Very disappointed w/ Altima and Maxima

[jspitz]

We're looking for a largish mid-sized sedan for the wife since baby #1 is due any day now, and her beloved MX-6 doesn't work too well with an infant carrier.

We test drove a Passat, A6, A4, Altima and the new '09 Max this past weekend. We saved the Nissans for last since I'm a long-time Nissan fan, and I really wanted the new Maxima - until I drove it.

The Altima was an SE 3.5 - In my opinion, the interior was very lackluster compared to the VW/Audi lot. A lot of obvious plastic, but basically fine. Acceleration was great, the CVT was a new experience, but I wouldn't consider it a negative. Steering was just too "light" - very little effort was required to move the wheel - it felt like a Buick. The car tracked straight, but was too easily persuaded to turn. Compared to all 3 of the VW/Audi vehicles, I was dissapointed.

We then drove the only '09 Maxima in stock - the base "S" model - Interior was somewhat improved over the Altima. Other than the fact that everything inside looked just a little different, it felt like we drove the same car twice. Adding to the disappointment was the interior. It looks better in pictures than in person - to me it was just a small incremental step in quality over the Altima. The body, on the other hand, looked better than I even imagined in person (and I liked it in pictures). Unfortunately, Nissan's 4DSC seemed to have exactly the same steering characteristics as the Altima.

I realize that they are built on essentially the same platform, but they could have done so much more with the Max - especially at a 38k price tag. I'm sure the sport package would firm up the suspension a bit, but I'm not so sure the steering would change. The salesguy and GM essentially echoed that sentiment. They assured me they would call when a SV Sport was available.

Just to make sure we were not losing our minds, we both drove my Pathfinder ('06 LE AWD) the same day - and the steering was noticeably tighter - certainly not a sports car, but the steering was sportier than the Nissans we drove.

The last Altima I drove was a pretty stripped '06 I4 loaner, and I don't remember the steering being this bad.

Any thoughts? Does the SV w/ Sport Package remedy this?

[boogyman]

I don't think the sports package will help the steering. I just read a review in http://www.roadandtrack.com/article.asp ... le_id=6926 and it wasn't bad. I have been looking to replace my Saab and the rear seats are smaller, which isn't a good thing when you have infant seats. I have a britax that fits, but only behind the passenger seat. We have another one on the way, so I'll have to have an infant carrier behind me. That just won't be comfortable.

Anyway sorry to the rant. Definitely bring the baby seat with you when looking for a car to make sure it fits. Subaru's are known to have small seats and you need a forester to get one in comfortably. Good luck and congratulations on the newcomer.

[jspitz]

Boogyman,

Congrats to you too on the new little one! We have a Graco SnugRide infant seat w/ base and it easily fit in all 5 cars we drove last weekend. Outboard seats may be a requirement in the Audi A6 because of the contour in the center of the back seat, and the center position would nearly be a requirement in the A4 for fore-aft room, but the Passat, Altima, and Maxima all gobbled the seat up with ease.

I hear you on the Subaru and Saab - I've known people with both and the infant seat in the back rendered the seat in front of it unusable. More companies need LWB models!

[boogyman]

We have the same infant seat you have. I'm going to try and convince the wife I need an X. Besides then we will be an all Nissan family. Then I can mod it up and take the little guys camping when they get a little older. She'll probably want a Volvo wagon. She grew up with one and has it stuck in her head. Although someone at work has an XC70 and it looked pretty nice inside.

[me&pathy]

for the price point of the maxima drive a g35 there really fun will beat any thing from germany

[jspitz]

Thanks for the suggestion. The g35 is on my list. I drove a few a couple years back. Nice car, and I like the newer one a lot more. Any idea if the current model has about as much (or more) rear seat room (relative to the Maxima)? The last one was a bit crowded in the back. RWD is probably not an option for this car, and AWD + Premium + Nav prices the car at about 40k, the sport package makes it 41k, and the only dealer in the area was completely non-negotiable a few years ago. A fairly comparable Max SV Premium is about 38k, the Sport about 37k. The single dealer thing also worries me when it comes to service - not much competition (not a deal breaker, but an extra negative). We will certainly check the new g out before we buy anything.

[me&pathy]

i got my g35 sport with every thing but awd for 37k so 41k seems a bit high

[jspitz]

Hopefully you didn't pay anywhere near MSRP Problem is my one dealer. They may be hurting enough now to negotiate, but a few years ago they were not. From the Infiniti web site, '08 G35x AWD base price $34750 + prem $2300 + sport pkg AWD $1100 + Nav $2150 + destination $815 = $41115. If I went down that route, honestly I'd use the local for test drives, but I'd be willing to buy from Grubb's if the local wouldn't match the price. The G is still a contender for me, though.