I am looking to pick up a 05 maxima sl. It has 126,000 miles and looks to be in pretty good shape, small amt of hail damage etc. Is there any big problems with these years, I am going to be putting a lot of miles on it so i want something reliable. My last maxima was a 95 and that was about 6 years ago. Thanks in advance guys.

 

Your biggest concern should be the transmission. See the sticky at the top of this forum.

Off the top of my head, other things that may be an issue are:

Precats

timing chain guide

high pressure power steering hose leak

AC line leak

ABS issues due to design flaw in rear wheel hub

I'm sure there are some other things which do not come to mind at this moment. Others will provide more input.

I went from a '95 to an '05 as well. Had my '05 since 2009 and, while the transmission problem was extremely frustrating (and costly), now that it's been shifting properly for a full year, I love the car just as much as my trusty old '95.

 

can anyone with do a vin check? 1n4ba41ex5c849474

 

Just do yourself a favor before you buy it and check the passenger and driver's side floor panel for rust. Yes rust.

 

"Yes rust." Never knew rust would be a problem but thanks for the input. Make sure to check out for that next time.

 

also what it with the gold badges? I'll probably just shave them off... not too keen on the gold.

 

Quote:
Originally Posted by scrui
Just do yourself a favor before you buy it and check the passenger and driver's Car Accessories side floor panel for rust. Yes rust.
"Yes rust." Never knew rust would be a problem but thanks for the input. Make sure to check out for that next time.

Did you just advertised on my quote, by adding Car Accessories ?

 

Pretty much everything crime said, but MAINLY the transmission because 05 have TERRIBLE TRANNYS. If there's no knocking or weird sounds coming from the engine then it should be pretty good so we hope. Make sure u listen to the engine hot and cold because if it heats up it could stop certain symptoms / problems.

 

Forgot to add that. Be sure to let the car get nice and warm, and take it for a long drive if possible. I was hasty in buying my '05, and didn't take it for a good drive before buying it. It ran great up until my drive home, when it got nice and warm - that's when the transmission went berserk. My transmission issue would only present itself when the car had fully warmed up.