Narrowed my used car search down to 4 cars. Seeking opinions
01-08-17, 09:55 AM
#1
Driver School Candidate
Thread Starter
Narrowed my used car search down to 4 cars. Seeking opinions
Hey all, I am currently in the market for a used car and I'm having trouble deciding which one to get. I have narrowed my search down to the 02-06 Nissan Altima (preferably the v6), 02-03 Nissan Maxima, 02-08 Mazda6 (preferably the v6), and the 03-09 Subaru Legacy. Which is the overall better car in your opinion and why?
Thanks!
Thanks!
01-08-17, 10:22 AM
#4
Lexus Fanatic
Welcome to CL. 
I see you are in Ohio, a state with generally severe winters....especially in the Northeastern part of the state. For winter, the Legacy and its standard AWD would be the best of the four. Non-turbo 2.5L flat-four engines from that vintage do have some risk of head-gasket failure...not as much as those from earlier years. Rear wheel bearings are another potential weak point on Subies of that vintage.
Mazda6s from almost any vintage have good driving dynamics, and are generally considered Poor Man's BMWs. But their reliability has been somewhat spotty, and generally not up to equivalent Camrys or Accords. For several reasons, Nissan products from the early-mid 2000s had somewhat better reliability than later models. But excessive cost-cutting at that time, to try and bring Nissan back to profitability (Nissan was having serious financial troubles then and was bought out by Renault, a French company) made the Nissan interiors of that time, IMO, very unattractive.
I see you are in Ohio, a state with generally severe winters....especially in the Northeastern part of the state. For winter, the Legacy and its standard AWD would be the best of the four. Non-turbo 2.5L flat-four engines from that vintage do have some risk of head-gasket failure...not as much as those from earlier years. Rear wheel bearings are another potential weak point on Subies of that vintage.
Mazda6s from almost any vintage have good driving dynamics, and are generally considered Poor Man's BMWs. But their reliability has been somewhat spotty, and generally not up to equivalent Camrys or Accords. For several reasons, Nissan products from the early-mid 2000s had somewhat better reliability than later models. But excessive cost-cutting at that time, to try and bring Nissan back to profitability (Nissan was having serious financial troubles then and was bought out by Renault, a French company) made the Nissan interiors of that time, IMO, very unattractive.
Last edited by mmarshall; 01-08-17 at 10:25 AM.
01-08-17, 10:27 AM
#5
Driver School Candidate
Thread Starter
Welcome to CL.
I see you are in Ohio, a state with generally severe winters....especially in the Northeastern part of the state. For winter, the Legacy and its standard AWD would be the best of the four. Non-turbo 2.5L flat-four engines from that vintage do have some risk of head-gasket failure...not as much as those from earlier years. Rear wheel bearings are another potential weak point on Subies of that vintage.
Mazda6s from almost any vintage have good driving dynamics, and are generally considered Poor Man's BMWs. But their reliability has been somewhat spotty, and generally not up to equivalent Camrys or Accords. For several reasons, Nissan products from the early-mid 2000s had somewhat better reliability than later models. But excessive cost-cutting at that time, to try and bring Nissan back to profitability (Nissan was having serious financial troubles then and was bought out by Renault, a French company) made the Nissan interiors of that time, IMO, very unattractive.
I see you are in Ohio, a state with generally severe winters....especially in the Northeastern part of the state. For winter, the Legacy and its standard AWD would be the best of the four. Non-turbo 2.5L flat-four engines from that vintage do have some risk of head-gasket failure...not as much as those from earlier years. Rear wheel bearings are another potential weak point on Subies of that vintage.
Mazda6s from almost any vintage have good driving dynamics, and are generally considered Poor Man's BMWs. But their reliability has been somewhat spotty, and generally not up to equivalent Camrys or Accords. For several reasons, Nissan products from the early-mid 2000s had somewhat better reliability than later models. But excessive cost-cutting at that time, to try and bring Nissan back to profitability (Nissan was having serious financial troubles then and was bought out by Renault, a French company) made the Nissan interiors of that time, IMO, very unattractive.
I am from Cleveland, so we do have pretty bad winters here. And I do agree about the ugly interiors of the Nissans! I am not a fan of their deep set gauges.
01-08-17, 10:30 AM
#7
Lexus Fanatic
Trending Topics
01-08-17, 10:40 AM
#8
Lexus Test Driver
Just got a 2017 Legacy Sport with 2.5 4cyl and extremely impressed with the car.
Very comfortable and fun to drive, with direct steering.
Never drove the previous generation but have heard positive things.
I would pick the Legacy out of those choices. Go checkout Legacygt forums for info.
Very comfortable and fun to drive, with direct steering.
Never drove the previous generation but have heard positive things.
I would pick the Legacy out of those choices. Go checkout Legacygt forums for info.
Last edited by RNM GS3; 01-08-17 at 10:45 AM.
01-08-17, 10:42 AM
#9
Lexus Champion
Subaru Legacy
I will never buy a Nissan, I have friends with them and hear a never ending line of complaints. One guy refers to them as the Chrysler of the Japanese Imports. His Altima has been at the dealership for work more times than it has been at the gas station.
I will never buy a Nissan, I have friends with them and hear a never ending line of complaints. One guy refers to them as the Chrysler of the Japanese Imports. His Altima has been at the dealership for work more times than it has been at the gas station.
Last edited by mjeds; 01-08-17 at 11:16 AM.
01-08-17, 10:43 AM
#10
I would never recommend an old subaru to anyone unless you enjoy wrenching on your car alot.
01-08-17, 10:48 AM
#11
Lexus Fanatic
Weather can be pretty rough where you are and in Western New York. I drive in snowly conditions all the time and we have two FWD vehicles and two full time 4WD vehicles. We also have snow tires on one of our cars.
What are mileage estimates on the vehicles you are about to look at? Prices?
What are mileage estimates on the vehicles you are about to look at? Prices?
01-08-17, 10:50 AM
#12
Driver School Candidate
Thread Starter
Weather can be pretty rough where you are and in Western New York. I drive in snowly conditions all the time and we have two FWD vehicles and two full time 4WD vehicles. We also have snow tires on one of our cars.
What are mileage estimates on the vehicles you are about to look at? Prices?
What are mileage estimates on the vehicles you are about to look at? Prices?
01-08-17, 10:50 AM
#13
Lexus Test Driver
http://legacygt.com/forums/showthrea...i-196194.html?
I would never recommend an old subaru to anyone unless you enjoy wrenching on your car alot.
I would never recommend an old subaru to anyone unless you enjoy wrenching on your car alot.
I live in NY and there are TONS of old Subarus around here especially Foresters and Outback wagons.
Legacys are not as popular but are identical mechanically to Outback.
If I were the OP i would get a Toyota If reliability is #1 factor.
01-08-17, 10:51 AM
#14
Driver School Candidate
Thread Starter
