Took my 2k3 Maxima to the Town Center Nissan dealership in Kennesaw, GA for an oil change and decided to stroll the showroom. I saw a black six speed, slit rear seat 2k4 with 20" bling bling chrome wheels ($6K) and DVD system ($2K) for $44k. I almost $%^&!

 

that is sick. are they options installed by the dealer for the general public?

 

I believe so. The DVD player and rims are aftermarket. The rims are a very popular design, I see those same rims on Tahoes and Escalades from dealerships. The DVD player was a generic name and was installed in the roof behind the sunroof. The DVD unit itself was located in the rear armrest.
I work for Carmax and we specialize in buying and selling used cars. More than 70% of people trying to get out of their vehicles in the first 3-4 years are so upside down it's pathetic. Two reason... no money down and depreciation. Now add inflated accessories.

 

haha the power of money. that is the precise reason i am throwing 13k down on my maxima so if i decide i want to get a new max in the future i wont be crapout.

 

Whether you pay it now or in a few years, if you drop 13K now plus 2-3 years worth of payments, it is just as bad as being upside down... if you are worried about this, don't get rid of the car until you have driven it payment free for a while.

 

well barring unforseen circumstances i should be able to payoff the car in 2 years. now if they produce an AWD maxima within that timeframe i can start saving for that if not then im going to keep it for a while.

 

In Bay Ridge, Brooklyn dealership... saw a 2004 Maxima SE in orange with wood trim on the dashboard and 3 tv screens in the car. 2 in the 2 headrests and 1 in the glove compartment. Satellite TV and Xbox in the car. The 2 headrests could show something different than the screen in the glove compartment. The windows were tinted with the "glass-look" tint. Car had chrome rims on too (not sure if they were the standard 18" or if they were bigger. But this car was incredible.

 

WE have a Nissan dealerhere that tricks out some of their cars mainly 350Z, Altimas and Maxima (2003) to get people to stop and look around. They of course charge full price for the aftermarket stuff... I wonder if you get to have the standard euipment that was replaced by the aftermarket stuff considering the standard equipment is covered with the MSRP...

 

I tend to agree with gmc74's statements, it's either pay now, or pay when you get out of the car....

actually, if you have the $13,000, why not put it in something that will get you back more than the 4.9% on the loan, and when you want to get out of the Maxima, take the $13,000 out of that account, and leave the money you earned as interest in the bank, and pay later.

its to your advantage with these super low interest rates.

-vq

 

well i am used to living at a certain income. by putting the 13000 down my payments will be in the low 300's if i have extra after all the crap i spend than i will add to the payments the extra money. its all about how much i want to spend and since i am deployed to the middle east i dont have to spend money on anything i save up for my maxima.

 

i see lots of hooked up escalades at the dealer lots

 

I live in an upper class, high income, suburban area of atlanta, and all over this town there are soccer moms driving escalades and tahoes with chrome 20's - 22's. I don't know if the husbands are actually buying these, or if the dealers are tacking them on when they're at the dealership.....

BUT...either way...it's funny as hell....

 

Yea that is funny, the dealer is most likely just "adding" them onto the trucks before they go out the door....

 

Yeah, they see them coming a mile away. Time to slap on the $3000 rims, $1000 paint protection, $500 pin stripes, etc... slap that all on and say it is part of the car...

I love when dealers try to haggle with you on this stuff. "My manager has authorized me to sell you the paint protection at our cost, $500." haha, yeah, I don't think so...

 

yeah...being in the mortgage business I see people ALL the TIME that get absolutely HOSED by dealers. Most people just go to the dealer and say "what will be the monthly payment??"......BIG MISTAKE......

 

yeah letting the dealer work up to your target payment is a bad idea

LOL

I see so many people negotiate based on the monthly payment because it is something that they can relate to. They know what they can and can't afford based on what it costs every month. The better solution is to know what the total cost x the months x the rate will be per month, make a chart and take it with you or memorize it. That way you can negotiate the price of the car.

 

So true.I think we have some of the worst drivers as well as people with the worst taste here in Atlanta. BTW, I bet 50% of these SUVs with these huge rims have bent wheels left and right.

 

that is silly. soccer moms are nuts though. they tend to run everyone over in there soccer vehicles of death.

 

 

Affordable stupidity.

 

Yeah...one time at North Point I saw a lady driving an expedition fast as hell as she was rounding a corner in the parking lot....the right rear wheel clipped the curb and she damned near flipped the beast...kids and all inside...

This is also why we have an SUV (RX 300) for my wife's car. If we ever get into a wreck around here (with my son in the car), chances are it will be with one of those sub-urban assault vehicles....so we need to have something to marginally fight back with...

 

HAHA!

I used to drive an Excursion. Man I miss that truck. It was fun to drive, but that V10 sucked some serious gas!

 

Mommy dubs cruisin the pavement of suburban Dallas, TX, but their teenage sons are driving suvs with dubs/mudders/lift....I gotta move

 

i hear that

 

Recently, I was down at the local wheel shop checking out chrome wheels . The manager told me that a kid, who is going into his junior year in high school, came in with his father. They had chrome spinner wheels put on the kid's new Escalade. This kid is driving an Escalade to high school, for God's sake!!!

 

This is amazing. Time Magazine had an article not long ago of the booming wheel business suggesting that the market's trickling down from sports jocks/car nuts to more mainstream folks.

I tell you the Infiniti FX35/45 nailed the big wheel look on an SUV better than most SUVs in production. I'm curious to see what their mid-design cycle wheel patterns will look like a couple years from now.

 

That is rediculous a high school kid driving an escalade