I had two Maximas, and in the second one did 300,000 miles. Neither of them ever broke down. They had aircon and a sunroof and a smooth 3 litre engine. They are also front wheel drive, and I remember sailing up a hill in snowy conditions passing a new Mercedes which was stuck, They were a great long distance cruiser. The adolescent motoring journalists hated them perhaps due to their comfort, reliability, and effortless performance.
I live in the USA and Everyone Loved the Old Maxima's in 2001 I bought a 1992 5 speed Power everything, Leather, Sunroof, Factory Tint and I had nice 18" Chrome Star rims similar to the 05 Max. I miss that car it was a Work Horse. When I bought it for $1500.00 it had a lot of small issues Alternator Pads Rotors Caliper and Cat Converter problem. Once fixed I enjoyed it very much for 4 years.
Love my 1989 SE Black Maxima. Low miles. I have pampered it for many many years. Smooth as silk. Always garaged. Never smoked in. Interior like new. It has lived a charmed life.
It was one of the best Japanese sedans in its day. It had the distinction of being included in the highly respected Car and Driver magazine's top ten list a couple of times, which is quite outstanding. The lusty v6 engine was its best feature .
Once worked for an engineering firm that had a fleet of these that the directors drove, whilst the sales reps had Nissan Primera's. They later changed from the Nissan Maxima to the Nissan QX A32 and and A33 models; two of them had sequential plates and where plated at the same time. Very underrated cars, my place had no problem with them and were very reliable. Major flashback seeing this, takes be back to the late 1990s. Nice...
Wow that car brings some memories back from my early 20's, my mother was a financial controller for a nissan dealership in Leeds, and she had some good company cars back then, and she had the nissan maxima as one of them, it was a fantastic motor, and as you describe the sound of the engine was electric and I remember driving it not long after passing my driving test, it was really powerful back then, and it was something very different , and a head turner when overtaking, If I remember the power button for the auto box used to let the engine pull to 4000 rpm before shifting into the next gear and when in comfort mode it was 3000 rpm, her car had a CD player fitted we drove from Leeds to Cornwall in it back in the 90's and it was so relaxing and really quiet as air conditioning was something rare in car's back then, I have been lucky enough to own a mk1 Rover 827 sterling and that was the same as the maxima it was a really good motor, and I had years of motoring out of it, I scrapped the Rover as it failed its mot royally, back in 2009, the subframe had more holes than a pepper pot and the electric's were having glitches but the engine and transmission were still going strong even with 210k on the clock and I used to pull a caravan up and down the country with it (I'm not a gypsy by the way lol)
I worked for AVIS RAC at the time - these were excellent! The closest any sedan came to the then E-class (W124) Merc. And for a Japanese design, it was very European and it aged very well too. They were quiet, fast and quite economical for a 3 liter automatic. Reliable to boot. Magnificent quality for a Japanese car.
I have an old 1996 Camry. It used to be my dad's. I use it to drive to work. It's more comfortable for commuting than my modern Subaru XV. The Camry has the power antenna like your Maxima. The power antenna is fun to watch go up and down until it catches the garage door at work.
Great video. I do remember these and have always liked the idea of owning one. Having spent a lot of time in the US being involved in the US chapter Z car series, many owners second cars were Maximas. The engine in this example as rightly pointed out is also used in the 300zx although the earlier Z31 model and in naturally aspirated format. The newer quad cam VG30 as found in the Z32 was used in later versions of the Maxima with a different intake manifold and again in naturally aspirated format. For a period in time when 2.5 and 3.0 V6s were generally producing under 200hp, the 3.0 Maxima with the VG30DE in quad cam format provided quite a punch.
Sad that there are only 6 of these let in the UK. Here is the States these are still relatively common sights. They are great for teens - safe, reliable, options galore. My first car was actually a 97 Maxima GLE and I still have it and love it. My favorite feature is how you can role the windows down with the key fob to cool the interior before getting in.
Someone in my neighborhood in Chicago, IL is still daily driving a second gen Maxima. Heck, even my first car in 2014 was a one owner 1987 Camry. I think that the 'cash for clunkers' scheme the UK had was a bit more... aggressive, than the one we had in the States.
You're quite right - you do see the Maxima driving around quite a bit in the states. I had no idea they were so luxurious! One of the most understated cars on the road.
I had an Australian delivered last 1994 edition of this Nissan. Mine had key pad entry system which allowed you to open the windows and the sunroof from the outside prior to entering on a 45 degree day at the beach . You could lock your wallet and car keys in the boot while swimming ,great feature. Due to the stretched Bluebird floor apon which this was based on the turning circle was terrible. Once thieving youths worked out the engine was out of the 300ZX the insurance went so high she had to go. Still see plenty on Australian roads to this day. Unfortunately Nissan doesn't sell any passenger vehicles anymore only SUVs and4x4
Thats a great feature, I dont know if the US cars got the keypad as well, but I dont think we had it here, but then the sea never gets above tepid so its less important! Shame the great saloons are being killed by bland SUVs, Ford is following in America, I hope we can hold on to actual cars in Europe
@@furiousdriving - yeah, keypad entry is a US-thing and the higher-spec models had them. An excellent feature that sadly disappeared after this model. I replaced the steering wheel in my '93 model with one from a JDM-spec U13 Bluebird because the cruise control buttons were by the right thumb instead of the centre of the wheel - much better ergonomically.
My father bought one brand new in 1989 finished in Winter Blue Metallic to replace a 1989 Cadillac Fleetwood that decided to self destruct on him whilst on the highway about 8 months into owning it by blowing the headgasket, overheating and stranding him on the side of the highway, resulting in water in the engine oil and a cracked block. His Maxima was a U.S. spec GXE trim level with cloth seats, no sunroof and basic options package but included the power/comfort shift switch and keyless keyless entry keypad on both front doors that let you lock/unlock the doors, roll down the front windows and pop the trunk. He drove it until 2002 when he passed it on to me as my first car to drive to my senior classes in high school. I loved this car; the build quality was amazing inside and out. The VG30E engine was buttery smooth and very responsive with that wonderful growl. I kept it until 2004, trading it in at 171,000 miles due to the already once rebuilt auto transmission starting to slip again; the 4spd auto in the 1989-1991 models was not the strongest, this was rectified with a tougher unit in the 1992-94 cars. I dearly loved that car and still miss it.
I remember these so well... as a student garda did a stint with traffic in Dublin castle... two days in an unmarked one.. warping around the city.. juice in the morning then juice after break... I think she was a 3.0litre.. anyway made the traffic man I still am today😊great videos as always.. love them. And hello from Tipperary.
89 Maxima was my first car and was a second hand me down from my sister, who got it from my father. The sunroof started to leak and the automatic seat belts would get stuck mid-journey so you couldn't get out, haha!
In America When I was a kid you were the cool kid if your parents picked you up in this from the Car Rider section lol. My Mom had a 90 SE in 94 & I loved that car then we traded it for a 93 Honda Accord EX 5Spd Manual & that was even better!
My dads C reg Sierra estate had an electric aerial. My dad kept telling my brother off for putting the aerial down until we told him it was electric. High tech for the 80's.
Sad that there are 6 left in the UK. I own a 92 Nissan Primera 1.8 auto silver with trim inside and out, it is too me a beautiful car, very reliable, it can do 43mpg on the open road ( depending on the right boot ) it has good performance, great handling and brakes, it does Not lean when cornering, even at speed but the ride is not rock hard, what more could i want????
6' 250lb American here. It's strange hearing him say how big it is. It's small in today's standards. My mom had one of these new in 89. The options in America were different. USA didn't get heated mirrors, or head light wipers. My mom's had Every option, sonar suspension, keypad entry, leather, power everything, roof, digital dash, Ac, but no seat heaters... I wonder if it was available in America that year ... Anywho nice Maxima
My dad had a white 92 with the 160 hp and I thought it was a rocket back then lol probably still decent today but I feel in love with the maxima I eventually got a 93 a few years later with 338k miles it ran good but had some body issues got rid of it got a 96 which was fantastic!!!!! Then eventually got a 00 se and that’s the last one I had I couldn’t afford a 02/03 so I eventually got into the Honda cars and haven’t looked back I still have a respect for these
Not many of these left on the road in the US either. We got 2 trim levels: SE and GXE. That one looks like a mix of the 2. I don’t think we ever got heated seats and I know we didn’t get head lamp wipers but we did get an optional Bose sound system. SE was 5 spd. Only at first and manual seats but automatic came a little later. Yes, they all had a little 4DSC sticker on the rear quarter windows. My dad had a 2nd generation 86’ SE 5 spd.. as a company car back in the day. It had 3 position dampers And was nice but the 3rd gen. Was a revelation when we got it in 1989. What a great car that still looks modern today. Thanks for the video. Well done.
Glad you enjoyed and it brought back some good memories. It is a lovely car and so many toys, they really were going all out to prove they were as well specced and better made than the American and European rivals.
Awesome review. Always wanted a A31. I have an A32. My neighbour across the road had one in white, the top Ti model. I asked him about it one day and he whispered to me so the car wouldn’t hear him ‘I’ve had it for 20 years and apart from normal service, I’ve never had to touch it.’ A couple of years after that he had a home invasion and the crooks stole the car and they found it. A few years after that it met its premature end when a Ute trying to drift down the street when through the front of his house. Maxima took most of the impact. r.i.p. Hope to get one myself one day.
When I started reading car magazines in '89 / '90 in Car Magazine's The Good The Bad & The Ugly section (it was in the Bad), in the summary they described the Nissan Maxima as 'Max tedium' which I always thought a funny quip that's stayed with me lol
Lovely looking car. That was when Nissan offered great cars. I've never owned a Maxima, but I've known people who have, and enjoyed the experience of driving them.
I really liked this, a proper old school barge, just comfy and lots of toys, and old fashioned Nissan quality. Never really saw them here when new but I think they sold a lot in the US
@@furiousdriving I agree. The more I see new cars being driven, the more I prefer these *"old-school"* cars. I find most of them more attractive to look at than anything being driven today. :)
I'm very impressed! My parents used to buy me issues of What Car? magazine in the late 1980s-90s and I remember a burgandy Maxima popped up in an executive car group test and immediately liked it. I think What Car? testers were a bit luke warm about the Maxima. It replaced the rather staid and boxy looking Laurel 2.4, which I guess was also designed with a focus on the American car market. My Nissan is 14 years newer than this but doesn't have the remote tailgate release the Maxima has. I also prefer it's velour upholstery to the plain cotton (?) material in mine. Velour ought to make a comeback.
Matt Renter - the Japanese preferred velour over leather. For good reason to; cooler in summer, not cold to touch in the winter, doesn’t make noise when sitting in them, doesn’t degrade like dried leather and easier to clean!
Had a '93 Maxima SEL model in NZ for 6 years - it also had powered folding mirrors, keypad entry / lock and a factory fitted head unit with 6-disc CD changer in the trunk. Being the top-spec model, the trunk and gas cap release were buttons on the driver's door card, near the courtesy light. Not sure why the Brit's had the black centre panel between the tail lights, seeing as other markets used panels that matched the red tail lights. Even the later A32 Maxima QX has a black panel. These were real highway cruisers and had a typically American-style engine - lots of low-end torque, but ran out of puff at higher speeds. Bought a '98 Maxima QX SEL when I was living in London in 2012 with 58k miles on it. Shipped it back to NZ in 2018 coz it had only 72250 miles on the clock and I can get plenty of parts here. Sunroof noise is much lower on the later A32 model than the J30, even when it's open all the way. BTW: these were sold as luxury cars in NZ and Oz, not large cars - Ford Falcons & Holden Commodores are large cars in this part of the world.
I had a 91 maxima drove it cross country twice. Usa. 200k on it then traded. I should of kept it. That maxima was just a beast. It kept going and going and going
It’s a long time since I have seen one of those, I remember in it’s time U.K. car magazines were impressed with its build quality, but not its looks and residual values. It looks like a Sunny on steroids, that’s probably why they didn’t sell that many.
These were Magnificent! Thís was the first Maxima generation that the RSA received. I worked at AVIS at the time and this was thé closest any sedan of the era came to the King of the Road : Mercedes Benz W124 230E auto! Quiet, quite economical (for its day) and super quiet at 180km/h on the open road. Magnificent!
I had one of these on an M plate, rare apparently as it was a dark metallic greeny blue with cream leather and bose sound. Fully loaded bit they were prone to relays on the radiator fan packing in. I believe at the time it was rated as a better drive than the BMW 5 series.... It was fast , comfortable and very spacious. Just drank like a super tanker!
My dad had a J30 maxima back in 1995! H271MON, long gone as it was starting to rust even back then! It was the same colour as that I think, like a silver blue colour.
I saw 1 of these today in a Sainsburys car park, it was a K registration. These are as rare as rocking horse shit in the UK now. They didn't sell well in the UK.
I grew up in Pearl White 1992 SE Model. (My mom's car). This one isn't fully loaded. It needs the two-tone Black and white Leather Interior, as well as the magnificent Bose sound system. That was a dual-din head unit.
When I worked for Nissan in 89... We had a pearlescent white maxima came into the showroom where it sat for a couple of weeks until a guy came in and bought it with a bin liner full of cash!
Again, the journalist's obsession with blank switches arrives here, and if it'll reduce your anxiety i'd like to point out that they're often used for additional equipment specified post-factory for custom applications. My dad was a senior fire officer and needed the 'blues and twos' fitted to his cars so he could get to fires/incidents quickly. Whilst the blue light adhered to the roof with a magnet, the air horns used an additional switch which looked factory (such as a second rear window heater switch with the decal removed). I'm sure 'blank switches' aka additional switch provision, had a popular use and explains in part why a small percentage of used cars have the cover missing..
Diversity tuni g means therecis an extra antenna, either in the screen or rear window. The idea being the radio could swap between the two to give you better FM reception. I tried the successor in 1995, and it was a great relaxing car to drive, unfortunately the Nissan badge just didnt have the prestige to compete.
In NZ many of these had keyless entry with a keypad under the drivers door which I always thought was pretty cool. The SSS Nissan Bluebirds from the same era had heads up displays. That 3L V6 won many awards from memory.
These were everywhere in the States when they were new and when they weren't so new too. My neighbor bought a new red one around 1988 then replaced it with a blue version of the exact same car in the early 2000s. The Russian gangster kids in high school drove these, usually black ones. My parents were dedicated Datsun/Nissan buyers but they never were interested in the "fancy" Nissan, so we ended up with Stanzas and Altimas.
Here in the US, the Maxima is one of Nissan's biggest sellers. So they're pretty commonplace here, which that it was designed for our market, makes sense, although I didn't know that. I still see a few of this version around.
Its kind of sad everything is a 'world car' now, instead of local odd balls and weirdness that can sometimes escape. They are great at becoming part of the background which is a shame as they are good enough to stand out, funny thing is Ive never noticed them in the States, and Ive been there quite a lot, but then I suppose Id have been looking for American brands
I remember these cars.. Much maligned without good reason. I think Nissan QX was the later replacement.. High spec and mechanically bullet proof. Shame modern cars aren't built as well.
@@furiousdriving Honda Accords of the same era were the same.. Remember taking one in PX at a dealership with well over 100k. It drove so well and was far smoother than the new vehicles we were selling... It had to be pried from my fingers and sent to the trade... Aaahhhhhh... Bisto..!
I had one of these for 15 years, 140,000 miles. Just a joy. My favorite car of all my cars from 1975-2021. If I could find a nice one today, I’d buy it. Engine was wonderful. At 6’6”, plenty of head and leg room. My 1999 model was not as nice as the 1989. Cheapened somewhat. Disappointing.
Replaced the Laurel and then was replaced by the QX. All three werent great seller's in the UK, but really surprised that there are only 6 left in the UK, Great seller in the U.S. though where it was known as a "gangsters" car along with the Honda Legend equivalent!
I'm sorry but I find the comparison to a Granada mildly offensive lol. The Maxima is a much better car - maybe less charming than a Granada - but a better motor. The Maxima doesn't even really seem old-fashioned, it's a car you could use every day.
A magnificent car. You made me very sad! I remember picking it up from the garage and enjoying the effortless performance and then reading it was poor in the press. Rollox!
I loved it, so calm, powerful and effortless and so well made. I guess some reviewers might just want big BHP and RWD but for what it was actually built for it was perfect
Loved to have seen the clock, but your description depicts the same clock as in every Japanese car of the 70s through to the late 90s. Nice video though.
Kinda interesting to see region-specific Nissans in this channel. Malaysian market never got Maxima back then, but it did get Bluebird, Sentra (or Sunny as it was called in Japan), the taxi-fleet-exclusive Cedric, and Vanette.
@@furiousdriving I would love to see you test drive a Vanette lol. A hateful bas horrible thing they were. My Dad had two of them as Work vans in the early 90s. One he bought 2nd hand tge tiger brand new and ironically it was the 2nd hand one that turned out to be the better one. The new one had the front suspension fail on it.
I guess this was built as an international 'one size fits all' car. Headlamp wipers were mandatory on all cars sold in Sweden. If the car did not have them, they were retrofitted. This kept on untill Sweden joined EU and it was deemed a trade obstacle. However SAAB and Volvo kept headlamp wipers on their cars until mid 2000 at least.
Had the original wheels too but someone put lugs on backwards 😭 yes the door chin is extreamly annoying. It is a literal bell too so good luck disabling
Interesting video BUT ........ there's ALWAYS a "BUTT", but you pay particular attention to the clock/ intermittent wiper stalk/ gearlever etc etc, but DONT show them !!! ??? This wood have made a good video "grate" 😁
This channel would be much better if you didn't repeat yourself so much. There are 6 of these left. Then 2 minutes later, again, there are 6 of these left. It was designed for the US market. 1 minute later, it was designed for the US market. As Talking Heads said - "Say something once; why say it again?"
It is incredible. Eat your dinner off it clean. Its funny how a car that you don't have a big passion for can be so good you go away really wanting to keep it!
When nissan was really a nissan.
Exactly
I had two Maximas, and in the second one did 300,000 miles. Neither of them ever broke down. They had aircon and a sunroof and a smooth 3 litre engine. They are also front wheel drive, and I remember sailing up a hill in snowy conditions passing a new Mercedes which was stuck, They were a great long distance cruiser. The adolescent motoring journalists hated them perhaps due to their comfort, reliability, and effortless performance.
I had a 91 se 5 spd. It was awesome I miss it. I drove it cross country twice in USA. 200k miles sold it. Never ever leaked anything or burned oil
I live in the USA and Everyone Loved the Old Maxima's
in 2001 I bought a 1992 5 speed Power everything, Leather, Sunroof, Factory Tint and I had nice 18" Chrome Star rims similar to the 05 Max.
I miss that car it was a Work Horse.
When I bought it for $1500.00 it had a lot of small issues Alternator Pads Rotors Caliper and Cat Converter problem.
Once fixed I enjoyed it very much for 4 years.
Love my 1989 SE Black Maxima. Low miles. I have pampered it for many many years. Smooth as silk. Always garaged. Never smoked in. Interior like new. It has lived a charmed life.
It was one of the best Japanese sedans in its day. It had the distinction of being included in the highly respected Car and Driver magazine's top ten list a couple of times, which is quite outstanding. The lusty v6 engine was its best feature .
Once worked for an engineering firm that had a fleet of these that the directors drove, whilst the sales reps had Nissan Primera's. They later changed from the Nissan Maxima to the Nissan QX A32 and and A33 models; two of them had sequential plates and where plated at the same time. Very underrated cars, my place had no problem with them and were very reliable. Major flashback seeing this, takes be back to the late 1990s. Nice...
Wow that car brings some memories back from my early 20's, my mother was a financial controller for a nissan dealership in Leeds, and she had some good company cars back then, and she had the nissan maxima as one of them, it was a fantastic motor, and as you describe the sound of the engine was electric and I remember driving it not long after passing my driving test, it was really powerful back then, and it was something very different , and a head turner when overtaking, If I remember the power button for the auto box used to let the engine pull to 4000 rpm before shifting into the next gear and when in comfort mode it was 3000 rpm, her car had a CD player fitted we drove from Leeds to Cornwall in it back in the 90's and it was so relaxing and really quiet as air conditioning was something rare in car's back then, I have been lucky enough to own a mk1 Rover 827 sterling and that was the same as the maxima it was a really good motor, and I had years of motoring out of it, I scrapped the Rover as it failed its mot royally, back in 2009, the subframe had more holes than a pepper pot and the electric's were having glitches but the engine and transmission were still going strong even with 210k on the clock and I used to pull a caravan up and down the country with it (I'm not a gypsy by the way lol)
I own a 1990 maxima gxe
I worked for AVIS RAC at the time - these were excellent! The closest any sedan came to the then E-class (W124) Merc. And for a Japanese design, it was very European and it aged very well too. They were quiet, fast and quite economical for a 3 liter automatic. Reliable to boot. Magnificent quality for a Japanese car.
I have an old 1996 Camry. It used to be my dad's. I use it to drive to work. It's more comfortable for commuting than my modern Subaru XV. The Camry has the power antenna like your Maxima. The power antenna is fun to watch go up and down until it catches the garage door at work.
Great video. I do remember these and have always liked the idea of owning one. Having spent a lot of time in the US being involved in the US chapter Z car series, many owners second cars were Maximas. The engine in this example as rightly pointed out is also used in the 300zx although the earlier Z31 model and in naturally aspirated format. The newer quad cam VG30 as found in the Z32 was used in later versions of the Maxima with a different intake manifold and again in naturally aspirated format. For a period in time when 2.5 and 3.0 V6s were generally producing under 200hp, the 3.0 Maxima with the VG30DE in quad cam format provided quite a punch.
Sad that there are only 6 of these let in the UK. Here is the States these are still relatively common sights. They are great for teens - safe, reliable, options galore. My first car was actually a 97 Maxima GLE and I still have it and love it. My favorite feature is how you can role the windows down with the key fob to cool the interior before getting in.
Someone in my neighborhood in Chicago, IL is still daily driving a second gen Maxima. Heck, even my first car in 2014 was a one owner 1987 Camry. I think that the 'cash for clunkers' scheme the UK had was a bit more... aggressive, than the one we had in the States.
You're quite right - you do see the Maxima driving around quite a bit in the states. I had no idea they were so luxurious! One of the most understated cars on the road.
I had a Nissan Qx which I had for 10 years and had no problem with it. It was a brilliant car
I enjoy how much time you spend showing off car interiors. Keep it up!
Of all car review channels he and hub nut have the best interior footage on top of covering truly interesting makes and models.
I had an Australian delivered last 1994 edition of this Nissan. Mine had key pad entry system which allowed you to open the windows and the sunroof from the outside prior to entering on a 45 degree day at the beach . You could lock your wallet and car keys in the boot while swimming ,great feature. Due to the stretched Bluebird floor apon which this was based on the turning circle was terrible. Once thieving youths worked out the engine was out of the 300ZX the insurance went so high she had to go. Still see plenty on Australian roads to this day. Unfortunately Nissan doesn't sell any passenger vehicles anymore only SUVs and4x4
Thats a great feature, I dont know if the US cars got the keypad as well, but I dont think we had it here, but then the sea never gets above tepid so its less important!
Shame the great saloons are being killed by bland SUVs, Ford is following in America, I hope we can hold on to actual cars in Europe
@@furiousdriving - yeah, keypad entry is a US-thing and the higher-spec models had them. An excellent feature that sadly disappeared after this model. I replaced the steering wheel in my '93 model with one from a JDM-spec U13 Bluebird because the cruise control buttons were by the right thumb instead of the centre of the wheel - much better ergonomically.
This really locked me in on my plan to buy a 90s car no matter what. I am taking the risk. I need this in my life.
My father bought one brand new in 1989 finished in Winter Blue Metallic to replace a 1989 Cadillac Fleetwood that decided to self destruct on him whilst on the highway about 8 months into owning it by blowing the headgasket, overheating and stranding him on the side of the highway, resulting in water in the engine oil and a cracked block. His Maxima was a U.S. spec GXE trim level with cloth seats, no sunroof and basic options package but included the power/comfort shift switch and keyless keyless entry keypad on both front doors that let you lock/unlock the doors, roll down the front windows and pop the trunk. He drove it until 2002 when he passed it on to me as my first car to drive to my senior classes in high school. I loved this car; the build quality was amazing inside and out. The VG30E engine was buttery smooth and very responsive with that wonderful growl. I kept it until 2004, trading it in at 171,000 miles due to the already once rebuilt auto transmission starting to slip again; the 4spd auto in the 1989-1991 models was not the strongest, this was rectified with a tougher unit in the 1992-94 cars. I dearly loved that car and still miss it.
I remember these so well... as a student garda did a stint with traffic in Dublin castle... two days in an unmarked one.. warping around the city.. juice in the morning then juice after break... I think she was a 3.0litre.. anyway made the traffic man I still am today😊great videos as always.. love them. And hello from Tipperary.
I never knew any police used these, very covert!
My had two of these. He works at the Widnes Car Centre lol. These were fantastic - my grandad had a Laurel. It was amazing.
89 Maxima was my first car and was a second hand me down from my sister, who got it from my father. The sunroof started to leak and the automatic seat belts would get stuck mid-journey so you couldn't get out, haha!
In America When I was a kid you were the cool kid if your parents picked you up in this from the Car Rider section lol. My Mom had a 90 SE in 94 & I loved that car then we traded it for a 93 Honda Accord EX 5Spd Manual & that was even better!
My dads C reg Sierra estate had an electric aerial. My dad kept telling my brother off for putting the aerial down until we told him it was electric. High tech for the 80's.
29 MPG sounds excellent for the size of the car and engine especially coupled together with an automatic gearbox, looks like a great car. Cheers 🍻
I had a USDM 1993 J30 Maxima GXE for 5 years after high school, best car I ever owned...god I miss that car!
Sad that there are 6 left in the UK. I own a 92 Nissan Primera 1.8 auto silver with trim inside and out, it is too me a beautiful car, very reliable, it can do 43mpg on the open road ( depending on the right boot ) it has good performance, great handling and brakes, it does Not lean when cornering, even at speed but the ride is not rock hard, what more could i want????
6' 250lb American here. It's strange hearing him say how big it is. It's small in today's standards. My mom had one of these new in 89. The options in America were different. USA didn't get heated mirrors, or head light wipers. My mom's had Every option, sonar suspension, keypad entry, leather, power everything, roof, digital dash, Ac, but no seat heaters... I wonder if it was available in America that year ... Anywho nice Maxima
I miss this car. Had it for 13 years. 140k. Felt big, but light on feet. Amazing seat fabric too. Very comfortable.
My dad had a white 92 with the 160 hp and I thought it was a rocket back then lol probably still decent today but I feel in love with the maxima I eventually got a 93 a few years later with 338k miles it ran good but had some body issues got rid of it got a 96 which was fantastic!!!!! Then eventually got a 00 se and that’s the last one I had I couldn’t afford a 02/03 so I eventually got into the Honda cars and haven’t looked back I still have a respect for these
Not many of these left on the road in the US either. We got 2 trim levels: SE and GXE. That one looks like a mix of the 2. I don’t think we ever got heated seats and I know we didn’t get head lamp wipers but we did get an optional Bose sound system. SE was 5 spd. Only at first and manual seats but automatic came a little later. Yes, they all had a little 4DSC sticker on the rear quarter windows. My dad had a 2nd generation 86’ SE 5 spd.. as a company car back in the day. It had 3 position dampers And was nice but the 3rd gen. Was a revelation when we got it in 1989. What a great car that still looks modern today. Thanks for the video. Well done.
Glad you enjoyed and it brought back some good memories. It is a lovely car and so many toys, they really were going all out to prove they were as well specced and better made than the American and European rivals.
Awesome review. Always wanted a A31. I have an A32. My neighbour across the road had one in white, the top Ti model. I asked him about it one day and he whispered to me so the car wouldn’t hear him ‘I’ve had it for 20 years and apart from normal service, I’ve never had to touch it.’ A couple of years after that he had a home invasion and the crooks stole the car and they found it. A few years after that it met its premature end when a Ute trying to drift down the street when through the front of his house. Maxima took most of the impact. r.i.p. Hope to get one myself one day.
Maybe if he'd had a lesser car the house would have come off worse? great cars
furiousdriving - haha indeed.
Love your enthusiasm. Nearly bought one of these in the 90's. By the way, I had a 1968 Mazda that had an electric aerial.
*ONLY SIX LEFT*
How sad is to hear it? When an automobile(and this is a really good one) goes pratically extinct. :(
When I started reading car magazines in '89 / '90 in Car Magazine's The Good The Bad & The Ugly section (it was in the Bad), in the summary they described the Nissan Maxima as 'Max tedium' which I always thought a funny quip that's stayed with me lol
The blank button between the mirror adjustment and cruise control is where the front fog light switch goes.
Lovely looking car. That was when Nissan offered great cars. I've never owned a Maxima, but I've known people who have, and enjoyed the experience of driving them.
I really liked this, a proper old school barge, just comfy and lots of toys, and old fashioned Nissan quality. Never really saw them here when new but I think they sold a lot in the US
@@furiousdriving I agree. The more I see new cars being driven, the more I prefer these *"old-school"* cars. I find most of them more attractive to look at than anything being driven today. :)
Super Maxima, one of my best friends had a manual with that V6 back in College during the 90s, in black, it was a beast and she knew that!!! LOL
I'm very impressed!
My parents used to buy me issues of What Car? magazine in the late 1980s-90s and I remember a burgandy Maxima popped up in an executive car group test and immediately liked it. I think What Car? testers were a bit luke warm about the Maxima. It replaced the rather staid and boxy looking Laurel 2.4, which I guess was also designed with a focus on the American car market.
My Nissan is 14 years newer than this but doesn't have the remote tailgate release the Maxima has. I also prefer it's velour upholstery to the plain cotton (?) material in mine. Velour ought to make a comeback.
Matt Renter - the Japanese preferred velour over leather. For good reason to; cooler in summer, not cold to touch in the winter, doesn’t make noise when sitting in them, doesn’t degrade like dried leather and easier to clean!
Had a '93 Maxima SEL model in NZ for 6 years - it also had powered folding mirrors, keypad entry / lock and a factory fitted head unit with 6-disc CD changer in the trunk. Being the top-spec model, the trunk and gas cap release were buttons on the driver's door card, near the courtesy light. Not sure why the Brit's had the black centre panel between the tail lights, seeing as other markets used panels that matched the red tail lights. Even the later A32 Maxima QX has a black panel. These were real highway cruisers and had a typically American-style engine - lots of low-end torque, but ran out of puff at higher speeds.
Bought a '98 Maxima QX SEL when I was living in London in 2012 with 58k miles on it. Shipped it back to NZ in 2018 coz it had only 72250 miles on the clock and I can get plenty of parts here. Sunroof noise is much lower on the later A32 model than the J30, even when it's open all the way.
BTW: these were sold as luxury cars in NZ and Oz, not large cars - Ford Falcons & Holden Commodores are large cars in this part of the world.
I had a 91 maxima drove it cross country twice. Usa.
200k on it then traded. I should of kept it. That maxima was just a beast. It kept going and going and going
It’s a long time since I have seen one of those, I remember in it’s time U.K. car magazines were impressed with its build quality, but not its looks and residual values. It looks like a Sunny on steroids, that’s probably why they didn’t sell that many.
Thanks for showing us the wiper stalk you are so mesmerized about
Sedan, sedan, sedan - you’re rocking the boot.
These were Magnificent!
Thís was the first Maxima generation that the RSA received.
I worked at AVIS at the time and this was thé closest any sedan of the era came to the King of the Road : Mercedes Benz W124 230E auto! Quiet, quite economical (for its day) and super quiet at 180km/h on the open road. Magnificent!
I had one of these on an M plate, rare apparently as it was a dark metallic greeny blue with cream leather and bose sound. Fully loaded bit they were prone to relays on the radiator fan packing in.
I believe at the time it was rated as a better drive than the BMW 5 series.... It was fast , comfortable and very spacious. Just drank like a super tanker!
As an aside - 124 mph? I had mine up to 150 on speedo on the autobahn - and I know of one in a fair condition in Bridlington! Gold colour.
I had my 91 maxima up to 150 too lol. With the windows down. That car was pretty quick
My next-door neighbour used to have a Maxima QX 3.0! I've only ever seen 1 other on the roads in the UK. Definitely a unique car.
I dont remember the last time I saw one, but 80s/90s cars are getting rare in a hurry
My dad had a J30 maxima back in 1995! H271MON, long gone as it was starting to rust even back then! It was the same colour as that I think, like a silver blue colour.
I saw 1 of these today in a Sainsburys car park, it was a K registration. These are as rare as rocking horse shit in the UK now. They didn't sell well in the UK.
I grew up in Pearl White 1992 SE Model. (My mom's car). This one isn't fully loaded. It needs the two-tone Black and white Leather Interior, as well as the magnificent Bose sound system. That was a dual-din head unit.
When I worked for Nissan in 89... We had a pearlescent white maxima came into the showroom where it sat for a couple of weeks until a guy came in and bought it with a bin liner full of cash!
not dodgy...
The sound of those buttons. Sheer quality.
There are tonnes of those still around in Canada. Gotta' love them.... and remember the Stanza?
Stanza's were cool!
Again, the journalist's obsession with blank switches arrives here, and if it'll reduce your anxiety i'd like to point out that they're often used for additional equipment specified post-factory for custom applications. My dad was a senior fire officer and needed the 'blues and twos' fitted to his cars so he could get to fires/incidents quickly. Whilst the blue light adhered to the roof with a magnet, the air horns used an additional switch which looked factory (such as a second rear window heater switch with the decal removed). I'm sure 'blank switches' aka additional switch provision, had a popular use and explains in part why a small percentage of used cars have the cover missing..
Diversity tuni g means therecis an extra antenna, either in the screen or rear window. The idea being the radio could swap between the two to give you better FM reception.
I tried the successor in 1995, and it was a great relaxing car to drive, unfortunately the Nissan badge just didnt have the prestige to compete.
Still I have one 93 it is really a nice car
It was also marketed in Canada as a mid-size sedan.
In NZ many of these had keyless entry with a keypad under the drivers door which I always thought was pretty cool. The SSS Nissan Bluebirds from the same era had heads up displays.
That 3L V6 won many awards from memory.
they were advanced cars when they were new
These were everywhere in the States when they were new and when they weren't so new too. My neighbor bought a new red one around 1988 then replaced it with a blue version of the exact same car in the early 2000s. The Russian gangster kids in high school drove these, usually black ones. My parents were dedicated Datsun/Nissan buyers but they never were interested in the "fancy" Nissan, so we ended up with Stanzas and Altimas.
Timothy Horning then in 2002 Nissan altogether stopped making anything of quality.
Here in the US, the Maxima is one of Nissan's biggest sellers. So they're pretty commonplace here, which that it was designed for our market, makes sense, although I didn't know that. I still see a few of this version around.
Its kind of sad everything is a 'world car' now, instead of local odd balls and weirdness that can sometimes escape.
They are great at becoming part of the background which is a shame as they are good enough to stand out, funny thing is Ive never noticed them in the States, and Ive been there quite a lot, but then I suppose Id have been looking for American brands
1989 maxima Best car ever v6 3000 l had one this is Best in history
I had one of these M854NTF. Lovely car. Would like it back to be honest!
This Maxima model was blown to smithereens in the 2013 Arnold Schwarzenegger movie The Last Stand.
Lovely Speedmaster on the wrist! ;)
Thanks, happy moon month!
@@furiousdriving , Thank you, kind Sir! I've been rocking mine as well! Cheers!
I remember these cars.. Much maligned without good reason. I think Nissan QX was the later replacement.. High spec and mechanically bullet proof. Shame modern cars aren't built as well.
Its rock solid and so smooth, feels like it will last forever
@@furiousdriving Honda Accords of the same era were the same.. Remember taking one in PX at a dealership with well over 100k. It drove so well and was far smoother than the new vehicles we were selling... It had to be pried from my fingers and sent to the trade... Aaahhhhhh... Bisto..!
Steering wheel looks like any steering wheel that was in a Micra, Almera, and Primera except the maxima had buttons at the bottom.
I had one of these for 15 years, 140,000 miles. Just a joy. My favorite car of all my cars from 1975-2021. If I could find a nice one today, I’d buy it. Engine was wonderful. At 6’6”, plenty of head and leg room. My 1999 model was not as nice as the 1989. Cheapened somewhat. Disappointing.
-Shoud've shown us all those incredible diagrams you're so excited about... Oh, well, you're not "made in Japan" to be perfect, I guess... ;)
FM diversity means multiple antennas - so on top of the aerial, there's probably a second set printed onto the rear window.
Why have the minima, when you can have the Maxima?
Great video! I love it when you mention the smell of cars in your videos. You should do that for all videos. I'm a huge fan of MK1 Fiat Punto smell 😁
How would you describe a 90's Fiat smell?
HubNut loves wipers lol
Oh how I miss my Maxi's Had three from H K M reg these were outstanding cars, and I Part ex' my Jag Sovereign for one, that's how good!
Test drove one of these in early'90s but decides in favour of an Audi 100 2.2 auto which was less sluggish.
Replaced the Laurel and then was replaced by the QX. All three werent great seller's in the UK, but really surprised that there are only 6 left in the UK, Great seller in the U.S. though where it was known as a "gangsters" car along with the Honda Legend equivalent!
The first paragraph of what you said are all of the reasons why like the Alfa Giulia very few sold
Can you do a Primera review? Surprised you never did. It was quite popular back in the day and wasnt there even uk built versions?
Well I'm going to love my 89 maxima
I'm sorry but I find the comparison to a Granada mildly offensive lol. The Maxima is a much better car - maybe less charming than a Granada - but a better motor.
The Maxima doesn't even really seem old-fashioned, it's a car you could use every day.
I used to have a car like this. ❤️
Quick car the Maxima 👍
This is just a big primera.
Amazing.
Thats all i can say.
What a coincidence, there's only 6 left in the US as well.
A magnificent car. You made me very sad! I remember picking it up from the garage and enjoying the effortless performance and then reading it was poor in the press. Rollox!
I loved it, so calm, powerful and effortless and so well made. I guess some reviewers might just want big BHP and RWD but for what it was actually built for it was perfect
I had a 1991 Renault 21 turbo what a car best car ever check it out👍 love the show.
use to have one of these loved it to bits luxury machine for sure
The adverts said 'It exists'. This wasn't a compelling argument.
Loved to have seen the clock, but your description depicts the same clock as in every Japanese car of the 70s through to the late 90s. Nice video though.
To be fair it is probably the same component! So sorry, the video of that was missing when I came to edit
Kinda interesting to see region-specific Nissans in this channel. Malaysian market never got Maxima back then, but it did get Bluebird, Sentra (or Sunny as it was called in Japan), the taxi-fleet-exclusive Cedric, and Vanette.
Nissan were experts at fitting local versions of the same car into different markets, can be confusing researching them though for that reason!
@@furiousdriving Time to stock up on funds and flight tickets for possible international specials of Furious Driving videos!
@@furiousdriving I would love to see you test drive a Vanette lol. A hateful bas horrible thing they were. My Dad had two of them as Work vans in the early 90s. One he bought 2nd hand tge tiger brand new and ironically it was the 2nd hand one that turned out to be the better one. The new one had the front suspension fail on it.
I guess this was built as an international 'one size fits all' car. Headlamp wipers were mandatory on all cars sold in Sweden. If the car did not have them, they were retrofitted. This kept on untill Sweden joined EU and it was deemed a trade obstacle. However SAAB and Volvo kept headlamp wipers on their cars until mid 2000 at least.
Somebody gave me this car yesterday. I don't know what to expect 😯
Expect comfy. And never breaking
I have sat in this car many times, was well looked after. Hope it's going well.
What is wrong with u? That Nissan chime is awesome.
Maybe it grows on you. Like fungus
😂😂
Saw one here in Ireland last Saturday. Same colour !
In Australia these are classed as mid sized as well , so you got that wrong
Had the original wheels too but someone put lugs on backwards 😭 yes the door chin is extreamly annoying. It is a literal bell too so good luck disabling
Interesting video BUT ........ there's ALWAYS a "BUTT", but you pay particular attention to the clock/ intermittent wiper stalk/ gearlever etc etc, but DONT show them !!! ??? This wood have made a good video "grate" 😁
I was gutted - I recorded it but couldn't find the clip when I came to edit. Must have wound the VHS back in the JVC and taped over it..
Terence Popp reference? ;)
No intentionally! I just looked him up and subscribed!
Maxima was a fast car" that one could fly down the road
This channel would be much better if you didn't repeat yourself so much. There are 6 of these left. Then 2 minutes later, again, there are 6 of these left. It was designed for the US market. 1 minute later, it was designed for the US market. As Talking Heads said - "Say something once; why say it again?"
Utterly amazing
That thing is so clean
It is incredible. Eat your dinner off it clean. Its funny how a car that you don't have a big passion for can be so good you go away really wanting to keep it!
Original tires? I can see some quite modern Kumho Ecstas mounted on those rims...hmmm.
Did you change them?
It came into the dealer on original tyres. They had to be changed for safety
@@furiousdriving I understand. Safety first. Who would be brave enough or better mad to drive around on such old tires.
In UK old cars are killed because of insurance premiums...kinda sad.
Great Car...Great Review...Nothing Not To Like.