Test Drive: 2009 Nissan Maxima

2009 Nissan Maxima. Click image to enlarge

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2009 Nissan Maxima

Oshawa, Ontario – Each time I pick up a test vehicle, I like to keep the press kit closed. On the drive home, I get a feel for the car, check out its features, and try to guess what it costs, to see if my first impression checks out with how much the manufacturer is charging for it.

My Nissan Maxima tester was decked out in top-of-the-line Premium Trim, with a navigation system, and I clocked it at about $51,000. Don’t expect to see me win big on The Price Is Right anytime soon, as my estimate was $7,850 high: from a base price of $37,900, the Maxima swings up to my tester’s $43,150. That’s a pretty good first impression. (Yes, it starts at $29,290 at U.S. dealers. Try to look surprised.)

2009 Nissan Maxima. Click image to enlarge

Although it received a styling makeover in 2007, the Maxima has been completely redesigned for 2009; the first thing you notice is that it no longer looks like an Altima (quite frankly, at first glance, I always had trouble telling them apart). Front-end styling is now heavily influenced by the GT-R, with rectangular grille, pancake hood, and attractive headlamps that are set deep into the fascia and hook up into the fenders. The muscular sides bulge out at the flanks – no plain slab-styling here – and the wheel arches wrap nicely around the rubber. The swept-up tail “pushes” the design forward, although to my eye, it bears resemblance to the Toyota Camry. It’s pretty impressive at night, though, when a series of LED points brighten up the wraparound taillights.

The Maxima comes in a single trim line, with available options and packages. While it uses a 3.5-litre V6 engine as before, it’s been upgraded and enhanced: horsepower rises from 255 to 290, and torque from 252 to 261 lb-ft. It’s now on Nissan’s “D” platform, used with the Altima and Murano; apparently the company considered rear-wheel drive and ultimately sidestepped it in favour of what it says is FWD’s lower costs, lower weight and roomier interior – you’ll have to go to Infiniti if you want the chirp to come off the back tires.

2009 Nissan Maxima. Click image to enlarge

Nissan is pegging the Maxima as a sports sedan. I think that’s a stretch – no matter how good it is, no front-driver’s going to take that crown – but it’s a well-done blend of sporty performance with comforting luxury, and it certainly stands up to competitors such as the Mazda6, Acura TL and Lexus ES. Hard-core drivers will probably also object to the Maxima’s sole choice of a CVT transmission, with no offer of a manual gearbox. But this shiftless automatic is very well done – Nissan puts some of the best examples of these units into its vehicles – and like it or not, the vast majority of buyers prefer to let their vehicles do the work. The car also meets its driver halfway with a manual shift mode, including F1-style paddles on the column, and the system works exceptionally well, with rapid-fire “shifts” that really feel like there are cogs in the box. I also like that if you use the paddles alone, without putting the shift lever into manual mode, you can downshift when necessary and then, after a few seconds, the system will revert to full automatic mode.

2009 Nissan Maxima. Click image to enlarge

Torque-steer has been dialed back until it’s just a slight tug on the hardest acceleration. Steering is precise, but it’s a bit overboosted, and I would have liked a bit more heft to the wheel. It’s very nimble, thanks in part to a shorter wheelbase, wider front and rear track and a steering ratio Nissan says is the quickest of any of its sedans, but the ride is firm, and that’s what might confuse some buyers: it’s harsher than expected in a vehicle that, overall, looks and acts more like a luxury car. A fixed rear seat that precludes folding it for extra cargo space, part of the Sport and Premium packages, gives the car more torsional rigidity (there’s a pass-through for long, narrow items such as skis). Nissan says the new Maxima has increased rigidity all over – a 15 per cent improvement in the body, and 100 per cent in the front strut mounts – and there’s virtually no body roll. The available 19-inch wheels that are part of the Sport package aren’t included on the Premium package, which rides on 18-inch rims; the sport-tuned suspension is also restricted to the Sport package.

The Maxima sounds really nice, too, with a throaty growl on acceleration. I averaged 9.8 L/100 km, to the official published figures of 10.8 L/100 km in the city and 7.7 L/100 km on the highway.

2009 Nissan Maxima. Click image to enlarge 2009 Nissan Maxima. Click image to enlarge 2009 Nissan Maxima. Click image to enlarge

Inside, the car is very roomy; standard seating is for five, but the Sport and Premium packages turn the rear seats into buckets, with room only for two in the back. Between them, there’s a wide armrest that swings down, containing cupholders and, oddly, switches that will adjust the climate control and stereo settings. I’m guessing there’s a way for the driver to disable them, but if there is, I couldn’t find it. Another oddity is the Premium’s heated and ventilated driver’s seat. I’ve seen this feature on plenty of vehicles, but this is the first time I’ve been in a car that doesn’t include it on the front passenger seat as well. I know Nissan’s trying to get across the idea of this being a “driver’s car”, but I was always taught that you don’t enjoy a treat unless you brought enough to share.

The seats are exceptionally comfortable, especially the rear ones, where the buckets are made even better with exceptional legroom. There is a lot of small-item storage, including a cavernous glove-box and large map pockets, and all cubbies in the centre console have covers. That said, the one over my cupholder was broken, which I found very odd considering that the car had only 1,500 km on it. In previous model-year Nissans, I’d noticed lightweight interior hardware that I often described as “brittle”; newer models felt more substantial, and I’m hoping that my tester was a rare example.

My only other complaint was with the position of the power mirror switch, which is located to the left of the steering wheel on the dash, and is too low to be quickly and easily adjusted. Other than that, the controls are simple and intuitive, including the optional navigation system, which was easy to use without needing to delve into the owner’s manual to figure out the basics.

Items added by the Sport package include the premium leather seats with memory, auto-dimming driver’s sideview mirror, auto tilt-down passenger mirror, Xenon headlamps and XM satellite radio; the Premium package builds on that and tosses in auto up/down controls on all windows, wood interior trim accents,

2009 Nissan Maxima. Click image to enlarge

the aforementioned rear-seat armrest with controls and the heated and cooled driver’s seat, an iPod interface, backup camera, and dual-panel sunroof with power sunshade (the front half opens, while the back panel is fixed). The Navigation package on my car also adds XM NaviTraffic and a 9.3-gb Music Box hard-drive system.

Overall, that’s a pretty fair deal in the Canadian market for what it costs, and given the Maxima’s performance and luxury feel, I’m not surprised that I guessed so far over its sticker. For a while there, Nissan let this car slide into blandness; it’s nice to know it’s back.