2019 Toyota Avalon Touring vs 2019 Nissan Maxima SR
 

He states in the end...."The Avalon is the better pick"......Is that a smackdown?

Avalon wins for space and reliability, but Imo that's about it. Ive spent the last 6 years driving toyotas and I'm so over it. Driving the maxima is a huge breathe of fresh air for me. The fact that no toyota model has android auto in 2019 is so extremely aggravating to me . You can't go wrong buying a Toyota, they are truly the most reliable brand you can buy, but they are the most boring cars to drive and the fact that there is no android auto is an automatic deal breaker for me

Get a Supra.....Not a boring Toyota..

Not a practical Toyota either. The maxima works well for me because it's 4 doors and enough for my family. A supra is a completely different beast, but yes I agree it'd be a fun car

The Max is a big car, however....the exterior is deceiving. One would expect more room in the Cabin.....For a family car....truly not the best...from a purely utility standpoint.....But, it is an enthusiast sedan for sure with Quality cabin materials.

The Avalon epitomizes what "Ugly" is. A solid car with lots of room but no fun. I crossed shopped that Touring but realized it came up short. Compared to the Platinum Max, No driver's thigh support and no power rear sunshade, no panoramic sun roof. Smaller tires, no remote start from key fob. No spare?

The Avalon is definitely not a good looking car......They sure f'd that car up.

Kinda crazy that car in the mid 40 thousand dollar range has no remote start. Although I know from experience, Toyotas remote start system is garbage. You can remote start the engine,, but as soon as you open the door to get in, the engine shuts off. It must be a safety feature but how stupid is that?

If they just got rid of the grill under the headlights and just made it bumper it'd probably be a good looking car, but that grill is just overkill

Both of these cars are way outdated.
Maxima will be gone in a couple years.

Yes, it ruins the car

I be to differ, strongly. Both of them are designed for a niche market - different market for each. Those markets aren't going anywhere, so these cars aren't going anywhere, especially when other car manufacturers are ditching their sedans. If anything, I predict the sales of Avalon and Maxima will go up.

My sentiments exactly. The back end is kinda gnarly though.... and thinner tires?!

Might as well drive the Avalon around without a front bumper. Doesn't look like it has one anyway.

The Avalon front end looks like a cheese grater.

Cheap version of the Lexus I guess.

We drove a new Avalon and Camry XSE and XLE V6 before getting the 18 Maxima. The transmission tuning, tall gearing and the way the engine delivers power was very underwhelming. Felt slower than our 2012 Camry SE V6 we had. The whole experience seemed setup for 60 year olds.

Lol....They are!

Well, this sixty year old bought a 2018 Maxima. :)

Bad Grandpa

So did this 62 year old. And man, do I love my '18 Maxima! By the way, I looked at the Avalon (along with many other cars). Just couldn't get past that front grill!

<<The whole experience seemed setup for 60 year olds.>>

Even my ex-wife said the same thing when I told her I chose the Maxima instead of the Avalon, which I had strongly considered ... She said "glad you got the Maxima - I always thought the Avalon is a car for old people" :-) :-)

Haha, I didn't mean to offend my elders! The worst part of the experience with the new Avalon and Camry was the acceleration. It all felt neutered. Almost like it was cutting 50% of the power the entire time. Waste of 301hp. Handling was better than the previous ones, though.

WHere the max falls short is resale value......that is about it

The Maxima SR is the sleeper sports sedan in my opinion. I think it performance is more "4DSC like" than any other generation stock Max. May last Max was a 2002 SE, and before that, a 1997 SE and 1995 SE. I also just recently test drove a 2015 Acura TLX FWD V6. I drove the same course afterwards in my Max SR, and it felt like a race car by comparison. What's interesting too is that I've been finding articles and youtube videos that compare the Max SR to the BMW 328i, BMW 340I and Audi A4, etc. I find that very interesting indeed considering those models are in the realm of the Infiniti line... i.e. Q50.

I like how the hood bulge is a lot like my 84 Z turbo was looking out the windshield.

The overall feel of the Maxima easily feels more "special" than the Avalon, overall. Feels more visceral and less dumbed down.

^^This. My wife and I had been looking for a replacement for a 2010 Chrysler Sebring Limited for the last year or so, and we had it narrowed down to a Caddy cts or a Lincoln mkz. Until my wife saw the Maxima. I am 66, my sife a few years younger, and we want a nice comfortable touring car. Don't care about backseat room, care a lot about cockpit comfort though. Didn't want a SUV, already have a Nissan Titan to pull the camper, The maxima fits the bill for us

My feelings, exactly. "Visceral" :-). I like that.

Very objectively speaking, I do believe the 8 gen Max is still a head turner, whereas the latest gen Avalon is not (or it is ... but for the wrong reasons, e.g., the monstrous front grille). The 8th gen Maximas simply stand out, in traffic, whereas the Avalons (especially the previous generation, ending in 2018) do not - rather, they look like pretty bland and tame.

Re. the Avalon: I haven't driven a 2019 yet, but I did drive a 2018 on a business trip. On the plus side, interior is bigger than the Maxima's (at least in the back), but acceleration not the same - although probably not a fair comparison since the 2018 Avalon's engine is only capable of 268 HP or so.

Overall: still very pleased with my decision to go with the 2018 Max - I think it's a great combination of looks, power, comfort and features, at a very competitive price. Remains to be seen if reliability is there (I only have ~ 9000 miles on it at present, so zero issues but too soon to tell).

When someone points out that the Max gets spanked by an Accord in 0-60: "The Max is not a boy racer car! The max is sophisticated!!!"

When someone points out that the Avalon is quieter, more solidly built, has a much better ride quality, is much more roomy and more reliable with a better resale value: "But the Max accelerates faster!!!"

So forgive me but your post begs the question: what are you doing on this forum?

Neither car is for boy racers yet they both have strong acceleration (both fast enough to get groceries in). The Accord is a fine car but lacking in many of the comfortable features in the Maxima. My 2019 Maxima is noticeably quieter than my 2016 Max, As for the Avalon, also a fine but very ugly car . While shopping for my newly added 2019 Maxima I briefly considered the top of the line Avalon Touring but after pulling next to one, the side by side showed me just how much the Avalon sucks on the front end. The Avalon is also decontented from last year. No pull out thigh cushion on the drivers seat, no power rear sushade, no stand alone remote start, smaller sunroof.
I will say the Avalon is easier to get in and out of as it should be since it now occupies the senior citizen "Buick" space. (I am also a senior but refuse to act like one)

Avalon and maxima shouldnt even be in the same conversation. I don't think I've ever seen someone in their 20s or 30s driving an avalon. On the flip side, I don't know if I've ever seen an older person driving a Maxima. Maximas are completely different cars. The only similarities between the 2, is that both are their companies flagship models. And I'm not so sure an accord would "smoke" a maxima. I'm pretty confident both cars are about the same amount of power with weight to hp ratio etc. What I'm trying to say is, I agree with your post lol

There are several on this board, including me, in our 60's, and LOTH is coming up on 90 !!!

<<When someone points out that the Max gets spanked by an Accord in 0-60:>>

BTW, Slava, how do you know the Max gets spanked by an Accord in 0-60? Which particular test are you referring to?

Not saying older folk don't drive maximas, was just making the point that the majority are probably 45 and under

I am sure both are somewhere between 5.6 nd 6.0 to 60