They perform better as they have bigger hooters.
yes you can put 20" rims on your 2004 Maxima, you actually can fit bigger a 22" will look better...
No.
No you do not. Bigger tires and wheels have nothing to do with it stopping.
no you buy the new rims to match the bolt pattern on your current rotors
18 inch rims are the max although you can go bigger with modifications.
no. the only difference is that your tires will be more expensive for 17" rims.
Yes you can put bigger tires on your existing wheels up to a point. Talk to your local tire dealer and they can advise you on the biggest tires you can use.
18 inch rims will fit on your 2002 Cavalier. Any rims bigger than 18 inches will get against the wheel well.
You can stuff a pair of 20's on it nothing bigger.
It will affect the speedometer. For example, bigger rims will make you go faster than what the speedometer is actually reading. If it say's 50mph with regular rims, then with larger rims you will be going faster.
yessir