[krod03079]

I got a Cross Country for my wife 6 months ago and am very impressed with the car. Now it's my turn, and I want an s60 T5, but I have to compare/contrast... blah, blah (it was a mistake to let the wife get involved).

So, long story short... I checked Edmunds and compared the T5 with bmw 330 and Nissan Maxima. All seem about the same for size, power/engine, speed, options. What am I missing? Why does the Maxima seem to hold even with the s60 T5 on paper? I need to test drive and see for myself.

Anyway, I don't really want a bmw so that's out. Now it's really down to s60 and the Maxima. I guess what I'm looking for is... why *not* the Maxima? Thanks.

 

[T5 Dave]

There was a guy over on the car & driver forums at http://forums.caranddriver.com/ubb/ultimatebb.php?ubb=get_topic&f=1&t=003496

His '99 Maxima was in the shop for the first 18 months of its life, from replacing brake rotors to replacing the entire engine to noisy window seals.

He lived in Canada, but Nissan HQ didn't seem to want to back their product very well.

So my take, if you favor the Volvo, would be to state that, yes, Nissan has some lemons and corporate HQ doesn't seem to want to stand behind their product very well.

But drive the Maxima and see what it feels like.

Also, if price is a factor, remember that the overseas delivery will save you $3000 or so AND the OSD car doesn't have that $625 'shipping charge' they tack onto the US delivered units. You can pick it up in Sweden (they give you two $800 credits for the airfare), take a tour of the factory, get free Swedish meatballs for lunch, and if you stay in Goteborg they'll even pick up the tab for one hotel night. Overall cost on my S60 was about $3500 cheaper than US delivery. Of course, delivery to your own dealer in the states is included in the price.

So not only do you get to drive your own car on the autobahn, you get it at a reduced price as well. The only drawback of the program is the long wait to get the car, go to Europe, and then ship it back.

But for me it was well worth the wait. No way Nissan would do that on the Maxima.

FWIW.
Good luck.

 

[GrecianVolvo]

quote:

Originally posted by krod03079:
I got a Cross Country for my wife 6 months ago and am very impressed with the car. Now it's my turn, and I want an s60 T5, but I have to compare/contrast... blah, blah (it was a mistake to let the wife get involved).

So, long story short... I checked Edmunds and compared the T5 with bmw 330 and Nissan Maxima. All seem about the same for size, power/engine, speed, options. What am I missing? Why does the Maxima seem to hold even with the s60 T5 on paper? I need to test drive and see for myself.

Anyway, I don't really want a bmw so that's out. Now it's really down to s60 and the Maxima. I guess what I'm looking for is... why *not* the Maxima? Thanks.

Since you have eliminated the BMW 330i, then you are looking at apples and oranges. On paper, the Maxima only "stands up" to the S60 T5 when it comes to acceleration. And this because the Maxima has one of the most wonderful 6-cyl. engines found on this planet. Aside from that, styling (I know, styling is strictly a subjective matter) is horrific for a car that is supposed to be a...driver's car, its suspensions is terrible when it comes to body roll and nose-diving under hard braking. Lastly, its safety features are not even close to those offered by Volvo and the car does not rate as high as an S80 or the S60 as tested recently in Europe. And its warranty is less than what Volvo offers. But, again, don't forget that these cars are priced way apart. So, you have to make a decision if spending more for a safer, better styled and more fun to drive car is worth it!

Good luck!

Yannis

 

[S.R.]

This is my take on things. I really like the BMW 330i, but where I live, the 3-Series is as common as the Suburban. I don't think that anyone will question how supurb a car the BMW 330i is, and I would take it in a heartbeat over the Nissan Maxima SE. But, since you have elimitated it from your choices, there isn't much more that I will say about it.

The Nissan Maxima SE is a good car, and it has the worlds finest V6 'VQ' engine. I havn't driven a 2002 model, but I have heard that the manual tranmission is far better than the new A4, for example. I really don't know how it compares to the S60's manual transmission. My biggest concern with the Maxima SE is its questionable styling. It has gotten better over the years, but it still doesn't have very good styling IMHO. I feel that the new Altima SE looks 10x better. If the Maxima SE suspension is anything like the Infiniti I30 Touring's suspension, then it is way to soft and doesn't handle all that great IMHO.

If it were me, I would skip the Maxima completely and wait for the new Infiniti G35. It is going to be an awesome car. It will be RWD, have 50/50 weight distribution, and have the supurb 260hp V6 'VQ' engine. Infiniti dealer treatment and service is beyond reproach, having experienced it. In fact, they will sometimes even give you a better loaner Infiniti than the car you actually drive.

If I were in your situation, I would really have a hard time choosing between the Volvo S60 T5 and the Infiniti G35. They are both great cars in their own way for different reasons. The seats, ergonomics, safety, looks, and feel are something that you might not find in the G35, but of course you will be paying extra for that in the S60 T5. Plus, there will be a lot of things in the S60 T5, that the G35 or Maxima will come no where close, like the stereo systems for example

Just test drive the cars you are thinking about and find out what your priorities are. A million people could give you a million different opinions, but you will be the one shelling out your hard earned money.

-Drew

 

[GrecianVolvo]

quote:

Originally posted by InDy:
This is my take on things. I really like the BMW 330i, but where I live, the 3-Series is as common as the Suburban. I don't think that anyone will question how supurb a car the BMW 330i is, and I would take it in a heartbeat over the Nissan Maxima SE. But, since you have elimitated it from your choices, there isn't much more that I will say about it.

The Nissan Maxima SE is a good car, and it has the worlds finest V6 'VQ' engine. I havn't driven a 2002 model, but I have heard that the manual tranmission is far better than the new A4, for example. I really don't know how it compares to the S60's manual transmission. My biggest concern with the Maxima SE is its questionable styling. It has gotten better over the years, but it still doesn't have very good styling IMHO. I feel that the new Altima SE looks 10x better. If the Maxima SE suspension is anything like the Infiniti I30 Touring's suspension, then it is way to soft and doesn't handle all that great IMHO.

If it were me, I would skip the Maxima completely and wait for the new Infiniti G35. It is going to be an awesome car. It will be RWD, have 50/50 weight distribution, and have the supurb 260hp V6 'VQ' engine. Infiniti dealer treatment and service is beyond reproach, having experienced it. In fact, they will sometimes even give you a better loaner Infiniti than the car you actually drive.

If I were in your situation, I would really have a hard time choosing between the Volvo S60 T5 and the Infiniti G35. They are both great cars in their own way for different reasons. The seats, ergonomics, safety, looks, and feel are something that you might not find in the G35, but of course you will be paying extra for that in the S60 T5. Plus, there will be a lot of things in the S60 T5, that the G35 or Maxima will come no where close, like the stereo systems for example

Just test drive the cars you are thinking about and find out what your priorities are. A million people could give you a million different opinions, but you will be the one shelling out your hard earned money.

-Drew

NO JAPANESE regular production car (and I mean NONE) will give you the feel of a European sedan...they are way off but they do win the gadget war!

Yannis

 

[krod03079]

Thanks. Here's what I learned:

1. I have to get out and test drive (knew that)
2. I shouldn't have let the wife get involved in the selection of *MY* car (knew that)
3. the cars really are in different classes.

I have 2 friends with Maximas and they LOVE them. They are quality cars, too, but I guess you get what you pay for, and I learned with the Cross Country that Volvo's worth the extra $$.