With the 2004 upscale redesign, does the Maxima make sense again?
Written: Aug 15 '03 (Updated Jun 22 '05)
|
Product Rating:
|
|
|
Pros: Powertrain, distinctive styling, room
Cons: Flappable chassis, artificial steering feel, unsporting seats, controls
The Bottom Line: Great powertrain, good room, and distinctive styling. The chassis needs work, though.
|
|
|
| mkaresh's Full Review: 2004 Nissan Maxima SE 4 Dr Sedan |
For 2004 the Maxima regains its rightful place atop the Nissan line with a thorough redesign based on the same platform as the Altima (and the Murano crossover and Quest minivan, for that matter). I had numerous issues with the Altima: torque steer, flabby seats, cheap interior... Does the Maxima correct enough of the old car’s and Altima’s shortcomings to be worth a look from the driving enthusiast?
As in years past Maximas come in two distinct flavors, a luxury model (now tagged “SL”) and a performance-oriented “SE.” The latter is chiefly distinguished by a firmer suspension, wider tires (245/45VR18s!), standard six-speed manual, and optional five-speed manumatic (the SL gets by with a conventional four-speed automatic). Of course I drove the SE.
Epinions has recently begun providing cars with multiple listings that are not mutually exclusive. After much discussion with the category Leads and Advisors, I have decided to make the best of a messy situation by posting reviews of varying detail under the duplicate listings. This is my relatively concise Maxima review. For my more detailed review, click here.
Nissan Maxima Reliability
Want better reliability information? Want to really know what difference it will make if you buy a Nissan Maxima rather than something else? It's coming in the form of "times in the shop" and "days in the shop" stats. From these you might learn that your first choice, compared to your second choice, is likely to make 2.7 extra trips to the shop in its first five years. You might decide its advantages compensate for this, or you might not. Either way, you'll be able to make a much better informed decision.
To gain access to this information you have a choice: sign up to help provide the data now or pay $24.95 later. For the details, visit my website, www.truedelta.com.
Styling
The new car’s exterior styling resembles the Altima’s but manages to look both more upscale and more sporty. Credit a more aggressively arched roofline and less stubby rear end. The Altima remains the more attractive car, but the Maxima takes more chances and is more striking.
Overall, a striking design that takes many chances and succeeds with most of these. The previous Maxima was parked next to the car I drove, and it looked bland, awkward, and boring in comparison.
Inside at least as many styling risks have been taken, yet the overall effect works. It helps that unlike in the Altima a cohesive theme is maintained despite the inclusion of dozens of somewhat risqué details. Notably, no attempt is made to include retro touches. The appearance of the center stack recalls high-end audio equipment. The ultrasuede that adorns the door panels continues in a thin strip at the base of the windshield. Weird, but it somehow works. All in all, a distinctive, ultra-modern interior that feels both sporty and upscale. The interiors of the Honda Accord, Toyota Camry, and VW Passat are quite boring and much less sporty in comparison.
The major interior weakness continues to be the quality of the plastics. Though like the plastics in the 2003 Maxima they’re better than those in the Altima, and perhaps equal those in the Infiniti G35, they are distinctly inferior to the plastics in many Japanese competitors and any European competitor.
The control layout needs more work. The HVAC and sound system are controlled using an array of flush-mounted smallish rectangular buttons. Which button to push to do what is far from intuitive, and even in Maximas without the optional navigation system all readouts are conveyed by a flat panel display. I found it far too difficult to make simple adjustments, both because the controls and the graphics on this display were too small, too clumped together, and too complicated.
Accommodations
Compared to the Altima, the new Maxima has an inch longer wheelbase and two inches more overall length. The additional exterior size does not translate into a roomier interior. Both cars are about equally roomy on paper, but because of its sportier interior styling the Maxima feels a tighter inside. This isn’t a bad thing. The Altima and its direct competitors feel too large around the shoulders to be sporting. The Maxima feels about right in this dimension. In terms of legroom, there is an adequate amount front and rear for adults.
As in past Maxima’s I like the driving position very much. The dash is low relative to the driver, affording excellent visibility over the hood. Unfortunately, the seats feel much like the Altima’s. In regular driving they afford adequate comfort. Start tossing the car about, though, and the inadequacy of the side bolsters becomes apparent. They look large enough, but are spaced far too widely to lend support to my moderately slender frame (a 250-pound man might find this less of an issue). The bolsters are thankfully a bit firmer than those in the Altima—which I tended to push right through—but they could be firmer still.
The rear seat is mounted a bit low for top-notch thigh support. Room and comfort are good, if not great. Rear buckets divided by full center console are part of the top-of-the-line “Elite” option package (about $6,500).
As on the old Maxima and current Altima, the trunk is roomy and nicely shaped. The rear seat folds down to expand the trunk, and the pass through is larger than many these days. Interior storage compartments are numerous and of above average capacity.
On the Road
Even with automatic the 265-horsepower, 3.5-liter V6 feels very strong at every speed. It easily spins the front tires when floored from a dead stop. (My car lacked the optional traction control and stability control.) Though this engine is used in half the products Nissan sells these days, to my ear it sounds the best in the new Maxima, with a more refined note than in other applications.
The automatic kicks down readily when additional power is called for. Shifts are reasonably smooth, but not quite up to the class leaders. For more precise control a manumatic function is provided by sliding the stick into a slot to the right of D and then tipping it backward and forward for downshifts and upshifts. The current gear is displayed in the lower part of the speedometer. I found the transmission very easy to shift this way.
Even following a redesign the Maxima’s chassis remains much less gifted than its powertrain. Body lean is reduced, but many things I criticized the 2003 for remain present and accounted for. The steering is actually inferior to the old Maxima’s. It is non-linear, low in effort, and artificial in feel. The tires are very wide (245s), yet the ones up front squeal much earlier than they should in hard turns. This is a nose-heavy front-driver, yet other such designs understeer less. Rear-drive competitors do better still. Body control over rough roads is well behind the class leaders. Accelerate through a bumpy turn and you’ll be greeted with steering wheel kickback, a jumpy chassis, and more than a little torque steer. Entertaining perhaps—I had fun flogging this car—but strangely dated.
The Maxima rides better than it handles, even in “sporty” SE trim. Though not pillowy soft, and busy on the nastiest surfaces, this ride never felt harsh. On fairly smooth road surfaces the car has a smooth, solid, upscale feel to it. Noise levels when cruising are generally low, though I did note some wind noise around the side mirror on the highway.
Pricing
For quick, up-to-date pricing, and especially user-specified price comparisons, check out the website I created: www.truedelta.com. Why yet another vehicle pricing website? Well, I personally lacked the patience to keep using the others. They were too slow and required too much effort, especially when trying to compare prices. So I taught myself some programming and created a site where there is no need to dig through option packages, prerequisites, and the like one by one -- the TrueDelta algorithm figures these out for you in one swift pass.
The rest of this section is from when the review was originally written.
The only other boldly styled large front-wheel-drive sedan available is the 2004 Pontiac Grand Prix GTP. Even in GTP Comp G form the Pontiac sells for at least two thousand less once dealer discounts and rebates are considered. While it has a more composed chassis, it also has a much less upscale interior and much less comfortable rear seat. Serious drivers considering the Maxima should at least take the Pontiac for a test drive.
For the enthusiast, the similarly priced Infiniti G35 is a better bet. The G35 is less distinctively styled and feels less upscale, but handles better than the above cars because it is rear-wheel-drive.
Conclusion
The 2004 Maxima is a luxury car with a touch of sport. Those who prioritize distinctive styling, room, and an upscale feel to their sedans will be happy here. Those who prioritize handling in aggressive driving will be happier elsewhere. I recommend this car to the former buyer (and would give it a fourth star with this less-sporting mission in mind), but not to the latter. To truly cater to the enthusiast the new Maxima needs better steering, a more composed and balanced chassis, and seats with more lateral support.
To learn more about my reliability research and sign up to participate in it, or to perform thorough new car price comparisons, visit www.truedelta.com. A link to this website and alphabetized links to my other vehicle reviews can be found on my profile page.
Recommended:
No
Amount Paid (US$): 29,500
Model and Options: SE auto with sunroof and BOSE sound system
|
|
|
|
|
- Add to My Yahoo!: 
- Add to Google Homepage: 
© 1999-2009 Shopping.com, Inc.