2019 Nissan Maxima adds new technology to subtle updates

Nissan's 2019 Maxima is now officially official, debuting at the Los Angeles Auto Show today with a modest exterior refresh but adding safety technologies, redesigned front and rear fascias and new wheels to the list of subtle refinements.

The 2019 Maxima expands the availability of its Safety Shield 360 active safety and driver-assist technologies, such as automatic emergency braking with pedestrian detection, blind spot warning, high-beam assist and rear automatic braking. The package comes standard on the top-of-the-line Platinum model and as part of the SR Premium Package. Nissan is making the technology available on the 2019 Altima, Murano (which also debuted in L.A.), Rogue and Rogue Sport, part of its commitment to making the technology standard on 1 million new vehicles by 2021. Nissan is making the Rear Door Alert notification and Intelligent Driver Alertness system, which monitors driver inputs for signs of fatigue and recommends taking a break when so detected, standard on all grade levels — S, SV, SL, a sporty SR and Platinum.

New is a series of 19-inch diamond-cut wheels, more pronounced boomerang-shaped LED headlights, a larger and sharper "V-Motion" grille book-ended by small intake grilles at the fog light housings, redesigned tail lamps and integrated quad exhaust tips. The SR grade also gets a sporty rear spoiler.

Inside, Nissan keeps the "Gliding Wing" layout, emphasizing horizontal movements and easy access to all controls. It adds more premium trim finishes and materials in certain models, with orange accent stitching, diamond quilting, orange-accented Alcantara appointments and dark satin chrome finishes in the SR grade as one example. Under the hood, Nissan sticks with the standard 3.5-liter V6 making 300 horsepower and 261 pound-feet of torque, mated to the same CVT transmission and sport-tuned steering, brakes and suspension.

The Maxima, Nissan's longest-running nameplate, suffers from the same affliction plaguing most all sedans these days, with sales through October off 39.4 percent from the year-before clip, a drop exceeded in Nissan's lineup only by the Juke, which of course is being discontinued in favor of the Kicks. The 2019 Maxima goes on sale in mid-December