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I just wanted to give a heads up to anyone in the market that's looking to purchase an 8th gen Maxima in the NJ area. I went to Woodbury Nissan to purchase a new (demo) Maxima Platinum Reserve that they had listed for $35K with close to 7k miles. Once I test drove it, I knew right away that something was off about the front end. It felt loose and clunky over potholes. My '17 Maxima with over 30k miles didn't even feel like that. After the test drive, I looked around for any signs of an accident and found the passenger headlight had condensation in it and the passenger side fender and front door panel didn't align properly. I've attached a picture as well so you can see exactly what I'm talking about.
When I brought it up with the salesman, he initially said there was nothing wrong with it but then changed his tone after I pointed out the headlight condensation and misaligned fender/door panel. He kinda rushed us out and told us he'll give us a call the next day to "find out" what happen with the car. But so far it's been over a week and no call back whatsoever.
I just pulled a Carfax on it and it's clean. Since it's a dealer demo, they don't have to report accidents that didn't go through insurance. I've seen brand new cars heavily damaged by dealer/service employees and they will put that car in their body shop, make ALL of the repairs and not report any of it. Legally, you MUST disclose ALL repaired damage on all NEW cars in your inventory. Yes, accidents happen during vehicle delivery, but they must have a disclosure/addendum on the window sticker stating what was repaired.
No problem! Just wanted to make sure no one else got scammed!
Thanks for running the Carfax Madmax1991! I never bought the Carfax subscription since I was only looking at new cars and didn't think I needed it. You're right, they're legally supposed to have a disclosure but there was nothing on the windows and the Salesman didn't mention it either.
But if you know the car doesn't feel right or look right... chances are it's not right. New Jersey is a state that has a record number of title fraud issues and shady dealer practices... I would not be surprised.
Yeah I only drove it on local roads under 45 and it definitely felt like something was off. Even the steering felt weird, like the power assist was going out and then coming back on while driving. Who knows what happen with that car.
But if you know the car doesn't feel right or look right... chances are it's not right. New Jersey is a state that has a record number of title fraud issues and shady dealer practices... I would not be surprised.
I'm sure there's something sketchy going on, but they will rely on the warranty to fix it. I rented a 2019 SL, and it drove really well. I'm currently an 2016 Altima owner (I'm here because a lot of information I learned from my car also translates to the Maxima since they share the same platform and many common components.) Also working in traditional dealerships, I've seen some of the shady things dealers do, and there's a list of dealers in the DC/MD/VA area I'd NEVER buy a car from, but they sell a **** ton of cars. lol
08-17-2020 | 12:43 PM
