Wake me up, I must be dreaming.

Nissan appears to be back: https://www.motortrend.com/news/niss...ucks-important

• Body on Frame Trucks and SUVS
• Manual trans in the Nismo and new "Skyline" Q50 sedan.
• Torque Converter Auto trans in more models
• Licensing the 9G-Tronic from Merc
• Hybrid Rogue with a new chain driven CVT-X
• Lots of coverage in podcasts and on youtube

Pinch me, or is it too late?

Resale on our cars also bounced off the bottom a few months back and it appears that clean/unmolested models are fetching more than the abused FB Market models that drive prices into the ground.

 

I’m excited to have the “Japanese BMW” back. My dad drove like 4 stick-shift Maximas during my childhood. My first real car was an Altima SER. And the G37 has served me well. Nissan sport sedans were always there.

BUT I’m a cynical New Yorker who has followed all of this corporate hijinks Nissan has been going thru. Not just the Ghosn caper but the leadership revolving door, clunky product roadmap, questionable lending practices (and subsequent dings to brand image), etc.

All of this sounds great. I’m just not sure how well recent industry press will convert to what’s in the showroom for them. I’d be happy to have my lack of faith get proven wrong. Even if that means a $75k MSRP with a boatload of sensors and driver alerts to turn off before every drive

 

I leased a 1999 Maxima SE 5MT for three years, then purchased a 2003 Maxima SE 6MT that I kept and modified for 9 years. "Japanese BMW" is a fair comparison.

The Maxima was the best bang for your buck luxury sport sedan in its day, even if it was FWD.

 

I loved those 4th-5th gen Maximas. TQ transmissions and even an LSD if I recall. Manual trans was a second faster to 60 as well. I likely would of owned one if I didn't stumble upon the G35, which was introduced to me when my Father in Law bought one because it was Motor Trend's car of the year.

That time slot between the late 90s and into the 2000s a few years before COVID was a great period for sedans.

 

That's true. However, LSD was rare, and primarily a Canadian thing, probably because of winters up there. I had a loaded SE 6MT, but no limited slip. AFAIK, Nissan didn't market the LSD for performance in the Maxima.

I almost bought a LSD transmission for my '03, but my mechanic talked me out of it.

When looking for a new '03, I really, really wanted the Titanium Edition. Shame that I couldn't find one. That car was a unicorn.