I know this is sort of a difficult question to answer but do you 6th gen owners think the quality of Maxima's from 5th gen to 6th gen have gone down now that assembly has moved from Japan to America?

I'm considering buying a 6th gen Maxima sometime in the medium term to long term future. I'm also looking at 3rd gen Acura TL's, TSX's and some older Lexuses (was surprised to find out 3rd gen TL's are also assembled in the US, always thought Acuras were assembled in Japan)..

 

Yes. Without a doubt.

Those Acuras you are considering are crap though. More transmission problems than the 4sp 6th Genners.

 

I feel Japanese cars built in Japan, are less problematic. Hopefully there's a survey or something on the net.

 

actually the tsx is assembled in japan seeing how its the accord euro r over there.

and i thought that the maxima was assembled in mexico

 

nah i think they've started moving alot of manufacturing to the us, which as we all know, if you want something to last, then dont buy American! sad but true. i can probably bet an older Japanese made car would outlast a newer American made car any day. . .

 

I think it depends how you take care of the car too. If you buy it new, best way since you are the only one to maintain it or with low miles and do all the maintenance on time and with good parts, it will last many years with no issues. A lot of people have issues with their cars because they abuse them and not take care of the necessary maintenance on time, and wait too long. That's just me though. There are plently of American made cars that run to 300000+ with small issues if well maintained.

 

yup. Japanese reliability trumps all.

I mean, just look at our 4th gens. The superb design of the lower radiator core support has really given us some reliability in that aspect. The knock sensors work great too, as do the EGR tubes that are designed never to clog, or the EVAP solenoids that are unbreakable, or any of the myriad of other areas where the 4th gen excels. Or the excellent rear valve cover design on the 5.5gen. The 4AT 6th gens. The butterfly valves on the variable intakes.

Frankly, I find it absurd to think that cars manufactured in Japan are on the whole significantly more reliable than those manufactured in America. These Maximas are not maintenance-free problem-free cars like you seem to think, just as American cars don't break down every 15 miles as you also seem to think. Any car will develop problems over time. Find someone on here who hasn't had issues with the 3.5 rear valve cover, or the 4th gen knock sensor, or a clogged EGR tube, or a radiator core support. Our cars aren't any more reliable than the average American one.

 

I've had a 2002 GLE (RIP), 2004 SL 4 speed (Lemon) and a 2005 SE. Although the interior of the 2002 was of higher quality IMHO then my 04 my 05 was a big improvement plus it drives better and is faster and much more stable than the my 2002 was. Big improvement. If I were buying a used 6th Gen Max, I would get a 2006 SE ...before Nissan switched to a CVT transmission. 06 SE's are nice and still have the same interior as the the better 05 and added some options that did not come on the 05 like tilting mirrors on reverse....tire pressure sensor....Don't think blue tooth was added yet...get one with a sunroof not the sky roof.

3rd gen TL's had lots of issues (Problems) and there is no comparison to a TSX with a 06 Maxima. The 06 is faster, smoother, more comfortable. I have a friend that had TSX and although he like his and it was a good car, once he sat in my car and drove it he could not wipe the smile off his face...

Of course my car is heavily modified too so maybe that's not entirely a fair comparison....but then again who cares! The fact is there are currenlty a lot of mods available for our cars and most of them at a reasonbale price too!

 

I bought a 06 SE Manual over a year ago. Stupid me I didn't research the reliability of the 6th Gen. Maxima cause I had owned 4 previous Nissans which were rock solid. Two of the nissans, a 1991 300Zx twin Turbo, and a 2001 Maxima GXE had the world renouned V6 engine that was flowless. Great power, reliability and gas mileage - and never used a drop of oil. With my 06, it uses a quart of oil approximately every 2000 miles - whats with that? After cruzing this forum I now live in fear that I will have to replace my chain tensioners at a significant cost. I only have 5000 miles left until my waranty is up. My question is, was the 6th Gen. Maxima designed in Japan or America. Nissan engines, 4 or 6, have been flawless since the late '80's and they were all designed and built in Japan.

I just love my car for the combination of styling, feartures, and of course the power. However, I find myself seriously looking at 'dumping' it this year because I feel it could end up costing me too much money.

 

+1

TSX is all Japanese and is the most reliable choice out of all the cars listed

 

Interesting article..... Honda/Acura now assembles 84% of its cars (sold in the US) in the US. Didn't realize it was so high.

http://www.vtec.net/news/news-item?news_item_id=872846

 

Besides the 370, isnt Nissan like 100% assembled in the US?

 

I would have thought that as long as it was designed in japan and the individual components were assembled in Japan, the car would be good to go. How hard is it to assemble the different components of the car in the USA and get it right. I'd hate to see what they would do with a barbeque that needed to be assembled. Maybe they should bring the assembly to Canada.

 

Smyrna, Tennessee

"Nissan North America - U.S. Manufacturing
Nissan has three production plants in the United States - in Smyrna and Decherd, Tennessee, and Canton, Mississippi. Production at Nissan's Smyrna Plant began in June 1983. The vehicle assembly plant has an annual production capacity of 550,000 vehicles and represents a capital investment of $2.5 billion. The plant produces the Nissan Altima, Nissan Maxima, Nissan Xterra, Nissan Frontier and Nissan Pathfinder."

http://www.nissanusa.com/about/corpo...h-america.html

 

Nissan's executive management is at fault imo.

I'm thinking since Renault took over Nissan (that's essentially what it was), Renault sort of dropped the ball as far as quality control goes. Something got lost in translation as Renault moved assembly from Japan to the US and other locations.

Imo, ever since the Renault takeover the design of Nissans has stayed the same or gone up but quality control has gone down slightly.

It all starts at the top with Ghosn.

But from a strictly profit standpoint Nissan/Infiniti have been doing better since Renault took over so...... .

 

I had a 2000 GLE 5spd and upgraded to a 2004 SE Auto. It is hard to compare the base model in 2000 to the 04 since the whole powertrain is different. However, my 6th Gen definitely feels more solid in construction and in the way it handles. Both cars are reliable, but I don't think the 6th Gen is down on quality.

 

My 6th gen rocks and has been rock solid in putting up with all the stuff I have done to it! Your driving, driving environment, and vehicle upkeep & maintenance have the biggest affect on the overall realiability and stability of your Max!

 

I could not agree more with you Chern +1.

Also good to hear from you! Keep well and happy motoring...maybe this year I will be able to ride down to MD to see you and your car in person....stop off in Brooklyn to see Warren too.

 

I may be up in the city this spring to see my pops, definitely coming for MAXUS2010 Peace Happy New Year...