I was so frustrated with my 04 Midnight Blue Max SE that I traded her in for a 05 Pathfinder LE.

The main reason was how poor the paint quality was. You could tell it was thin due to how easy it scratched and any pebble or bug hitting the front took off chips of paint. I have a 96 Nissan Quest and it has stood up to everything thru 130k miles. The dealer even said that the paint was not as durable as the order models. The dealer said that Nissan would most likely paint the car...."NOT"! I'm not going to paint a car after only buying it 3 months ago.

The second reason was the auto tran shifting between 20-40mph abnormally...it would jerk like crazy and the dealer said it was normal......NOT!!! ......for what we paid for this car, it should at least shift like their flagship car.

Other items:
-Driver door locking when shutting the door
-peeling chrome trim
-dash trim scratches very easy...."I see that the 05's have a more durable finish"

I inspected my new Pathfinder to the "t".....including the paint and you could tell it was thicker.

I loved my Max, but I wasnt going to lose sleep over the above issues.

Later dudes...................

 

I hope you have better luck with the Pfinder. Here is my thought...assume the 1st year run of any car has a few issues that will be worked out in years 2, 3 etc.

You just traded out of a 1st year 6th gen max (with its list of 1st year problems), for a 1st year of the new Pathfinder. You no doubt were upside down in the max, so you either rolled the negative equity into the Pathfinder loan, or you took it in the wallet and paid cash. Either way...Dang!

Either way, I hope it works out for you, but chances are you will have a few probs with the pfinder.

For the record, I have a 04 max and 03 Murano (both 1st year runs) and I have had zero problems with either one...maybe you will be lucky too

 

Hate it for you. I am buying an 05 in Blue later this week.

 

i dont blame u for trading it in .....if i wasnt stuck in mine cause i leased it i would get rid of it 2............i feel like im driving a kia instead of a $30,000 car!.....and the thing u said about the driver door locking when u close it ur 1 of the first people i heard say anything about that besides me.......i screwed up all the black sticker that they have around the top of the door breakin in.......Great car nissan!!!!!

 

why would you break in? no extra key or AAA type service avail.? I swear some people would complain if they had a Merc, Lambo, etc.

If you lock your keys in the car IT IS YOUR FAULT. I noticed that if the key is in the ignition, the doors cannot lock. (now maybe it's just my late production vehicle that has it, doubtful). so either you drop/lay your keys down, or ignore the warning chime/are deaf and it needs fixed.

if only you guys would compare what else sells for our price range and lower. 1 you will absolutely not find a better engine (11th year straight), 2 find as many options (if you chose them), 3 find overall appearance (you must of liked it, you have one).

so please compare/test drive "competing cars" so you can appreciate what you have.

if you're too lazy to do that, read the posts on their forums and see how damn brown the grass is on the other side.

(ahh, I feel better now)

and if reading acura, honda, toyota, (KIA ) forums is too difficult/or even exist: Compare Maxima

 

amen!!!

 

That's not the issue... there was a thread about this a while back. The problem is that the little "notch" that Nissan uses for the door lock will sometimes be partially pushed in either by the swing of the door and the impcat of the door closing, or it will not release completely if you use manually pull it (instead of hitting the unlock button).

I've had it happen to me on my driver's side several times -- to the point that I now make sure all the doors are unlocked when I step out to pump gas, or at least leave the driver's side window down, just in case. It's happened to me on the back doors as recently as last Friday, when I closed the door while moving stuff to the trunk, and then when someone came up to get in the back the door was locked.

And yes, this has happened with the key in the ignition... most of the time with the car running.

Doesn't mean it's not without its problems though... and it's a well known fact by going through some of these threads that some of the 6th gen cars are having ridiculous problems for a $30k car. Whether or not it's a "bad batch" or 1st-run production issues is unknown, but it shouldn't keep people from assuming that their cars will be without problems like chipping paint, etc.

Just because his transmission didn't fall off while driving doesn't mean he should be happy with what he has...

 

I know all about the other door lock threads. Just letting you know I have tried and it is impossible with my Max. with key in ignition, I cannot lock the doors when getting out.

therefore I would take your's to the dealer to have it checked. Also check to see if your auto-lock feature is off.

my point is that even if it didn't malfunction, you are risking getting car jacked. So maybe she's just scared you left her vulnerable and doesn't want to be kidnapped?

quality is down across the board. I just see it as we sacraficed very little to have a great performing vehicle.

yes I agree all these minor issues are BS and I thoroughly agree with the distaste in Nissan's attempt to remedy problems (or lake there of).

 

I had the same thing happen to me on Friday the 14th, I was getting money at the ATM and shut the drivers door and went to get the money. I tried opening the door and was locked out, I had to call a locksmith to get back in, the car was running for 45 minutes. I could see that the drivers side locking mechanism was sticking out like the door could be opened. It cost me 30 bucks to get back into my car. I am going to the dealership tomorrow to try and get re-embursed for the cost.

 

I test drove a 05 Pathfinder a couple of weeks ago while waiting for an oil change and tire rotation . I owned a 98 Pathfinder for 6 years and traded it in for the Max. No regrets at all. In fact, now that I have been driving the Max for 8 months and after test driving the Pathfinder, there is no way that I could go back to driving the Pathfinder again. The ride was rough and my son had no leg room in the back seat and he is still growing! The windshield on the one I drove was distorted and needed to be replaced and there was a rattling sound coming from the steering column. They definitely have some quirks that need to be worked out. I don't miss the gas mileage either. Personally I do not care for the new look, I think they are too square and boxy looking. But if you like it that's all that matters. Good luck with yours.

 

Church!!!!!! I came from an m3 forum and you wouldn't believe the issues they have on that $68,000 car. Say it again, NismoMax80.

 

hey moderator that knows everything my keys where in the ignition ......and if i feel like leavin the car running when i get out thats my choice so the car sux face it!!!

 

and who gives a sh@* about how good the engine is when everything else sux!!

 

Damm! This thread is interesting... I honestly had no clue the door locking was a flaw. My story. I was out meeting up with some friends to go four wheeling at a 4WD park up in PA. So anyway I drive about 3 hours out to the sticks (you could hear the banjo music), and while the Max was running I get out to talk to the rep at the gate. We chit chatted for a moment about how I should just park it where it was since the last car out there lost thier oil pan, which I was there for and saw the whole thing. Anyway I go back the Max and the fawking drivers door is locked and the car is running! I freaked!!! Took a moment and tried the rear door and it was open - my heart rate dropped back down from 210 over 130

So whats the issue with this and can it be fixed?

 

My 04 definately doesnt suck and I have over 40k on it.

 

did u get the armada or the regular pathfinder ?

armada = ownage

 

The random door locking issue also affects the 4th gens. It has to be with the door lock mechanism that Nissan is using. I believe it to be a mechanical issue, not an electrical one.

Both myself and JosephMaximas have been locked out of our cars. Thankfully, I had my right window down when this happened on the side of the highway giving someone a battery jump. I was able to get back in easily.

 

I learned my lesson and went to do it best and got a door key made for $1.50. I now carry that everywhere with me no matter what.

 

Do you mean that you can get a door key made that doesn't have the chip in it ? Never occurred to me that this was possible. I've always carried an extra flat key in my wallet until I got my Max.

 

It never ceases to amaze me that there is such a majority of consumers that feel it is completely justifable for a manufactuer to sell/ distribute products that simplely do not perform to the level of standard they claim. Weather it be a cell phone, a peice of clothing, or a car, people buy new products to either replace worn ones, or upgrade to a better model. These purchases are made with certain expectations in mind, the most obvious of course being reliability. Certainly this is a truth that cannot be argued, especially when the debate is over a daily driver, and not the "enzo" you compare it to. There are alot of complaints, many to things that are seemingly not just fluke, but in areas where quality was clearly given a backseat to profit margins and dealines. Non-the-less, the sad fact remains, that these are the realities we the consumers must suffer with. It has become the norm that we are no longer given the choice, but rather it be forced upon us no matter what the purchase is. Todays products are littered with shortcomings, there is no easy way out, and there is no denying that fact.

THAT BEING SAID-- ..

For those of you that feel these sort of inconviences, and false claims are perfectly acceptable for the DAILY DRIVER you had to lease/or finance for the same bargain price that can buy you a condo in probably 30 states, remember i said this..

Next time you leave the house, make sure you carry a spare key in case your car locks you out. Make sure the AAA card you bought is never left in the car you bought it for. Be sure to carry an ATM card just in case you need to call the locksmith, and be sure that you only stop at a store or gas station where you have a full signal on your cell phone.

After taking all these precautions, if your ever lucky enough to be in the situation when your $30,000 car locks you out when you close the door, take your $300 cell phone off your belt clip to call your locksmith that will be charging you $90 to open that door. At some point he'll give you a speach about how hes not responsible when he rips the tint that will cost you another $40 to replace, and how he cant make it there for another hour while you stand out in the rain. Finally, you begin to tell him where you are. This is when that 20 hour battery in your phone, that you charged 7 hours ago, dies and you have a moment of clarity. Like a swift kick in the face, you finally realize, that your measily Maxima, is after all, not worth the same inconvience of that ENZO.

So to combat your statement Mr. Moderator, and all to all those members who im sure will follow your lead because they lack the ability to think independently. Not everyone on this forum bought a maxima because they couldnt afford a real sports car. They did it in an attempt to avoid the hassles of owning one, and they have other priorities life than to maintain a 3 month old car. Half your memebers im sure dont even pay for the car they drive on there own. Mabye they should take there own advice and buy a kia instead.

 

Go lease a KIA...

 

Stuntin' 101

You make great points I agree with. but I guess I didn't make my point clear enough:

Go to the dealer and get it fixed instead of repeatedly complaining about it.

I never tried to justify the flaw, not have I told anyone (especially you) to do as I say. There have been a lot of thefts in my area when people step out of a running car for a moment. If you know you have this problem, or fear you do, what are you going to do about it? Continue to b.tch about it and lock yourself out? Or have Nissan fix it (if not contact them until they do).

What are you doing about these quality issues? If it "sux" so bad, get rid of it. Or complaining to me b/c I haven't experienced them? I have actually emailed the head men of Nissan and received call backs to discuss issues I have seen on here.

So please tell me which car I can buy for less than $30k with all my features and engine reliability. Please, so I can pay someone else the $517/month or less I earn and pay a month.

If you do not like this site please leave. If you have a problem with my posts, feel free to state your opinions and/or points and/or PM me. Attack me or any member again you will not have a choice.

 

Every single car out there in the first year has these problems it's way of life. You simple can not do the kind of quality testing that you get in a first year of production. There is no way to test the amount of cars that they do when they sell in the first year. Hence all these bugs are found and they are fixed the next year. Honestly if you look at actual percentages the people with these problems are very small relatively. Does it make it any easier if your one of those people who payed 30,000 for a car that constantly has problems? Definitly not. BUt you know what if I'm purchasing a car in the first year of it's production I know that going into it.

You can blame everything you want on the manufacturer but nobody forced you to buy the car in it's first year of production or at all for that matter. If you don't research a product before you buy it then you deserve what you get.

 

Yes my engine is real good and everything else is real good also. (imho)
Life is full of ups and downs. Bad things and good things, I hate that your having those issues with YOUR MAXIMA but don't let the fustration take control.

Just do you, don't bit** about it.

You can't name a better car FOR ME that I could have gotten for the price of MY MAXIMA

 

I'd rather have a rattling, squeaking car with an engine that's been voted one of the top ten engines for 11 straight years than a car with a bad engine and everything else good! BTW, im sorry u have a car that sucks...but I dont think simply complaining in this forum will solve your problem...I guess it's time for u to grow up and face your problems like a man! GO TO THE DEALERSHIP!!!
that's all folks!!!

 

You guys knwo that the car has an auto lock feature that you can turn off right?

 

I have discovered the door locking issue a couple of weeks after purchase of my 05. I found it strange that the door would be open when i get into the rear seats to clean it, but after I get out and close the doors, the thing would be locked. This only happened to my rear passenger doors.

I soon found the problem. As I was exiting the vehicle, my hind parts would slight rub against the actual locks, partially pushing them in (not all the way however). I'm gonna take a guess and suggest that maybe people who are locking themselves out are doing so unknowingly by grazing their hand or arm against the door locks.

Just my theory though.

 

When you find a way to rearch the first year of a new design, please let me and the rest of the living world know.
Also, my points are as such, probelms exist with the car coming out of the factory.. simply said, that is THE problem , and i simply cant undertand where some people sit on the fence with the attidute that "There entitled to sell a car like that, and its fine" . Lastly, we all know the games dealerships play, and why bother bringing it there, when you know a problem such as the door locks only happens mabye 1 time a month. They will not do anything about it, and you know that. Your next answer to that will be " Well, keep bringing it back then". That brings us back to my point, why should they have to constantly be inconvienced over a brand new car. But hey, if you think thats ok.. to each there own.. if i was paying 517 a month for a car i would be upset over it, although for that amount i would be driving an Escalade instead

 

Since you want to avoid each point then go ahead ill reiterate one last time. Every car wethere it's 150,000 Ford GT or a 10,000 dollark in the first year will have problems guarunteed. So yes your right you can't research it but you can guaruntee going in yoru going to have headaches. It's something myself and plenty of other buyers know goign in. The fact remains that any company no matter what the product can not test something the way they can when it's in production. You have 100's of thousands of people buyign this car so of course they are going find problems the few thousand people could not. Quality testing simply can't be done without a true production run. If you feel the need to bu ya car in the first year of production thats your choice but you have to deal with the consequences of this choice.

150,000 Ford GT recently had a recall in the fact that you can't even drive the car because it could ccause a horrible accident causing death. If 150,000 car can have these problems is it any surprise a 30,000 doesn't?

 

Out of my 04 Max purchace....the problem so far is not with my car....but the customer service from Nissan. Had a few minor problems......but the dealer never called back when parts were in, hence the very negative dealer feedback when Nissan called on the survey. Looking forward to leaving this AFB in 7 months and finding a new dealer. I am sure they would love me to trade my 04 in for a 05 and be RAKED over the coals and bent over on the trade considering the massive loss in trade in value and market value. Still love my 04 though. This is the second Maxima I have owned, last was a 93......sticking with it though as THIS IS THE LAST NEW CAR I WILL EVER BUY.

 

I did not avoid any of your points, rather i shot them all down. If we , as buyers, should expect minor problems with a 1st year production of anything, than you basically label all the new owners as guinea pigs correct? OK, lets entertain the excuses you provide for the same company that tried to lease you a car for $560 a month when u first walked in. According to you, we should expect that in a 1st year run. What about in the 2nd year? How about the 3rd , 4th, and 5th year. What will you be saying when people complain about there door locks in the 2006 maxima? Really if you think about it, car makers have been revising there vehicles for the last 50 yrs correct? The 2005 nissan you drive has was built and tested by them for a few years now not just 2004. Dont you think a person should be able to spend $30,000 and own a car for at least 5 years without having ANY problems with it by now.
" QUALITY CONTROL CANNOT BE DONE WITHOUT A PRODUCTION RUN". These are your words, a statement that is made from a person that is obviosly very uninformed. Take a few minutes, and research some lawsuits against car makers. There are plenty out there. Many are even over safety issues that have cost people there lives that were know as cars were being produced. Instead of correcting the problems, the companies deemed it would be less expensive to suffer lawsuits then invest the few dollars to fix every vehicle and make them safer. Your first mistake is assuming that any of these companies have any concern about you at all. They wouldnt fix a problem that can save your life one day, but they have serious intentions of fixing your door locks that give you a hassle once of twice a month. This is how crazy you sound, and its that attitude that they prey upon.
Finally, i guess i have to repeat myself once again with you. Your comparing a $150,000 car, to you $30,000 car.. Yet another mistake. These cars are built to reach two completely different goals. Personally, i dont expect any $150,000 car to be without issues, because they were built for one reason, and only one reason. Show me any advertisement that has the words, " Ford GT ", followed by "reliable".

 

So you expect a 30,000 dollar car to be perfect because it's so expensive comapred to other cars but it's ok for 150,000 car to have problems? Where's the logic behind that?

Theres a huge difference between quality control and minor issues a small % of 04 owners are having. The simple fact is you will never find everything in a new gen car no matter how good your quality control is. you can not test 100,000 cars for months on end like a nissan owner will. Your in this car 7 days a week month after month after month. your going to find issues that quality control didn't. It's just that simple and it will always be that way.

As far as law suits go 90% end up throw out for being frivalous. Regardless Nissan has some of the least amount of problems per 1,000 cars then most car makers out there. Lexus and Toyota would be beating them out.

The fact is most 04 owners are driving fine. Is there larger % of people having prbolems with there 04 then other years? Yes. However it's not like it's every other person or every 3 person it's a small % still. Honestly if you want to see problems with a car go drive a KIA or mercedes (yes mercedes has actually some of the most problems per 1,000 cars of any company.)

 

One last point i guess i have to make with you. Your $150,000 car that you keep talking about, doesnt cost $130,000 to build. They are priced that way because its considered "exotic", not becasue its built better. You obviously dont get what im saying. Either that, or you just want to argue. You've taken a position in this debate, trying to make it sound like im comparing nissan to a lexus, or benz, or any other car maker. I'm not saying that the "perfect" car is out there. Rather, im saying that its not, and that at this point in time, it should be. There should, no doubt, by this time, be a car out there that you can buy and not have ANY problem with for 5 years.
Also, since your the one that commented about "avoiding points", where is your answer for the one i made? What is the exuse you'd like to use for commen problems that still exist in the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th year "production runs" ??
Please show me where you obtained the " 90% " figure you used as the foundation of your argument.

 

The biggest point ive tried to make here, is that people like you, consider it perfectly fine that products leave the factory with known issues and think it should be expected of us to have to waste our time getting a brand new car fixed.

 

stuntin dont listen to these people .....dont even bother with them .....they think its fine to buy crap for $30,000 and be stuck with it.....and then some how blame the buyer for it........these people are idiots that stick up for the car company and not the consumer!!

 

If you know anything about industry then I want one simple answer. How is it remotely possible to build every car perfect or near perfect? You simply can't they would have to test every single car for months to find out the quality of it.

There is no possible way to do what your saying it can't be done.

As far as the second third and routh year runs I'd love to see a list of problems that happen frequesntly in even 30% of the maxima owner's cars.

I had a 95 Maxima fully loaded ran that thing to 150,000 miles without any problems what so ever other then blowing two fuel injectors over the years. I ran into the guy who had my car about 6 months ago had it up to 200,000 miles and he still hadn't had any problems.

The problems your getting occur in a small %. When you make thousands of these things your bound to get some with problems. That's life notihng's perfect nothing ever will be especially with cars. The simple fact is your going to have to deal with it. Or not buy another car.

 

Complain....complain....complain....I love my Max....every vehicle out there is made by mankind, not God.....get over it, you can find a flaw in anything out there....