[ACE]

I'm new to the forum and wanted your opinion on a purchase I'm about ot make. It's a Blue 04 Maxima SE stock. It's got 19k miles on it and I'm considering buying it for $18,500. I have already test drove it and it drives perfect (I test drove a brand new 05 a day earlier and noticed NO difference). Do you guys/gals think this price for this vehicle is proper? I have been readign about the strut and shimmey problem here for a few days but don't think I noticed anything wrong. No unusual noises or sounds while driving or turning. The seats seem to be in perfect working condition (no discoloration or stains). Good buy? should I do additional research or take it to a dealership for inspection? (if possible).

Monotaur

What kind of options does it have? Even at 19K miles, I think that 18.5K is a good deal (considering I paid over 10K more than that... albeit for a car with only 16 miles...).

[ACE]

No options from what I saw. It has cloth seats and the stadard sky view roof. i'm trying to weigh my options on getting a new 05 Max or this

At the mileage this car is at, I can still put in good oil and filter and do the twaks I want to for it to be the tyupe of car I want it to be.

SilverBelle04

How much for a new 05 ? Did you want to have more options ?

Bob

cobymoby

iTrader: (2)

I stopped buying new cars some time ago. I always urge friends and family to buy slightly used cars just like the one you are looking at. You are saving ~$10K over new, and you are basically getting a new car. Unless the thing was a rental or salvage, then I'd say go for it.

On my 2000 I saved roughly $9k on it by buying used. The car was roughly 10 months old when I got it and it had 5K miles on it. Fully loaded SE's were going for around $27-28 new, I picked mine up for $22K after taxes.

[ACE]

The only option I really would like to have is Navigation. But I can live without it.

Ryans Maxima

Heres the thing you have to think about, the person before you got rid of the car after a year. No matter how you look at it, that person took a hit to the wallet. Something many people aren't willing to do. So the thing you have to think about is, why did the person who owned it first get rid of it? Now, it could just be that the person just got sick of the car and wanted a different one. And got so sick of it that he'd take a hit trading it in? Now you said it had no options, cloth seats, no moonroof. I'm guessing this person was stretching as it is to even buy this car. So Why would he take such a hit to get rid of it? Now, it could just be, he fell on some hard times and had to get rid of the payments. it could also be the car is a rolling TSB. The point is, you never know with a used car, even one so new. And the fact of the matter is, you never know with a new car either, you could get a lemon right off the lot, but theres a far less chance you'll get a problem. I dunno, just my two cents.

huong

I bought my max used w/14,000 for 23,000 in march w/no option. I say you are getting a great price-but before you buy the car check the inner tires for cracks in the sidewalls, no scratches on the rims-bring the price down more if you can.

EdRomo86

i think you need to look out for more than just cracks in the sidewalls and scratches on the rims. look out for real problems like the shimmy or hard tranny shifting.

Y2KMaxGXE-R

iTrader: (4)

This very car you are looking at is possibly a former rental car. I worked for a major rental car co' and they kept their cars until 20K mi. Also, they never had fully loaded cars in their fleet. Like you said, no options and the mileage may suggest this was a rental. Otherwise, there would be no reason for anyone to sell it that cheap. I would advise you to stay away from it.

carcus

Sounds like a nice price to me.....very nice considering what I paid for my basically stock SE with cloth. Still under warranty for you also so if you do have problems, you can get them fixed. 18.5K.....I would jump on that if I were you. You are getting alot of car for that price. Just my 2 cents.

msoemax

As someone mentioned above, the car has 19,000 miles on it. At minimum I would try to get the VIN and do a carfax on the car. I think there are some people on the ORG that will look them up for you for free or a low fee. Look in the general discussion area.

My two cents:
How long do you plan on keeping this car?
If you plan on keeping the car for over 3-4 years closer to 7-9 consider new.
If you plan on buying something new in a few years buy used

What kind of driving do you do throughout the year?
This car is average on gas mileage in the city and rather good on the highway.
If you put ~15K+ miles on a car consider this vehicle. The comfort/performance can't be beat.
If you do a lot of city driving and don't do too many road trips consider something more economical.

Where do you live?
If you live in a rural area you don't have too many things to worry about that can cause damage.
In a more crowded area you start to have to worry about many things. If you live in the city the car will get door dinged and people will be bound to back into/run into your car when you parallel park. Can you live with those dings/dents?

Who is selling the car?
If it is a private seller ask them why they are selling the car. What kind of driving did they do. Ask if they have a service record. It may provide peace of mind about the owner and their driving habbits.
If it's a rental car- DON'T BUY IT!!! It will be a good value, but in the long run you know that the car was not broken in the right way and who knows how the car will be 2-3 years down the road.

Does it still offer the warranty?
Often someone will claim the car is still under warranty. Check the paper work. Usually the warranty is provided to the original owner and the warranty is lost when re-sold.

Overall the car seems too good to be true for the price. Trade in on a basic Max is ~$20K w/19K miles.

It's up to you and your peace of mind when driving the car. See if the seller will offer for you to take the car in to a mechanic. If so take it to one you trust. See if Carmax will look at the car. They usually put a fair value on a car. They can tell you what they think it's worth, add $1000 to their final offer and that is what you would want if you were selling it. See if that is a fair value. If all things look good-Go For It!

I hope this helps

pae1215

iTrader: (3)

great post msoemax

before buying my max, i saw an ad at a dealership (not a nissan dealership) for an 04 max with 24K miles for 19,500 (stock). i thought it was a great price, but then i thought to myself: for an extra 10 grand, i can get an 05 with no miles. I'm not saying 10 grand is nothing, but for the extra money, i got an 05 max, the color I wanted, and with 15.8 miles on it.

[ACE]

I did a carfax on it...it came back clean. i am wondering if it was a rental or not though..I will look more into it if I can before deciding to buy or not.

[ACE]

I wasn't aware that Nissan would void the warranty if the car is re-sold. This car won't be warrantied through Nissan? It is still under 36,000 miles.

Banditman

Is it at a dealer? You can have a nissan dealer run the vin on their service computer. Watch over their shoulder and have them print it. If it was serviced elsewhere then this will not work. But the dealer would do the warrantee work, if it had any done to begin with.

Banditman

[ACE]

It is at a dealer but not a Nissan dealer.

Banditman

It won't hurt to have the dealer run the vin though. Try to do this at a non peak time during the day.

banditman

carcus

Have the dealer do a crafax on it....if it is not a rental or salvage title....BUY IT QUICK AT THAT PRICE.....I owe tons over that price for a 04...jump on it.

Jeffs04SE

i bought my 04 in september, with 14 miles on it for $22,700. i shopped around to find that price and am very happy with my new car. i dont like used espically something like that cuz that tells me either it was repoed or there was sumtin wrong with it that they would get rid of it so quick. granted this isent always true but i tend to worry about things like that

[ACE]

Ok, I got a better update...the same dealer has another 04 SE with leather, sunroof, traction control, HID lights and it only has 4500 miles on it..I also was told my warranty will remain in tact for either car...After bargaining a bit, they are willing to sell it to me for $23k...what do you guys think?

On Carmax's website, I can get a new 05 with these options for 5k more...I think the price for the slightly used car is fair.

Glude

iTrader: (5)

I would definately pay the extra money for leather and the HIDs. I also love my sunroof.

Monotaur

Yeah, go fo the second one....

Warranty for Nissan is fully transferrable from owner-to-owner... unlike other manufacturers, and good thing we don't have a deductible...no wonder they are able to expand their warranty out so long.

I, too, was looking at buying a used 04 (over a year ago), and found one on eBay... it was a Radiant Ember 2004 SE, loaded, with 8K miles I think... all for like 26K. Looking back, I'm glad I didn't get it since I'm sure it was an early production and I'll bet it had it's fair share of issues.

lightonthehill

So the dealer said both cars were still under valid warranty? And this is not a Nissan dealer? I would take the VINs to a Nissan dealer and have them confirm (get a printout, if possible) both cars are still under warranty.

Talk to the folks at the Nissan dealer. Be sure there isn't some catch, such as, if you bring the car in for engine warranty work, will you have to prove the car was serviced at the proper intervals by the previous owner? If so, you'll need the previous owners full maintenance records.

I have the service department sign off on the maintenance log that comes with the driver's manual every time I get my car serviced. The service guys tell me few customers even bother to have their logs maintained.

Check the car VERY carefully. Hundreds of thousands of cars suffered some type of damage during the floods, hurricanes and tornados of the past year. Many folks don't carry insurance (even though most states 'require' it) and some will clean the outward signs of damage/flooding and get rid of the car.

IF (note capitalization) you get a well-treated used car, this is the most ecnomical way to go. Good luck.

Y2KMaxGXE-R

iTrader: (4)

ACE, read MSOEMAX's post. You gotta understand that when something is too good to be true then its a fake. 2k4 for 18 grand is too low. Ask the dealer to provide you with details on prev. owner-for you to actually see the name written down on some document.

How about if you go to a local Nissan dealer and see what they have there? I'd try to find a loaded 2k4 with less than 20K mi and pay no more than 21K for it...my .02

[ACE]

I have gone to 2 different Nissan dealerships and none even price-matched Carmax. The 04 with 4500 miles looks to be a much better buy than the one with 19k miles...I will, however, go to a Nissan dealership with the VINs and ask them about warranty information.

msoemax

ACE,
where are you getting this car? Is it carmax? They usually do a good job with cars from other people I have spoken to who bought from them. They usually don't offer a good trade in price for the car. Think about what I wrote in my other post. Take your time car shopping. There are tons of cars out there. IMHO if i had to do it again I would wait a few years and buy a 06 max. Wait till they get most of the wrinkles ironed out with the car. Even if you get a good deal on any car it doesn't guarantee peace of mind down the road. If you want something reliable for only a few years, don't kill me guys, buy a used american made car ~3-5y/o and dump it for a nice new maxima. Again, wait till all the problems are worked out with the 6th gen

[ACE]

No, I am buying this from a used car dealer. Most of their stock looks to be upper class cars such as Mercedez Benz, BMW and Jaguar. The Carmax dealership in White Marsh, Maryland is an authorized Nissan dealership so they sell brand new Nissans (that is where I am taking my point of reference for prices). I am comparing this used 04 Max to the same exact trim in an 05 from Carmax. The savings asre arouund $5k which I thought was worth it for me to buy this car...4,500 miles is very low...it's like a new car.

Y2KMaxGXE-R

iTrader: (4)

I'd say that 5 grand is not enough to choose between a year old car, even w/low miles, and the brand new one, but to each his own. That 5K mi could be a demo car, or a problem car that was returned...otherwise why would one trade it in?

Did you try many Nissan dealerships in the area? Check out Security Nissan and Heritage Nissan in Westminster, I know a few ppl that got their Maximas from there and like their deals...

carcus

I still say take the one for 18.5K and consider it a STEAL....get it checked out and will still be under warranty. You can live without the HID unless you drive alot at night....leather is love or hate, out here in the humidity of Mississippi, leather is not all that. Just my 2 cents. Run a car fax and make sure it is not a salvage or a rebuild title.

[ACE]

I ran a carfax on BOTH vehicles (good for both)...and to be honest, the leather, memory seats, and HIDs are something that me and my wie BOTH want. I want the leather and my wife wants the HIDs and memory seats...and at 23k, with a $5k down payment, we won't be suffering too much...I am still a bit weary about purchasin a car with 19k miles being virtually a new vehicle...in my mind, I'm thinking about a car that was probably abised and run HARD...where as if the car with only 4,500 miles will still be in new whether or not it was run very hard.

joemax1

Hi,

I got my 04 Max SL last Sept and it had around 400 miles in it. I just realized now after reading your post: can u consider a car with 400 miles on it BRAND NEW?

Thanks... just curious...