My latest 3rd gen
05-12-2013, 07:44 PM
#1
My latest 3rd gen
I figured I'd post some pics of my newest maxima, a 1992 VE 5 speed I flew to New York and brought home to Georgia. It's got a ton of loose ends to tie up, broken speedometer, bald tires, worn out brakes, faded paint, ugly wheels, belts are noisy, exhaust leaks, etc. but a 3rd gen VE 5 speed has been a holy grail of Maximas to me so I'm happy to get it.
Since I've had it I've replaced the gas tank, fuel pump and filter and the radio among other things
My plans for it at this time are to use it as a daily driver. I'd like to lower the front a tad, if possible, I'm too old for the lowered look, I just want it to have a good stance as it looks like a 4x4 up front. A stillen front lip would be nice. Also want to find some black leather interior; my last 3rd gen had mint condition leather and I'm spoiled to it I guess, plus this cloth sticks to my clothes. Also window tint, new 6x9s in the rear, and paint, either here and there where needed, or all over I haven't decided.
Since I've had it I've replaced the gas tank, fuel pump and filter and the radio among other things
My plans for it at this time are to use it as a daily driver. I'd like to lower the front a tad, if possible, I'm too old for the lowered look, I just want it to have a good stance as it looks like a 4x4 up front. A stillen front lip would be nice. Also want to find some black leather interior; my last 3rd gen had mint condition leather and I'm spoiled to it I guess, plus this cloth sticks to my clothes. Also window tint, new 6x9s in the rear, and paint, either here and there where needed, or all over I haven't decided.
05-12-2013, 08:24 PM
#3
Good eye! Yes I did.
Two things I've been curious about: shouldn't a 1992 model have an airbag? I have a fuse for one, also has anyone else ever seen this type of cloth on an SE? The door panel fabric matches, and Bose emblems are there, but I've only seen the light gray sport seats on an SE, and these seats have definitely been removed from the car before.
Two things I've been curious about: shouldn't a 1992 model have an airbag? I have a fuse for one, also has anyone else ever seen this type of cloth on an SE? The door panel fabric matches, and Bose emblems are there, but I've only seen the light gray sport seats on an SE, and these seats have definitely been removed from the car before.
05-12-2013, 08:45 PM
#5
Those seat patterns are GXE patterns. Somebody must have swapped those seats in at some point over the years.
And yeah, air bags were optional in '92. My original '92 SE didn't have an airbag (or sun roof for that matter).
And yeah, air bags were optional in '92. My original '92 SE didn't have an airbag (or sun roof for that matter).
05-13-2013, 08:09 AM
#7
i have a vinyl 240sx wheel i'm not using.. It was on my Maxima when I bought it, but preferred the 4-spoke leather wheel so I got one of those instead (was trying to troubleshoot cruise control by swapping wheels also, but the wheel was not the problem). I'm sure you could wheelskin it tho to make it leather.
05-13-2013, 09:41 AM
#8
there it is! TLC would serve that car very well. And yes those are GXE cloth seats which were in there when i bought it. Aside from maintenance, I never put in the time to address the anomalies in that car (non-SE seats, lack of fog lights, etc) or else it would've turned into another project in tandem with my current one, and I'd never be done 
but at this age I guess we should all be thankful that these cars (especially 5speed VE) are existent in at least fair shape. Go to that easyexport salvage title link in shoult's thread.. those 4 VE's that are in there, sad
Here's one from that site, the way the paint on the hood fades - its the same way on all black 3rd gens apparently, mine included
but at this age I guess we should all be thankful that these cars (especially 5speed VE) are existent in at least fair shape. Go to that easyexport salvage title link in shoult's thread.. those 4 VE's that are in there, sad
Here's one from that site, the way the paint on the hood fades - its the same way on all black 3rd gens apparently, mine included
05-13-2013, 10:41 AM
#9
I saw that one.. Very sad that other than my own I've never even seen a ve5 in running condition, that I know of.
I was conflicted on the seats, I know I've never seen an SE with them, but the matching fabric on the door panels made me wonder. I guess someone split the top and lower half so they could keep the Bose speaker screens.. I've found a set of leather ones I am thinking about getting, repairing and installing because I loathe these cloth ones.
. My hood looks exactly the same as the last VE car I had, which I ended up completely repainting. This one I would love to do that with, but seeing as I now have several project cars to attend to, I will probably just get the roof and hood done and maybe the bumpers.
I was conflicted on the seats, I know I've never seen an SE with them, but the matching fabric on the door panels made me wonder. I guess someone split the top and lower half so they could keep the Bose speaker screens.. I've found a set of leather ones I am thinking about getting, repairing and installing because I loathe these cloth ones.
. My hood looks exactly the same as the last VE car I had, which I ended up completely repainting. This one I would love to do that with, but seeing as I now have several project cars to attend to, I will probably just get the roof and hood done and maybe the bumpers.
05-13-2013, 11:59 AM
#10
You could get Bose in GXE's, at least in the later models. So the existence of Bose equipped door panels doesn't mean much in and of itself.
It's also possible the panels are just cloth equipped SE panels. My blue VE has the grayish cloth like your GXE seats (albeit in the SE pattern), and so the door panels match accordingly.
Got any pics of your door panels?
It's also possible the panels are just cloth equipped SE panels. My blue VE has the grayish cloth like your GXE seats (albeit in the SE pattern), and so the door panels match accordingly.
Got any pics of your door panels?
05-14-2013, 09:46 AM
#16
05-14-2013, 10:39 AM
#17
Either way they're coming out. The drivers seat has a stripped gear on one side so it has to be moved manually by turning the giant screw underneath it. I drove 15 hours back from New York with my knees in the dash. I want my leather seats back.
05-14-2013, 03:54 PM
#18
Your black leather car didn't have the corduroy type door panels? Both of my black leather VE's over the years have had those. I don't really care for them and wish Nissan went with plain smooth black cloth or plain black vinyl even. I think the curduroy type material is out of place with the leather but that's what Nissan decided to do for some reason. 
05-14-2013, 05:10 PM
#19
Your black leather car didn't have the corduroy type door panels? Both of my black leather VE's over the years have had those. I don't really care for them and wish Nissan went with plain smooth black cloth or plain black vinyl even. I think the curduroy type material is out of place with the leather but that's what Nissan decided to do for some reason.
05-24-2013, 08:11 PM
#20
First time I saw that I thought I was looking at another cobbled together car, or maybe one where the dealer installed the leather. I figured out this was not the case because that VE auto car was a one owner dealer maintained car that was ordered with leather from the factory. God I wish I'd kept that car... It was one of a kind.
I have had two 92 SEs and both had factory leather with the cloth door panels like James described. My first one I bought only a few years old and I know it wasn't messed with at all.
05-25-2013, 12:15 AM
#21
i have black leather in mine... wouldn't mind trading for cloth. it's not perfect by any means, but i'm not too far from georgia so it's kinda doable. I had velour on my first maxima, and liked the feel of it better.
06-03-2013, 10:37 AM
#23
Well, I finally got around to getting some leather seats. They aren't perfect, and I will probably be taking them to an upholstery shop at some point to remedy that, but I like them much better than the cloth. I'll post up some pics when I get a chance.
I'll be putting up a thread to get rid of the old ones so if anybody wants a set of nice cloth seats hit me up.
I'll be putting up a thread to get rid of the old ones so if anybody wants a set of nice cloth seats hit me up.
06-30-2013, 06:00 AM
#25
I picked up some different wheels for my car last night... I really don't like the 4th gen 5 spokes that are on my car, mostly because the offset is horrible.
Got these for $50 off a friend's 87 Shirro Z31 turbo that is headed for the scrap yard, sadly. Obviously they look like 3rd gen saw blades but are actually 16 inches, I believe they're 7 inches wide but not sure, and have a better offset than stock. I wanted to test fit them and post a pic but my dad is borrowing my car so it isn't here. What do y'all think? Am I the only one who likes the sawblade style? What color should I paint them? Polish em up, or silver, gunmetal or black?
Got these for $50 off a friend's 87 Shirro Z31 turbo that is headed for the scrap yard, sadly. Obviously they look like 3rd gen saw blades but are actually 16 inches, I believe they're 7 inches wide but not sure, and have a better offset than stock. I wanted to test fit them and post a pic but my dad is borrowing my car so it isn't here. What do y'all think? Am I the only one who likes the sawblade style? What color should I paint them? Polish em up, or silver, gunmetal or black?
06-30-2013, 08:48 AM
#26
I personally love the sawblade style. I mean look how sexy this is:
The problem is the finish completely craps out. You can actually buy re-furbished (refinished) sawblades BUT these companies don't sell them with refinished center caps so it's almost pointless.
The problem is the finish completely craps out. You can actually buy re-furbished (refinished) sawblades BUT these companies don't sell them with refinished center caps so it's almost pointless.
06-30-2013, 10:42 AM
#27
That was my concern with trying to refinish these. The center caps I have are/were white (as were the wheels when new) and there is no way I could get them to match up or compliment the wheels.
if you look at that photo and the way the light reflects off the wheels it almost looks like those wheels are gunmetal, and from what I can see I think I may be leaning toward painting these wheels that color, but I could be swayed towards bright silver if popular opinion dictates. Black on the other hand, is a color that not many four door sedans can pull off, so right now it's running a distant 4th.
I plan on keeping the z center caps and may even accent the letter z in black just to let you know these are not your typical third gen sawblades, if the size difference doesn't give it away.
By the way if I could ever get my car to look like that... Omg!
if you look at that photo and the way the light reflects off the wheels it almost looks like those wheels are gunmetal, and from what I can see I think I may be leaning toward painting these wheels that color, but I could be swayed towards bright silver if popular opinion dictates. Black on the other hand, is a color that not many four door sedans can pull off, so right now it's running a distant 4th.
I plan on keeping the z center caps and may even accent the letter z in black just to let you know these are not your typical third gen sawblades, if the size difference doesn't give it away.
By the way if I could ever get my car to look like that... Omg!
06-30-2013, 02:47 PM
#31
I knew someone would say that. I might have been wrong about the year of the car but they are Shiro wheels. Still have traces of white paint on them, especially under the center caps, which are white. The car they came off of is very rough and a previous owner/abuser stripped them. Took them off the car myself.
Really sad story about that Z... My buddy bought it on eBay I think, sight unseen and went to Virginia to pick it up. Turned out it had been wrecked badly in the front, core support pulled out with a tree and a come along, beaten back in place and a new front end put on it. Had a Jdm single cam (?) turbo vg in it (not sure on that one, its been a while) plus an extra one with a spun bearing. He managed to get the price down from what he agreed to but once he had to take the motor out he decided the damage was too bad to put the car back together so he got another shell.
Sucks because I think they only made like 1000 or so shiros but that one is done.
Really sad story about that Z... My buddy bought it on eBay I think, sight unseen and went to Virginia to pick it up. Turned out it had been wrecked badly in the front, core support pulled out with a tree and a come along, beaten back in place and a new front end put on it. Had a Jdm single cam (?) turbo vg in it (not sure on that one, its been a while) plus an extra one with a spun bearing. He managed to get the price down from what he agreed to but once he had to take the motor out he decided the damage was too bad to put the car back together so he got another shell.
Sucks because I think they only made like 1000 or so shiros but that one is done.
06-30-2013, 02:52 PM
#32
And rods03max, thanks... Door panels are staying, but seats are gone... All leather now!
06-30-2013, 08:34 PM
#34
Thoat looks great IMO. I guess I never realized those came in 16" on the Z. I could have sworn I looked them up way back in the day and found they were 15's. I've always thought the stock SE wheels would look fantastic if they were in about 17's and super polished or even chrome-like. That would be so much sex on a black VE.
I reallllllly want some like these for my black VE since I'm semi-restoring it and keeping it stock. The black VE in the brochure pic has nearly chrome wheels. Problem is this guy only has two and no center caps (I asked him about it a few months ago):
http://bit.ly/17NqQSP
I reallllllly want some like these for my black VE since I'm semi-restoring it and keeping it stock. The black VE in the brochure pic has nearly chrome wheels. Problem is this guy only has two and no center caps (I asked him about it a few months ago):
http://bit.ly/17NqQSP
06-30-2013, 09:45 PM
#36
Is it just me or does this thing look bent to all hell 
?
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Congrats on the purchase though. It looks great. Got any pics of the leather interior? I LOVED the velour on my third gen. Soo comfy, yet supportive.
?Congrats on the purchase though. It looks great. Got any pics of the leather interior? I LOVED the velour on my third gen. Soo comfy, yet supportive.
07-01-2013, 05:21 AM
#39
Very sexy!! I'd rock all day long!!
07-01-2013, 06:34 AM
#40
hey those look pretty good! They must have a more negative offset since they sit outside towards the fender more. Thats the only thing i didnt like about the 4th gen 5 spoke wheels is that they sat inside too far.
That brochure picture is amazing, though I feel like I missed out on ever having the machined/clear-coated "polished" SE sawblade wheels. My car when i bought it in 2001 had the SE wheels but they were repainted and looked more like the 89-90 "dull" finish wheels. The next 92 (yours) also had painted over SE wheels but were in bad cosmetic shape
How about some type of chrome-dipped plastic finishing on those center caps? I dont know exactly how its done or who can do it, but what im thinking of is all of this chromed-look plastic trim on newer cars.. front grilles, emblem lettering, etc. Or try a silver/gunmetal paint, or even plasti dip, and see how it looks. There's aluminum and charcoal gray plasti dip colors. Whatever of you choose, it would look much better than the faded look they have right now. And then polish/re-clear the rest of the wheel
That brochure picture is amazing, though I feel like I missed out on ever having the machined/clear-coated "polished" SE sawblade wheels. My car when i bought it in 2001 had the SE wheels but they were repainted and looked more like the 89-90 "dull" finish wheels. The next 92 (yours) also had painted over SE wheels but were in bad cosmetic shape
How about some type of chrome-dipped plastic finishing on those center caps? I dont know exactly how its done or who can do it, but what im thinking of is all of this chromed-look plastic trim on newer cars.. front grilles, emblem lettering, etc. Or try a silver/gunmetal paint, or even plasti dip, and see how it looks. There's aluminum and charcoal gray plasti dip colors. Whatever of you choose, it would look much better than the faded look they have right now. And then polish/re-clear the rest of the wheel