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2004 Maxima - 135,000 km - worth putting money on it?

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Old 06-23-2013, 12:55 PM
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2004 Maxima - 135,000 km - worth putting money on it?

Hi

I own a Nissan Maxima 2004 with about 135,000 KM
I loved driving this car for the last 10 years.
I also own a Nissan Quest 2007 and a Nissan Rogue 2013
Since I bought the rogue I have not been driving the Maxima much
In fact it stay in the garage all winter (December to April)

I pulled the Maxima out of the garage in April after replacing the battery as it was completely dead ( I should have put it on a charger this winter - oh well I learn every day) I found some other issues with the car.

Electric Problem:
But the Battery keep draining over the space of 5-7 days. I'm guessing I have a slow electric leak somewhere in the car - really hard to find though. Still haven't found the issue.

Break Issue:
I brought the car in for a complete check up. The garage found some issues with the break both front and back. They claim because I have not used it much for many month some of the caliper have seized on me which will require some service / changing. Also the Rotor and pad needs to be replaced according to them.

Direction issue:
They also found that the front passenger side lower control arm and ball joint is loose and the Drivers front (left) outer tie rod end requires changing as well.

Boddy work;
In addition to all that they showed me that underneath the car on each side (under the front row seats) their is two large holes in the boddy due to extensive rusting.

Estimate of about $3800:
All of this will require close to $3800 to repair

Note that last fall I had to spend about $1600 to repair the roof because it was rusted and water was seeping in the car.

My question to you all is what would you guys do? Is it worth putting all this money again on it? How much will it cost me to keep this car on the road for another 4 years?

Looking forward to your feedback,

Regards,
Luc
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Old 06-23-2013, 07:03 PM
  #2  
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Originally Posted by lnantel

"the Battery keep draining over the space of 5-7 days. "
Maybe it's just shot. It's a 2004. If you have not replaced it yet, start by doing so.

Break Issue:

"They claim because I have not used it much for many month some of the caliper have seized on me which will require some service / changing. Also the Rotor and pad needs to be replaced according to them."

IMO, you need to disassemble, inspect, clean and lube your brakes every year, so I don't think there is an issue there.
Easy, when you change your tires, just: unbolt caliper, clean and lube caliper slide pins with silicone lube, clean caliper brackets, shims, all the stuff, and lube with nice brake lube. Reassemble, glides like a baby, you know your brakes will be fine for a year.... lots of videos online on this.

While you do it, check pad thickness, and if they are less than 2MM, replace.
Measure rotors, and if they are under min thickness, replace (they will not be. my oem rotors were almost not worn after 180 000km, they had 75% life left.... you will NEVER wear your rotors, ever, trust me. I replaced mine because they were shaking like hell when braking, and they were ugly and rusted and I just wanted to spend money somewhere so I replaced all 4 with premium OEM brand rotors (canadian tire ATE premium, they have those weird grooves in it, they work fine, and they don't wobble.)

Direction issue:
They also found that the front passenger side lower control arm and ball joint is loose and the Drivers front (left) outer tie rod end requires changing as well.
(change those, control arm will cost you 250$ though. It,s a shame they weld the ball joint on it, it's almost a rip off)

Boddy work;
In addition to all that they showed me that underneath the car on each side (under the front row seats) their is two large holes in the boddy due to extensive rusting.
(who cares)

Estimate of about $3800:
All of this will require close to $3800 to repair

Rip off

Note that last fall I had to spend about $1600 to repair the roof because it was rusted and water was seeping in the car.

My question to you all is what would you guys do? Is it worth putting all this money again on it? How much will it cost me to keep this car on the road for another 4 years?

Looking forward to your feedback,

Regards,
Luc
read my above comments

If you are going to PAY for all those repairs to be done, sell the car, it's not worth it.

Having a used car is not worth it if you pay for all the repairs and get ripped off all the time. Better just have a newer car.

It's worth it if you do the repairs and maintenance yourself.

Why do you keep this older car if you have 2 other cars and you obviously don't do the repairs yourself? It's not worth it. You will spend more than the value of the car on repairs.
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Old 06-25-2013, 09:29 AM
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Originally Posted by Kryogen
read my above comments

If you are going to PAY for all those repairs to be done, sell the car, it's not worth it.

Having a used car is not worth it if you pay for all the repairs and get ripped off all the time. Better just have a newer car.

It's worth it if you do the repairs and maintenance yourself.

Why do you keep this older car if you have 2 other cars and you obviously don't do the repairs yourself? It's not worth it. You will spend more than the value of the car on repairs.
I was hoping to keep the car for another 4+ years as a third car for the kids and I love this car - the way it handles and accelerate.

I'm not very savvy at mechanics right now but this can change - I like doing stuff like this - I'm doing some landscaping at home all by myself. I just need to educate myself on how to do these kind of repairs. I have a friend who is very good at mechanics and I may be able to leverage his knowledge and experience.

The only thing that concerns me in the body work, rust, holes, etc ... - but perhaps this is not such as big deal after all - like you said who cares unless it become unsafe than I do care.
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Old 07-11-2013, 04:46 PM
  #4  
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I replaced the ball joint by buying the entire control arm, its a common problem, so is the break problem. Great engineering.
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