Today, a buddy and I was across the street from an Infiniti dealer, so we thought we'd go take a look at the G35, G35 Coupe, and the rest. Next to that dealership was a Hertz car sales dealer. They had a bunch of automagic 2002 Maxima SEs, and all were in great shape with under 30K miles. We asked how much.

The guy said $17,599.

We nearly pooped in our pants! That is dirt cheap! Definately worth consideration for those in the market for a decently maintained used car. My buddy wants a Maxima, but needs to save a bit more. He loved that price, that's for sure.

By the way, the G35 Coupe is SUCH a beautiful car. It looks great in red with a spoiler.

Peace.

 

Yeah, Herts renting Maximas have dropped the Maxima Market. I Wish Nissan didn't give them the rights to rent cars. You ever see a rental company rent Hondas??

 

Doesn't surprise me one bit. I went to the dealer a few months back to swap my 2k2 Maxima for a 2k3 Altima (before I decided to keep it and fight HID thieves). I only had 19,000 miles at the time, and the car is spotless.... He told me "I can give you 17,000 as a trade-in." He wanted me to shell out another 8,000 for a fully loaded Altima 3.5!!! MADNESS!!!

Buy the 5th Generation because you love the car, not because you hope it holds its value. With the 6th Generation coming on in just a few months, and the HID issues still looming, this model will slip into Edsel category quickly. As for me... I choose to keep the car that I love to drive, regardless of its prospective resale value. I drove my last car for 13 years, and it was pretty much worthless at the end except to me.

 

There is nothing to be surprised about that price ... go to www.cars.com (if you haven't already) and search used '02 Maxima... there are like 100 for under $19K .. some as low as $16K ... all under 30K miles...

I would NEVER buy a car from a rental car company... pure crap decision if you ask me... sure not in the short-term, but long-term. Chances of those cars being broken in properly... or being driven w/o abuse are 'nil. I know some people on here have purchased used '02 Max's from Rental car company sales... and no disrespect, I wish you many long miles of trouble-free ownership... but sorry, i'd never do it.

 

That amount is probably about right. I just looked up the value of my 2K2 GXE w/9100 miles on Edmunds and Kelly Blue Book. Private party value according to Edmunds is $17143 and KBB says $19050.

When I sold my last car to a private party. I got an amount between Edmunds and KBB.

Man, the next time I buy a car, I will really consider a car that's at least 2 years old, but definitely not a rental.

 

I really wish you people would just understand it is not Hertz Rental car or anything else but reality. The average car in a 36 month time period depreciates 48-52%. So That means if you bought a car for 25k after 3yrs it is worth around 12.5k.

With any manufacturer you are going to get slapped silly if you try to trade your car in within the first 2 years.

 

You are correct its not only the Max its most cars, also those cars at Hertz I wouldnt touch them although they are selling much less than Dealer or personal sellers. Also alot of those Base Se's on dealers lots are previous hertz cars so be careful. They tend to have many cosmetic defects and the miles are usually in the high 20's which is alot for a 2002 and have 0 options. I had a friend that bought a 01 Camry from Hertz car sales last year and that thing has literally been a living hell as she calls it.

 

never buy a car that was a rental. I worked for a major car rental company, and cant tell you how much abuse they take. The best thing is to buy a car after lease..3 yrs 36K miles. Best value.

 

I have two words when it comes to rental cars: "Neutral drops." Do you have ANY idea how much abuse those cars get? Trust me, I abuse 'em everytime I rent 'em!

 

Leases are also dangerous. Since people never really "own" the car, they tend to abuse it as well. I know numerous people who had leases and simply tore the cars up. Sure they look good on the exterior when they are returned at the end of the lease, but the insides are just wrecked.

If buying used, best to buy from a private party, although even that does not guarantee anything about how they've treated the car. In my opinion, knowing the entire history of the car and having full control of it is one of the benefits of buying new!

But yes, NEVER EVER buy an ex-rental--you may get lucky and have nothing wrong with it, but MORE than likely you'll have major problems down the road.

 

Well, I guess nuff said!