S1cTech

Just wondering because with 290HP this car could to be completing with the Z except being a 4DSC. =]

Chio

I think we could only dream

AEMAXIMA01

iTrader: (3)

Yea, I seriously doubt it. It's so sad to see Nissan's flagship lose the manual.

lightonthehill

The only big change I see with the 2010 is the addition of the diesel. The 'half-gen' changeover with the 2011 would be the earliest opportunity I see to add a manual to the Maxima. But I would be very surprised to see one, because we will not be out of this recession that soon, and I expect next year's overall automotive sales to be the worst in decades.

Another reason adding the manual to the Maxima will be difficult is the new CVT in the '09 Maxima has already proven that, even with 35 more HP, it can beat the MPG of the 6th gen Maxima in any configuration ('04-'06 manual, '04-'06 auto, or '07-'08 CVT) and only figures to improve into the future. The implication of that takes on great meaning as our government is on a program to gradually raise all fleet MPG fleet requirements as we go forward.

But we all know the true reason the Maxima has no manual; sales of the manual dropped from around 5% in the late 1990s to 2% by 2006. Dealers hated having a manual that they couldn't sell wasting a space on their lot. When dealers made it very clear they did not want manual Maximas, Nissan still kept making them and hoping for a revival of customer interest. But that never happened, and Nissan had no real choice but to drop the manual.

Sure, a manual on this '09 would be nice. But, other than really avid drivers (like those on this board), nobody would buy them. Especially with traffic getting more gridlocked every year. I'm afraid we are destined to recall the good old days of manual Maximas only in our minds.

'Progress' may not always be what we want, but it comes, whether we want it to or not.

CapedCadaver

iTrader: (8)

it's still a VQ35DE engine... I'm sure someone with fabrication skills could get a 2002-2006 6spd tranny in there. Question is what to do about the console trim, and more importantly, how to wire the car to not throw all sorts of codes about the precious CVT being missing.

DConrad2007

Manuals are not coming back to the Maxima,and no the Maxima will never compete with the Z.Different engine and more horsepower is coming to the new Z.I think you go to Nissans website and view the new Z plus the specs.

mls277

The CVT, Sport Mode, Paddle Shifters etc is all you need in a 4 door car. The manual is old school and just isn't worth putting into a 30-40k 4 door car. They will end up sitting on lots. That's nissans sports car and I'm sure the 370Z is gonna be great. If you want manual also look into Corvette which is in my opinion for 42k or so is way better an option than a Z. 436hp V8 connected to a manual is what it's all about!

Metal Maxima

iTrader: (30)

Honestly, I see the manual transmission going the way side as time goes on. As technology develops we're going to see the efficiency of shift-points only continue to increase and precious little advantage to be left in the manual.

Metal Maxima

iTrader: (30)

Yeah, that about sums it up. Excellent points.

rteenie22

dual clutch and cvts are great modern marvels transmitting power to the ground and they do it more efficiently and sometimes with greater performance than a conventional manual BUT some of us will always prefer three pedals and a shifter to control even in a four door. Hence BMW,Infiniti,Lexus,Audi,Nissan(altima),Cadillac, and others all making sport sedans with a manual tranny. Sure it may not sell in high volume but it wouldn't cost Nissan much to add this option. The Altima is based on a similar platform with the same engine. So that transmission with at most a heavy duty clutch would work just fine...

MoncefA33

iTrader: (6)

Yep, the 370Z...the VQ37HR is gonna make about 330hp and Nissan claims it's gonna be lighter as well.

And even here, despite the fact that the new Z will still have a 6spd manual with a clutch, it will rev-match on downshifts with Nissan's new syncrorev gearbox. So that eliminates the need for heel & toe action. Even with the classic manual/clutch gearboxes, things are becoming more automated.

croser2

The G cars always come with auto only the first year or two, then comes the manual option. The same thing with the new Altima coupe, came auto only and now it has manual.

I think its possible, but really I don't know, and If you don't actually know, you shouldn't rule it out.

rteenie22

G cars came out with a manual as well as the Altima...not sure about the Altima coupe but im almost positive it did

GStrength

iTrader: (4)

A manual has been advantages, especially getting a quick jump straight off the line, if you know how to rev and clutch accordingly. Also if you like to race on the highway, it also has it's advantages. It will be great to see a stick on the new Maxima, I know some who chose not to buy one simply because it doesn't come in manual, but that's Nissan's decision.

oguikeoffoaro@yahoo.com

We have to think guys! There is hope! Probably for an automatic but not a CVT. In 2010 when nissan offers the diesel we all know diesels have a **** load of torque and it's been proven that CVT's cannot by any means handle torque more than 280 ft/lb and engines with a higher displacement of 3.5 liters. So we MIGHT be getting ourselves for 2010 a diesel VQ37HR with an auto or manual option. How does that sound?!

lightonthehill

Several things working against a manual Maxima.

1 - The Altima is Nissan's 'bulk seller', and they hope to sell at least 250,000 each year. A manual Altima might sell 5K or so cars. BUT: The Maxima has been moved up to Nissan's 'upscale flagship' niche, and only around 70,000 will be built. There would be no way Nissan could figure to sell more than between 1 and 2K manual Maximas. Those numbers make it economically unwise to do the work necessary to build and have certified a manual Maxima.

2 - Although the very avid type of driver found here on the ORG might be interested in a manual Maxima, 99% of Maxima drivers have NO interest in manual Maximas. Manual sales from 1998 to 2006 proved that. My dealer said the only way he was able to get a manual Maxima off his lot was to offer it way below invoice to a customer who actually came on the lot intending to buy a Maxima with auto tranny. The dealers HATED having a car they couldn't sell taking up a valuable space on their lot.

3 - The manual has been equalled in fuel efficiency and accelleration by the newer auto trannies, and exceeded in both areas by the newest CVT.

4 - The paddles and tiptronic options enable much of the same control over a car as the old manual does. I use these options to enable engine compression to do downhill braking for me. The primary purpose of the manual at this point would be either as a 'fun' plaything for younger folks or to bring back memories of how things used to be for older folks like me.

5 - The Maxima is Nissan's top of the line sedan. Does Mercedes and Lexus and Audi and Cadillac and Infiniti all put the manual in their TOP OF THE LINE sedans?

Yet once more, I predict there will be no manual tranny in the gasoline version Maxima's future, and understand why that is so. I remain open as to what tranny Nissan may put in the diesel Maxima. I would not be surprised to see the diesel Maxima come ONLY with a six speed heavy-duty automatic with tiptronic. We may know as early as spring.

Greeny

iTrader: (43)

+1 to lightonthehill's comments

I purchased my 94 VE5 back in late 2000 from a small local car lot, the car sat there on the lot for at least 6 months! i fianlly decided to stop and take a look at it, simply because i liked the color

The lot owner told me many many people inquired about the car, but walked away from it when they seen it was a manual, yet was the reason i decided to buy the car. The fact is our society is getting lazier and lazier, plus it's hard for most people to shift and still be able to have their cell phone stuck to their ears for hours on end.

Yaco_Max

iTrader: (6)

Good points lightonthehill.

Now, the vq35XX will be replaced by VQ37XX, as Infiniti already did it, so only time will tells the true.... Heads up here.

MONTE 01&97 SE

iTrader: (1)

Dunno if the VQ37 will find its way intothe 7th gen as it is now, I recall reading someplace that it will not fit in the FWD platform etc.

STILLENGLE

I believe Driving a stick shift, actually gives you more to concentrate on the road, and help's with being able to multitask most people can't do that. I love stick shift's i currently drive an automatic, but would prefer a stick, my next car is defenitely gonna be a stick.

Torgus

iTrader: (10)

when it gets one, i get one. not before.

Nick Exxon

I know of a way to market it - a few weeks ago a pizza delivery driver got held up here in the town where I live. He did it at gunpoint and his intent was a carjack. He took a look between the seats, saw the manual, cussed, turned around and ran off! I also don't want another Max unless I gets a shifter to throw around.

boondoxmax

iTrader: (1)

your not gonna see many manuals in sedans. I love driving manuals and as long as they are offered in a car the appeals to me then I will buy it. The new maxima is a nice looking car but i can do without the cvt and that's why i won't even so much as look at one. I guess Subaru is starting to look really good............

maxger

The only way a maxima would get a manual would be a "SR" option. Chances of that slim to none.

It would be nice to see a manual option. The TL has one. The ES350 does not but that car is not marketed as a sport sedan like the TL and the Maxima

On a side note.

Here is a links that shows the amount % manuals each manufacturer sells in North america and other good info. Based from the Mid 70's to 2008. Check out page 81 & 82 for nissan cars. Funny thing the average fuel economy has not gone up much over the years.

http://www.epa.gov/otaq/cert/mpg/fet...8015appx-p.pdf

lightonthehill

Wish we could see a breakdown of just the Maxima in that table. Of course we already know the percentage of Maximas sold with manuals had dropped below 5% by around 2000, and to between 2% and 3% by 2006, leaving Nissan with no practical choice but to drop the manual.

The MPG has not risen greatly over the years for Nissan products because of four factors:

1 - Nissan made mostly smaller vehicles during the early 1970s (avg Nissan car weight at that time was around 2500 lbs), but now they make much larger vehicles (avg Nissan car weight is now around 3400 lbs). The Maxima itself has grown from just over 3,000 lbs in 1981 to 3600 lbs in 2009.

2 - The power in Nissan vehicles has increased significantly during the last 35 years. The Maxima has well over 100 more HP in 2009 than it did when it was introduced in 1981.

3 - There are much stricter requirements on fuel systems, emmissions, etc, now than there were back in the 1970s.

4 - There are many more power-consuming options on Datsun/Nissans now than there were 35 years ago. Even simple things like air conditioning (my early Datsuns were not air conditioned), power steering, power brakes, power-operated windows, heated steering wheels, power adjustable steering column, power adjustable seats, power operated sunroofs, heated rearview mirrors, very comprehensive electronics, etc, require more power, which means the alternator must generate more electricity, and that uses more gas.

tigersharkdude

iTrader: (20)

according to the developers(i have spoke to alot of them) the 7th gen max isnt getting a manual and the max will more than likely never see manual again. just get the paddle shift/sport shift model

lightonthehill

I have been hesitant to post such a definitive statement as tigersharkdude has just done here about the demise of the manual in the Maxima. But in my heart, I have been very sure for quite a while we will never see a manual in the Maxima again.

The Maxima is now Nissan's near-luxury flagship, which is a role that extends well beyond just being a '4DSC'. Nissan made it very clear back in 2002 that the 3.5 manual Altima would fill the old Maxima niche of a smooth, well-handling, powerful, moddable, manually-equipped 4DSC.

jixxxer

I dont see a point for a manual trans in the maxima, especially if u get the paddle shifts; used for the first time and its great! Just my opinion.

rteenie22

Have you ever driven a real manual??? If so you'll know there is no comparison between a real shifter and clutch pedal versus those sega genesis paddles...sure that option makes rush hour traffic easier to cope with but who cares

Bjs470

iTrader: (13)

Bet they'd sell a few more cars with a manual option

lightonthehill

Yep. We had nothing but manuals when I began driving back in the late 1940s. I began by maneuvering tractor trailers around on the lot of the trucking company my Dad and uncle owned, then moved to a black Studebaker sedan in 1949. My last manual was a '78 Datsun 200SX 5 speed, which I drove until I got my first Maxima in Oct 1984.

By 1984, I was shifting that 200SX over a thousand times a day just getting to work and back, seldom reaching 25 MPH, often doing 5 MPH. Anyone who enjoys a manual in that situation is masochistic beyond belief.

lightonthehill

You are absolutely correct; they would 'sell a few more cars with a manual option'. Unfortunately, by 2006, that 'few' translated to around 2% of Maxima purchasers, which made keeping a manual in the lineup a losing proposition. As if very low sales weren't already a 'killer', dealers did not want unsellable manual Maximas taking up valuable space on their lot.

Manual Maximas actually became a loser for Nissan almost ten years ago, when sales dropped below 5% of total Maximas sold.

Maxima-4DSC

iTrader: (1)

its unfortunate cause i was looking at a new maxima myself but since so manual option and no way to put one in (i bought my 99 as an auto and swapped it) im really not interested in the granny auto tranny. Tried and true sports cars will always have a manual with a clutch not a manumatic, cvt ect ect. It stinks but nissan has no plans at this time to incorporate a manual in the maxima anymore because of the dwindling sales of the manual. We are a bunch of hard core maxima fans that WOULD buy it but think of how small we are compared to worldwide.

Mick7

The 4DSC thing is misleading in that this new Maxima has a sporting side and it also has a muscular but elegant appearance from some angles. More a luxury car with muscle than a sports car. From the 400 miles I have driven mine, a manual just wouldn't seem to be a fit in this car.

No buyer remorse here. I like it more each time I drive it. It does many things well..more than any other car in its price range, imo. The new design sets it apart from the competition.Sounds like you would be a perfect fit in the 2008 G35 that Nissan is leasing for 349.00 and selling below invoice in some places. If the Max didn't exist, that would be my second choice.

lightonthehill

Mick7 has absolutely nailed it. Even thought the '09 Maxima has lots of power, and is a very fine handling car (clearly better than recent Maxima generations), a manual tranny would not be a very good fit for this 3600+ pound flagship. Nissan bills the '09 Maxima as 'near-luxury', but, fully equipped, this car is more completely appointed than some luxury cars.

As Mick7 suggested, the manual version of the G35 is probably more like the old Maxima 4DSC than the '09 Maxima is. The G35 is slightly less roomy in almost every dimension, has lots of power (and slightly worse MPG), etc. And there are those (not me) that like the RWD layout. The G35 is less-stylish than the '09 Maxima, even long in the tooth, but is a very fine car. Just not my cup of tea.