Forgot to mention that before I bought my '06 Accord, I drove the Maxima to go test drive a 2003 EX-L w/nav (but it was a V6). By the time I backed the '03 Accord out of the guys drive way, I could already tell it was superior to the Maxima. No kidding! It was probably a combination of the structural stiffness and steering precision, but whatever the reason, there was no doubt about the Accord's superiority.
If need more power, I suggest you try a '06+ Accord. My '06 V6 felt significantly more powerful than the '03 V6 I mentioned above. I coudn't have lived with the '03's acceleration, but am happy with my '06's (both are autos). I read that the 4-cyl models also upgraded power in '06, but I haven't driven it, so don't know how that translates to a butt-dyno reading.
For more insight, find my thread on this forum, "You might be a 7th gen owner if..." and compare it to Maxima.org's thread of a similar nature (I provided the link within the above 7-th gen thread). The vast majority of the 7th-gen Accord owner's responses are positive ones, whereas most Maxima owners used the exact same topic to post complaints.
My lession learned: My Maxima single-handedly taught me that straight-line acceleration isn't everything. Neither are Xenon headlamps, but they ARE cool.
All that said, you will run into people who vociferously defend their Nissans. I can't figure out why...
