3rd Generation Maxima (1989-1994) Learn more about the 3rd Generation Maxima here.

A long 3Gen history coming to an end.

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Old 11-28-2014, 08:33 AM
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A long 3Gen history coming to an end.

Hello to the 3rd Gen group,
It is great to see that the 3rd Gen, even 20 years after its last production, retains an enthusiastic following. I have owned my 93SE since January of 1995 when I bought it with 9K on its clock.


My involvement goes back to the mid 90s, when the org was still budding, but covered all Max generations. A lot of the hard core tech exchanges took place on 4DSC.com. (I was John vdP and made my share of contributions, the highlight of which was my AC conversion on Max1 to organic refrigerant, which is still running strong today, with zero follow up maintenance and only one minor top up after 16 years). There may a few of you that still remember that site. Most of the cars then were daily drivers, as is mine still today, but were enhanced or repaired from the trivial to the most involved.


As parts became more and more difficult to get as junkyard would not keep these around for long, I bought a second one from a fellow enthusiast about four years or so ago. That one already had 200K on its odometer, so my knowledge of its history only goes as far as what I got from the previous two owners.


But as many of the early third genners migrated out of their cars to follow up daily drivers, the same is now, at long last, happening to me. My work schedule is incredibly hectic (has been for almost two years now) and I lack the time, and am losing the inclination to spend what little free time I have working on these vehicles as they inevitably need repairs. As many of you will be acutely aware of, it is financially challenging to keep a car of this age on the road if you depend on professionals to do the maintenance and repairs.


So both my clone black 93SE's are coming up for sale. And rather than dumping them off on Craigslist to someone who can still beat 20 or 30K miles out of them, I will poll this group first, to see if there is an interest to acquire either or both for the greater delta these cars can offer in the hands of an enthusiast. I will post them correctly in the for sale forums, but to give you a brief overview, my first one (I call Max1) is the nicest of the two. It has every factory option in the book and the 5-speed. Leather interior, no rips, tears, or even creases. 99+ percent of the miles were driven solo. It now has 230K on the odo. I spent over 6 months dynamatting and sound insulating the entire vehicle for the custom 700w stereo I built in, and I recently swapped the pioneer head unit as the old one's CD mechanism had failed over time.



It still passes Houston strict emission tests, (with a little preparation), a requirement that will expire next year once the vehicle is 23 years old (safety only at that point). But the engine misses on the center front cylinder at idle, and from what I can tell, it is neither the coil nor the injector, as I can disconnect either with the same results. The engine runs fine at higher revs, which suggests it may be a compression leak, I am not sure.



One of the transmission bearings has started to make noise, but has been like that for over 40K miles. The synchros are in great condition on all gears. Never in a wreck, but did absorbed a front fender "kiss" on both sides from two careless parking lot drivers, on two separate occasions. Repairs have been done in a body shop, but the panels no longer align like they did when factory new. Suspension has Eibachs, KYB in front, Konis in back, and camber bolts. The front Konis wore out, and could no longer get them.



Max2's body has 220K on it, but its engine should only have 100-120K on it since a reported overhaul, but I have no documentation to support that. Same for transmission. It has been overhauled as well. But with the tranny you can feel it, as the synchros are still super tight. Max2 is a catalog of engine and body upgrades; I will list them all in the for sale section.
Both cars have the VE30DE engines with ABS and the 5 speeds
Watch the for sale forum for all the nuance details of both cars, and contact me, please, if you have an interest
John
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Old 11-28-2014, 02:04 PM
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Don't dump them
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Old 11-28-2014, 04:37 PM
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wow it's been a long time John. sorry to see you go. whatever you decide to move on to i wish you good luck.
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Old 11-28-2014, 04:59 PM
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thank you

Thank you for the kind wishes, DanNY!

I have not been in a rush to separate from Max1, my daily driver. I still enjoy that vehicle every time I step into it. Current commute is about 70 miles a day. Max1 never misses a beat.

Max2, the late arrival is now truly surplus as I had to abandon the heart transplant idea to make Max1 live another 5 or more years. I have had the benefit of Texas weather. No rust on the bodies, so when you take care of the mechanicals, and replace parts that inevitably wear out, they will go for a long, long time.

But they do take some basic hands on, wrench turning, and that time luxury has eluded me for a while. I will have driven that car for 20 years this upcoming January, so the anticipated separation is not without trepidation.

John
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Old 11-28-2014, 07:44 PM
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Your in Houston. What part of town?
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Old 11-29-2014, 09:40 AM
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location

Spring TX, near FM2920 and Kuykendahl
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Old 11-29-2014, 04:35 PM
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Wow man hate to see you go. I've always wondered how many guys like you were still around who were still enthusiasts and just plain don't post on the .org

I remember that primitive 4DSC forum quite well. Putting "n/m" at the end of short messages to save people that extra click into the body of the message

Does Houston somehow have different emissions exempt laws than Dallas? This is the first year for my '89 Civic to be safety only. My last required emissions test was September 2013. My inspection due September 2014 is safety only (which I haven't done yet).

Because of my Civic experience, I calculated that my turbo '93 VE won't be safety only until the inspection sticker due in 2018. My '92 VE will be safety only in 2017. Both of which seem lightyears away for one car ('93) I have to have a "hookup" to get inspected and the other car ('92) I have to screw with its timing and all sorts of stuff to pass emissions.
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Old 11-29-2014, 07:56 PM
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I'm in Missouri City. James there are so many shady ppl here that I'm not even worried about getting my stickers.
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Old 11-30-2014, 09:15 AM
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Originally Posted by James92SE
Wow man hate to see you go. I've always wondered how many guys like you were still around who were still enthusiasts and just plain don't post on the .org

I remember that primitive 4DSC forum quite well. Putting "n/m" at the end of short messages to save people that extra click into the body of the message

Does Houston somehow have different emissions exempt laws than Dallas? This is the first year for my '89 Civic to be safety only. My last required emissions test was September 2013. My inspection due September 2014 is safety only (which I haven't done yet).

Because of my Civic experience, I calculated that my turbo '93 VE won't be safety only until the inspection sticker due in 2018. My '92 VE will be safety only in 2017. Both of which seem lightyears away for one car ('93) I have to have a "hookup" to get inspected and the other car ('92) I have to screw with its timing and all sorts of stuff to pass emissions.
My 400K D21 w/headers and cam get an oil chg before I go to get a emission test and I pass with no issues for 15 yrs after the cam and headers...
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Old 11-30-2014, 02:31 PM
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emissions in Houston

James,

I doubt that Houston is different. It is all TX, and the big city smog checks.

My inspector told me 23 years of age is the cutoff. So I am thinking 2016, and one more to go in 2015.

I just take a long drive with Techron in the fuel before I drive up, and put maybe a 40% mix of E85 in the tank, near empty, so I can fill up and blend out after the test.

John
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Old 12-01-2014, 05:52 AM
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Yeah my D21 gets that $14 safety check now and I love it...time for sidedraft carbs now!!!
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Old 12-01-2014, 11:01 PM
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Yay!
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Old 01-27-2015, 02:28 PM
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Dang, nice work keeping things going that long John. I had to get rid of mine a few years ago at around 216k miles I believe. No space to work on it after moving to a big city apartment with no garage. I remember you (and Dan and James) from the 4DSC board as well. I had the same username (Mikey P) over there. I hope you found a good home for the Maximas. I still think the 3rd gen is/was the best looking of the Maxima generations....but I'm biased

I have fond memories of the 4DSC forum. I work for a company that makes ECU reflashing hardware and software for Subaru and Mitsubishis theses days. As part of my day to day I check in on a number of forums for people having trouble using our product and it makes me nostalgic for simple small online communities like we had there. Everyone was generally very civil with each other because it was like a little club where you felt you knew everyone fairly well even though you probably never met any of them face to face. It's near impossible to find that sort of consistent civility these days on large forums. In a weird twist of 4DSC fate I actually met in person and did some software work with Matt York after I moved west, where I've been for the past 13 years. A company that I was hired on to was using his company's software consulting services. That was Quimbik, which you'd see at the bottom of the 4DSC board pages. Small world.

ARCHIVE in 5 minutes n/m
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Old 01-27-2015, 07:57 PM
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ah yes, 4dsc............

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Old 09-03-2015, 07:43 AM
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Hello, 3rd-genners, allow me to post an update to this thread.

I still have the twin 93SE 5-speeds. One is my original one that I have had since 1995. It has the nice interior (unripped black leather, no wrinkles even), and it has the stereo and all the sound deadening. The second I bought from a fellow enthusiast 5 years ago or so.

I was planning to replace my "good" one as my daily driver early this year when I first posted this thread, and offered both Maximas, to see if there was any interest.



Some things changed and I elected to keep driving my Max1, and still offered Max2. That one is more interesting as a parts car with a good drivetrain, then as the basis to build a long therm driver.



As some have astutely observed, this gen is dying out. Quite honestly, if I had the time to fix it, I’d keep it. I have kept it this long as it had become a super economical daily driver that offered great driver satisfaction every time I got into it. Economical, because I could fix things myself. Every time I took it in foran alignment, Firestone "recommended" 2-3k in repairs every time it came in. Of course, over the years, either alone or with help, I have modded or repaired most anything that normally wears and breaks, so it is painful to depart from that knowledge base.



My upgrade from R-134a to organic refrigerant in 1997 or 98 has been one of my personal highlights. More efficient, colder, and in 20 years only once added 3oz of refrigerant. (By the way I still have a lot of that stuff which I will also flog off, but I diverge. Will post that on the normal parts board as that is good for any car that runs R-12 or R-134a)


But since then, the “nicest” Max has developed the valve train chain noise that is expected to only be the guides and/or tensioners, but I just can’t find the time to fix it with the work hours I keep. Now it looks I may be moving for work, likely out of the country for a while, so I will offer them both once again.



Max2 as I call the second one I have has the better engine and transmission as both have been rebuilt, no neither has gone the 230K on the clock
Max1’s engine and tranny are original. Tranny synchro’s are still solid, and it shifts well, but has developed bearing noise. No leaks though. Max2’s tranny is tight, but the short shifter has a lot of lateral play between 1-2 and 3-4.
Both are good cars, though nothing like some of the fine ones I have seen pictures of. And they are the most desirable for most (SE original 5-speeds). My plan had been to keep Max2 as a parts car as even junkyards no longer hold our cars so body panels, glass and most anything else will be more and more difficult to get.
My car has been in Texas all its life. No rust. Max2, I believe, lived in Indiana for a while. It has no body rust, but you can see the salt effects whenever you deal with suspension bolts etc.
Between the new Pioneer radio I put into Max1, then tires and batteries for both, I probably just put close to a grand into them, but none of that matters to street value. I won’t get rich of these cars, but I would like to get something out of them. There are tons of extra parts laying around, including injectors I replaced, thinking they had failed again, when they did not. And the cars both have lots of “extras”.
Max2 has a current inspection. The one on Max1 has lapsed, but I always got it to pass, so would not expect an issue there.
I don’t monitor this board as often as I would like to, so if you have an interest use the email address or text or call the number I will post. (I hope this does not violate board rules). I will send you the pictures I have, and as many more that you might want to see.


Thanks, guys.
John ( jcqcomm at gmail dot com eight three two seven eight zero nine three five six )

Last edited by jcqcomm; 09-03-2015 at 07:48 AM.
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Old 01-14-2016, 08:41 PM
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Originally Posted by jcqcomm
Hello, 3rd-genners, allow me to post an update to this thread.

I still have the twin 93SE 5-speeds. One is my original one that I have had since 1995. It has the nice interior (unripped black leather, no wrinkles even), and it has the stereo and all the sound deadening. The second I bought from a fellow enthusiast 5 years ago or so.

I was planning to replace my "good" one as my daily driver early this year when I first posted this thread, and offered both Maximas, to see if there was any interest.



Some things changed and I elected to keep driving my Max1, and still offered Max2. That one is more interesting as a parts car with a good drivetrain, then as the basis to build a long therm driver.



As some have astutely observed, this gen is dying out. Quite honestly, if I had the time to fix it, I’d keep it. I have kept it this long as it had become a super economical daily driver that offered great driver satisfaction every time I got into it. Economical, because I could fix things myself. Every time I took it in foran alignment, Firestone "recommended" 2-3k in repairs every time it came in. Of course, over the years, either alone or with help, I have modded or repaired most anything that normally wears and breaks, so it is painful to depart from that knowledge base.



My upgrade from R-134a to organic refrigerant in 1997 or 98 has been one of my personal highlights. More efficient, colder, and in 20 years only once added 3oz of refrigerant. (By the way I still have a lot of that stuff which I will also flog off, but I diverge. Will post that on the normal parts board as that is good for any car that runs R-12 or R-134a)


But since then, the “nicest” Max has developed the valve train chain noise that is expected to only be the guides and/or tensioners, but I just can’t find the time to fix it with the work hours I keep. Now it looks I may be moving for work, likely out of the country for a while, so I will offer them both once again.



Max2 as I call the second one I have has the better engine and transmission as both have been rebuilt, no neither has gone the 230K on the clock
Max1’s engine and tranny are original. Tranny synchro’s are still solid, and it shifts well, but has developed bearing noise. No leaks though. Max2’s tranny is tight, but the short shifter has a lot of lateral play between 1-2 and 3-4.
Both are good cars, though nothing like some of the fine ones I have seen pictures of. And they are the most desirable for most (SE original 5-speeds). My plan had been to keep Max2 as a parts car as even junkyards no longer hold our cars so body panels, glass and most anything else will be more and more difficult to get.
My car has been in Texas all its life. No rust. Max2, I believe, lived in Indiana for a while. It has no body rust, but you can see the salt effects whenever you deal with suspension bolts etc.
Between the new Pioneer radio I put into Max1, then tires and batteries for both, I probably just put close to a grand into them, but none of that matters to street value. I won’t get rich of these cars, but I would like to get something out of them. There are tons of extra parts laying around, including injectors I replaced, thinking they had failed again, when they did not. And the cars both have lots of “extras”.
Max2 has a current inspection. The one on Max1 has lapsed, but I always got it to pass, so would not expect an issue there.
I don’t monitor this board as often as I would like to, so if you have an interest use the email address or text or call the number I will post. (I hope this does not violate board rules). I will send you the pictures I have, and as many more that you might want to see.


Thanks, guys.
John ( jcqcomm at gmail dot com eight three two seven eight zero nine three five six )
Just sent you an email
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