I have used 3 Toyota's before I purchased to 2004 Maxima . I have changed brakes for Corolla @20K miles. Sienna @35K miles and Camry @29k miles. So far I am very much satisfied with Maxima performance. As per your note, looks like I have to change brakes like I did to my Toyota's before.
You shouldn't need new brakes at only 20k miles, unless you street race your car. I have an 01 and replaced the front pads at 33k only because I was replacing the rotors, but I had over 50% of the pad left. I think your Nissan dealer is trying to rip you off. Have them lift your car and show you the worn out pads on your car, I bet they won't do it.
The maximas are notorious for getting warped rotors. Cutting (aka turning) them is pointless. The rotors are bad by design b/c they are too small for the car. By cutting them, you're just making the problem worse. If the rotors warp, throw them out and get some aftermarket rotors, don't bother with the dealer. I used Brembo Blanks (half the price of Nissan rotors) on mine and so far so good.
you shouldn't need new brakes at 20,000 miles. That should at least be covered under warranty. I have almost 40,000 miles on my '01 and no brake problems at all. But I do think newer cars, not just Maximas, do seem to need rotor replacement earlier than they used to.
I have a similar problem with my 04 Maxima since I drove it off the lot. I brought it to 4 different dealerships and had alignment done twice, the steering column adjusted, and the tires were replaced because of wearing after 6000 miles! I called Consumer Affairs at Nissan and the management never called back, even after I had an appointment. I then got a Lemon Law lawyer, to have the car replaced. She is not very encouraging with her prognosis either. I would love to have some more proof of others having this problem when I went to court to shove down Nissans throat. Any help would be great. DonHall
$50/ea from tirerack (Nissan rotors are over $100/ea). Shipping was only a few dollars so in total it was about $110 for both, shipped to my doorstep. You can find them a few dollars cheaper elsewhere, but my neigbor and I have had good experiences with tirerack so I continue to shop there.
Did they show you the alignment specs before and after each alignment? Improper toe in setting is the primary reason for premature tire wearing, mostly on their edge (tire scrubbing). Manufacturers usually give a range of acceptable toe in values ranging from a negative fraction of a degree to some positive fraction. The problem is that many dealerships will adjust the toe in within this range, but the settings are not necessarily equal for both wheels. The settings must be equal for the tire wear to be minimized. For example, if one wheel is set to + 0.05 degrees positive toe-in, the other wheel should be the same. If the other wheel is set to say - 0.1 degrees, expect heavy wear on one of the tires within short period of time. I have been there and seen it on my 99 Mazda. It came from the factory with unequal toe in setting, but still within manufacturer's acceptable range. By the time I had 8000 miles on the car, one of front tires was almost worn out on its edge. It was until the toe in was adjusted equal for both wheels that uneven tire wear stopped.
Anybody ever use one of these GEN2 performance module things being advertised under EBAY right here on this screen?? Says they advance the timing and fuel map to give better HP. Is this a viable mod or junk like the Tornado?
I don't have an answer for you, but I do have a question. If and after you mod the car, will the manufacturer/dealership honor the warranty (assuming you have an extended warranty on your GEN 2)? Would it be possible that they claim that the mod altered the specs of the car and thus void the warranty?
Try doing a search on SEMA and Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act.
Personally, I like to mod new vehicles. I will usually call the service manager and ask his opinion on the items I plan to mod. On my last vehicle the only mod that he objected to was to add a supercharger as the HP output would exceed the manufacturer's recommendation for the trans and rear end.
My 2004 maxima ha been in the shop 3 times. When I hit the brakesit pulls to the left and drifts on the highway. 3 Times they said nothing is wrong with the front end! I think there is plus I think the Goodyear tires aren't the right tire for a SE
I have a 2k Maxima with 45000 mile. The exhaust is getting louder by the day. I don't think it is coming from the muffler, maybe the resonator. Has anyone replaced the whole system from the catalytic conveter back? If so how much? Also how much for just the stock muffler? Thanks. Jim
The muffler is Stainless Steel so that shouldn't need replacement, ever. Maybe you've got a loose connection at the exhaust mainfold or a pipe connection that's loose.
Mine's (02 SE) got 142,xxx and is still original and still sounds just like it did when new.
My 95 Maxima when totaled with 192,xxx mniles on it still had the original exhaust system as well and was in great condition.
IMO, there's a very small chance that you need a entire new exhaust system on a 2k Maxima with less than 100k.
Maxima's stock exhaust systems are very, very durable.
Does anyone know whether you need to run premium gas in your Maxima. I am in the market for a 2000 or 2001 and with gas prices an curious if I need to burn premium or if unleaded will do fine. Thanks for the feedback.
O.K., another quarterly lesson on regular vs. premium. I'll try to keep this one brief.
In my area (DC) it is relatively easy to find premium gas on "sale" for 6 cents off every Tuesday, Wednesday, or Thursday, at various Exxon, BP/Amoco, Shell or other national brand stations. On sale, the difference in price between regular and premium is usually less than 10-12 cents. That's about 5-6%.
Based upon my experience and that of others, there is ample anecdotal evidence that you will very likely lose around 5%+ in gas mileage in a Maxima dropping from premium to regular. Over the course of 153,000 miles, I have averaged 24.1 mpg on premium. A 5% loss is only 1.2 mpg.
So, if you'd rather fill up more often for less money, go ahead and use regular. But don't fool yourself that you are actually saving money. AND, although others may disagree, I do not believe that regular is as good for your engine as premium, in a vehicle like the Maxima that was designed for premium. As I said, I have 153,000 miles on nothing but premium and change my oil every 4,000 miles or less. I may be old fashioned, but the engine compression test on my 10 year old Maxima showed between 95% and 100% of a new car tolerance on all 6 cylinders. Those results speak for themselves, in my opinion.
Save money by upping your insurance deductable and driving more carefully. Not by skimping on premium gas.
5-speed or automatic? I had to use regular once or twice due premium pumps being out of order. Where I noticed some difference in performance was under harder acceleration in the high range of the rev band (5,000+). Felt like the rev limiter was kicking in. The first thing the service manager asked me when I mentioned it was "did you use lower octane gas". He indicated the engine management systme will adjust for it, but you will notice lowered performance when the car is "pushed". He also indicated lower gas mileage would be most apparant at 70+ mph on the highway.
I sold my third gen Max last year and I can't recall whether premium gas is recommended. As for the 4th and 5th Max, I am confident that premium gas is recommended, and I have been filling up the cars only with premium.
It's an auto. I'm sure there is some incremental power band loss, but I don't notice it.
It is going to kill me to give the car up, but month by month more things are going out (ABS, axle, struts, AC compressor is about gone) and it has passed the point where it is economically feasible to bring it back to spec. It only has 126K on it.
I have a neighbor with a similar model and, like me, he likes his SE so much that he is driving it with terminally bad valves. He figures he will keep on going until it dies. It's got about 160K on it.
I would love to buy a brand new model of exactly what I have with, of course, updated safety features. Remarkable cars.
My 2000 GXE has been virtually problem free for the past 4+ years. Interesting development - the fan works fine on the #3 or 4 setting. But on #1 or 2, it does not turn on at all. In fact, if I push the Recirc button when on #1 or 2, air inflow of any kind is completely blocked off. Any suggestions?
I was wondering if anyone can shed some light on a few questions. I am in the market for a new 05 and I like the maxima se. I am 6'4" and was wondering how is the leg room and head room with a sunroof. I would appreciate your answers.
You'll have to check it out for yourself, but I'm guessing you won't find it very comfortable. Nissans in general aren't really built for tall people; the seat cushions tend to be too short and the seats themselves don't quite back up far enough. Headroom shouldn't be a problem, though, if most of your height is in your torso you'll be fine. Post back and let us know what you find, you'll probably help someone else out.
the headroom in the maxima is the same whether you have a sunroof or not, because of the skyview. dont listen to the naysayer in post #8364. the maxima has TONS of room. ;-)
from experience, i know that ive seen people taller than 6'4" fit quite nicely in the maxima, murano, altima...heck i even know a guy that is 6'4" that LOVES his sentra! lol
My son is 6'3", generally only drives big Buicks, and he loves our Maxima, both as a passenger and especially driving it! I don't know if the redesign changed the interior dimenions, but the '01-'03 Maxes are very roomy inside. Lots of legroom particularly. The Sentra neither of my sons (the other is 6'2") could fit in well however!
Potential buyers please take this as a good advise: If you decide to by a new 2005 Maxima, make sure that you opt for the HID lights. The stock maximas come with 55 W hi/lo 9012 bulbs that are unique to the Maxima. They don't have any aftermarket replacements. I tried to upgrade my bulbs to PIAA's or POLARGs, and no one has the 9012 equivalent. Needless to say, that the stock lights SUCK!!! They are so weak and can only be compared to the weak lights that my 2002 mercury cougar had. I swear, my stinger flashlight is more powerful. Even with high beams, the road is poorly illuminated. My 2003 had awesome HID’s and the road visibility at night was MUCH better. Esthetically, the car does not look as good during the night w/o the HID’s. The HID's produce 3 times as much light. Nissan really dropped the ball on that one. 2003's were the best models. Overall I am disappointed by the build quality and the customer service of Nissan. Last time I went to the dealership for an oil change, I got totally screwed by that lying jackass of a dealer! I watched the mechanic through the window as he raised the car, went away, and then came back, lowered the car and drove it into the pick up area. No oil or filter change but I got a bill for $25. I spent 1 hour and changed it myself. Needless to say, they will never get my business again. I will trade it in, for a 300C or a new G35 in 5 month, no more Nissans for me.
Need advice on proper procedure for changing antifreeze in 2000 maxima. The owners manual shows a drain plug on both sides of engine block. Accessing front plug is not bad but it looks like a very large plug that may require a special tool. Access to back plug looks impossible. Is it necessary to remove both plugs? Is it necessary to open any air vent plug on top of engine. Thanks! Greg
Actually the 04 HIDs are rated higher than the 03. I have driven both and notice the 04 are in fact brighter with better coverage. The high beam does not make it brighter since the bi-xenon is one bulb. It simply removes the cut off allowing the beam to cover higher. The 2003 has halogen seperate high beams that supplement the HID giving you 2 different lights at once.
I'll be glad to send you the two pages from the 00 Maxima Service manual via e-mail if you provide an e-mail address. Don't post it in the open here, mix in a few misc characters so that it doesn't get picked up by an e-mail robot harvesting e-mail addresses.
Mine for example is dklanREMOVEecky@earthlink.net, with the obvious need to REMOVE some letters.
Or better yet - make your email address public in your profile. That way only logged in TH members can access it.
If it's posted, anyone can get it. Yes, disguising it a bit protects it from the automated web crawlers, but theses pages are read by many, many more people than just members.
Trust me man, I've owned my '03 for a solid year and a half. I'm 6' on the button, and I find myself wishing for a just a *bit* more track on the driver's seat, and another inch or two on the headroom (I do have the sunroof though, that's what kills me).
The one thing that does genuinely bother me is the seat cushions are a bit too short. I need more support! My mom's new Quest is much better in this regard, however, it wouldn't surprise me if they fixed this in the US Maxes as well.
It's almost that time here in MN. I'm looking at Dunlop Wintersport M3's mounted on steel wheels. I'm looking at both Tirerack and Discount Tire. I've bought 2 sets of regular tires (Dunlop SPA2 for the Maxima and Arizonian's for wife's Corolla) from Discount Tire and I've been generally happy with their service. What's nice is they have lifetime free rotate and balance. I can get the whole set for $90 cheaper from Tirerack and they're mounted/balanced and delivered to my door. That means I have to put them on the car though, which I know is easy but I've never done it. I guess my question to people on the board is, anybody ever use these snows on their Max? Or any opinions on other snows or snows in general? Anybody use Tirerack before? Looking at $706 from Tirerack and $796 from Discount tire. Another thing, if I buy from Discount, they'll charge me $40 when it comes time to swap back to my stock rims/tires. I'm thinking I may just buy a torque wrench, I already have a hydraulic jack, and put them on myself.
I am considering purchasing a new Maxima and was curious if someone could tell me what the owners manual suggests the fuel octane should be. I currently own an '01 Pathfinder which requires 91 octane or premium fuel and I don't believe I want another car in the family which requires premium fuel. With gas prices the way they are one is enough. I believe my Pathfinder has virtually the same motor that the Maxima does, but I'm sure it is tuned differently.
I cannot find the milage to change the trans fluid in the manual. If you tow it says 30000 but normal driving it does not say. the dealer wanted to change it at 30000 but i say it is not needed yet, does anyone know [ 02 maxima se ]
The lights for the switches come on, the fuse is good, but no heat comes from the seats. Anyone have any idea what could be wrong? Its already starting to get cold here, I would like to fix this problem without taking it to the stealership to get fixed. Thanks in advance.
that is wrong. the standard lights are the xenons. you can "optional delete" the xenons if you wish, but the one we had sat here on the lot and almost had a birthday...lol.
There is no recommended manual transmission change interval for normal driving. I would not change it at 30K miles, but changing it at 60K is not a bad idea. However, be sure they use GL-4 gear oil, not GL-5 version which is more common. Some GL-5 gear oils contain extreme high pressure corrosive additives that may cause corrosion of manual transmission synchronizer parts. Nissan specifies GL-4 oil in their manual transaxles. GL-4 oil is somewhat hard to find but here are some suggestions: NAPA sells good quality mineral GL-4 oil for about $ 12 a gallon (AMSOIL?). The best oil to use in this application in my opinion is GL-4 Red Line MTU-90 synthetic gear oil. It sells for about $ 8 a quart.
Comments
The maximas are notorious for getting warped rotors. Cutting (aka turning) them is pointless. The rotors are bad by design b/c they are too small for the car. By cutting them, you're just making the problem worse. If the rotors warp, throw them out and get some aftermarket rotors, don't bother with the dealer. I used Brembo Blanks (half the price of Nissan rotors) on mine and so far so good.
'24 Chevy Blazer EV 2LT
I have a similar problem with my 04 Maxima since I drove it off the lot. I brought it to 4 different dealerships and had alignment done twice, the steering column adjusted, and the tires were replaced because of wearing after 6000 miles! I called Consumer Affairs at Nissan and the management never called back, even after I had an appointment. I then got a Lemon Law lawyer, to have the car replaced. She is not very encouraging with her prognosis either. I would love to have some more proof of others having this problem when I went to court to shove down Nissans throat. Any help would be great. DonHall
Personally, I like to mod new vehicles. I will usually call the service manager and ask his opinion on the items I plan to mod. On my last vehicle the only mod that he objected to was to add a supercharger as the HP output would exceed the manufacturer's recommendation for the trans and rear end.
Jim
Mine's (02 SE) got 142,xxx and is still original and still sounds just like it did when new.
My 95 Maxima when totaled with 192,xxx mniles on it still had the original exhaust system as well and was in great condition.
IMO, there's a very small chance that you need a entire new exhaust system on a 2k Maxima with less than 100k.
Maxima's stock exhaust systems are very, very durable.
In my area (DC) it is relatively easy to find premium gas on "sale" for 6 cents off every Tuesday, Wednesday, or Thursday, at various Exxon, BP/Amoco, Shell or other national brand stations. On sale, the difference in price between regular and premium is usually less than 10-12 cents. That's about 5-6%.
Based upon my experience and that of others, there is ample anecdotal evidence that you will very likely lose around 5%+ in gas mileage in a Maxima dropping from premium to regular. Over the course of 153,000 miles, I have averaged 24.1 mpg on premium. A 5% loss is only 1.2 mpg.
So, if you'd rather fill up more often for less money, go ahead and use regular. But don't fool yourself that you are actually saving money. AND, although others may disagree, I do not believe that regular is as good for your engine as premium, in a vehicle like the Maxima that was designed for premium. As I said, I have 153,000 miles on nothing but premium and change my oil every 4,000 miles or less. I may be old fashioned, but the engine compression test on my 10 year old Maxima showed between 95% and 100% of a new car tolerance on all 6 cylinders. Those results speak for themselves, in my opinion.
Save money by upping your insurance deductable and driving more carefully. Not by skimping on premium gas.
The mileage and performance are the same. No, I don't believe it either. I just drive it, I don't explain it
It is going to kill me to give the car up, but month by month more things are going out (ABS, axle, struts, AC compressor is about gone) and it has passed the point where it is economically feasible to bring it back to spec. It only has 126K on it.
I have a neighbor with a similar model and, like me, he likes his SE so much that he is driving it with terminally bad valves. He figures he will keep on going until it dies. It's got about 160K on it.
I would love to buy a brand new model of exactly what I have with, of course, updated safety features. Remarkable cars.
Any suggestions?
Thanks
'24 Chevy Blazer EV 2LT
If you decide to by a new 2005 Maxima, make sure that you opt for the HID lights.
The stock maximas come with 55 W hi/lo 9012 bulbs that are unique to the Maxima.
They don't have any aftermarket replacements.
I tried to upgrade my bulbs to PIAA's or POLARGs, and no one has the 9012 equivalent. Needless to say, that the stock lights SUCK!!! They are so weak and can only be compared to the weak lights that my 2002 mercury cougar had. I swear, my stinger flashlight is more powerful. Even with high beams, the road is poorly illuminated. My 2003 had awesome HID’s and the road visibility at night was MUCH better. Esthetically, the car does not look as good during the night w/o the HID’s. The HID's produce 3 times as much light.
Nissan really dropped the ball on that one. 2003's were the best models.
Overall I am disappointed by the build quality and the customer service of Nissan. Last time I went to the dealership for an oil change, I got totally screwed by that lying jackass of a dealer! I watched the mechanic through the window as he raised the car, went away, and then came back, lowered the car and drove it into the pick up area.
No oil or filter change but I got a bill for $25. I spent 1 hour and changed it myself.
Needless to say, they will never get my business again. I will trade it in, for a 300C or a new G35 in 5 month, no more Nissans for me.
Thanks! Greg
Mine for example is dklanREMOVEecky@earthlink.net, with the obvious need to REMOVE some letters.
If it's posted, anyone can get it. Yes, disguising it a bit protects it from the automated web crawlers, but theses pages are read by many, many more people than just members.
2003 Dimension: front head room 40.5 without sunroof 37.4 with it
2004 Dimension: front head room 40.1 without sunroof 37.3 with it
03 front leg room/rear: 43.9/36.2
04 front leg room/rear: 43.9/36.5
03 Hip room front/rear: 55.3/53.7
04 Hip room front/rear: 53.5/54.8 with 5 passenger
03 Shoulder room front/rear: 56.9/56.2
04 Shoulder room front/rear: 57.9/56.5
These stats are taken from the 03 brochure and the 04 brochure, the 03 is more comfortable in some areas and the 04 in others.
The one thing that does genuinely bother me is the seat cushions are a bit too short. I need more support! My mom's new Quest is much better in this regard, however, it wouldn't surprise me if they fixed this in the US Maxes as well.
I went back and found the post! I did type in 02 instead of 00. My mistake!
Must have gotten carried away typing too fast.
Yes I would appreciate the pages from the 00 service manual. E-mail to shanREMOVEgrila@buckeye-express.com
Thanks
but normal driving it does not say. the dealer
wanted to change it at 30000 but i say it is not needed yet, does anyone know [ 02 maxima se ]