Nissan Maxima Competes in ‘Frankenstein Segment’

NASHVILLE – The Nissan Maxima competes in “the Frankenstein segment.” So says Eric Ledieu, the sedan’s chief marketing manager in North America. But it’s not as horrible as all that.

He means the all-new ’16 Maxima goes up against a cast of competitors across different segments. That includes fullsize, midsize, near-luxury and entry-level luxury.

“There are a lot of cross shoppers,” Ledieu says, citing some of the competition: the Toyota Avalon, Buick LaCrosse, Chevrolet Impala, Acura TLX and BMW 3-Series. “Consumers are coming from a lot of different places.”

WardsAuto puts the Maxima in the Upper Middle segment. The EPA classifies it as a midsize sedan. J.D. Power calls it a large car. Nissan dubs it a progressively premium sport-oriented auto.

The Maxima debuted in 1981. It has garnered the reputation of a decent vehicle with good build quality. But some models during the 34-year run looked staid.

Conversely, designers of the eight-generation ’16 Maxima sought to make it stand out by giving it an edgy look and gutsy driving dynamics.

The Japan-based automaker hopes to reverse a sales decline of late. Last year, Nissan delivered 50,401 Maximas in the U.S., a 6.5% decline from 2013, according to WardsAuto. Nissan has sold nearly 3 million Maximas in the U.S.

At a media event here, WardsAuto talks to Ledieu about the car’s place in the market and its position in the Nissan lineup. Here’s an edited version of the Q&A.

WardsAuto: Is there a self-identity issue with Maxima? It seems to want to play in so many segments. How do you deal with that?

Ledieu: Actually, we see that as an advantage. If you look at this traditional segment over the last 10 or 15 years, it’s condensed quite a bit. There are a lot fewer entries than there were. The competitors still there aren’t giving up any ground.

For us, low years were 50,000 (sales), high years 80,000. Because of where we positioned the car, it allows us to attract (shoppers) from different places. It’s an advantage to attract buyers who are considering different brands.

WardsAuto: So you can jump into different segments, say, “We’re here,” and compete accordingly

Ledieu: Absolutely. We call them “segments” because that’s how we look at ourselves vs. the competition and the market share, entries, investment and all that. The consumer doesn’t look at it like that though.     

WardsAuto: How does the consumer look at it?

Ledieu: By saying, “I have a set amount of money within a range, and what do I want to buy with it?” Some people couldn’t care less about 300 hp. They want a nice, comfortable ride and plenty of space. Maybe they’re never on the big roads.

But this is a driver’s car. For this money, in this segment there is nothing like this package in terms of size, power and amenities.

WardsAuto: You might be on to something as to the average person not caring much about defined vehicle segments.

Ledieu: We do because we’re around it all the time.

WardsAuto: How do you position the Maxima so it is apart from Nissan’s luxury brand Infiniti?

Ledieu: It’s not even so much Infiniti as much as entry-level luxury. For this investment, (starting price) $32,410, in the luxury space you are going to get a good car, but also a smaller car.

No knock on entry-level luxury, but if you look at a (BMW) 3-Series or (Acura) TLX, they’re not nearly as big as this car is. So the ability to provide that customer with the fullsize-sedan feel along with performance and all the amenities differentiates us from that entry-luxury space.

WardsAuto: And what about the other way with the Nissan Altima midsize car. It always has been positioned below the Maxima. But the Altima has grown up. Is there a risk of it and the Maxima bumping up against each other in the market?

Ledieu: We have very intentionally priced the beginning of Maxima where Altima stops. So right around that $32,000 point is where the Altima cuts off. The flip side is that an Altima for $32,000 is fully loaded.

But it doesn’t have some of the things the Maxima has. That consumer who wants sporty performance, edgy styling and a bigger package will gravitate towards Maxima.

The other thing with Altima is that we do 90% of our business with 4-cyl. engines. The true V-6 performance enthusiasts gravitate towards Maxima.

WardsAuto: Somebody in the business said the Maxima is just a more expensive Altima. Is that a fair statement?

Ledieu: We don’t see it that way. If that were the case, we wouldn’t make the investment we make in the Maxima.    

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