Originally posted by: BigSmooth
Originally posted by: uncJIGGA
Originally posted by: Ameesh
Originally posted by: uncJIGGA
The car that Maxima should have been...
the maxima is cool, that is fugly.
But why have two FWD, VQ-engined sedans? Why not let the Altima handle FWD V6, and make the Maxima RWD, V8?? When I say the M45 should have been a Maxima, I'm talking about the platform alone...not the exact styling etc. The M platform is quite a bit different than the flagship Q, n'est-ce pas?
They probably didn't want to alienate existing Maxima owners, who are very loyal. Don't forget than many people still think that FWD is superior to RWD in adverse weather conditions.
Additionally, they are now producing the Maxima in the U.S., presumably to keep costs down, at the same factory that builds Altimas IIRC. They can do this because they use the same platform.
They probably would have had to keep importing Maximas if they had based it on the RWD Gloria platform.