Nissan Altima vs Maxima

The Nissan Altima and Nissan Maxima are two popular sedans around the Indianapolis, Lawrence, and Speedway area. Deciding which sedan is best for you will depend on what exactly you're looking for.

In this Altima vs. Maxima comparison, our team at Andy Mohr Nissan will give you a rundown of these vehicles' characteristics to help you make an informed decision.

2020 Nissan Altima	2020 Nissan Maxima
MPG: Up to 28 city / 39 highway	MPG: Up to 20 city/ 30 highway
Horsepower: 182-236 hp	Horsepower: 300 hp

Nissan Altima vs Maxima: Performance

One of the best things about the Nissan Altima and Maxima is they’re designed with performance in mind. Drivers will find a standard 2.5L 4-Cylinder engine aboard the Nissan Altima, giving it up to 188 horsepower and 182 lb-ft of torque.

You’ll likely find that the Nissan Maxima is a bit sportier with its standard 3.5L V6 engine, which gives you up to 300 horsepower and 261 lb-ft of torque. Overall, if you want improved acceleration, you’re going to want to look toward the Nissan Maxima.

Driveline Technology

If you’re planning on driving over low traction surfaces, you’re going to want to have the right driveline. Both the Altima and the Maxima are designed with standard front-wheel drive to give you solid traction. However, if you really want to achieve the most traction possible, you’re going to want to get all-wheel drive.

With the Nissan Altima, drivers will be able to upgrade to an available Intelligent All-Wheel Drive driveline. This system provides torque to all four of your wheels to improve your traction. Best of all, this system will even manage your torque to improve your fuel economy when the roads are clear. If your vehicle doesn’t detect any slippage, your car can switch to a front-wheel drive mode.

Unfortunately, you won’t be able to upgrade the Nissan Maxima with an Intelligent All-Wheel Drive system.

Maxima vs Altima: Driver-Assistance Tech

The Altima and Maxima offer state-of-the-art driver-assisting technologies to give you peace of mind and help prevent an accident from occurring.

Nissan Intelligent Mobility is a suite of advanced systems available in both vehicles and includes:

• Blind Spot Warning: An indicator will appear in the driver's or front passenger's door when a vehicle is detected in your blind spot.
• Rear Cross-Traffic Alert: When in reverse, this feature will warn you when a vehicle is approaching from either side of the vehicle.
• Intelligent Cruise Control: This system maintains a set speed and distance from the vehicle in front of you. Even if traffic slows down, your car will remain at that set distance.

Another feature aboard the Nissan Altima is the ProPILOT Assist system, which automatically keeps pace with traffic while you drive. Best of all, this feature even uses sensors to track the lanes of the road, so your car can gently guide your steering wheel, so you steer more comfortably.

While the Nissan Maxima offers a ton of technology, you won’t find a ProPILOT Assist feature like you would in the Nissan Altima.

2020 Altima vs 2020 Maxima: Comfort Features 

Nobody wants to be performing too many driving inputs, and to help, the Nissan Altima and Maxima are here with a High Beam Assist feature. This technology automatically deactivates your high beams when it detects another vehicle driving by at night. When the vehicle has fully passed, your high beams will automatically come back on, so you don’t have to flip the high beam switch repeatedly.

The Maxima brings up the upscale design a bit more with its available Rain-Sensing Variable Intermittent Windshield Wipers. When it starts raining, your vehicle will activate your windshield wipers by itself. Your wipers can even measure the rate at which the rain is falling in order to find the ideal speed for your wipers. The result is ideal visibility without you having to manually find the right speed.

Maxima vs Altima: Infotainment Features 

To stay connected and entertained on your daily commutes, the Altima and Maxima have several available high-tech features.

The Altima and the Maxima both come standard with a NissanConnect® 8-Inch Touchscreen Display. Both vehicles have Apple CarPlay® and Android Auto™ to connect your compatible smartphones to the vehicle and access your favorite apps.

However, the Altima does come standard with Siri® Eyes Free. With this feature, drivers can use voice commands to make and receive calls, play music, set reminders, and more. Unfortunately, Siri® Eyes Free isn't available in the Maxima.

Both vehicles come standard with a Bluetooth® Hands-Free Phone System and have 3-month trial subscriptions to SiriusXM Traffic and Travel Link®. This will help you to actively keep track of traffic, so you can avoid jams while on your commute.

Maxima Interior

Altima Interior

2020 Altima vs 2020 Maxima: Interior 

Both vehicles have spacious cabins, offering enough room to seat up to five passengers. Drivers can expect to have plenty of room to stretch out no matter which of these models they choose.

The Nissan Altima interior has 43.8 inches of front legroom, 35.2 inches of rear legroom, and 100.8 cubic feet of total passenger volume. The Nissan Maxima interior has 45 inches of front legroom, 34.2 inches of rear legroom, and 98.5 cubic feet of passenger volume.

If you need room to fit all your groceries, luggage, or other items, the Altima has a 15.4-cubic-foot trunk. Drivers who choose the Nissan Maxima will be working with a cargo capacity of 14.3 cubic feet.

Both vehicles have available leather-appointed seats, heated front seats, and a leather-wrapped heated steering wheel. The Maxima also has available Climate-Controlled Front Seats with heating and cooling.

For further comfort, both cars have Dual-Zone Automatic Temperature Control, so the driver and front-seat passenger can set their own preferred temperatures. However, this feature is standard in the Maxima, while it's available in a higher trim in the Altima. 

What’s the Difference Between the Nissan Altima and Nissan Maxima?

When it comes to the Altima vs. Maxima, no matter which vehicle you choose, you'll be getting a reliable sedan with plenty of impressive features. We have both models at Andy Mohr Nissan near Indianapolis, Lawrence, and Speedway, so give us a call to schedule a test drive today!

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