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Comments
JB
My guess is that few dealers have ordered them that way, so they'll be very rare; even rarer than the Silver or Smoke with Rouge leather.
The "cargo" van comment sounds like a con to make you take what they have in stock. I think the dealers can take customer special orders starting this month, if you really want that combo and are willing to wait.
BTW, I read something on a post on another site, that the White/Beige may be unavailable in certain regions. I don't know if that's fact or not. The Nissan website makes no mention of any such limited availability; but you can still shop anywhere in the country to find what you really want. Good Luck!
headsets...if you have the DVD player, your headsets will be in the back...there is a panel on the left side behind the rear seat near the floor...if so equipped, they will be in that compartment. if you dont have the DVD player, you dont get headsets.
84 months?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!
you could have leased for around 48 months and come out back at square 1 in half the time! i just dont get it...will you actually keep this van for 7 years? in 7 years, will you still want to make that kind of payment on a vehicle that will be upwards (or close to) 100k miles? im in the car business, and do you know how many people ACTUALLY complete a finance contract of 5 years or more? 3.6%!!!
the odds are against you, buddy, but i really wish you the best."
No, I don't want to make these payments, but I had to have a minivan and if you re-read my post, you'll see I had a 1 year old Subaru lease to turn in. Since you work in the car business, then you know what it means to turn in a car that is upside down by $5K-$6K and attempt to roll that into a lease. You get killed by the methodolody in which lease interest is calculated. I went in with leasing as my only interest, and came out with a far better deal.
I could not do a 48 month lease for under $600/mo. My best price leasing option was 66 months at 12K miles/year with a 36% residual for $490/mo and $1,000 down. Or I could buy over 84 months at 3.9% (why pay it sooner when money is so cheap?) for $479/mo AND get a 100K mile comprehensive warranty (Nissan's top warranty, Security Plus or whatever it is called). There was no comparison. If the van holds up, I plan to run it for 200K miles. If it doesn't, I have the warranty to cover while I am paying for it. That beats the hell out of a long term lease for more money. I have a Finance degree - did the math on this one, many times over.
This is one major reason I went with the 2004 Quest - all the latest safety features and the other features I wanted. So why not drive it for 7 years with the warranty? Why not take care of it and drive it for 10? That beats continually leasing any day...and with interest rates this low...leasing really makes no sense at all, even for Japanese vehicles with good residuals.
Nay
I am not sure why everybody seems so upset about the interior plastic, and I like the brushed metal surfaces a lot more than faux wood, even if it is aluminum and not, say, nickel. To me what Nissan did was minimize the use of plastic at all, and the silver cloth is very nice looking for a cloth interior. So, yes, the dashboard is a bit dull from a plastics perspective, but ergonomics are good. I'm 6'2" and have no complaints at all.
The large cargo space behind the third row of seats is one of the best features (both functionality and IMHO, safety, for little ones who sit back there). Cargo space specs are always shown as cubic feet, yet cubic feet measurements are irrelevant unless you are filling up the space with liquid. What matters is floor space - nobody stacks cargo up to the ceiling. We can easily fit a large baby carriage in the back over the well, which carries the other baby/pre-schooler gear.
Ride/handling/road feel continue to impress, as does the standard eight speaker stereo. I've actually found myself taking the long way home a few times...
Nay
sorry if this sounds like nitpicking...im glad you got the car you wanted, congrats on that.
Is there any information about the Low E rating of the glass in the Skyview or a test comparing the heat buildup between a van in the sun with and without the Skyview?
I looked at the past posts about the Skyview and wonder if Nissan has any answer to the durability of the shades?
Kiki
In Colorado (or at least Colorado Springs), when purchasing and not leasing, the value of the trade-in is subtracted from the taxable amount on the new vehicle for sales tax purposes, which is quite meaningful at a 6.4% sales tax rate. This alone saved me $800 of sales tax that I would have paid in the lease, albeit paid monthly over time.
I don't think you are nitpicking - it's an interesting look at two different solutions to a nasty problem. I could have gone either way, and simply felt more comfortable with the purchase. 7 years is a long time to make payments, but as you initially pointed out, even five years is a pretty big burden and very few people last that long. I had to get the new baby and two boys under age five into something *now*, though, so I can worry about that in a few years.
Nonetheless, I was leasing a $22K Subaru for $379/mo including tax, and now I own a $30K Quest for $479/mo that also has a 100K top-end warranty - not bad considering how far I was under water on the Sube. Plus, I am going to cancel the credit life insurance they made me buy as part of the deal, and that will make my loan a mere 81 month term :^). This way, if I just pay it off after say four of five years, I own it vs. leasing again and again and again. We'll see how I feel about it then.
For now, getting ready to take the first road trip in the Quest to Vail's Italiano Festival this weekend, and Oktoberfest next weekend...life is good!
BTW, the salesperson told me that Nissan sells a cooler that plugs into the 12v and fits into the third seat storage well, so you never need ice. Need to check that one out...
Nay
Clarion-Ledger
Steve, Host
Has anyone experienced this?
Anyone else notice this?
Steve, Host
I think they have the sticker too high. But the dealer was willing to drop $1,800 w/o negotiation.
The amount of glare off the dash against the windshield was quite distracting.
There is a terry cloth-like kinda microfiber panel on the front doors (seems they'd get quite dirty).
The 3rd seat requires some extra effort to fold.
I was able to open the side door while the van was moving (although the dealer says there is a switch to control that).
Overall a great van. Quite comfortable. Car-like handling. Peppy, even with the 4spd.
2004 Quest SE will get my money, irrespective of what CR says!
I like some of the positions (esp. privacy issues) they advocate through Consumer Union too, but with free sites like Edmunds for cars, and sites like epinions for vacuums, etc. I'm not sure if a subscription is worth it these days.
Steve, Host
I have SL. I called Nissan. They are aware this problem and working on a fix. Don't know when they will have a fix for this.
Leslie
Or maybe my bones just happen to fit the "Nissan average."
Steve, Host
I have the SL trim with the SL upgrade, and leather.
Nissan has 60K powertrain warranty on Quest, I don't know about other vehicles.
http://biz.yahoo.com/rb/030907/autos_bumpers_1.html
Also, for no particular reason, this makes me wonder about the Quest's paint job. Other Nissan models--the Maxima for example--have put excellent engines and interiors in vehicles, but cut corners on the exteriors of those vehicles.
also, if you look at the IIHS and NHTSA results, they are almost exclusively opposite. take the '97-'03 F150...5 star rating from NHTSA, but a "poor" rating from IIHS. fact was that the front end was all but destroyed, costing lots of dollars for repairs, but also saving the lives of the occupants.
I disagree. There is no reason at all why manufacturers cannot make a bumper that absorbs energy and then RETURNS TO ITS ORIGINAL POSITION instead of being destroyed. I think you are misinformed about the 1970s-style bumpers. After the 1973 law was passed, bumpers had to be energy-absorbing, meaning they were mounted on gas-charged cylinders not unlike the shocks in your suspension. As such, the whole bumper assembly could push inward, but being a big chunk of metal, the bumper itself was not damaged, it just moved, and could pop back out after the impact. Most modern bumpers do have a metal reinforcement bar and shocks buried inside, it's just that you have to destroy $2000 worth of plastic, paint and Styrofoam to get to it.
-Andrew L
Maybe, it is the cost of the parts and not the car that is the problem.
When test driving, I jumped when I realized that the seat was moving after I turned off the car. I have since realized the virtues of the driver entry/exit feature and it really does make the vehicle easy to get in and out of while not having to compromise driving position. This together with one of the best packages for seat memory with mirrors, seats, and pedals. A motorized telescoping wheel would just complete the package.
I also took for granted the auto-passenger mirror tilt when in reverse until I tried to parallel park last evening. I was impressed, first time parallel parking a vehicle of its size, and was within inches.
...hoping all the surprises remain pleasant.
If you want to see a variety of pictures of all the colors, you could check here:
http://www.mossynissan.com/list.asp?model=quest
(FWIW, we chose the Green Tea -- delivery expected within a week or two.)
As long as the occupant is safe the design is OK, obviously there is always room for improvement. The next generation vehicles will have serrate facia on top of bumper for Rear sonar Systems to avoid these problems. Car companies do pay attention to these tests.
http://biz.yahoo.com/fo/030911/115b339bf6c938e2a0ad12ec37cd7a16_1- .html