hey guys, i decided that Im going to purchase a newer car and the first one i thought of was the maxima. Then I started reading about all the problems with the 6th generation and started to get mad. So what do you guys think, do they really have that many problems? Maybe a 2005 would be better than an 04?

thanks,
pete

 

wuh problems are you talkin about? i mean there are a lot of people who haven't had problem with the car yet. lik i've had the 2005 SL and now the 2006 SL and both haven't caused me any problems. buh any problems you have can most likely be solved by the guys on the forums. cause they've probably been threw it know how to take care of it.

 

umm, the shimmy, the front struts, the rotors warping, etc... Also when you guys talk about a shimmy how bad is it. I know its not acceptable seeing the price of the car but is it that noticable?

pete

 

No, no and no for me and I have an '04. Almost 3 years and not one problem except the peeling grill and skyview replacement (recall)
Don't get me wrong, people have had these problems but it's never really been narrowed down to which 04's have problems and why.

 

off topic: Jsmithsole, I LOVE your .gif file!

 

Every new car is going to have some sort of problem-no matter who makes the car. They are mechanicle things that will always have some problem at some time. I just got my 04 max and am very happy with it so far.

 

I have a '04 and have had no major problems. Knock mon wood.

 

I have an 05 SL, and absolutely love it! I have had very menial issues. Nothing intolerable! If I had to do again, I would!!!!!

No matter what crowd you talk to there is always going to be the 'drama queens'. With these Maximas, they are awesome cars and the absolute best bang for the buck! Consumer Reports loves these (even with some years that have minor issues, consumer still recommends them), Wards thinks they are the bomb.....And dealerships are getting pretty near sticker for these. Notice there aren't many rebates on them? No employee discounts......etc...

Jump in with both feet and don't look back! Get used to getting compliments on your car! Also, get used to passing in the fast lane, that's where these bad boys belong. They are 'sleeper family, 4-door rockets'.....

I wish you the best in your decision making process,

Swee

 

I have an 05 SE and have not had anyproblems with it.

 

04 SL no problems, would do it again. Buy one so you can start having FUN!!

 

you guys bring up some good points, after looking at some other vehicles it seems there will always be problems. For example i looked at wrx's, the tranny's are weak and the paint chips easily, also the honda s2000 the tops go bad pretty fast and the paint chips. I think its odd that automakers can't solve these problems, almost seems like they rush a little too much. I would imagine that if someone made a car that was ultra reliable and had some good looks it would be unbeatable.

thanks,
pete

 

I have no idea what problems you are talking about, the only problem I have had is an extremely common problem---The struts failing....thats about it

 

The shimmy is no big deal for me, I notice it but its not something that would sway me NOT to buy the car.

 

I have an 04 Maxima with 11k miles on it (bought it from a little old lady that only drove it to church ) and it has no shimmy yet. I don't dog the brakes so I don't suspect I will have a problem and if I do I will just replace the rotors

 

Every manufacture has problems; Honda, Toyota, or Nissan. Toyota has a ton of recalls in recent years. Fact is no car is perfect. I can tell you that most everyone who has one maxima buys another. I have had zero problems with mine or any of the ones I have sold. The biggest testament to the reliabilty is the service department. More than half the time I'm back there they have absolutely nothing to do. I can't say the about the VW, Audi, Mercedes, Chevy, Pontiac, or Jeep dealers I have worked for.

 

We had an '01 Jeep Grand Cherokee that was constantly causing us problems. My first inclination is to hit the web when I had a problem and without fail I found that there were a TON of people having the exact same problem (ie: AC issues, power window issues, transmission issues). I kicked myself dozens of times for not doing more research before I made that purchase.

With that in mind I did some research on the Maxima. The primary problems were minor and a simple upgrade to after market parts would likely fix the issue. That helped me make the decision to buy so just look around on forums (like these) and see what owners complain about. If it's something you can live with or don't mind fixing when it happens.... Go buy one.

 

the maxima is a very nice car. i have a 04' SE 6spd with all the options and im loving it. the cd changer just died but they are replacing it. and also, the front grille is peeling.

 

with the jeeps, ive heard that a lot of their parts are proprietery [sp?] so it was harder and more expensive to repair them.

 

I have an 04 SE with about 49,000 miles. Only problems have been the peeling grill and had a leak in my sunroof. And an exhaust bracket that was cracked. Got the sunroof and exhaust bracket replaced under warranty and they really weren't a big inconvenience at all.

 

I had only a few problems with my 04, but i caused them myself.. But they can easily be fixed now that i know what i did to cause them. Like the grinding noise, I caused that when i put another resonator on. The guy at the shop was hacking away at my exhaust. I found out the grinding noise was the heat sheild and can easily be fixed.

 

Very few problems with my 04 Max SE, and the few issues I've had were easily fixed.

 

good to no that i just bought an 04SE with 31K mint only had it for 2 months no issue yet

 

Jsmith..the original "chrome" tooth grille...yours peeled as well? Did you tell Nissan or have them replace it? I want to get it replaced for free then sell it, and buy a new one

And the stock one on the 04-06 is FAKE and not real chrome because it peels lol.

 

2005 Max here and love it! Great car!

 

what time are your guys' 04 maxima's warrantys expiring, is it just around this time i guess if you bought it late 03?

'thanks,
pete

 

Yeah I agree, everycar is going to have problems...

 

Im addicted to this beast. Its family oriented, yet sporty and very powerful. i enjoy driving places. 2005 SE loaded.

 

My ABS failed ($1400) and my seat has broken 3 times now (currently broken), CD player needed to be replaced for skipping, The driver seat memory is broken. I still like the car, but I will probably get something else next time around with a better bumper to bumper warrenty and hopefully less trips to the dealer for things breaking. Too many problems in 3 yrs with a car bought new IMO, especially compared to my dads lexus which nothing has broke.

 

Get B to B extended warranty and you will be happy camper.

 

I had 71k when I got rid of mine. All I would tell you is to drive one first. I had the SE and honestly I loved it, although I wouldnt buy another one just because of how stiff the suspension was. The SL might be better, but I did have problems with it, but nothing really major. I could notice the trans was starting to get a little jerky here and there, and the rotors were bad, but I had 71k miles on it. Other than that, the shimmy was always there, but wasnt that bad. My only complaint was that a car like a TL rode much much better than mine, but like I said I loved my car. And my grille was replaced 3 times, but I would always demand nissan replace it. Glove box alignment, brake pads sueak, door molding bad, car seems to chip very easily, fog lights burned out too frequently, but sure was fun to drive.

 

*** 05 SL , only problem was the passenger front strut went wrong and i ended up paying for it... mother F****rs .... other then that i have no problems at all.

 

you had to pay for it??? In my experience(i have had a 97,01 and 04 maxima) I would write a letter to Nissan and tell them that you were considering buying a murano or some nissan product for your wife, but now you are so mad you had to pay for it that you are gonna go elsewhere. Honestly I dont know if they are dumb or what but I have used the same threat about 4 times and they always end up paying for it

 

Don't get mad about it.

 

If I had to do it over again I would have spent a little more and gone with a TL. I'm not 100% satisfied with the build quality, especially compared with the last gen Maxima made in Japan. Also, the resale value on the Max is much lower than the TL, so in the end it ends up costing close to the same. All that being said, I am still happy with my Max.

 

The resale value for the Acura TL should be more in comparison with the Infinity G35. My last car was American and the Maxima will do much better in value for me.

 

Ok, so I have a legitimate question and have not hit my 15 reply limit to post. I am considering a 2005 SL, but I am concerned about the problems mentioned. The car has high miles (80k) but the seller claims it has been well maintained.

 

80k? highmiles? lmao hahahhaaa these cars will be still be strong and happy at 80k. my car and 8yrs infiniti i30 still looks brandnew.(true story) when i braught it home like in august my neighbor askd my mom why did u buy a 17yr old a brand new car? lol. mine runns really strong so get one and be the envy of camry drivers.

 

The guy is asking $700 above KBB. Do you thnk it is worth BB value even with high miles?

 

No. What is the asking price? How many owners have there been?

 

Maybe a little old to be a good example here, but I had 150K on '91 max when I sold it. Never saw the shop except for regular mx visits. My current max is an '06. Brakes started to warp around 25k (warranty covered the repair), horn quit last week (also covered under warranty) but no other problems. I really enjoy driving this car. Currently at about 30k.