5 changes to the 2019 Nissan Maxima

The Nissan Maxima is one of those great vehicles I often forget about. It’s sporty, comfortable and fun-to-drive with nice interior and exterior styling.

But I don’t see a lot of them on the roads, and frankly, I’m not sure why.

However, as more and more sedans are getting nixed from automakers’ lineups, I look at this as an opportunity for Maxima, especially with this year’s mild refresh.

Here’s a quick look at five changes to the Maxima for 2019.

V-Motion grille

Inspired by the Vmotion design concept, Nissan’s new design direction was first implemented in the all-new Altima. Now Maxima gets the more pronounced V-Motion design treatment with bolder hood lines that blend into a deeper V-shape on the grille.

Quad-tip exhaust finishers

Even though engine and power ratings remain unchanged for 2019, the design focuses more on sport for this refresh. Thus, one of the changes is the addition of quad-tip exhaust, which is more of a design statement than a functional one. Two of the tips are just for show.

Don’t mistake this for quad exhaust, which is more for functionality, and all four tips expel exhaust.

New wheels

There are now two new wheel designs for 2019.

The S and SV trims get new 18-inch machined alloy wheels with paint. The design is inspired by V-motion with a lightweight and open technical look.

The Platinum Reserve trim gets a spiffy new 19-inch Hyper Silver wheel that is slimmer and has a lightweight, sporty appearance.

Read Door Alert

This system focuses on a series of events. If you open the rear door before starting the vehicle but don’t open it after exiting the vehicle, an audible alert sounds.

The story goes that a Nissan engineer designed this after leaving a lasagna in her back seat. For a few days. Ew.

This is not a motion detecting alert system.

Safety Shield 360

This is one of the biggest additions for 2019. While the Maxima has previously had blind spot monitoring and rear cross-traffic alert, this system adds automatic emergency braking with pedestrian detection, high beam assist, rear automatic braking and lane departure warning.

This is all good stuff. The only problem is that it’s only standard at the top-tier Platinum trim and available as an option on the SR model.

The Bottom Line:

I like the Maxima with its peppy 3.5-liter, 300-horsepower V-6 engine. It’s fast and fun, which makes it a nice compromise for someone who needs a family sedan but wants to forgo the numb driving characteristics of a typical midsize sedan.

These changes are relatively minor in the grand scheme of things, so I look at this as simply refining an already great product.

Of course, I’d like to see more standard safety equipment, but perhaps that’s coming with the ninth generation in a few years.

For more information about the refreshed Nissan Maxima, be sure to read our full first-look review.