After a week in Nissan's 250 ST-L
Maxima I suggest it should be given a new name: Minima. If you reckon that's a negative, think
again. Over the years I have driven many Maximas – usually the
top-of-the-line Ti variety – and have always considered the car to
be Nissan's luxury marque.
It is a wonderful touring car. The Minima
– oops – 250 ST-L Maxima changes the goal posts. Firstly, cost of
entry is $33,990 before on roads, which is minimal compared to the
larger-engined, better-equipped 350 ST-S and Ti variants.
A 350 ST-S will set you back $37,990
while the Ti is $46,990. The major difference between the models is
under the bonnet: the 250 has a 2.5 litre variant of the V6 VQ engine
compared to the 3.5 V6 in the St-S and Ti. All models are hooked up
to a CVT transmission. So the cheapest Maxima gets the best economy
and does away with some, but not all, of the bling that is added to
the two 350 models.
Our road test covered more than 900
kilometres including a two day trip south of the Gold Coast to the
northern rivers of NSW: Yamba, MacLean and Grafton, and returning via
Casino and Lismore. So there was lots of open road driving. Our fuel
economy for the trip was a meagre 8.7 litres/100 km which is not bad
for a medium to large size petrol-powered car that has full adult
seating for five and a boot with a similar capacity. Around town the
return drifted up to 9.1 litres/100 km, although Nissan claim a
combined economy of 9.5 litres/100 km. The bigger-engined vehicles
are claimed to return to 10.2 litres/100 km.
Maxima, like Toyota's Camry, is not a
vehicle to set the world on fire. A sports car it's not. So forget tar-hugging cornering, blistering
acceleration and handling like a Porsche. It is transport. And bloody
good transport at that. The cabin is well laid out and the rear pew
has good head and leg room for three adults. The driver's seat is
height adjustable so it is good for his/hers driving ... and the
seating positions are all power controlled.
There are a couple of things we did not
like: the hand brake is a push-on-push-off pedal that is really passe
in this day and age. Also, there's a push-button start/stop button.
Good for sports cars where punters expect gadgetry, but of doubtful
value to a Maxima owner who is more likely to prefer the simple act
of turning a key.
While Nissan has kept some of the
goodies back for the more up-market models, that does not mean the 250 ST-L has a poverty pack. For
starters there is leather upholstery. Then there's duel zone
air-conditioning plus a six stacker CD player and AUX-in and MP3
compatibility. In the key area of safety the entry level car gets the
identical package to the Ti: six airbags, active front headrests, ABS
brakes with dynamic stability control, plus the now `normal' range of
safety features.
So what does the 250 ST-L go without to
justify it's `Minima' name tag. Stuff that many drivers could easily
do without. The ST-L gets the bigger engine, rear parking sensors,
boot spoiler, intelligent keyless entry and heated front seats. Okay,
if you live in Hobart or Melbourne those heated seats may get a
working out over winter.
The Ti model adds DVD satellite
navigation with 3D mapping, a 7 inch full colour touch screen, DVD
player, reversing camera with predictive path technology, 11 speaker
Bose sound system with auxiliary MP3 player
input. Bluetooth hands-free telephone
technology is included as is a power sunroof. In the 250 ST-L the
seven inch screen is retained – not in full colour – and gives
basic audio information.
So, in general, the 250 ST-L retains
the most important add on kit, and misses out on some of the luxury
items. This is reflected in the price and opens up the marque to
buyers that may not have previously considered Maxima.
For those unaccustomed to CVT
transmissions Maxima has one of the better ones. At no stage did we
feel like the engine was over-revving or that the clutch was
slipping. In fact the CVT seems to get every drop of torque out of
the small V6. Unless you plant the right boot, the CVT is seamless
and silent. There's also a six speed manual option on the CVT should
you find the need to undertake the gear changes.
At low speed the 250 lacks the punch of
the 3.5 litre sibling. That's to be expected. Where we were surprised
was in the critical passing speeds of 80 km/h to 120 km/h where the
CVT and engine combined beautifully for fast, safe overtaking with a
minimum of fuss. Inside the cabin there's little NVH to complain of.
On long sweeping bends the car seemed
right at home, but displayed some understeer in the faster, tighter
corners. Where Maxima exceeds expectations is in comfort. Recent
Nissan TV commercials have highlighted that the car is ideal when
caught in city traffic. Well, we'd like to add it's not real bad
either if you do happen to travel a lot of long distances. The seats
conform but support you and the suspension is compliant for those
rougher stretches of Australian roads. The steering offers good
feedback. This latest Maxima continues the marque's style ethic of
being elegant, but is perhaps the sportiest looking Maxima so far ...
and dare we say it, could be mistaken for a European brand.
FEATURES
ABS
Brakes: standard
Air
Conditioning: standard
Automatic
Transmission: CVT standard
CD
Player: standard
Central
Locking: standard
Cruise
Control: standard
Dual
Front Airbags: standard
Front
Side Airbags: standard
Stability
Control: standard
Traction
Control: standard
SPECIFICATIONS
ENGINE:
Capacity:
2.5 litres
Configuration:
V6
Head
Design: DOHC 24 valve
Compression
Ratio: 9.8:1
Bore/Stroke:
85 mm x 73.3 mm
Maximum
Power: 134 kW @ 6000 rpm
Maximum
Torque: 228 Nm @ 4400 rpm
DRIVELINE:
Driven
Wheels: Front
Manual
Transmission: N/A
Automatic
Transmission: CVT
Final
Drive Ratio: 6.120
DIMENSIONS,
WEIGHT AND CAPACITIES:
Length:
4850 mm
Wheelbase:
2775 mm
Width:
1795 mm
Height:
1485 mm
Turning
Circle: 11.4 metres
Kerb
Mass: 1516 kg
Fuel
Tank Capacity: 70 litres
Towing
Ability: 1200 kg (kg with braked trailer)
SUSPENSION
AND BRAKES:
Front
Suspension: Independent struts with stabiliser bar
Rear
Suspension: multi-link independent with stabiliser bar
Front
Brakes: ventilated disc
Rear
Brakes: disc
FUEL
CONSUMPTION:
Type:
Unleaded 91 RON
Combined
Cycle (ADR 81/01): 9.5 L/100km
GREEN
VEHICLE GUIDE RATINGS:
Greenhouse
Rating: 5.5 /10
Air
Pollution Rating: 6.5 /10
STANDARD
WARRANTY:
3
years/ 100,000 km
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