OK, this is the best deal I have gotten thus far in my search for a 2002 Maxima SE


2002 MAXIMA SE
Exterior Color: Super Black
Interior Color: Frost Leather
Base MSRP*: $25449

- Automatic Transmission
- Leather Package $1499
- Bose(R) Audio System (In-Dash) $1099
- Meridian Edition(TM) $399
- Front Side-Impact Air Bags $249
- Power Glass Sunroof $899
- Traction Control System $299
- Carpeted Floor Mats $79

Total MSRP*: $30512


29,751 for the car
490.50 highway tax
45.00 title

30,286 total
-14,000 trade in
16286.50 total

Good or bad?

 

What did you trade in?

 

I don't think i could spend 30k on a max.

 

I don't think i could spend $1 on auto transmission

 

$30K+ for a maxima is a risky venture. Keep in mind, this is the end of this body/platform/gen. Even paying invoice can leave you alittle disappointed at resale time. I dont know were you are, but in the south, they sell tons of maximas and usually at invoice.

Unless you can stomach a freefall in resale or plan to own it forever, I personally would keep shopping. keep in mind, even if the dealer sells you the car for invoice, they still make $2000 on the sale, so don't let them make you feel like you're putting them out of business.

 

Tim's right,

Everyone is eager to be one of the first people with the new max, but it's resale value will probably go down the drain.

 

Yah especially if they totally redesign the car next year. Originally I was hearing about the next Max being a 2003 introduced in the fall of 2K2 if that is the case, I wouldn't consider a 2k2 cause resale is gonna suck bigtime. But now i've been hearing that the car will be released late 2k3 as a 2k4 model so as not to steal any shines from the 350Z. This seems to make the most sense but you just never know w/Nissan

 

Bad!! Try 26k.. Never pay close to sticker price that's like shoping at Crutchfield #:>)

 

The problem is, I could get the car for invoice but would get raped on the trade in.

My truck retails on kbb.com for 14,000 and trade in is 11,000. If you take that logic, I'm not getting the car for 30,500:

27,500 for the car
11,000 for my trade in

Keep in mind, 27,500 is with tax, title and tags.

So what do I do? I am still shopping around, but can I get 14,000 for my truck and invoice for the car?

 

sell the car privately?

 

On the 2002, there's no difference in price between the auto and 6-speed. Don't be blinded by your biased vision of grandeur for the "GXE" and manual trans. There's another group of folks that are blinded by their vision of grandeur (read terrorists), and look what they did. Open your eyes before it's too late for you.

 

Oh man. YOU MUST LEARN TO NEGOTIATE THE PRICE OF THE CAR AND THE PRICE OF YOUR TRADE-IN SEPERATELY! Even if they give you a price of $30k(which is just okay at best), they are apparently killing you on the trade-in. So it looks like they are now reaming you two ways instead of just one

 

you are right.. next time i shall go out and spend the extra money for no reason

 

You took the words right out of my mouth Patchmax..

 

Not everyone wants a stripped out cloth seated Maxima. I for one, wanted a fully loaded car. If you are leasing and all the options are residualized, the monthly payment is hardly any more for a loaded SE as it is for a stripped out price leader GXE.

 

You guys don't think there is going to be any added value because of the...I don't know...mystique of owning one of the last models with that body style? I personally would go for the 6-Speed for even more myself but that's me. But once the Maxima becomes the MAXIMA I think the 2K2 will have alot of appeal. Just like the BMWs of the 80s before they changed the body style. When it goes to that full size car status I think it will lose alot of its sport sedan nature.

 

get an I35 they start at $28,000 this year(cheaper than last year)... so that would make it semi-fullyloaded

 

i thought the 2k2 max are very expensive.

why are we arguing? its new, just came out, of course its gonna be expensive. if max is 31.

get a i35 instead.

 

The same car in 1999, same equipment except 5-spd left the dealer for about 22,800. Add a grand for auto and one has to wonder, is a 2002 worth 7,000 more than a brand-new 1999? Considering there's been 0 inflation and we're in a recession, it's pretty outlandish. Plus the 2002 has one year left with that body style. Crazy. Even crazier is that that 7 grand is what you will pay for depreciation in the first 1k miles to be the first on the block.