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2003 Altima SE 3.5

R

railer

Golden Member
It's got about 80k, black, 5 sp, good condition. Not sure about any other details beyond the SE package, as I haven't seen it yet. I should be able to pick it up for mid 7's.

My first choice was an 04 maxima, but they go for around 10k, which is a bit more than I want to spend.

Any Altima love in here?
 
mine's an 05' with 54k miles.

the 03' has a cheaper interior and lighter doors. other than the slight difference in power ratings, interior, the grill and the amber turn signals, the manual cars are pretty much the same. the 02-04 automatic is a 4-speed

interior space is excellent, you can sit 5 with ease. although the trunk is slightly impeded by the hinges. it gets me about 18/24 mpg. was able to get 27mpg over a 120-mile stretch on the I95. got it a few thousand miles ago and has been problem-free so far. the VQ is a beast, and with a stick-shift, you should be able to go to 60 under 6 seconds.
 
IMO, it's a great power-to-weight monster. Should be able to pick it up cheap. However, many complaints were about dashboard rattles that were addressed in the next MY.
 
I haven't heard any disparaging words regarding the old Altimas. The last Maxima generation I heard had some issues, the one where they changed the body style to what it is today. That's not a bad car for 7k and it should be pretty reliable. The mileage is a bit higher than what I'd go for, but it sounds like it's priced right and higher miles won't be an issue if it wasn't abused and was taken care of.
See if it has had its tmiing belt done. I think the Altima has a belt as opposed to a chain. 80-100k is usually where they recommend changing those. When you test drive it run up the rpms fairly high in each gear to check for clutch slipping and pay attention to how smooth it shifts in case it's got probs with the synchros. Other than that look for oil drips, eyeball the rotors if you can, test the AC etc. If it looks good though I'd go for it. That's a nice car for the price.
 
Altima has a timing chain that doesn't need to be replaced. I have an 02 Max 3.5 SE 6 speed. Some VQs have oil burning issues but solid besides that.
 
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