Chalzor

I have recently gone from driving a 90 300zx N/A to driving a Maxima. The 300zx has both compression issues and a tranny that needs major work, so I have designated it a parts car. Another reason for not fixing up the 300zx is I have a new addition to the family, that means I need more of a family car. The reason I chose my Maxima is that it is sporty feeling for the type of car it is, yet good for hauling the family and assorted gear around, and still a Nissan, which I have always loved (My first car was an 83 Datsun 200sx).

Right now my Maxima is basically stock, a 93 GXE, with a vg30e, only thing Ive done is throw Chromed 300zx rims that I had on my Z on it, as the original wheels were showing their age. Gave it a nice look, although I wish the chrome job weren't so badly done, but I got them for $250 with a good set of rubber, so I can't complain much. I plan on pulling my cone filter out of the Z, and hooking it up as a HAI for now, but eventually plan to ge t a CAI kit, not sure which one, alhtough thinking ebay for the piping, wouldnt trust their filters though.

After driving the 300zx, the Maxima feels a bit underpowered, and does not handle nearly as well as I would like. This got me to thinking, and researching, along the lines of what parts I could use to upgrade the Maxima.

A few I am almost sure will work out for me is the front calipers/rotors, I have brand new front crossdrilled/slotted rotors, from what I have read they just need to be milled down 3mm in radius. Also the radiator I have is a 6 month old Koyo Aluminum radiator for the 300zx, although it will need to be tapped for the auto tranny coolant. Not quite sure the best way to do that....

Others I am not sure of, I eventually plan to turbo the car, debating if I go single, or go all out and do a dual turbo/exhaust. I have 2 perfectly good Magnaflow mufflers on the Z, which I beleive have 2.5 inch piping. Not sure if I should bring one of those in with me when I go to the exhaust shop to save me some money on not having to get a new muffler.

Another question I have is will the z32 N/A fuel pump be compatible with the fuel tank in the Max, and if so would It be a good upgrade? Along the same lines, is there anything else in the fuel delivery system that would be a good upgrade compared to whats stock in the Maxima.

As far as turboing, I am thinking of going the z31 right manifold route, but am wondering if there are other options? One option that I had thought of was an RMT (Rear mount turbo), but not sure if that is a good route to go, any other thoughs?

Im sure I will come up with more questions, and any suggestions on other parts that may be a good upgrade for me please let me know. I will try and keep this updated with the progress I make.

Chalzor

CMax03

iTrader: (3)

I would definitely keep the rotors as well, as for the radiator just buy a large oil cooler, Heavy Duty RV size since the radiator doesn't have the oil/water cooler setup for an auto trans. I'm not sure whay the fuel pump looks like but, I put Maxima f/p's on 4 cylinder Nissans B4 so I don't think it's impossible!

Chalzor

When I was installing the radiator in the Z I remember it looked like it had a place to add the coolant feed, but was just blocked off. I will pull it and investigate further when I next have time.

Chalzor

Matt93SE

iTrader: (44)

don't bother with the cooling stuff unless your Maxima radiator is shot. Z32TT guys install Maxima radiators all the time for better cooling. I've done dozens of track days in 100+ heat and never had a problem with it.

Same with the fuel pump. the Z32 Na pump is probably only a fraction larger, and you simply don't need the additional flow until you've turbo'd the car. At that point, it's better to pick up a Walbro 255lph pump and call it good than to risk turboing a car and using an 18+ year old fuel pump.

sleepyvg30e

iTrader: (1)

hey id figure id jump in on this one

1. using the HAI from your z car is a good idea there are very few options for vg CAI and they all involve cutting up the car if u do go CAI use warpspeed they have a great set stay away from ebay

2. if u got some handling problems check out the steering equipment its probably rotted out and u could replace your struts with a setup from koni those are probably dead too

3. the front discs might be smart to upgrade because we havelike a 95% front bias but it might be better to try and swap the rear drums for discs first, also ive heard horror stories about drilled rotors might wanna stick with blanks or just use plain slotted instead

4. 2.5 inch exhaust is a perfect size a lil big for n/a but if ur going for turbo later its a good idea

5. as far as turbo is concerned uve got the right idea try a simple garrett t3 since its a family car and anything bigger would be overkill

6. the only other reccomendation is to check out the tranny the maxima has a great engine but they used the transmission that was built for a 4cyl altima

internetautomar

iTrader: (30)

the trans is out of a stanza, the altima got a step up, but still weaker than the DOHC maxima transmission

Pearl93VE

iTrader: (14)

Just to put things in perspective:

WARPSPEED VG30E CAI:
http://www.warpspeedperformance.com/maxcai.htm

$150 + Shipping

EBAY 1993 HONDA ACCORD CAI:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/90-91...QQcmdZViewItem

$37 Shipped

BOTH kits will require a bit of cutting some excess unused sheet metal below the drivers side headlight, any pair of metal snips will work fine. You'll also need to trim about 3" or so off of the end of the L bend pipe. (Hacksaw works fine for this)

And in both cases, you'll also need a 90 degree bend pipe to go from below the headlight to down into the fender:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Turbo...QQcmdZViewItem
$27

So one way you'll be spending $64 for the entire CAI which requires only a little modification to one pipe, or $177 for a name brand that works exactly the same.

GRNMAXDMON

iTrader: (1)

if you want to upgrade your suspension just order parts from Matt93SE. he has a nice variety of suspension upgrades for our cars. for brakes just use the Z32 calipers with 6th gen rotors and Matt's hardware for the BBK.

Chalzor

I was planning on using the HAI only until I could take teh time and devote the money to a CAI.
I am thinking of going to a good adjustable suspension setup, but the suspension I have still has decent life in it, so working on other upgrades first.

My rears are already disk brakes, although not as big a disk as on the z32. I am contemplating swaping the rears over as well but am not decided on this course of action. Also don't have a brand new set of rear z32 rotors around, just fronts, although I could use the slightly used pair still on the Z if I have to.

Thats what I was thinking ....

I was thinking of a t3 or t4, but havent done the research into the specifics of each turbo available.

Yes, this was one area of concern for me, not sure If I want to swap to a manual tranny, or get the auto built up with steel plates as is described in one of the posts on building up your tranny on this forum. The auto I have found nice for city driving, but don't like it for the winding roads as much.

Chalzor

Chalzor

I have a brand new pair of crossdrilled/slotted z32 rotors, which from all my research just need to have 3mm milled off the radius for the z32 calipers to just bolt into the stock Maxima brake mounts, no BBK kit needed.

Chalzor

Chalzor

Thats what I have been seeing, I want to eventually use a JWT Popcharger for the cone, so whichever CAI piping set I choose I am just really interested in the tubing, not the filter that comes with it, so If I can get functionally the same thing for a 3rd of the cost I will probably go the ebay route.

Chalzor

I know for a fact that the maxima radiator is not a good upgrade for the z32tt guys, unless they want to reroute all their IC setup. The z32tt radiator is much less wide (in relation to the car) and about 2 times as thick compared to the z32na radiator to make space for the IC piping on either side.

From what I can see the z32na radiator and the stock maxima radiator are the same part. The only reason I am considering switching is that the radiator in my Z is basically brand new, and better than a stocker (Koyo aluminum racing radiator).

That makes sense to me.