Will the Discontinued Nissan Maxima Return as an EV?
Another big sedan bites the dust, but this decades-old Nissan nameplate could live on.
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After more than 40 years and eight generations, the Nissan Maxima will retire at the end of the 2023 model year without a direct successor. Nissan has hinted that it could recycle the nameplate in the future, but the automaker hasn't confirmed a forthcoming EV wearing the Maxima nameplate.
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Nissan's Four-Door Sports Car
The Maxima name dates back to the 1981 model year, when Nissan subsidiary Datsun used it as the top trim level on its 810 midsize car. That didn't last long: The 810 designation disappeared for 1982 and the Maxima became a standalone model.
What started out as a rear-wheel-drive, 118-hp Datsun became a front-drive, 152-hp Nissan for the second generation, introduced in 1984. Five years later, the third gen arrived with a more streamlined exterior and a higher-power V6 engine, and Nissan began marketing the Maxima as the "four-door sports car". It eventually gave up on that campaign as the car grew in size and became more luxurious over the years.
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Victim of a Broader Trend
The Maxima's demise hardly comes as a surprise. The mainstream full-size sedan segment is suffering, and this loss is but the most recent in a series of discontinuations. In recent memory, the U.S. has said goodbye to the Hyundai Azera, the Ford Taurus, and the Chevrolet Impala due to slowing sales.
And when you look at the numbers, it's hard to justify keeping the Maxima around. Case in point: In 2011, the Maxima made up 58,737 units of Nissan's 944,073 U.S. sales, or about 6%. A decade later, the company sold 919,086 models in the states, and only 16,386 of them were Maximas. That's less than 2%. Moreover, upon the Maxima's death, Nissan will still have a robust sedan lineup, including the subcompact Versa, compact Sentra, and midsize Altima — all of which sell markedly better than their full-size sibling.
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What's Next for the Nissan Maxima?
In August of 2022, Nissan announced it will end production of the Maxima in the middle of 2023. However, the firm left the door open to a ninth-generation model — albeit one that's drastically different from what came before it. A Nissan spokesperson told news outlets that "the company is prioritizing electric vehicles and advanced technologies. Stay tuned for future Nissan Maxima news." Reading between the lines, it's possible there's an electric Maxima reboot in the pipeline.
Of course, pairing an electric powertrain with an unpopular body style may not sound like a recipe for success, but as automakers continue the transition to EVs smaller vehicles can play an important role. Sedans are lighter and more aerodynamic than crossovers, which could make them a good testbedfor EV technology. It's certainly possible at least one of Nissan's 15 future EVs will have four doors and a trunk, and we wouldn't be surprised to see such a model wearing the Maxima badge.
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