• Pros

• Unique styling. You’ll love it or hate it, but those who love it will find the sculptural styling one of the car’s top attributes.
• Plenty of power. The Maxima has a 300 hp 3.5 liter V6 engine that will never leave your right foot wanting. It uses a continuously variable transmission (CVT), which is completely unobtrusive around town, and which boosts mileage to an impressive, EPA-rated 25 mpg overall (22/30). We averaged 23 in city driving.
• The eight-inch center touchscreen is clear, intuitive, and easy to use, as these things go.
• Comes with a full slate of safety features, including blind spot warning, forward collision warming, automatic emergency braking, and more.
• Comfortable, heated and cooled front seats, heated steering wheel … lots of luxury amenities.
• The car’s “sport mode,” which tightened up the suspension and tweaked the CVT, made it more fun to drive.

• Cons

• Unique styling. If you’re one of the people who finds it overdone or garish, we can’t come up with a compelling reason for you to consider the Maxima. Unfortunately, the styling is the primary reason people will buy this car.
• Big outside, small inside. The interior is surprisingly cozy for what is a pretty large car. Head room is not great in front, and practically non-existent in back for six-footers.
• Visibility is poor. The rear-view camera is a helpful necessity. Although it’s a cheap quality, rear-view camera that is particularly hard to use at night.
• Ride quality is sometimes harsh.
• Steering is heavy, but for no good reason. There’s no road feel associated with it.
• Under heavy acceleration, the CVT is very loud, and under full acceleration, the Maxima produces torque steer.
• Unless you love the styling, we find it hard to justify the nearly $40,000 price tag.

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