2003 Nissan Maxima SE

[ryanschillinger]

I live in Southern California. Will be picking up an 03 maxima SE auto soon. I think the tires might be getting close to replacement. 17" factory alloys if I understand. 225/50-17 stock size. Seems the general altimax rt43 is a favored tire? I'll be using it as a work car, lots of driving. Extra tread life would far outweigh any handling or noise benefits in my case. I don't want bad tires that will wear out in 25k miles either. I'm a Michelin fan but think the price difference between those and the generals is too much to ignore. Advice?

 

[skyactiv]

For whatever reason, the General Altimax RT43 is the preferred overall tire on bitog.
BUT, General makes that tire in two speed rating generally for many given sizes. The proper V rated tire which the Maxima is engineered for has the same treadwear rating as the sloppy handling T rated version you shouldn't put on that car. Plus the V rated tire has a better heat rating of A vs the T rated B's.

And a side note, that Maxima was designed to run on 91 octane fuel and you'll see a decal indicating such when you open the fuel door.

I'd find something else if you wanna detune the car by running cheap gas and improper tires on it.

 

[mclasser]

Fellow VQ35 owner here. Kumho makes decent tires at a good price. Put up some pics of the Maxi when you get a chance.

 

[ryanschillinger]

I'm getting it at a very good price. My uncle was going to trade it in on his new mazda3. I don't mind v rated tires and premium fuel if necessary. I'm just asking what would be a decent tire for the money, and often the see rt43 come up in tire discussions.
The car is a little dinged up, but not too bad. And nothing I'll complain about for the price I'm paying. Only issue getting the car is a plane flight to Northern California to pick it up before driving back to Southern California the next day.

 

[Nick1994]

Wow, that car has seen some stuff! Lol!

Go for the Generals. I've had them on my Camry for about 10k miles and 4 months now and am very happy. They aren't very sporty, but I drive an old Camry so there goes needing a sporty tire.

Pop that bumper off (not that difficult) and you can use some boiling water to pour on that dent and push the dent back out. Maybe a hair dryer, not sure if it would get hot enough.

 

[slacktide_bitog]

The RT43 is well-liked on here.

Other good tires include the Kumho Solus TA71, Dunlop Signature II, and Sumitomo HTR Enhance LX

Unfortunately, the Michelin Defender doesn't seem to be available for your car.

Goodyear has the Assurance Fuel Max, which may have slightly less tread life, but is supposed to be a good fuel-efficient tire.

 

[ThirdeYe]

A little dinged up? It looks like it survived a war!

I'm just giving you a hard time. I'm a bit fan of that generation of Maxima. I'm sure it'll serve you well.

 

[ryanschillinger]

I think a heat gun should get it hot enough without blistering the paint. Like I said. I'm getting it for very cheap and it only has 108k miles. Most of the stuff down the side looks like rubber scuff, and that would polish off. It has lived in a town near San Francisco but normally garaged and maintained.
Sucks I just put Michelin defenders on my civic a couple months ago. Plus lifetime alignment and a bunch of other maintenance and repairs. It's a really good little car, and gets awesome mileage, but it's kinda small and loud. I miss my 2000 Camry for comfort. It had 308k miles when I sold it.

I looked on consumer reports and the T rated generals scored just as well as the V rated. More tread life also. I'm not taking it to track days or anything. I bet the T would be just fine, but probably go with the V since they're about the same price where I looked.

 

[SLCraig]

Great car.. I had a 2002 SE 6 speed for a while, it did me no wrong, and its a straight line monster. Well, maybe not as far as modern standards go, but it sure was when it first came out.

 

[ryanschillinger]

Yeah this one might not be pretty, but has low miles and I can't beat the price. My old 03 frontier was probably the most reliable vehicle I've ever owned.

 

[rcy]

I swear I'm not stalking you...lol. You could check some local wreckers for a non dented bumper - that silver colour was quite popular. I had a 2000 with the 3.0 until wife wrote it off last winter. It's been replaced with a 2004. I think you might have HIDs as well.

 

[HerrStig]

Originally Posted By: Nick1994
Wow, that car has seen some stuff! Lol!

Go for the Generals. I've had them on my Camry for about 10k miles and 4 months now and am very happy. They aren't very sporty, but I drive an old Camry so there goes needing a sporty tire.

Pop that bumper off (not that difficult) and you can use some boiling water to pour on that dent and push the dent back out. Maybe a hair dryer, not sure if it would get hot enough.
You would be very surprised what really good rubber and a front strut bar can do for a Gen 4 Camry. Upgrading the early Gen 4- four bangers to 15 inch wheels (15x 6.5 or 7 for example)will really surprise you. You can buy steels which were made for the V6 version which came with 15s for small money. The later Gen 4 V6 came with 16s which are even better.

 

[ryanschillinger]

The car does have stock HID headlights and regular fog lights in the bumper. I have a heat gun, so the bumper repair shouldn't be too bad at all, just won't be a priority for now. I have been browsing craigslist for parts, figuring someone should have a better bumper cover, but nothing worthwhile yet.
I wasn't disappointed when I picked up the car. I was anticipating needing a bunch of work since he was going to donate it, but the tires still have plenty of tread. They could use a balance, and 4 wheel alignment. They are Bridgestones, don't remember the model, but 94V rating. They just had the oil changed with Mobil 1 5w30 and gave it to me with a full tank of gas. Drove over 400 miles from San Francisco to Buena Park without filling up. Seems like a pretty sweet car overall!

 

[raaizin]

I had a 2002 which is basically the same car and ran regular for all 188k miles I owned it. It didnt seem to hurt the car. Car was running fine when I got rid of it. I would check the oil pan on it, they tend to rust! The transmission has a drain plug which makes changing the fluid a snap.

 

[ryanschillinger]

Nice! It has a rattle at like 1700-2100rpm but I think it's something exhaust related. It doesn't do it in neutral, only when driving in gear. I've been driving it a couple weeks now. I really like it so far. I know it could use an alignment and wheel balance, and the interior needs a good detail. I replaced the missing grille emblem at least.

 

[ryanschillinger]

Well I ended up selling he maxima. Ordered a new Subaru Forester since we have a baby on the way (and I missed driving stick). The maxima was sure a nice driving car, and looking at the pictures makes me miss it already. After I bought it, I had the windows tinted, installed a JVC stereo, detailed it thoroughly inside, and cleaned up the outward appearance best I could. I sanded and polished the headlights, repainted both bumpers and the spoiler, and a bunch of other little things I can't think of right now. Had a ton of power but used about a quart of oil every thousand miles. That was all I could complain about. Here are a few pics of it before I sold it.

 

[slacktide_bitog]

Good luck with your Forester. We look forward to helping you select replacement tires on the new car when the time comes