1992 Nissan Maxima SE | Retro Review 

In hindsight....this was peak Nissan wasn't it?? And 0-60 in 7.2 seconds was haulin for a sedan back in 1992, would still be acceptably quick by today's standards!

These Maximas had a sticker on them proudly proclaiming it to be a "4DSC" -- a 4-Door Sports Car.

One of the best sedans to grace our shores at least up to a point. The power train is still better than many of today.

Back when Nissan had reliability that actually rivaled Toyota

The 90-94 Maxima SE w/ 5spd was THE car! It really had amazing curb appeal for that era, seemingly to appear much more expensive than it was. The interior was nice for a car of its price. And I loved John's reference to the all-white gauges being odd...which became a HUGE trend in the 90s/2000s😂.

The 90's were like the golden age for Nissan. Maxima, in my opinion, was always a cut above competition in the segment, for what little competition actually existed. For most brands you would have to go to their premium marque in order to get something comparable.

My neighbor bought one when she was promoted to principal at the elementary school she worked at. She drove it for twenty years and replaced it with a new one when she retired. She said she has had more trouble with the new one in the short time she has owned it than she did in the two decades that she owned the original one!

Incredibly handsome design. Sadly, you never see these anymore!

These were fun to drive. 0-60 in 7.2 seconds and 60-0 in 109 feet was impressive even by today’s standards. My family had one of these and I learned how to drive in it. So much fun stepping on the gas. That V6 was so smooth! 😊

Such a fun car to drive with a manual

These Maximas were built to last. Knew a couple people in high school who had around 200k on theirs and they held together well.

Back when Nissan was a truly respectable car company

You were a baller if you had one of these in SE trim back in the early nineties.

My first car at 16. 1990 red Maxima GLE. Looking back I cant believe how nice of a car it was for being only 10yrs old when I purchased it. Some of the more interesting options were the digital dash with heads up display. Comfort and sport suspension buttons and Bose stereo. Until this video I had no idea it was a twin cam v6.

I lusted after this car throughout the 90s. I still love the design. I always thought the "4-door sports car" advertising was a gimmick, but after watching the MW review of the 1992 Honda Prelude Si, the Maxima SE proved itself worthy of such a label with faster acceleration and better braking. The Prelude Si was no slouch either.

Tuned up, these things would smoke just about anything at the street race. This and the Gallant, fun times.

This generation of Maxima definitely earned its "4-Door Sports Car" moniker with this powertrain and chassis.

7.2 seconds was pretty fast for it’s time. It’s curb weight was only 3,000 lbs so it didn’t have much body mass. These were probably the most reliable imo, especially with the manual. The best Altimas however for reliability were first and second gens (93-01) and the best performing Altimas were the third gen (02-06). Third gen Altima was the only one that could be purchased with a 3.5 V6 and a manual.

R.I.P. Nissan Maxima (1981-2023)😢

Peak Japan was in the late 80s through the 90s. Manufacturers had plenty of extra money to make some really interesting stuff. Even their bread and butter cars were full of unique touches to try and one up the competition and were for the most part dominating the reliability market. On the other end, their sports cars were legendary.

Best part was its silky rev-of the engine for me. Awesome shifter also.

Such a handsome car!

My dad had a 1990 and 1997. Amazing cars and integral parts of my childhood memories. 👍

When Nissan had life!!!!!

I loved the white analog gauges.

I had a 1993 Nissan Maxima GXE over 24 yrs ago (Ibought used. 6 yrs old when purchased). Loved it for 4 yrs. Until it was totaled. I now own a 2022 Nissan Maxima SV (I bought new). I love the final generation Maxima! Long live Nissan's 4DSC!

Rest in peace, Nissan Maxima (1981-2023) 😢

Had a 93 SE same color great car

Great looking design for being introduced in the late 80s and sold into the early 90s. I remember I had a preschool teacher who owned one of these.

Nissan’s peak, with the 300ZX and the excellent Sentra.

I remember back when I was a teenager I had a white 93 SE and a friend of mine had a Civic EG hatch with a B16 swap that everyone thought was really fast, another friend had a then new 2002 Sentra Spec V. We all went to the track and my 100k+ Maxima with a filter on a stick and no muffler was the only car to get into the 14’s. 🤘

It's so odd how few views these mtoroweek retro reviews get. I honestly don't get it.

My friend is high school got his dad’s hand me down ‘90 Maxima SE 5 speed. I thought that was the coolest car especially considering I got a hand me down ‘89 Civic DX sedan(black bumpers, no passenger mirror and NO RADIO😢).

The white Guage's were the thing that made the whole interior pop,my favorite aspect of the interior...

Aww that my car. She is sitting in the garage now

Best car of the 90s!

I remember the sticker on the rear window: 4DSC. Unfortunately, it's achilles heal was Front drive.

My aunt drove one. In red, with the 5 speed. She was cool.

Maximas were small back then. The new Sentras are just a tad longer in wheelbase length. Cars have gotten bigger over the years. It's all about comfort and safety.

I had this same year and model but with black interior. I put 16" wheels from a 98 Maxima SE which gave it a nice OE plus update and improved the handling. My Dad had a 94 Taurus SHO manual at the time, both cars felt about as fast, with the Maxima's handling and ride feeling more direct.

Had one with over 300k not sure if was org drive train though

I'd love to find one of these and excellent condition with the stick shift. That'd be an absolute blast to drive. 😇

This has always been my favorite Maxima Styling... it might be square and bland but I always liked it, a lot over the following jelly bean styling

One of the last reliable Nissans, before the CVT debacle.

7.2 seconds 0-60 miles/hour in the 1992. such an amazing car.

My parents drove their 1992 SE until 2009. Probably their favorite car ever. It took some convincing to get them to move on, but the mouse belts, ancient airbag, and 20-year-old-design crashworthiness (plus the rusty sills) meant it was time.

I want one of these. 4DSC

I had a 1993 back in the day, and it was an absolutely fantastic sedan. Build quality was amazing, much better than the BMW I bought to replace it afterward.

Had a 91 Infiniti i30 basically same car, to this day smoothest engine “vq30” I ever drove

Damn those old school nose dives! 😂

I would love to find one in decent shape today

I remember people who I was stationed with during my time in the Air Force who owned these and were always bragging about them. I couldn’t afford one in the 90’s and in the early 2000’s I went through a few Mustang GT’s before buying a 2011 Maxima. I loved that car even though it had a cvt transmission and it handled so well for the car it was but still rode smoothly on the highway. I ended up trading it for a 2014 Stage 3 Roush Mustang in August 2015 because the car had sat on the lot for 16 months and it was discounted $20K! Over the next year I had a smaller pulley installed and the tune to go with it, a MGW shifter which completely changed the fun in driving the car, a one piece driveshaft, and spherical bearing suspension by BMR. After all that work it was definitely faster than the Maxima but still couldn’t hold a corner as well unless the pavement was completely smooth!

Man my nephew is a fan of those! He love them! He’s been buying Máximas since 1990s! He still has a 92-2001 and now he owns a 2020 sr! They are awesome cars! They’re all in color white!

I really liked these back in the day - but I went with the car the mentioned as a competitor, a 91 SHO - and overall I think it was a better choice. I really miss the days when you could choose from any number of interesting mid sized near luxury sport sedans with a manual; there was always something interesting to consider when it came time for a new car.

This vehicle is an absolute legend! I remember my neighbor had theirs parked on the curb and I was enamored by that 4DSC in the window. So good looking.

My dad had this model year maxima with the 5 spd fun car

My aunt had one in white! Ran for 130K miles until it got wrecked by a flood.

The company, simply put, screwed up a good thing.

The maxima was such a great car from the early 90s until the early 2000s. The 5.5 Gen with the 3.5 VQ and the 6 speed was such a quick, fun FWD car. Nissan was historically the sporty and reliable Japanese choice. CVTs and silly choices have now become what Nissan is known for.

Nissan absolutely squandered away Maxima’s reputation

Nissian made good reliable vehicles back then.

The years before Nissan sought to destroy all its cars with a truly awful transmission

Menace II Society, check out those wheels

Best Nissan sedans ever made until 2007 company decided to go to cvt transmission and messed it up

A step above most American sedans from that time...Good car

That is the Nissan Maxima. The bloated turd with the CVT being sold today is just sad.

4DSC worked at a dealer when they where new as a 16 year old

How far Nissan has fallen...

One of the best looking Maxima's! 😍

I remember my math teacher Miss Allen had the exact same one fully loaded back in 1993 in elementary school and it too was a 5 speed manual and she gave me a ride home. I was the man back in the day and it was a fine ride back then and finding one in good condition if any left is impossible.

This was my first new car. Put 120k on it in five years. Fun, practical and very reliable.

4DSC - four door sports car, those were the days baby

3:00. That rear seat looks massive and comfortable

Still a good looking car after 30 plus years

This was a real beautiful car back in the day.

This was my favorite version of the Maxima.

Love this car. Always one of my favorites.

A lot of car, for sure, but it IS ~$53K with inflation. Amazing how cheap cars have become.

I had a used 1992 Maxima GXE. Very fun to drive compared to the Corolla my sister had totaled. Sadly my sister ended up totaling the Maxima too - though that time it was not her fault. Needed very little work up until being totaled. I absolutely miss that Maxima - never cared for any later Maximas (or Nissans in general).

These things had too much grip for their suspension you could say (although their soft suspension likely contributed to the grip). A friend used to autocross one of these, and with modern summer tires the body roll was even worse. I rode along with him one run and it was the worst I'd ever experienced. Fairly typical of Japanese cars of the time though according to their soft suspension philosophy.

And my 2002 Maxima was fast and fun but the biggest piece of crap rolling.

I've been waiting for this episode ! classic , thank you .

lol my 4 cyl camry has the same power

By far and away my favorite Gen Maxima. They just got too big after this generation. These had nice lines, were fun to drive, and if you add window tint and some aftermarket rims then you had a real head turner.

Yes Motorweek! Thanks for sharing this review, although it's a short one. Where's the capacities, mileage, hits/misses, competitors? Not even a quip from John Davis that the gauges aren't comprehensive enough lol. Anyway, this is my white whale. Going into university in 99 I begged my folks for a few grand to get a 92 SE manual, pearl white on black leather one owner in great shape. It was $12,900. Saved for another year but none were up for sale sadly and had to settle for a 93 626ES V6 manual. Although I have a 90 GTR, I still scour the web for a clean 92-94 Maxima SE manual!

This was my second car (first was a 1988 sentra) I bought this car "preowned" in 1997 for i think like 10k from a dealership. This is my most memorable vehicle I've ever had in my life. It was a pearl white 1992 maxima SE manual transmission with tan and black interior like this one, 4dsc , 145mph on the dash (Gxe only had 125mph on the dash. ) and i had that car pinned past the 145 , i don't know how fast i was actually going or if it was accurate but it was extremely fast , I felt like the car was going to turn upside down sideways like a speed boat and flip. I had no respect for the car at the time though because i was making money young 17 years old. I still have weird dreams where i still own this car and it's still sitting somewhere stored. I threw 18" rims on it which were huge back then. This was my most memorable car. RIP because I destroyed it in just under 2 years. Lifters were ticking on month 2 🤦‍♂️ I destroyed it and now i want to buy a cream puff version of it if anyone selling lmk. I did so much wild cool stuff with this car.

When the Maxima was truly the Maxima. Maybe they could revive the Maxima by stretching the 400z platform and adding 2 more doors.

I bought a 1991 maxima only had ironically 91k same as the year made when I got it . I had to change all the heathers front and back change timing belt water pump . A tune up . Then I took it to Vegas with a trailer that weighed over 2500 pounds . What help with that Nissan is I had more torque then horses . 181 torque and around 165 horses . I drove to Vegas and back . No issues . . That was 2006. Love that car . Great engine .

From the days when you could trust the transmission in a Nissan. I had a '99 Maxima...not altogether different from the 1992. It still had the 3.0 VQ engine. It was a great car and the build quality was excellent - it was built in Japan. I'm not of the opinion the current ones coming out of Tennessee are nearly as high quality.

My first car! Bought it used with about 190k on it in ‘06 for about $1,000. Lasted me 3 years before I sold it to a friend. I miss the ole girl.

My first car! That thing was so cool for its time. I drove that thing into the damn ground and ended up selling it for 1.5k

My father bought a 1993 Toyota Camry XLE 4-cylinder. I told him to consider this car instead, but he didn't listen! Man, if he did, I would have loved to drive this car!

Had a 1992 SE 5M w/ the sunroof, LSD and BOSE sound system I got used in 2002. I REALLY wish I had held onto that car.

That was my first car but I totaled it in 2008, they want $3000 on repair cost and it has lots of propblem so the engine blew up on me so I totaled it and bought me a new 2008 Toyota Camry.

The GOAT. I should have bought one when I could. Probably my greatest automotive regret.

Back when Nissan made desirable cars…not just monthly payment specials! Bring back those days Nissan

01:28: Was there even any oil in the gearbox? Seriously, it sounds like shifting through gears with the transmission on the bench.

6.2 is far from slow, we had a 93’, I embarrassed so many ricers while hauling 4 people and the AC on 😆

Look at them MF wheels! 😂 (IYKYK)

I miss the simplicity and naturally aspirated V6's of the time but one thing I don't miss are those horrid motorized door mounted seat belts. Didn't see the point as you still had to manually put on the lap belt.