For those that dont know, my first car was a VE 5spd. It was totalled about this time last year. Well, I had an '01 Prelude and a phone pole fell on it....destroyed. I currently have an 02 SE 6spd and just for the heck of it I thought about picking up a 92 SE 5spd that a Nissan dealer has. I haven't seen the car personally but from the pics it looks very clean. It is black on black and has 118K on the car. I can most assuredly get it for a good price and thought about just rebuilding the whole engine since I know all too well about the dreaded VTC problem (dont know if this one has it or not). So here are some questions for you 3rd gen guys......
1) If I decided to rebuild the whole engine with the best parts out there, what price am I looking at? Should I use OEM Nissan parts or maybe parts from JWT (if they are offered).
2) With intake, pullies, Y-pipe, and JWT chip, what sort of potential do these cars have in the 1/4 mile?
3) With a complete engine rebuild and say a new clutch, for the most part, should the car be 'as good as new'?

 

You shouldnt need to rebuild the whole motor, especially if it only has 118k, I am at 250k. You can ground the VTC's if you dont have the cash, or just rebuild them for around $400-600. My car is still like new *KNOCK ON WOOD* if you want to fully modify a VE with just bolt ons and you do it right, you should be in the low 14s. Now if you want to do a engine build up, you should be in the 13s. You can go as fast as you want, as with any car, but how much do you want to spend???

 

Thanks for the response. Well, I guess I'll determine how tight the car is after I drive it. I dont want to transform it into a drag only car....just modify it to have enough power to surprise people and remain very driveable from day to day.

 

Yeah with all the goodies and good driver, low low 14's are there.

And the interior build quality on 3rd gens is BY FAR much better than the newer gens. We can all pretty much guarantee you a rattle free and solid ride.

 

Very good. I, like many others, have considered the 3rd gens to be the best looking Maximas out there. I looked in the dyno section of the forum to find a 3rd gen VE chart and couldn't find any. Does anyone have any they could post?

 

I know Lordrandall posted the dyno from his stock VE 5spd, not sure where it's posted if it's not on the dyno section though.

You may wanna PM him

 

Okay, I found it....thanks. Pretty impressive. Its kinda of borderline insane to go from a 2002 SE back to a 1992 SE, but oh what fun and the memories are pushing me so hard!

 

No Maxima so far has been able to touch the handling of the 3rd gen.

 

If you are going to buy it just to run the 1/4 mile, I'd get something else.

 

I'm not getting it to merely run the 1/4 mile. Mainly its an emotional/sentimental buy since it was my first car. I was just curious as to what it would do in the 1/4, thats all.

 

Just Do It (Like Nike's slogan) it is an awesome all around car, with lots of influence.

 

Yeah, of the older cars in general, 3-gen maximas hold up extremely well. I look at all the 1992 year cars and most if not all are just trashed. Maybe the Camrys, but who wants a camry?

 

Exactly what goes wrong with the VTC's? Sorry, i'm a noob concerning the 92-94 SE models. If a VTC fails, is it something you can buy a new unit and swap with?

 

I'm no expert, but basically the VTC assembly (there's 2) wears out (I think the spring(s) gets weak), and in turn makes a heckavu lotta noise.

It doesnt really do alot of hurt, but the ticking and clacking is VERY embarrassing.

If the VTC assembly fully breaks (which is very unlikely) then I'd assume it'd cause a heckuva lotta damage to the engine.

New and/or rebuilt VTC assemblies are available for a couple hundred bucks. What skyrockets the price is the labor costs.