2SAVVY

Ok this is sort of off topic but it might not be.. Confused yet??

My cousin emails me to check out the new Nissan Altima (I'll post a pic at the bottom) just so I could give him my impressions.. So the 2002 Altima will be coming with a hot version that will have 240 hp out of a 3.5 litre engine.. So I question myself isn't that outpowering your #1 car in your line-up (Aka Maxima) right now..

So my question to you guys/gals do you think the new Maxima will become a GS fighter in Nissan's line-up??

whitediamond

That Altima is a good looking car. With 240 ponies it should move briskly though im not really a Nissan person. They certainly are not at the level as the Toyota/Honda products in terms of quality/reliability. The Maxima is gone for a year or so I read while it moves a little upscale. Though other mags have stated that the MAX is gone for good.

tinygs

No Sir, not a GS class car yet! For the mean time the Max will be 260HP. About the time the GS is due for drastic change (I think the 2004 model year, released late 2003, dont quote me on that) the Max is rumored to be moving to a V8 with ?????HP....
For now, the Max is still the flag ship. But, in an article posted on Edmunds, Nissan stated that they expect the "ENTRY LEVEL" Max will be outsold by the "LOADED" Altima(both around $25k) until the next major change to the Max takes place... Tiny

LexusRules

its sad isn't it.... geez it really looks like a monte carlo from the rear......... haha

davezaristo

Check out the following pic:






A nice replica of our GS..and guess where these guages came from??

LexusRules

OMG! i cna't belive how exactly identical those gauges are to ours!! the tach on the left.. same... same speedo in the center thats slightly larger than the other two, same milage thing below speedo in little box, same blinkers by themselves, same shifter lights and it makes a little curve JUST LIKE THE GS!!, the only diiference is the black (UGLY) and the gauge on the right with the gas and oil are both on the right (UGLY), now i know why they have to copy!! nissan went down the drain! they should have stuck with their old skyline design for cars and they would be GREAT. the new one is discusting too!

mooretorque

Imitation may be flattery, but that yaller color makes me kinda nauseous.

Manaray

Hey 2Savvy, you didn't see my Altima GT-R I did back in June?

I think for the money, the Altima is now a pretty decent car...but the gauges...eh, they could have been a little more original...

2SAVVY

Manaray,

I must of missed that one buddy (BTW nice body kit).. I agree guys the gauge package looks so similar to the GS but not as nice as Sasha pointed out.. It does look like a Monte Carlo at the rear.. LOL

Infiniti/Nissan doesn't really have anything to compete with the GS.. I guess the J30 was suppose to one day be a GS fighter but it died as quickly as it came out.. It would be interesting to see the Maxima with a V8 (Thanks TinyGs for the heads up) and maybe 300 plus ponies just as long as they get someone to do some nice exterior styling (Steal away some Chrysler designers or something).. Even the new upcoming Z car does nothing for me.. The old 300 ZX was amazing but ever since I don't know what they have been doing styling wise with all their cars and trucks..

My cousin is going to buy the hot version of the Altima this fall.. He is moving from a Malibu to this so at least its a step in the right direction..

D-MAN63

They even copied the GS's dual exhaust?! IMO, it won't be a threat to a GS4, but WILL be a threat to a GS3 in terms of performance. Lexus should really up the GS3's HP to atleast 250HP and the GS4's to 330HP to keep up with all the other competition.

LexusRules

i think we're getting too far ahead of ourselves, i don't think we have to worry aobut all these HP number, for starters all the FF cars won't perform, because they can't. the FR cars with high HP numbers will have 2 things happen to them

A) the manufacturer will take off 20HP here and 10 there, while claiming "it was neccessary for emmissions"

and

B) they will make their cars with crappy interior quality (lots of plastics) to be able to afford the high HP and then the over luxury of the car will fall

this just reminded me of something... oh yea AMERICAN CARS!! haha bye nissan you may as well join them. :eek:

thats just my prediciton n e ways

DakaDan

That yellow color on the gauges has to go..


DakaDan

GlobeCLK

iTrader: (5)

not really
if you realize that this is a ALTIMA then, ok they can have that it'll be a nice MATCH with the car itself.:eek:

Mark

I think Nissan is going a step further in distinguishing their cars. I do like the idea of 240hp on the Altima. Remember where the GS came from. You guys sound like some of the fellows from Mercedes and BMW before the GS 400 came out. Give credit when it is due. I hope Nissan succeed in their quest. I love to see how Toyota will respond.

2SAVVY

Mark,

I agree partially with you.. Its good to see Nissan at least trying something different but it looks like they have snatched different things off other cars (Monte Carlo rear tailights, Dash that looks like a GS ect ect).. As long as they escalate things then other car makers (Toyoya/Lexus included) will be forced to make their vehicles better and in the end we are all better for that..

BTW that eye is super annoying.. LOL