[Chris So]

Aww man... sooo many good cars out there.... I can’t make a decision. The very roomy R/T is really hot looking, but then falls short in so many fronts, like power robbing tranny, true high performance, cool toys, residual and resale value.

I think I narrowed down my choices to a 2002 RT or a 2002 Maxima SE. Will probably do the deal by boxing week, since there are so many incentives that end December 31.

I plan on keeping this car for the next 5 - 6 years as I don’t think I’ll have much choice economically once I’m committed, so it’s got to be right and has to have staying power with the least amount of problems. The R/T is the cheaper of the two, but then the Maxima has got a lot of the right cool stuff, like 6 speed, the heated seats and heated steering wheel and is only a bit more than a fully loaded R/T, but it’s hind end is so butt ugly (no pun intended) IMHO.

So, what would you get if someone gave you the choice of one of these fine cars? Right now, my heart is leaning towards the Maxima cause of the 6 speed... sigh.... what to get...

Thanks guys.

Below are a few highlights of all the features that are important to me:

 

[blkbute]

hmm, just cause Im a trep lover, I would say go with the trep. But if I had to choose between the 2 I would prob take the Nissan. I do not know why.. but whats the price differance.?

 

[thebulgd]

I'd get the Intrepid. For the following reasons

I wont own a foriegn car

the more sophisticated it is, the easier it breaks

all the heated stuff would be useless here in Cali


Now if I was, lets say, YOU I would be gettin the Nissan cuz of all the heated stuff. I dont live in the land of the frozen peso, however for you it would probly suck getting into yer nice new R/T and be thinking of heated seats and mirror defrosters. I must admit, the R/T sure looks like a sad dog in the list you posted. Looking at that list, I sure as hell wouldn't buy the R/T.


I had two cents to spare

 

[blkbute]

well he lives up here in Canada.. Ive seen some chilly temps, and he lives north of me. So heated stuff would be nice. I myself personaly do not see a need for it. and another thing for RT the Intrepid has heated mirrors.

 

[IntrepidXJ]

Originally posted by blkbute:
and another thing for RT the Intrepid has heated mirrors.

I don't think any 2nd gen intrepid has heated mirrors (unless they started using them in 2002)

 

[Chris So]

I wish I lived in California. If I lived there, I would be driving a convertible or a motorcycle or a SUV. But , I live in a climate of extremes, where in the summer it often is hotter here than in CA and in the winter it can get so cold that I have personally experienced the following things:

• The LCD display on my radio would "freeze". You can change radio stations, volume etc. and everything works, but the display stays stuck on the last setting until the interior warms up.

• I would drive 30 minutes at high way speeds and arrive at work and I would just barely start to get warm air out of the heater.

• Spit and it would freeze by the time it hit the ground and you could pick it up. (fun experiments you could do as a kid)

Now, true the above examples are extremes, but at -10°C ( or 14°F ) and below it's just plain too cold for me.

Thebulgd : I don't suppose it helps that the Maxima was designed in California?

BlckBute: The difference was $2100 CAN or around $1350 US. I would imagine that London would get just as cold, wouldn't it?

 

[1mz-fe]

the intrepid heats up exceptionally quickly. i let mine idle for 5 mins and then usually by the time i leave the parking lot it's coasted around at 15mph and below for another 2 mins. usually this is enough to get plenty of hot air pumping.

 

[Don Hardy]

For me and every family type, the answer is simple. If you are single then the stick shift and smaller size are maybe worth having. But if size counts (huh?) then the deal is done. My $.02 US

 

[sphere79]

There's also a strong possibility that Nissan may not be in the US a few years from now. They've been struggling financialy for many years, and while they SEEM to be doing better right now - one never knows. Especially considering the current state of affairs economically in the US and Japan. Keep in mind that Nissan doesn't have alot of dealers outside New England ( where 70% of it's sales come from ) and the West Coast. At the present time Renault has a controlling interest in the company, and have canned some plans for new vehicle development.

 

[1mz-fe]

Originally posted by Don:
But if size counts (huh?) then the deal is done. My $.02 US

it's not what you have, it's how you use it

 

[Chris So]

sphere79 's argument is the most compelling so far, I didn't know that Nissan is only strong in the New England states, although it seems sales here in Canada seem to be pretty good, judging by the amount of Nissan products on the road and the dealership network here.

I guess my biggest beef with the Trep here is that they are so common and aren't regarded with such high regard here. Every night outside my office building there would be 5-7 taxis, and it would be unusual if at least 3 of them would not be Intrepids. OTOH, this would guarantee cheap and plentiful parts.

The 100,000 mile (only 100,000 km which is 60,000 miles) warranty hasn't been offered here by the way, and I would have to chip in for extra warranty, currently over $2000 CAN for the top of the line one. They instaead opted for no payments for 90 days and 48 month no interest financing instead of a rebate. Count the rebate as interest and the effective rate is around 6 - 7%.

The other thing is that the premium for an RT will never be realized on re sale, because the public perception is that all Intrepids are in the SE price point, because that is the only model bombarded in daily price ads and they are really pushing that low figure, which is about 33% less than the RT.

What to do, what to do, what to do....

The Max's performance numbers are pretty good though, huh? I mean, this would blow away most 4 door cars I would encounter, and maybe even some Mustang class cars. Maybe even a few BMW 330 and below... heh, heh...

 

[MoparHead]

Renault, eh?

Weren't they responsible for the (snicker) Le Car? Ha ha ha ha ha ha (rotflmao)!!

Personally, I wouldn't want anything to do with the company responsible for that automotive abortion.

I have also read that Renault has a less than favorable record concerning their brand management skills.

My opinion (admittedly a biased one, look at my user name) of course leans toward the R/T. The Maxima is a nice car, I will admit, but not for me.

You said you are keeping the car for 5-6 years; I doubt there will be a significant difference in resale at that point. If I was in your particular situation, I would take a long, hard look at the performance of each car and make a decision from there.

Good luck!

 

[Paul's 96 Trep]

My 2 cents is.. I WILL NEVER EVER OWN A JAP CRAP OR ANY OTHER FOREIGN CAR.. I LOVE CHRYSLER! =) WILL NEVER OWN ANYTHING ELSE... I SUPPORT AMERICA! =) & CANADA, (relatives from there.. so I have some canadian blood in me 2) =)

 

[DMAG]

Both cars are getting pretty outdated. If you want bang for the buck, go for the Altima instead of the Maxima...almost as much horsies and they are just about the same size now.

 

[sphere79]

Keep in mind that Nissan doesn't have alot of dealers outside New England ( where 70% of it's sales come from ) and the West Coast.

First off, I didn't notice the original poster was in Canada, sorry about that. Second, that "70% of it's sales" statement refers to US sales, I should have clarified. Hence Nissan's claim a year or two ago to having the "best selling import 4-door V6 in New England".

I've read that Nissan wanted to develop either a new Minivan ( the current Nissan is on a shared platform with Mercury ) or SUV, but that Renault shot it down ( probably wisely ). Word is also that there COULD be Renaults badged as Nissans in the future US market... if the auto industry doesn't "crash" due to economics and some of the struggling, hangers-on stick around.

My 2 cents is.. I WILL NEVER EVER OWN A JAP CRAP OR ANY OTHER FOREIGN CAR.. I LOVE CHRYSLER! =)

Well, sorry to be the one to burst your bubble but Chrylser is no longer an American company. I.E. - firing of American management and replacement with German management. This means that finacing a loan with Chrylser is technically no different than a loan with Volkswagen, unfortunatly. After the "merger" Chrysler was pulled from the S+P 500 because only American companies are allowed to be listed.

So, while your '96 isn't - technically a new Intrepid IS made by a "foriegn" company. Yes - it IS American engineered and built in North America, but so are alot of "imports" these days. But even if Americans built it, Toyota/Honda/etc. still makes the initial profits and gets hundreds of thousands of dollars from the financing, none of which will be seen by the US economy.

 

[viprman]

It is hard to pass up any car that runs 14's in the quarter.

 

[DjPiLL]

Yeah but everyone and their mother owns a Maxima. And yeah that new Altima looks sweet... but in two years, everyone and their brother will own that as well.

Im a proud owner of an R/T. Its not very common on the road and that to me says a lot.

Last weekend I met up with a bunch of girls at a bowling alley. Well they never saw what I drove because I would always meet them somewhere. Well I was parked right in front of the alley... first spot next to the front doors. When we walked out they started walking down the way toward the crappy cars parked... and I turned and said... "no I am right here".

Their eyes poped open when they saw my ride. They were like "Oooooh my... what car is that?" Needless to say they were real impressed. Not just because my car looks hot... and much better than a Maxima IMO... but since its more rare. The lines on the Intrepid look better than any other car out there.

I would not have gotten that reaction if I owned a Maxima. Yeah its a Maxima, top of the class for Nissan. I bought one this year, along with 150,000 other people out there. How many R/Ts were made? Not nearly that many.

As far as holding the value... the R/T loses value a lot quicker, but down the road 6 years from now, the gap wont be that large. Even a Nissan cannot hold the value that long.

 

[SPOOK R/T]

I run 15.1 with my R/T and that is on the cheap gas. If i remmber right the Rice Jap car needs 92 stuff higher gas bills at every fill up. You can go and get heated seat from after market shops. They have them around here in Minn for around 300.00 US dollars. I am not every going to by a Jap car. My Grandfathers brother died on the Battleship Arizona. And my wife is From the Philippines The Japs did Horrendous things to the prisoners and civilians. The Battan Death March, the Rape of Nakin. Killing more than 20 million Chinese civilians in WW2. They were way worse the the Nazis were. And a lot of the current CEO`s of Japan fought in WW2. Im sorry but i can`t give my money to Murders. People need to remmber the past like Pearl Harbor.

 

[TehKing]

I hate to say it, but its becoming more and more a global community, and nationalism is starting to go the way of the dinosaur.

Perhaps its a good thing. That way we can stop bitching and complaining about what who did to whom. My ancestors were annihilated in German death marches and baked in ovens at Auchwitz, yet you don't hear me crying in my beer.

(Thats bound to cause some trouble...)

 

[DMAG]

Mitsubishi made planes for the Japaneese WWII

Daimler made tanks for the Germans in WWII

Chrysler made tanks for America in WWII

Now they are all one company.

Can't really buy any of their products if we are dedicated to buying "American", can we?

Buy what you want.

[ December 10, 2001: Message edited by: Intrepidatious ]