I saw the Alty.. nice lines, sweet engine... I thought the rear lights were hideous and the interior was nasty cheap looking and feeling. NO WAY I would pay ~27K for that. It was loaded and stickered for 29k! yeah, dealer would take alot less but still.

I saw my first 2k2 Max's. 3 white, GLE's and SE's. right off I noticed that the bumpers did NOT MATCH!!! Just like the old Max's and Quests (circa 96), they dont match. I cant stand that. They must have messed with the flex agent. Maybe the paint won't chip, but the car looks pre-wrecked/repainted for you. Nice, very convenient in that you can wreck it and still look like the other cars. The one Sterling Mist matched.. the White was pretty bad off. The salesman was really surprised when I pointed it out and went off to show some other guy. I'm cursed with an eye for that stuff. Also I thought the HIDs were glass, looked like plastic to me.

I'm totally indifferent to the clear tails, my wife hated them. Loved the new lines and interior changes. The GLE seats seemed better than my GLE seats.

So, I had shaken the sales guy. as I'm walking out, I pass by the new Altima, he spots me again and he wants my info. To divert his attention, I started walking around the new Altima pointing out paint flaws. Aside from orange peel all over and some sort of feathering pattern on the top, I saw little bubbles in the truck lid clear coat. Awwww yes, good old nissan paint. Also, noticed a scratch UNDER the clear, much like my max has. quality and they want how much for that thing?

What really suprised me was 2k2 SE max's for $24,900 (before haggling). They said they were very motivated to get them off the lot (this is in the south were the max sells very well, hell the was a waiting list when I got mine!). Nissan may have rolled its dice in some very uncertain economic times.

 

altimas more expensive than the maxima? hmmm

 

hrmm
nissan smoking crack?

 

some good stuff?

 

someone post djibital pix please, of these hideous altimas...

 

they only have some hideous features. the total package isnt so bad.. in the sub-20K range of cars. they dont even *feel* like 25K cars.

 

My neighbor came home Friday night with a new Altima 3.5 SE, Auto. Cloth interior (charcoal). List was $25 and some change. Said there was an 02 SE there for $26 and some change. He drove both, went home with the Altima. (?)

He let me drive it Saturday...took it for about 5 miles, did some sharp turns, manual shifting of the auto, etc. The interior in cloth looks and feels a bit on the cheap side. I saw some Altima's (about 10) on the car lot today and in leather and wood trim the interior looks way better; it is mostly the door panels that give the cheapo impression in cloth...and the back seat set-up. Like I said, leather seems to cure that problem. In driving, the car has some kick, and handles very well, surprising for what I was expecting. It is in fact every bit as good, or an edge better, than the max in the roadhandling dept. But the AC on anything but level 1 fan was noisy.

I got into my Max immediately after and drove. Just getting into my Max and surveying the ergonmics and interior, no way I'd go for the Altima...they may be priced only a couple grand apart, but the interior design, materials and execution is in another class! (duh)

I had just installed my JWT intake and Courtesy FSTB Thursday night. Getting in my Max and driving the same stretch of road, I was more pleased with the Max's road manners overall; and all the hype about the Altimas mult-link rear suspension versus ours is, in my opinion, a little overrated. In everyday driving, I would say it is almost undetectable that there is a significant difference. That, I did not expect. And I kept trying to feel something more out of the Altima than I did, but I didn't.

Call me biased, but I agree that Altima is a head turner, and trimmmed out right, a sumptuous...and sporty...cruiser, but it is not now nor am I concerned that it will ever be a threat to the Maxima.

I may be an n of 1 today while everyone is google-eyed over the Altima and ripping the 02 styling changes on the Max (which I'm one of), but if even there was ever a sliver of thought that I might trade down for an Altima, it is long gone.

My Maxima is here to stay.

srm