Mike 
2016 Nissan Maxima Sedan 3.5 SR 4dr Sedan (3.5L 6cyl CVT)
most pleasant car so far driven
 Currently leasing 2016 Maxima SR. So far the most enjoyable car I've driven (as a field engineer travel 40 weeks per year, renting all type of cars). I'll start with Cons first : poor fuel economy in manual mode (7 - 12 mpg in suburb with many stop signs, not using sport mode), average ticket for fueling went from 32 bucks on sentra to 55 bucks on maxima (it uses 91 gas). hard to get out of a car (seating is very low, need to pay attention not to headbump the roof) comparing to altima, sentra, murano as well as challenger, comaro and mustang. Only 370z was even harder to get out. Also nissan connect does poor tracking of traffic, car keeps telling you'll be in place in 20 minutes for 1 hour.  That's all i have for cons. Pros : press 1 button to start cruise control, press second button to adjust desirable distance between car in front of you and set maximum speed. Now kick back, relax, lazysteer it for 50 miles of trip. (wish to test on longer distance, i had rental maxima for that without dpcc) Not usable in traffic jams since it disengages once you stop. increases mpg from 7 to 28 combined as well. You want to switch the lanes - show signal - it accelerates just the right amount not to cut buddy behind you on the road. You can place hands on 4.5 - 7.5 oclock , rest them on handrests and car will never wiggle / strafe / whatever even in wind (sentra was swinging like hell), place them 2 - 10 oclock and you have perfect sharp control for maneuvers. D shaped steering wheel provides extra grip for those u-turns you often make in california. I can compare this car to S trim 2016 maximas I had for half a year and can feel traction enhancers really work, far less body roll, higher cornering speeds, no understeer / torquesteer. Acceleration and CVT : 4 seconds of fun and ticket. It can make it, you cant afford to make it. Switching to an empty lane on a highway is now no problem. Paddle shifters can be engaged even in Drive mode to give extra acceleration, after you are done - switch gears D - Ds - D and relax again. blind spot sensor a bit paranoic, beeps even when you can see car in it, but never kept silent when bikes / cars were there, pretty reliable. Of course if you use turn signals. Front collision warning - you feel cars are going to stop, maxima makes beep sound, cars indeed start stoping. Remote launch. pros - it just works. return to a cool car in summer and warm in winter. cons - you always forget to push the start button once inside, start moving the stick - car shuts down (so breaking the window and stealing car while you are away will not happen) , but still pretty annoying. Front seats can be indeed cooled during those hot days, but make tickle feeling on your back. If your passanger used cooling and today you drive alone - you'll spend 10 minutes figuring out where that hissing comes from (captain obvious - from the passanger seat, but feels like not closed window). Last but not the least - seat belt stops stretching and fixes its position once you start maneuvering heavily (not necessarily breaking) , keeps you away from swinging inside car (I've seen it only on dodge challenger so far) . Now what makes a difference - big, no, HUGE and tactile buttons both on the steering wheel and on console, matte finish not leaving fingerprints, you always know you have pressed the button. For me that counts. No idea what else to add. Summary - not an economy car , get ready to spend buck for gas and for car itself, not a true sports car - front wheel drive feels worse than awd on subaru, except that - fun and pleasant to drive, sexy and comfortable, obedient and nimble, and don't listen to those saying cvt is not sporty - it is, just prepare to fix it once warranty ends.