Camry and Maxima have nearly always shared similar shapes and cues; they're direct competitors, with the Camry being the more boring "practical" box of the two. I doubt they engineered any part of the Camry in Germany.

 

Not tdirect competitors, th eAltima is the Camry's direct competitor. The Max has always been a tweaner car and never really had a direct competitor since the Cressida died....

 

I read somewhere that the Avalon is the Max counterpart? Too bad you need to be 70 to buy an Avalon and feel 'cool'

 

The 6th Gen took awhile to grow on me, not that I disliked it but I don't know I just never paid attention to it, after I realized everything the 6th gen had to offer then I noticed it, now the 7th gen looks hot

 

I disagree well through. The Camry and Maxima were direct competitors for years, looking very similar to each other in the late 80s and through the 4th gen Maxima years. The 3rd gen Maxima and Camry of that generation often looked the same from a bit of a distance, especially if they were white.

The Altima was much smaller than either the Camry or Maxima for years. I don't recall when the Altima changed it's body style and got bigger (as it is now), but it wasn't always the Maxima's "replacement."

 

Admittedly I hated the 6th gen up until only recently. The body panel/front fascia/rear revisions to the 2007(?) models looks damn nice, much improved and should have been what they did to begin with.

There's a member here with a red 6th gen with a 07 front conversion that looks so hot, with the NISMO badges on it, black wheels. He's here regularly. That is some nice shti there.

edit: just found it: "Chernmax" ... that guy has a sweet a$$ 6th gen, best I've ever seen. It looks like a competition NISMO car.

 

I guess this describes me pretty well -- I love the manual trannie and am not willing "to change with the times" -- at least not as long as I can get a reasonable car with a MT. Some (like "light") may think this means I will "be left behind" -- but I will be happier with a MT than one where the computer decides what engine-drive ratio is appropriate for my driving condition. I want to make that decision myself. Guess that makes me a "control freak" -- I plead guilty.

I hope that the rumors of a coming 6-MT opition in the 7th Gen Max are true. Got my fingers crossed. In the poll above, I voted to wait until I see this car in person before I make a decision on the styling -- which is the topic of this thread.

 

When i first saw the pics, i didn't like it. Now it's slowly growing on me and I may consider the 7th gen max to be my next car. I think back and I had the same reaction when the 5th gens came out. I'll probably wait a year or two until they iron out the kinks. Hopefully by 2011, Nissan will redesign the headlights.

 

i think this thing is so ugly..

 

i guess it may need to grow on a person.

psychologically speaking, i heard that people are usually resistant to significant change, but usually becomes acquainted with the "new" after some time. Where's the data on that statement? I don't know. It's just heresy. Not sayin' that you're resistant or not... I'm just talking.. err typing.

I'm just glad rear amber turn signals are back! Gosh, I am so against the use of brake lights as turn signals or red turn signals.

 

Funny thing is that every OTHER generation of Max had to "grow on me"... but the 7th Gen just grabbed me from the first time I saw it. There are certainly a few items I wish were different (less chrome, lose the multicolored tail lights (sorry!) and a less Bangle-esque bustle), but overall I found it to be the most immediately attractive Max EVER.

 

It is not true that psychologically, people are usually resistant to significant change. Psychologically, a significant change creates a significant reaction -- either of like or dislike -- from a person. It requires time and acquaintance with the change to reduce that reaction from a significant to a lesser one.

Every person has some notion of beautiful and ugly in his mind which varies from person to person. This notion is learned as a person grows up as opposed to being born with it. A good example is music -- each one of us likes certain tunes and dislikes some others based on our culture, the kind of musical taste our family had, etc. When something radically deviates from the norm, it becomes difficult for a person to judge it as beautiful or ugly and the first impression is often not the long lasting impression, rather it changes with time. This change is influenced by many other factors, especially function. So what goes on in the human mind when he likes/dislikes something is way too complicated and the statement -- people are usually resistant to significant change -- says nothing about it.

In this poll, we see a majority of the people liking the looks of the 09 Maxima, if we leave out the unsure population. I believe, the design of the 09 Maxima is a significant change from its previous generations, especially the last. That shows, people are not necessarily resistant to significant change in a negative way. Further, the statement -- it grew on me -- from many orgers here shows that their first impression changed over time.

 

after having a pictar of it on my desktop for a while now, i have grown to like its looks.

 

Just as info for that 10% here who do not like the looks of the '09: My local dealer (Nissan South; 2 large lots south of Atlanta) has four brand new '08 Maxima SEs available for $19,990 each. When the '09s begin arriving, the price on his '08s could go down some more.

 

I visited the nissan site today and I must say I was impressed. I guess it's growing on me but I would have to see it in person to really tell.

 

is it out already?
doggonit! it came out before the Skyline... that means the Maxima is harder to sell than the Skyline

 

super32 - No, the new Maxima will not be out for another month or more. And comparing the Skyline and the Maxima is like comparing a hernia operation and a root canal; they address entirely different situations.

Even if the '09 Maxima was on dealer's lots today, and the Skyline was not available until next year, trying to draw from those unrelated facts the postulation that '09 Maxima 'isn't selling' is, to say the least, unwarranted. I will hence assume you were meaning your statement in jest.

 

ROFL

 

im sure u can mod it up to be clean but im not a fan. Trunk and whole rear of car is whack in my opinion the front looks pretty mean but i would make changes..for one, i like the headlights

 

Its really growing on me. I didn't like the first pics I saw... but the 360 view on the Nissan site has me wanting to test one out.

 

I gotta see the car in person. Maybe then I'll like it.

 

headlights are kinda weird imo,

 

I really like the new look Nissan has the new front end of their rides looking good the Max has a grill like the new GTR, I like it!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

looks very aggressive, i hated the 6th gen's sloped down headlights. This 2009 looks awesome

 

i think the 09 maxima is clean but they could of went with a 300hp RWD SETUP. nissan would of drawn earned a lot more maxima fans with a setup like that.


JUST MY THOUGHTS


the front bumper also looks a lot like a scion tC

 

playboi21617 - Nissan already has a fine four door passenger car with just over 300 HP and rear wheel drive. They badge it as an Infiniti G35. No need to duplicate it.

 

Very pleased. Will be in the market for a 2010!

 

This is a beautiful car. Just saw three in person at the dealer yesterday. Two of them were black. Pricing was between $35+ and $38+.

One strange thing: the car looks huge from the outside, but it doesn't feel very roomy when you sit in it. The front door was surprisingly light. The tight cockpit on a huge car caused a strange disconnect in my brain. Also, no manual transmission option, yet? I have the 6 speed MT on my 6th gen. While it's not the greatest gear box, it's still fun to drive compared to an auto.

Still, this Maxima looks better than a Lexus. Nice job, Nissan.

 

I would have to get used to sitting lower again since I have an Xterra now. I think I can adjust!

 

I don't see buying this car for $35-38k. Maxima is not a sub 40K car, pls do correct me if i am wrong.

 

Do you mean they cost more than $40k? I'm just telling you what was on the window sticker for these cars. One was $35+, and the nice black/black one in the showroom was $38k+.

I'm going back over there with a friend next week. I'll take my camera.

 

Taxvictim - I think xoomer means the Maxima should be a 'just above 30K' car instead of a 'just below 40K car'. But the Maxima has added much since the '04s came out in spring of 2003. The '09 is a superior car to my '04 in almost every way. Yet the price has actually increased only modestly during those five years. IIRC, the '04s were from a base of $27K to a loaded $36K. We now have a base of $30K and a top of $42K. But even that is misleading, as the $42 includes things that didn't even exist in 2003. The base price has increased 9% in five years. That is an average of LESS than 2% per year. Show me anything else that has done better.

Of course all that is almsot insignificant, as it is the invoice price we should be negotiating from. Those who are willing to be patient for just a few months will be laughing at the MSRP as all manufacturers and dealers will desperately be trying to give away anything on their lot to make room for econoboxes and hybrids. I fully expect to be able to drive off an '09 SV Maxima loaded with Premium package for $32,900 by next January; possibly much sooner.

In these trying times, patience truly is a virtue.

 

I looked at a black on black with the sports package just this afternoon and it was 35k with no dealer markup.

In comparison they had a 2008 SL that was close to 40k with the dealer markup.

I love the look of the new Maxima. You can really see the physical difference between the two when you see them next to each other. Totally different.

 

You are correct light I meant that Maxima is indeed a sub 30K and not sub-40K car.

However I would have to disagree with you on the rest of your logic. As with anything else technology related there should absolutely be no co-relation of extra options and the price asked for the product. Saying that this car has more options than your 04 would only make sense. Nobody would want a "new" (as in 09) car with options that were avaialable on cars in 2003. All manufacturers push envelope with new/more options but only to make a better and more appealing product, not to raise prices beyond being resonable. It is these extra options that make a deal or not. If the 09 wasn't superior to your 04 maxima, that would only mean that the evolution at nissan has stopped. In past 5 years, newer technologies have been developed to make cars, better, faster, lighter, cheaper etc, etc. These extra options that are built into these new cars could be even cheaper (whether material or process) for the manufacturer to implement therefore there is no justification to raise the cost other than trying to artificialy put the car in a class that it just doesn't belong.

Just take a look at electronics or computer equipment, let's just take some examples here.

Hard drives are much larger and faster today then they were years ago. They didn't go up in price.

Digital cams have more options and megapixels every other week, their prices keep on falling. Even top of the line DSLRs and their list prices right at release.

Portable navigations, have improved million-fold yet they can be had for as little as 79 bucks.

People buy maximas because they are loaded with options at a great prices (aka best bang for your buck) not because they are sub 40K cars.

I stopped at the dealership today to see one for myself and I was dissapointed to say the least. There are some improvements and some options I liked, I am not going to like to you but overall it won't even consider it my next daily driver.

 

xoomer - Sorry we won't have you helping us shake out these new '09s over the next four or five years. You have added much to the 6th gen board.

I guess I shouldn't have pushed the tech improvements so much, and just stated things simply, in that most other worthwhile vehicles have gone up at, or faster than the Maxima over the span of the last five years.

I ignore prices the first few months of a new generation, as they are not realistic or meaningful. When I compare what will likely be the driveout price of the '09 Maxima late this fall with Maxima's primary competitors (G35, TL Type 'S', etc), the Maxima is still more bang for the buck. That is unless one much prefers RWD and/or manual, in which case, the Maxima is definitely not your cup of tea.

 

it does look better in person... i went to a nissan dealership yday and took pics on my fone... the pics are posted up on this thread...

http://forums.maxima.org/7th-generat...ealership.html

 

I stopped by the local Nissan dealer on Sunday after they had closed. Man the car definitley looks better in person. I like the bulging rear fenders and the low to the ground look. I also think it looks better with a rear spoiler (IMO).
The one great improvement imo is the interior. It actually has real door panels, and a real interior. I hated the interiors of the 04-08 models. Too bland & boring. The interior looks more like the interior from my 97 & 03 Maxima. I will be looking in 2010.

 

Oh ya, the other thing I noticed when I went onto the Nissan site and the available colors, you can now get a white Maxima with a black interior. I had that combination in my 92 Maxima & loved it. I just don't like the cream/beige interior.

 

agree wit u on the rear fenders... also how low the car sits even wit stock 19" wheels also is amazing...

 

THe car sits low??????????????? I guess you missed those gaping holes over both front and rear wheels. This time the springs will need to drop it like 3" and 2.6" respectively for front and rear for it too look normal.

YES I loved those bulging fenders in the rear too.