I want to get some things straight here. A person comes on org and proclaims that his Maxima is the fastest, but looking @ his list of mods, you see a missing A/C, P/S, gutted interior, missing spare, in addition to bolt-ons. (this is not towards anyone in particular). This is not fair to other guys who work harder to achieve better results and at the same keeping their cars intact.

Also, in our bragging rights, there is not much comparison at all for cars with the same engines, trannies, and mods. We all know that 3.0 VG auto will be slower than 3.5 6spd, that Budget Y-pipe may give less HP with WAI than CAI, etc....

I think that we really should compare apples to apples and oranges to oranges.

 

I think it is fine to have the two philosophies for going faster: make more horsepower and make it lighter. There are many different combinations, so yes they it is not like comparing apples to apples. But all drag strips/conditions are different as well. There will always be varibles. I like to see which methods seem to yeild the best results. I don't get a feeling that anyone is out to "beat" anyone else.

 

You can mount the stock VQ motor on a bare chassis and that'll run 1/4 in under 10 seconds...so is it correct that the logic is to drive anything one owns as fast as possible as long as it has Maxima stickers on it..

 

Going fast definitely involves compromise and some people are willing to compromise much more than others. When I had a mustang I knew people who were willing to go to great lengths to drop e/t without having to resort to a power adder or expensive engine work. They'd gut their interiors, remove the bumpers, run 4.30 gears in spooled rear-ends so they could launch at 5 grand on slicks and cut ridiculous 1.5x 60fts with near stock motors. These guys also had to watch their asses on exit ramps and take turns in the rain extremely carefully.

In end the person who crosses the traps first wins, but it is definitely neat to see a full-interior no compromises street car run insane numbers. Unfortunately, it usually requires alot of checkbook flexing to avoid compromising.

The thing that gets me is the guys that build tube chassis cars with tons of fiberglass and try and pass them off as the same thing that rolled off of a showroom floor.

 

It seems that most tend to keep thier Maxima in street trim and use it as an actual car, it is a 4 door after all. The more hardcore racers will always do things that orient them more for the strip than the street. I figure as long as people are honest about thier mods and weight reduction there isn't a problem. We wouldn't hold a N/A car to a boosted cars standards. At the end of the day, I am with you though, I like to drive my car with such luxeries as AC and power steering.

 

For trackday, nothing matters, whatever gets you past the line faster =D

For everyday driving, full trim...

At least thats how I see it.

 

^^^Track day is different.

 

I think what everyone fails to realize is that the quest to be quicker can become an obsession.

This is my 3rd Maxima, although I still have my 95, and I do like to race and I do like to try the limits of the hardware.

However, the guys who go nutzo in reducing weight and pushing the limits are really a very small minority. Also you may notice that the guys who do go crazy on some of this stuff are not the quickest.

My claim to fame is very limited, I do have the second quickest 4th and 5th Gen Max which are auto's and I do have the fastest N/A 5th Gen auto, does that mean they aren't streetable or drive to the track on their own, or are noisy, uncomfortable etc?

Absolutely not, my current ride the 2k2 5th Gen is quiet, comfortable to ride in and looks absolutely stock to the ordinary person.

I would like to try a few more things to reduce weight and increase power but I am not willing to sacrifice the luxury and inconvenience to goes with it.

Finally my 5th Gen is a lease which means that I can't or won't do anything that I cannot quickly undo when its time for warranty work or when its time to return it after the lease ends

If you want to compare times of stock Maxima's then just read the Magazines etc. This of course is very boring and who cares is one is .1 or .2 quicker than the other because there are so many variables. What makes it interesting is who does what mods and gets ?? time.

I don't know of anyone that has a completely gutted Maxima that has run a record time of any sort, and to me removing the A/C, PS etc is totally against what I am trying to achieve. I like the look on someones face who comes over to look at my car after a run in total disbelief when they see I have a totally stock looking car with working A/C, PS, full interior etc.

This year I will make a couple of attemps to break the 11 sec barrier but that is not what I am trying to accomplish. I am running all of the import race events (8) plus I am competing against the v8 guys in their events (14) which will take up all of my weekends. What I want to do is get very consistent and have the best reaction times ie .05 - for the season.

For me its not a quest to be the quickest but one to be the best racer.