Test driving an 09 with 119k on it tomorrow. Anything to watch out for?
 

I appreciate it guys. This will be my 5th or 6th Maxima if this comes together.

the big thing on the 09's is the steering column lock out module; you can pull a fuse to disable this so the unit never fails on you and leaves you stranded. theres threads on here about it you can check out after you purchase.

other than that i havent really seen any consistent issues with the 09's that I can think of aside from some people who had their auto power tilting steering column motors die ( a sign of this is them making noise, if the car you test drive's column makes noise demand they replace the motors its an $800 repair job out of pocket)

Thank you. I read about the fuse problem and I will be pulling that 1st thing if we get it. Does pulling the fuse disable anything from working?

Not that I can tell; apparently many newer ones already have it pulled. I've had mine out for a month now no problems.

These are high miles for a 3 year old car. I usually dispose of cars when they get into the mid 100's. Therefore, it should cost way under prevailing retail price. One negative to watch out for is if it has Goodyear RSA tires which are the worst tires for this car. Also the 19" tires, if that is what is has it will cost you over $300 to replace each tire.

i bought my 11 with 52k i thought it was high ..

Get one with the monitor package, even without nav. I regret looking at that amber screen every time I get in the car...

my 2000 has 25k less miles than that...

At 119K I would be very afraid of the CVT. My wifes 2008 Altima just had the CVT go at 133K. We took very good care of the car and had it since new. I had the CVT serviced twice by the dealer (drain and fill) at 60K and 120K. On Christmas day at 133K the CVT went. Dealer wanted 4K to put a rebuilt from Nissan in. I have not seen any reports of high mileage Maxima's on here to make me believe the CVT is that bullit proof on these cars either. What ever you are paying for the car, I would figure spending money on a CVT in the not to distant future. Sorry for being such a kill joy, just speaking from experience.

Car should be relatively like new, an 09 with 119k means it should have been on the highway most of its life, should sound normal no weird sounds

other motorists? lol good luck on the test drive

That is a whole lotta miles in a few years. I just got my '09 with 32k, Premium and Tech packages, I love it. I have always loved Nissan's and never had quality issues, but that car has been averaging ~30k a year and that is a lot to ask of any vehicle. Do yourself a favor and find something with a little less wear and tear.

why would you want a 4 year old car with 119k miles!?!?! Can't you find a lower mileage one in your area? I drove through the dealer lot near me and they had to have at least 20 used Maximas just sitting around.

Just wonderin' how much it's being sold for, if you don't mind sharing that info....

Perhaps with a little more money and patience, you can get yourself a ride that'll have less chances of you being constantly at the mechanic.

The car is being sold for $13000 which I think is reasonable given the mileage of the vehicle. If I bought a new one and was worried about it getting to 119k miles. I wouldn't buy it. My 96 that I sold to my brother is well over 200k and my 02 that I am still driving has 192k on it with just normal wear parts going out. Still on the original clutch as well.

Just looking for something for my gf to drive to work. I don't want to get something with low miles and pay more as she is going to be driving a pretty far distance and she's always liked the new Maximas and knows how reliable mine has been. I work on the cars myself and her brother is an ASE certified mechanic that can fix anything. I don't take any of my cars to the dealership for anything unless the labor is less than I think the fix is worth for me to do.

Thanks for posting. Not sure what this has to do with anything though.

It has newer Michelins on it. Can't remember the exact ones though.

I keep my cars til about 200k for the most part. I won't be getting rid of this one for a while.

Sure I can, for $18k or so. I don't want to spend that much and the miles don't scare me. I was just wondering if there was anything specific I should look out for. The car drove fantastic, not a rattle. Needs cleaned up a little however and I will have my uncle (who works at a bodyshop) clean up the paint in a couple of places.

I appreciate the knowledge. Replacing the CVT fluid as well as all fluids will be the 1st thing I do.

Do you own a Maxima with the CVT currently? Just curious why you would get another car with the CVT after yours took a sh1t on you? Nissan puts them in everything now, so I am hoping they got everything figured out with them. I could be wrong of course.

only have 22k on my 2009 and had it since just about when they came out but i also had a second daily driver car that i didnt trade but should have..my reward is lowwww miles at this point!

I do own a 2012 Maxima SV. I picked it up just before my wifes car's cvt died. I was feeling good about the cvt on her car and that is why I bought the Maxima. Shortly after that the Altima started to make a horrible grinding noise and the cvt needed to be replaced. I don't think it is expecting to much for the CVT to last to 150K or 200K but the experience with my wifes car has me sort of scared now. Her car saw only highway mileage because we live in the country so minimal stop and go traffic. The other issue is Nissan dealers only replace the CVT and do not repair it so that is why it is expensive to repair as they have to replace the whole unit and it only comes from Nissan. I'm pretty sure the unit in the Altima is the same as in the Maxima. Good luck with what ever you decide.

I have a friend that is a nissan mechanic and he said the CVT in the Maxima is much better than the CVT in the older model Altima's. I forget exactly what was different tho as I am not that savvy with the CVT's or transmissions for that matter.

I haven't heard that many problems with the CVT.
In fact I hear less complaints about it actually failing than I do about conventional autos failing.
What I have heard and what I am personally dealing with is a rocking drivers seat. For me it rocks forward under moderately hard braking, but only some of the time! And this seems to be a fairly common problem.

I hope this is true. I don't want to come off as a Nissan basher as I have owned a lot of their vehicles and like them very much. It would seem to me if Nissan wanted to truly make people feel good about their product, they would have left the 120K warranty in place for the CVT on the new models (did us no good on the Altima), but they went back to 60K. That shows me that Nissan may not have the upmost confidence in their own choice of the CVT reliability. I like the CVT and how it works compared to a conventional automatic, less/no gear hunting. I just hope the CVT in my Maxima lasts a good long time as I like the car.

I have an '04 w/ 55k on it. This steering wheel lock module you speak of...does my car have this also?