Driving Impressions : 2019 Nissan Maxima SR

By: Mark Moskowitz MD

I am not certain which box should house this Nissan Maxima. It's intermittently described as flagship, luxurious, sporting and full size. Easy to identify, the Maxima is distinctive with a character line which emphasizes the bulk of the front fenders and fades into the doors before reaching similarly muscular rear fenders.

The window trim extends through the sloping C-pillar separating the top from the Maxima's body. And the signature V Motion grill seems a bit more voluminous this year. The Boomerang shaped lamps remain and surround all-model standard LED headlights. Quad tip exhaust finishers adorn the rear. SR models feature a black wing and 19' gloss black alloy wheels. Noted is the longer wheelbase and slightly greater overall length of the far less expensive Nissan Altima!

Maxima's come in six configurations. Entry level S models begin at $34050. And prices creep up through SV, SL, SR, Platinum and Platinum Reserve lines, the lattermost starting at $42680. All have continuously variable transmissions, front wheel drive, a 300 horsepower V-6, automatic emergency braking, Apple Car Play and Android Auto. None have all wheel drive. At $2010 more than base, the SV seems to be the sweet spot adding Nav, leather, blind spot warning, intelligent cruise control and heated front seats.

I tested the $39350 SR with its standard fitment of a thicker front stabilizer bar, stiffer springs and sport tuned dampers. An extra $1820 was spent on a Premium Package which added a dual moonroof, automatic rear braking, memory buttons for the driver's seat and an auto dimming and tilting driver's side mirror. It was impressive inside: the comfortable buckets and rears had leather surrounds, quilted Alcantra microfiber seating surfaces, and contrasting double stitching. The pattern continued throughout the interior though on some surfaces like the soft composite of the right dash, faux stitching appeared. Despite a position beneath the vents, the 8-inch touch screen was easy to reach and see. The infotainment system was quick and feature rich. The display was pleasingly surrounded by a variety of switches, knobs and controls to instantly engage such features as the map or surround view camera thus obviating the need to scroll endlessly through a touch screen menu.

One thoughtful Nissan touch was placement of the posted speed limit in the instrument cluster rather than on the navigation screen. There it was one inch above the digital speed readout and just to the left of the cruise control speed. No mistakes possible. One still had to tread carefully as on downhill grades the cruise control rarely retarded the speed of descent.

The center console could house a larger cell phone and hold it upright. My thin protective case made for a very tight fit. Foot room front and rear was more than adequate though that combination of dual moonroof, low profile roof and dramatic rear slope might discourage those of more than average height. Behind the fold down seats, trunk space was an adequate 14.3 cubic feet.

The drive was best described as easy and pleasant. Acceleration was brisk; the iPad recorded 0-60 times under six seconds. Shift points could be determined by moving the console mounted stick or column mounted paddles and were seemingly adjusted by sport mode. I dd not feel great differences in steering response or feel from normal mode to sport. But also found neither hampered by an artificial resistance so common in other cars. Body lean was more than expected in a sport sedan and occupants were a bit less shielded from bumps and road noise than they might be in a luxury sedan. And is it just me or is it the car? I just don't get the expected juice paddle shifting a CVT transmission.

I hope readers are sensing the theme here. The Maxima offers distinctive styling and an attractive functional and comfortable interior. It boasts an array of safety features. As Maxima escapes an image of an embellished economy sedan, its underpinnings and attitude have not landed it squarely in either the sport or luxury space. Then again, entry into those spaces might cost buyers of similarly fitted cars thousands more.

(incl. dual moonroof, automatic rear braking, auto dim drivers side mirror and tilt, memory seat, surround view)

Photo credit: Mark Moskowitz MD

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