoiler doesn't belong there. So far, no early signs of poor fit and finish and orange pealing in the paint. Projector HID's are cool.
Interior: Black leather isn't gathered like the 2k2-2k3's which is my biggest gripe. It doesn't look as cozy but nonetheless, it has the typical Nissan high quality leather. The graining is even Germancar-like but not as pronouced. Like the 5th generations, only the upper portion has soft-touch panels. They have similar graining like the leather seats. The suede inserts aren't something I care for, especially for long-term abuse, but they aren't bad. Better than the Altima's though, where the entire door panal is hard plastic with only the cloth/leather insert is soft. Also, like the 5th gens, only the upper portion of the dash has soft-touch plastics. The center console is still all hard plastic, but at least the graining looks high quality and consistant. The guages are suprisingly legible in the day and look awesome with the white faces. The bose system sounds muffled, not alot of highs but produces ALOT of bass
The buttons are VERY confusing, but it didn't take long to figure most of them out. I especially think the auto entry/exit is a nice touch, it moves the seat back and the steering wheel tilts. Skyview is too small and because of that I prefer a regular sunroof. Doors shut with a quiet/solid WHOOMFF and the exterior door handles feel very solid and straight out of a BMW's or MB's. Dual zone climate is awesome! The plastic panel on the passenger side, next to the cup holder/lid, half of it peeled offTest drive: Started the car, RPMS still jumps to 2,200rpms and I CAN ACTUALLY FEEL ENGINE VIBRATION on the steering wheel, pedals, seats. WTF?
I let it warm up and I still felt the engine was "cobby". Put the thing in drive and the engine smooths out. Off I go! I never knew the VQ could be this smooth and FAST to rev. Very effortless and the transmission is very quick to shift and choose a gear. Brakes obviously would feel better than my warped ones. Suspension feels more damped than the Altima's, more quiet than the Altima's and has better control. Steering wheel feels ALOT better; its not feather/twitchy like, has a nice weight, but still slightly darty like the Altima's. Tires are suprisingly quiet. On the highway you only hear them as a slight hum, everything else is muted.Will I buy it, I'm thinking about it, though not this tester. The loose interior panel might be a sign that other things in the car isn't assembled correctly. This one has all the options I need and the price is 31K. I'm pretty sure I can get it retail or close to it.
Senior Member
Joined: Jan 2002
Posts: 8,653
Re: Alright...my turn for a review
Originally posted by ScreamingVQ
Test drove:
Spirited Bronze/black interior 2004 SE
5speed auto
-Sensory package
-Premium audio package
-Driver preferred package
Exterior: First off, this color is AMAZING. It looks very classy but you can still see all the cars lines beautifully. Both SL and SE tires seem to fit the aggressively flared fenders well. It gives the car a squat look. The quad-pipes are a nice touch but could have bigger tips and the taillights still look like a Hyundai Elantra's. The grill actually blends well but I still don't like how wide the lower intake grill is. The engine bay is very tight and the trunk is spacious. Skyview looks neat-O and spoiler doesn't belong there. So far, no early signs of poor fit and finish and orange pealing in the paint. Projector HID's are cool.
Interior: Black leather isn't gathered like the 2k2-2k3's which is my biggest gripe. It doesn't look as cozy but nonetheless, it has the typical Nissan high quality leather. The graining is even Germancar-like but not as pronouced. Like the 5th generations, only the upper portion has soft-touch panels. They have similar graining like the leather seats. The suede inserts aren't something I care for, especially for long-term abuse, but they aren't bad. Better than the Altima's though, where the entire door panal is hard plastic with only the cloth/leather insert is soft. Also, like the 5th gens, only the upper portion of the dash has soft-touch plastics. The center console is still all hard plastic, but at least the graining looks high quality and consistant. The guages are suprisingly legible in the day and look awesome with the white faces. The bose system sounds muffled, not alot of highs but produces ALOT of bass The buttons are VERY confusing, but it didn't take long to figure most of them out. I especially think the auto entry/exit is a nice touch, it moves the seat back and the steering wheel tilts. Skyview is too small and because of that I prefer a regular sunroof. Doors shut with a quiet/solid WHOOMFF and the exterior door handles feel very solid and straight out of a BMW's or MB's. Dual zone climate is awesome! The plastic panel on the passenger side, next to the cup holder/lid, half of it peeled off
Test drive: Started the car, RPMS still jumps to 2,200rpms and I CAN ACTUALLY FEEL ENGINE VIBRATION on the steering wheel, pedals, seats. WTF? I let it warm up and I still felt the engine was "cobby". Put the thing in drive and the engine smooths out. Off I go! I never knew the VQ could be this smooth and FAST to rev. Very effortless and the transmission is very quick to shift and choose a gear. Brakes obviously would feel better than my warped ones. Suspension feels more damped than the Altima's, more quiet than the Altima's and has better control. Steering wheel feels ALOT better; its not feather/twitchy like, has a nice weight, but still slightly darty like the Altima's. Tires are suprisingly quiet. On the highway you only hear them as a slight hum, everything else is muted.
Will I buy it, I'm thinking about it, though not this tester. The loose interior panel might be a sign that other things in the car isn't assembled correctly. This one has all the options I need and the price is 31K. I'm pretty sure I can get it retail or close to it.
Test drove:
Spirited Bronze/black interior 2004 SE
5speed auto
-Sensory package
-Premium audio package
-Driver preferred package
Exterior: First off, this color is AMAZING. It looks very classy but you can still see all the cars lines beautifully. Both SL and SE tires seem to fit the aggressively flared fenders well. It gives the car a squat look. The quad-pipes are a nice touch but could have bigger tips and the taillights still look like a Hyundai Elantra's. The grill actually blends well but I still don't like how wide the lower intake grill is. The engine bay is very tight and the trunk is spacious. Skyview looks neat-O and spoiler doesn't belong there. So far, no early signs of poor fit and finish and orange pealing in the paint. Projector HID's are cool.
Interior: Black leather isn't gathered like the 2k2-2k3's which is my biggest gripe. It doesn't look as cozy but nonetheless, it has the typical Nissan high quality leather. The graining is even Germancar-like but not as pronouced. Like the 5th generations, only the upper portion has soft-touch panels. They have similar graining like the leather seats. The suede inserts aren't something I care for, especially for long-term abuse, but they aren't bad. Better than the Altima's though, where the entire door panal is hard plastic with only the cloth/leather insert is soft. Also, like the 5th gens, only the upper portion of the dash has soft-touch plastics. The center console is still all hard plastic, but at least the graining looks high quality and consistant. The guages are suprisingly legible in the day and look awesome with the white faces. The bose system sounds muffled, not alot of highs but produces ALOT of bass
The buttons are VERY confusing, but it didn't take long to figure most of them out. I especially think the auto entry/exit is a nice touch, it moves the seat back and the steering wheel tilts. Skyview is too small and because of that I prefer a regular sunroof. Doors shut with a quiet/solid WHOOMFF and the exterior door handles feel very solid and straight out of a BMW's or MB's. Dual zone climate is awesome! The plastic panel on the passenger side, next to the cup holder/lid, half of it peeled offTest drive: Started the car, RPMS still jumps to 2,200rpms and I CAN ACTUALLY FEEL ENGINE VIBRATION on the steering wheel, pedals, seats. WTF?
I let it warm up and I still felt the engine was "cobby". Put the thing in drive and the engine smooths out. Off I go! I never knew the VQ could be this smooth and FAST to rev. Very effortless and the transmission is very quick to shift and choose a gear. Brakes obviously would feel better than my warped ones. Suspension feels more damped than the Altima's, more quiet than the Altima's and has better control. Steering wheel feels ALOT better; its not feather/twitchy like, has a nice weight, but still slightly darty like the Altima's. Tires are suprisingly quiet. On the highway you only hear them as a slight hum, everything else is muted.Will I buy it, I'm thinking about it, though not this tester. The loose interior panel might be a sign that other things in the car isn't assembled correctly. This one has all the options I need and the price is 31K. I'm pretty sure I can get it retail or close to it.
Member
Joined: May 2001
Posts: 41
Re: Re: Alright...my turn for a review
Originally posted by 95emeraldgxe
a possible reason why there are loose parts is because now that the max is made in the US, the workers that are in UNIONS dont put much effort into it
a possible reason why there are loose parts is because now that the max is made in the US, the workers that are in UNIONS dont put much effort into it
Originally posted by max...to the ma
how about the handling?
how about the handling?
Junior Member
Joined: Feb 2003
Posts: 55
I agree. It could be that getting rid of the beam rear suspension and replacing with the multi-link independent rear suspension made the difference.
Originally posted by ScreamingVQ
I didn't get to toss it around corners but my "sedate" driving, the car felt like my 5th generation with a FSTB.
I didn't get to toss it around corners but my "sedate" driving, the car felt like my 5th generation with a FSTB.
Senior Member
Joined: Dec 2000
Posts: 596
I bought an 04 SL with elite package and sunroof in the bronze with tan interior. It is a beautiful color. No gripes about fit/finish anywhere on this car. My sunroof needed adjustment, but materials, switches...all are perfect. I am very picky about these kinds of things. Don't like to hear than any are coming out the door with problems. Definitely should have been fixed. I love this car.
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