I test drove a Honda Accord and a Honda Accord Crosstour. Also considered a Volvo S60 and a Mazda 6.

 

i also tested the crosstour but honda's are just a lil too bland

 

I was really into the cross tour too until I drove the maxima! Wow, I'm glad I did. It's so much more car for the money and more fun to drive. Also drove
A cx-7, Venza, and looked at a murano(no head room at all) I'm 6'6"
The max has the best room even though the wheel could telescope a couple more inches. Also looked at a new 5.0(no telescoping wheel). And a camaro
(huge blind spots everywhere)

 

Interesting.......no headroom in a Murano?
Did you make sure the seat was all the way down?

The only reason I ask is because I had a 2010 Maxima SV with a regular sunroof and went into a 2011 Murano with Panoramic sunroof and the Murano has A LOT more headroom than the Maxima.

 

Good choice. I have coworkers who own Lexus'/Benz's telling me all the time how nice my car is. People buy Lexus just to get the L on their car, unless you get a GS430 or something. The Maxima...is a sleeper...at least around here...and I love it.

 

LR3

Thats about it.

 

BMW 550
But I couldn't afford it

I am happy with my max now.

 

We were looking at an Altima because is was economical for the wife's sales job. Had some slight interest in the Maxima but knew they were higher in price.

Went to Nissan dealer this past Saturday night for some test driving. The salesguy wanted us to drive the Maxima first. The wife loved it but it was considerably higher in price and options. Next she drove the 4 banger Altima and it so not the vehicle the Maxima was and couldn't wait to get out of it. All of the sudden price was not an issue, we knew we had to spend more to get more quality.

Needless to say, I started to search Houston for loaded 2010 Maximas. I found her dream car Sunday night online. Called to make sure it was still there and met the wife for a test drive and bought it on the spot.

 

Nice. Smart salesman too.

There are some new services I'm hearing about where you can notify several dealerships of what you're looking for, and they compete to give you the lowest price on the car w/options. My girlfriend is starting to look for a car and is using one of these to see how it goes, makes sense for these people to start competing with each other for the sale.

 

Subaru WRX - looks fun, bland interior
Lexus CT - too pricey but nice
Toyota Tacoma 4 door - even certified used is pricey
Toyota 4Runner - nice
Toyota Camry SE - bland

Strolled into local dealer. Test drove SV Sport/Tech. Drove off with new maxima.

 

2008 Infiniti G35 sedan sport- kinda out of my budget(love my max but wish i got this mall i had to do was extend the loan 1 more year)
2008 Acura TL type S- too much mileage for price

 

BMW 328i - the 2012 hadn't come out yet and the backseat is too small
BMW 535i - has now priced me out of a new one
Infiniti G37 - interior was just too small (I was trying to go bigger for a second child)
Acrua TL - I just can't get past the exterior
Buick Lacrosse - just not a great choice of engines for me
Buick Regal - too small of a trunk and rear seat
Cadillac CTS - was my second choice, but they are heavy beasts (next gen won't be)
Kia Optima - Very nice but just couldn't get past the name

 

Lexus es350
Buick lacrosse csx

 

Ford Taurus and VW CC

I might have purchased the Taurus but the dealer I went to didn't have any in stock at the time. When I went to the Nissan dealer I was initially interested in the Milano. Drove the salesman crazy but we couldn't get to a price I was comfortable with.
Switched my interest to the Maxima. I then played Infiniti against the Maxima and almost walked out but they weren't going to let me walk out. That plus it was the last day of the month so the incentive to close the deal was very strong for the dealer,

in the end got want I wanted to begin with.

 

2011 Nissan Altima S
2011 Nissan Altima coupe S
2011 Mustang V6
2011 Camaro
2011 Jetta
2011 Volkswagon CC
2011 BMW 3 Series
2011 Honda Accord
2009 Acura TL ( Pricey for a used car )

Of all the cars I test drove, I've found the Maxima to be the best. I came from a '95 Altima and I liked the idea of having a four door car again because I can give girls from my college a ride home

 

a ride home so they can ride you lol

 

LOL I just do it just to show off my Max. All for fun only. Nothing serious. Problem with that is, some go inside with dirty shoes and I really hate it. My new rule is, if somebody wants to come, take off the shoes . But since my gas mileage sucks from listening to my engine, I only do this once or twice a month

 

The Genesis Coupe 3.8Track and a Used BMW 335i.

I love my Maxima, definitely the way to go. Well minus, the rattle in the stereo passenger panel. But, besides that, its Amazing!

 

1. 2011 infiniti fx 3.5 (if i could have afforded it i probably would have went with the fx)

2. 2011 inifiniti g 37

3. 2011 bmw 325i (honestly the inside just seems to bland)

4. 2011 acura tl (ugly exterior)

5. 2011 lexus is250 (to much of a girly looking car to me)


I went with a 2010 snow white maxima with premium package, technology package, and I'm not sure if they all come with it but I also have the rear spoiler. If people wouldn't look at me weird I'd probably live in the thing. Lol I have to say I love this car.

 

Buick Lacrosse - Too much chrome and over the top dash
Buick Regal GTS - No Cloth interior, too expensive, exterior styling queues
CTS - Too expensive, no front drive, no cloth interior
2013 Fusion - Not out yet
Another Altima 3.5SE - Not avail anymore and model refresh not out yet

 

DUDE that car is sexy. I drove my cousin's Genesis 3.8 track and it's fast . I've seen modded 3.8s and I must say they have potential.

 

Lexus GS350

 

We had such good luck in 85K miles on the 2007 Maxima that we went right back and negotiated a killer deal on the 2012 SV. Did not look at any other cars. GF commutes with it 60 miles a day so we got it all loaded up and she loves the XM radio and verbal weather warnings....two features not on the 2007. I took over the 2007 Maxima as my daily driver.
This is the first time in 52 years of car buying that I bought same car two in a row. Only exception is the Corvette and have had four in a row. Looking forward to many good years of driving with the 2012 car.

 

10+ Nissan Altima 3.5SR
09+ Acura TL
08+ Infiniti G35Xs
11+ Kia Optima SX

 

2012 TL SH-AWD (Didn't like the deals)
2012 G37S Sedan (Smaller inside)
2012 300C (Overpriced IMO)
2012 Camry SE V6 (Once I realized what I was doing I left... LoL)

The Maxima wasn't on the list till I read about the 2012 coming out headed to the dealer and saw that minor things changes and was let down... lol but one thing let to another!

 

Went in to look at the Altima but the dealer let me drive the max and gave me a killer deal so I got it.

Also looked at:
A4
335i
328i
CTS
Fusion
Charger
300
Impala
IS250
Sonata
And a few others. I spent 9 months shopping and found the Maxima to be a good all around car for the money.

 

Nissan Altima 3.5SR -- Originally I was looking at getting a V6 Altima, but like some of the others here, was sat down in a Maxima by the salesman first. The ride was awesome, but I had some serious sticker shock and reservations from that. My wife and I then sat in an Altima, and the ride was shockingly different! It had some good zip, but was much stiffer, and had a much lighter ride. My wife found it far less comfortable than the Maxima. The Maxima felt like it had a far superior suspension system, and just rode like a much larger, plusher car. I'm amazed that two cars that look so similar, and are of a similar size can ride so vastly differently. Its something that I think Nissan should play up more.

Hyundai Sonata - Only cloth seats available. Just didn't have the pickup of the Maxima. Engine sound was kinda loud. Not of the same build quality of the Maxima

Ford Fusion V6 - The car had some pickup, and the leather seats were nice. Controls didnt have the elegant styling of the Maxima. A decent car, but not much cheaper than the Max.

Lexus ES350 - OK, this was one silky smooth car! The ride quality is exceptionally quiet and smooth. Some people here have complained about power, but I didn't find it to be a problem at all. Actually found it quite powerful getting on the highway during a test drive. The car felt like everything it did was effortless. Really I passed on this in part because of its higher price, but because it just emanates old-ness. The interior is nice with the wood trim, but comes off as an old person car. Sometimes I still think about how smooth and quiet the ride is, but it just didn't seem to be a personality fit for me.

Infiniti G37x - This was a fun car to drive. Some have complained about it being small on the inside. I think I was too enamored with the spaceship like controls to focus on the size. Pickup was nice, but I have to say that the engine sounded quite loud, even for street speed acceleration. Maybe its just because I test drove it right after the Lexus, but the car seemed to work a lot harder than the Lexus. In total however, this was probably my favorite to drive, but the price tag was just too high.

Honda Accord V6 - My wife has an '04 Honda Accord V6 which she just loves, so I thought to try one too. Like her car, the acceleration is silky smooth. You press the pedal, and the car doesn't seem like its working hard to get moving. It picks up speed really fast. I'd say it was much smoother than both the Infiniti or Maxima. What I didn't like was the rather stiff ride, and the extremely boring styling. Price was nice though. I almost went with it because of the great price, but just decided that I wanted a little more fun in my life!

Went back to the dealership and tried a Maxima SV Sport, which I almost bought. The ride was decidedly stiffer than the Premium, and I loved the features of the premium. The Premium was out of my range, but they had a demo car that they could give me a better deal on. Still worry a bit about the mileage on the demo before I bought it (4,800 miles), but the car has been a dream otherwise. It is a fully loaded 2011 SV Premium with Navigation package. Basically has every feature one can have in the car. I also jumped for it because it has a light interior, which I think brightens the car a whole lot. Most cars these days have a dark interior. I love the dual moonroof which also makes the car lighter.

 

I came off lease of an 08 G35Xs last September. Test drove several others:

Taurus SHO
Acura TL
Honda Crosstour
G37X

All of them were heavily optioned.

Maxima SV Sport had the stuff I wanted, and offered the lowest lease cost.

SHO was great, but seemed too large. Acura TL had a much higher monthly lease. Honda was too bland. Tempted to go back to Infiniti, but wanted something a little different. Monthly cost was $115 lower, with a higher mileage allowance, and I got a heated steering wheel in the bargain! Put four snows on the Max and it does just as well in the snow as the Infiniti I came out of. I like the exterior styling, performance, interior design and value. Plus the dealer was much closer to my home and office.

 

11 vw gti - I had always liked vw's especially golfs. Test drove it and it was not bad, liked the handling, dsg transmission and turbo spool but it was too small and the reliability was not good enough.

G37 sedan - very good car but was expensive

11 charger r/t - looks good, rear wheel drive, v8 muscle engine , the relibility kept me away from this car too

And after test driving many cars I found the maxima was best bang for the buck. Looks the best and drives like a dream.
I love it

 

None. I knew from the minute I saw the 7th gen that was going to be my next car.

 

SHO- fast, nice interior- high price and just boring

Charger 2010 - sick motor- well that was it- dodge and cheesy interior

TL sh awd- nice- ugly

CTS- nice- couldn't afford typeV

M35 2008- nice- not sporty enough

I saw my ocean grey in the sun fresh detailed and once I drove it I new it was for me- this is my third maxima. I had a 4th and 5th and loved them

 

Acura TL - Nice electronics, not as nice a ride. Max much better looking
BMW328 - Not worth the price
Ford Taurus SHO - Horrid interior, bulky, blah
Ford Fusion Sport AWD - Look and feel cheap compared to the Max
Lexus 350 - Borrrrrrrrrrrrring

Being 6'4" it is tough to find a car that I am comfortable in and love to drive. The MAX is it!

 

Acura TL - weird looking and noisy interior
Infiniti G37x - interior felt really cheap (I know!)
Cadillac CTS - uncomfortable steering wheel, odd styling, expensive

The Max was the right car at the right price for me. It's only been a few days but I love the car. We had three BMWs in a row that were absolute POS's and decided to go with something more reliable.

 

Mitsubishi Evolution
Nissan 350z
Infiniti G35

 

ALL MANUAL TRANSMISSIONS:

Infiniti G35
BMW 3 Series
Altima 3.5
Honda Accord V6 Coupe

 

I can't start a new thread yet, so I thought I'd try to post this here. I am thinking of pulling the trigger on an SV '012 with Premium pack, spoiler, technology pack and a few other odds and ends. It is white with the black roof. Dealer is working on the numbers, but I expect it will be around $450 per month on a 39 month lease. Not sure if this in the right range, what with the cash incentives that outright purchases can be factored in. The sticker price is 41.5 Does anyone think the smoked rims that some of the S models have would look good on a white car? There aren't any in stock to see in person, except on a dark gray model (which looks nice, but I prefer the white body to contrast the pano roof). I am trading in a '98 E430 Sport with 134k miles. The car is almost pristine, but book value is only around $3700. Before the E, I owned a '95 Maxima SE that was totaled by an idiot who rear-ended me, and ended up using the insurance to fund the E at the time. My Mercedes forum snob friends think I am crazy for thinking of such a "down-market" Maxima, but I have always had a penchant for them. And the idea of spanking new car versus someone's else's used castoff in a similar price range appeals to me (were I to look at used benzes). Thoughts?

 

Nothing but the Maxima. All cars I've purchased have been Maximas.

 

I test drove a 2011 toyota Camry se v6 and two maximas. One was a sv premium and the one I bought was a sv sport. Definitely glad I chose the maxima. The Camry was just too bland for me and didn't come with as many features. And it was only slightly less than the maxima.

 

1) Altima 3.5SR fully loaded: loved the car, but loved the options and looks of the Max more

2) 2009 Pontiac G8 GT (used and lightly modded): Poor gas mileage (but over 400whp), long commute and all the switchgear is out of the Aussie version of the car, aka the Commodore SSV.

3) 2010 Chevy Malibu LTZ: drove great, just too small inside and not enough power, poor brakes, sloppy handling

4) 2007 G35-S Sedan: loved the ride, handling, powertrain, etc. Just too small on the inside for me.

In the end, the Max just had all the equipment, power, handling, brakes, etc that I wanted for the right price. Couldn't be happier!

 

seeing me as I was looking for a used car from 95 to 2004 with a 5 grand budget and how my family loves imports

so I went on craigslist and saw vw's to expensive and lots of lemons, honda's only preludes no room for my fam in the back seat, toyota's hell no bland, lexuses es300 again lemon deals, bmw's and benz same...


so it came down to nissan surprisingly seeing the maxima expensive then the I30 (5th gen) I went to see an i30 and man I fell in love with it since!

also I was going to consider a g35 or g37 later on but the post above convince me of getting a maxima