Could anybody tell me if I can use the regular 95-99 fstb or do I have the same complications as the se-l. I drive a '99 i30, I have no idea how to tell if it's the ie-limited...the service man said he thinks it is.

thanks in advance,
-John

 

95-99 is good to go. Make sure it is flat, if the FSTB has any angles in the main portion that spans the width of the engine bay. You should be good to roll. I am not aware of any problems with the SE-L's.

 

On the '99s there are some that have problems and others that don't. My '99 was manufactured in 10/98 and had no problem. However, most later model '99s and SELs have a bigger bracket on the drivers side strut area. The bracket is a metal piece that has nothing attached to it, and most just use a hacksaw to cut it off. The bracket on my car is considerably smaller than the SELs. I'll take a picture and post it tomorrow (even though the FSTB isn't on the car).
-hype

 

Oh that little nub thing? Thats not really a real problem/ But it should be fine.

 

Looking at the hood from the front, 99 limited maxima's have a bracket on the right strut tower (driver side). This bracket does get in the way of the fstb. I have a 99 limited and i had to cut part of that bracket off...and just installed the fstb two days ago.
Sawing takes hours, the actual install of the fstb is like 5 mins.
Good luck.

 

I was wondering the same thing. I was thinking about just picking one up from ebay. Their FSTB's are usually listed for a 95-99 application.

But then I saw that Courtesy Nissan lists a different bar for the 99 than for the 95-98. I think the 99 may be the same one used for 00-02.

Does the fitment issue apply only to the SEL's? If so, why does Courtesy list a different bar for all 99's? And if I'm shopping ebay, should I just be looking for a 00-02 bar instead?

 

You wont beable to close your hood if you get an 00-02 bar. I think somone suggested a hack saw trick-I would use that advice if you want an FSTB. Oh or get the courtesy 99.

 

But if you look here, it appears that Courtesy uses the same bar for 99-02. I tried putting both a 99 bar and a 00-02 bar into their shopping cart and this was the difference:

A33-STB Front Strut Tower Brace 1999-2002 Maxima (on Back-Order until August) $79.95 $79.95
Model Year: 1999 includes (6) 01225-00231 14mm Nuts

A33-STB Front Strut Tower Brace 1999-2002 Maxima (on Back-Order until August) $79.95 $79.95
Model Year: 2000-2002

It appears that the only difference listed is some nuts. Is their bar just different from all the other 00-02 (and 95-99) FSTB's (ebay)? I certainly want to be able to close my hood and would rather avoid cutting anything if I can. (Uh-oh, here come the CAI people...) Thanks for the help.

 

That has to be a typo. the 99's are not A33's for one thing. The other is a member here, mikerose had an A33 FSTB sent to him for christmas... it didn't fit. He had to send it back to get the 95-99 FSTB. I'm not sure if you know, if you do I'm sorry to be repeating it. A32's are the 4th Gen body style. A33's are the 5th Gen body style. So clearly this product is a typo.

 

Yeah, the FSTB for 95-98 is listed as A32. The issue is with the 99's. The information on Courtesy's site would lead me to believe that for whatever frankenstein reason, the 99's (and just the 99's) are grouped with the 5th gens ("99-02" after "95-98") when it comes to strut bars.

You're talking about [mike_rose] right? His profile says that he has a 97, so your story is absolutely right, but this is a different scenario...

Really, honestly, and truly madly deeply, I'm not trying to be a pain. Just trying to figure out why...

 

Here is what you should do, and I apologize to Phoung and Greg

Call GR Racing www.eatricezone.com

Call Custom Maxima, www.custommaxima.com

Ask them which you FSTB is the right one for your car.

There is no diffence in the hoods of a 97 and a 99, therefor an A33 FSTB will not fit under it. The difference is the bow in the center piece of the brace and it simply will be too high for the hood to close properly.

 

Hey, just so it's clear...

I'm not trying to argue with you, or in any way suggest that your information is suspect. In fact, I appreciate all of your help. (You seem to be the only one indulging my questions at the moment.)

I just think Courtesy, who generally has a reputation for getting things right, must have a reason for listing it this way. Perhaps their bars are a slightly different design from the rest? Add in the fact that the bracket was supposedly added to prepare for the 5th gens, and there's just enough there to cause a little confusion (for me anyway...)

 

I don't think we are arguing, there aren't any **** in our conversation. I offered to you to contact others that are known for their knowledge of cars as means of supporting or contridicting courtesy.

Here is a link to stillen to further push my point
http://www.stillen.com/sportscars_de...d=12984&page=1

 

Thanks for the input guys, I'll probably be ordering the directcarparts.com fstb they have on ebay for 18 bux =). From what I gathered they all serve the same purpose, anybody disagree i'd be willing to listen..or read..yeah.

John

 

There is a difference from the 95-98 and the 99.

I have a 99 and there is a bracket in the way of the fstb installation, which the previous 4th gens do not have. I just installed it, and I had to cut off part of the bracket in order to go through with the installation. Open your hood and look at the two strut towers. The passenger side is fine, but the driver's side has a bracket in the way. There are a couple that are made for the 99, but most are made for 95-98 and just say 95-99 because they think its the same. The fstb I got is made for a 95-98 and I put it on my 99 with the bracket cut off.
If you don't see a bracket, then you're fine, otherwise you gotta spend some more $$$ or you have some sawing to do