I am going to look at a 98 Maxima SE. I havent seen it in person and i dont know all that much about it. It has 96,000 miles. Its dark grey with dark grey leather. It has a clean carfax report. He wants $8,700 for it and kbb give is a retail of around $10,000 and Nada is about the same. Just on these specs do u think that i should consider this car for this price if its in good condition when i see it tomorrow? Also what are something that i should look for? I am going to have it checked out by a mechanic if you think it has potential and if it looks like its in good condition. Thanks
Steven

 

There's no '98 SE-L

 

Oh well its an SE with leather so i just assumed it was an SE-L. Sorry my mistake ill edit my post.

 

No big thing. The miles are a little high, although the car probably won't show it. I say wave a check for $8k at him and he'll probably give it to you. People get strange when there's cash on the table.

 

what he said. The dark grey is a nice find!

 

Not that it matters, but something tells me that this "dark gray" is realy green, as in sage mist green. And the leather is that Nissan Sereno, a grayish green. It's a nice color that compliments platinum wheels really well.

DW

 

se-l only in 99.

 

Sounds like a good deal. Make sure that the Air Bag light isn't flashing, and consider having a "hot oil flush" and new filter etc. Never take the word of the seller that he changed the oil regularly. I did, and it almost cost me an engine. Oil pickup screen was 80% clogged, along with the pcv system. Seems okay now, just worried the crap out of me.

 

dark grey? I need to see pics of this! I'd pay that just to have a dark grey maxima!

 

i got my black 99, then 2 weeks later my nissan guy said he just picked up a dark grey 99 5 spd, the wheels were the color of the car, I could have cried, I didn't know nissan made maximas in dark grey.

and yes, do the engine flush!

 

I wonder why people here recomend oil flush...You can see if the engine was properly maintained if you remove the oil cap.If the components inside are nice and clean,is a good sign...If you see a lot of dark dirt on the components,I d stay away. Oil flush may do more harm than good ,due to the oil starvation when the dirt cloggs the oil pump. As a preventive measure I d change the oil immediatley after gettin the car,but Id think twice before oil flush. That s my $0.02
About the car ,the mileage doesn scare me...drive it ,and see how it feels. If YOU are happy with it,buy it.

 

Ok i saw the maxima yesterday morning and its not exaclty dark grey. I would call it more of a silverish grey but very good looking none the less. The interior was in great shape and the leather was greyish green. The car drove well and shifted well. Only problem was with the brakes. They would make a really loud pulsing/vibrating noise when the brakes were applied. The guy told me it has just started doing it this morning (not sure if i beleive him) and that he is going to get it checked out today. Also one of the corner lights was almost half filled up with water but it still worked. I have arrange for a mechanic to check it out. What are some things i should have him look for, besides the normal wear, that are common to be problems on Maximas? Also i got a carfax and the car looks like it has had many owner and actually started out as a fleet vehicle (a 5 speed rental car???). Could fleet vehicle mean something else?Thanks

Steven

 

Silver-Gray = Sterling Mist

As for the pulsing brakes, it is very possible that it's not a big issue. When Nissans sit for a while, a couple of days to a week, their disk brakes develop this surface rust. Drive it around for like half an hour with some braking and it will get rid of the surface rust, and the pulsing should vanish.

Many owners might not be a good sign. Fleet vehicle could also suggest abuse. But then it may not. Look for any service records/receipts. That corner light being filled with water suggests that it was damaged once and it was repaired badly, rather than replaced. It would make me wonder about anything else on the car that was supposedly "replaced." If it's just the corner light, then OK.

I once bought a car with a targa roof. I asked about the wetness on the seats and the dealer told me he just shampooed them. It turned out that the targa roof was actually leaking, but I found that out after I bought it

DW

 

Ok one thing i did notice was that the engine bay was extremely clean. There were new hoses and almost no dirt. It looked way to clean to be a 6 year old car. It has got me thinking that it may have some damage that was never reported. Also the dealer bought it at an auction and says that he bought it on his own inspection and a carfax report. He says it didnt come with any service records about the car and so he doesnt really know anything about it. Do u think a machanic would be able to pick up on if it had had any damage? Thanks
Steven

 

If the engine is clean it doesn't mean it's a bad thing. He could have just recently got his engine bay cleaned out. Ask him.

 

Yeah, what HarrisH said. It all comes down to if you can trust this guy. Have a mechanic take a look underneath the car. It could tell you story. Also, take it for a test drive. Keep the windows closed, radio off etc. Listen to the car. Do you hear any gear whine in 2nd, 3rd or 4th gear? That could be a sign that the tranny may be killing it's bearings. Do the brakes clean up after driving for a bit?

Lastly, have the dealer sign a paper verifiying that the car has never been damaged by water, totalled etc. That paper, and the 30 day lemon will prove indispensable if you have problems after the purchase.

DW

 

Sounds a little like a few too many 'unknowns'. Be very careful. You don't want to be pumping money into a car that you just spent a lot of money on.