The Maxima is the best car in its class, period.

When you think 'sports car,' I'll bet the first thing that comes to your mind is a red Corvette with a girl in a frilly bikini standing beside it. Or maybe you envision a BMW M6 speeding along a winding mountain road in some foreign country, drifting through every turn and leaving all the family sedans in the dust.

Meet the Nissan Maxima.

Its nickname? The four-door sports car. (4DSC)

A reeeeeal devil in disguise.

Now, I'm not trying to suggest that this car will outrun a Lambo or dig three-foot holes in the concrete with its back tires when you goose the gas. I know my cars well enough, but this car has just about everything without settling for much. It's fast, it's roomy, it's luxurious, it's economically-minded and reliable.

It's a little bit of everything good about a car and is suitable for just about anyone's transportation needs. You've got ample room for five passengers, you can expect your gas mileage to be at least 21 MPG in the city and up to 28 or 29 on the highway, you've got the speed of the 190-HP VQ30DE 3.0L engine on your side when you need it, and the safety of front airbags. [SE and GLE packages have the option of side airbags.]

I have the SE package, which is the sport package, with all the options available - heated leather seats, integrated Homelink, automatic climate control, power everything (windows, locks, driver and passenger seats, mirrors, antenna, sunroof, etc.), heated side mirrors, BOSE CD/stereo, smart alarm, foglights, spoiler, the works.

Other packages available were the base GXE, and the more luxurious GLE.

This body style was manufactured from 1997-1999, with a similar style produced in 1995 and 1996. Updates for 1999 were available traction control and an engine anti-theft immobilizer was included standard, along with a few minor styling updates inside.

This is my third Maxima (I also had a 2001 and a 2002), and for good reason - these cars are awesome. I can honestly say that every person I've ever met who has also owned a Maxima had nothing but good things to say about them. They're rock-solid reliable and, assuming they've been properly maintained, are probably one of the best options when looking at buying a used car. My buddy Jim has a 1996 with over 500,000 miles at it, he's owned it since new, and other than basic maintenance, the only real work he's had done to it was transmission work at approximately 350,000 miles.

That's reliability.

Nissan's VQ engine has been rated the number one V6 engine every single year since it was introduced in 1995. It's practically bulletproof. And once you drive one, you'll understand why there are enthusiast circles built around these things.

And if your main interests lie in hauling more than...well, you know.... the Maxima still has you covered - I have more trunk room than I know what to do with. This is an excellent car for a family, and if you're tall like me, don't worry....this car has afforded enough room up front for my dad, who is 6'6.

The available BOSE stereo is pretty awesome for a stock unit, and has plenty of volume and bass for the average Joe, but watch out - they don't like certain types of burned CD's too much. It's a common problem unless you upgrade the sound system, and depending on the CD, it may refuse to play it. I've found certain brands of CD-R's work better than others, and burning at a low speed (under 8x) can eliminate the issue entirely. I've never had any issues with listening to regular CD's. The only other common annoyance I've experienced is the cupholder - it comes out of the console if you're not careful. (But due to its position, it won't spill a drink on you or anything like that.)

My Maxima just went over the 124k mile mark yesterday, and it's still running strong.

It's a nice feeling, having a car that you know you can drive....and drive....and drive....and drive....and not worry about being the guy in the 2003 Kia broken down on the side of the highway, throwing wrenches at the engine with a tear in his eye. =]