Value My Classic – Find out if rarity has helped Nissan Maxima values
HOW LONG HAVE YOU HAD IT?
The car has been in our family from new, when my father bought it at a cost of £21,130 in 1989, the year the Maxima was launched here. I took the car over on 21 January 1998, so it has two owners in the logbook. The paintwork is mostly original, though I had to have the bonnet repaired and painted; once, when I was driving along the A316, somebody threw an object from a bridge, which dented it. The colour match is perfect though, so you wouldn’t know.
HOW MUCH HISTORY?
As we were in the trade, I carried out all services and maintenance using only genuine Nissan parts, with the exception of the first-year warranty service. I have all invoices and the original bill of sale and brochure. The car has done of 51,000 miles and has all MoT certificates to back this up. It’s been very reliable but I did have to replace the electric window switches on the driver’s door. Back in 2001 I carried out full maintenance and restoration on all underbody components, including suspension, exhaust, heat shields. This is involved a complete strip and repaint; the car is completely rustfree. The interior – headlining, carpets, seats and cloth are all unmarked and virtually as-new. It still has the original radio/cassette player.
WHAT’S LEFT TO DO ON IT?
Just the bonnet gas struts and the air-con needs re-gassing. The tyres are the second set with around 10,000 miles and the spare is original on a matching alloy rim.
HAS IT BEEN MODIFIED?
No – the car originally came with quite a high specification.