I have a 97 SE. I want a smoother ride over the stock shocks. I have arthritis and a bad back from old MX accidents. So my body does not appreciate bumps on long rides.

So, has anyone replaced all their shocks, and are very happy with a smoother ride?? If so, what are your new shocks?

 

I don't think softer shocks will help, your car will just bounce a lot more and be uncontrolled. The suspension upgrades that make it an SE (stiffer springs, polyurethane bushings throughout suspension) just make the ride stiffer. I'd almost say you'd be better off selling it and picking up a GXE or GLE.

 

only thing i icould say is pick up a pair of GLE/GXE springs and maybe new shocks, becuz opposed to stiff shocks u could have blown shocks that are just hittin the bumpstops. The stock ride should be extremely smoothe, one of the best ive been in. consider it.

 

get air bags.

 

I am sure that you can find a GLE or GXE owner who will trade you for the SE springs. I would also consider going with Tokico struts, which are supposed to be the softest aftermarket strut. Perhaps Tokicos and GLE/GXE springs might suit you...

 

Sell the Maxima and buy a Caddy.

 

[QUOTE]Originally posted by Bgohan
[B]I have a 97 SE. I want a smoother ride over the stock shocks.

 

 

Have you considered changing to a tire setup with more sidewall than what you currently use?

 

Eat me, *****. Caddies are for guys with smelly butt-sweat ( except for the CTS) , not guys who got arthritis at age 29.
But then again,
..."The CTS may be the best domestic car this side of the Corvette and Viper. The steering accuracy and the feeling of guiding precision machinery really comes through loud and clear, whether you're driving on the standard 16-inch tires or on the 17-inch tires that come with the Luxury Performance package. The suspension underneath this car is without a doubt the best ever on a Cadillac, singularly smooth, responsive, able to soak up the big bumps and the little undulations equally well without a hint of harshness. One the reasons it all works so well is that the body is enormously stiff and strong for its size and weight, allowing each corner of the car to work independently of the other three.
,,,,,,,,,,,,,

On that note,

My sisters 89 Max SE rides better than my 97. My other sisters 91 rode better, and so does her newer 99. My x-girlfriends 94 rides better too. Heck, my Chevy S-10 4x4 rides almost as smooth.

I've looked up shock reviews, but I could not get what I thought was honest feel for which replacement shocks/struts to buy. Mine are likey shot at 5 years old.
The Tokico's HP's got good to bad reviews. I have not seen owner reviews on the newer adjustable Tokico shocks on a 4th gen Maxima. I live in a rural area, with a lot of mixed road conditions. My current ride would probably be ok if I lived in the city. It is better than many other cars. But I drive my neighbors 97 Camry when he gets too drunk to drive, let alone walk home, and I am impressed with how smooth it rides compared to mine. (Don't much like the Camry CE otherwise).

 

"eat me *****"
That's uncalled for.
Don't be hatin'. He just gave you his .02$ If your back is really bad caddy is not bad after all.

 

Your question was

"I have a 97 SE. I want a smoother ride over the stock shocks."

The answer is

ANY aftermarket shock you put on your Maxima will be firmer then OEM.

So if you don't like the way your Maxima rides, you need to purchase a different car, perhaps one of your sisters'

It's pretty simple and I'm sure everybody on this forum will agree with me. The stock setup is as soft as it's gonna get, if thats not soft enough for you, go buy a different car to accomidate you needs.

Then do us all a favor and don't come back here anymore.

If you really think Caddy's are for people with smelly butt cracks, then you really have no clue what a fine automobile is.

 

Swap the 16" rims for 15s. Get a luxury car tire in 205/65-15. That will give you a smoother ride.

 

I'll gladly swap my 15s for your 16s
-E

 

I have a GLE, and for the record, its not that comfortable of a ride, its just the way the 4th generation is, but i live in NY and the roads suck here..

 

Picking up some GXE/GLE springs will probably only make a small difference, but you can probably get them cheap. Tires make a big difference in ride, you could go down a rim size, I am sure sombody would gladly trade 15" sawblades for 16" 5 spokes. And/Or try a tire with a softer sidewall, otherwise just get a caddy. Maybe try getting a taking a ride in a GXE/GLE to see if that will be to your satisfaction before doing all this. You could prabably just go to a car dealership and test drive one.

 

that's a ****ed-up answer. I think the "eat me, *****" comment was said in joking. This whole thread was started by a guy who loves the max, but due to what ever reason, can't enjoy the ride. And rather than a decent answer, he gets "buy a caddy", "get airbags".

The best thing you can do, if your sister's, and ex's maxes are smoother, is to first check your springs and shocks. Make sure they're in working order. If they're not, get it fixed, that may solve your whole problem right there.

If they're fine, then see if you can trade for a gle or gxe's springs and shocks, but don't go after market. Like njmax said, even the softest aftermarket shock will be firmer than OEM. And if none of those soloutions work, then maybe air bags are right for you. Or, have you looked into possibly buuyng a caddy?

 

i think getting SFCs from WSP could possibly help. i put them on and they eliminated some flexing in the body, thus improving ride quality. that coupled with a FSTB, larger tires/smaller rims, and GLE/GXE shocks should definately help the car. i dont know if the shape of the max seat bothers you, but an aftermarket seat could help.

 

Relax people, give this guy a break, he likes his maxima and wants to keep it(not get a caddy) so lets give him some legitamate advice and try not to make him think we are all a$$holes.

 

Did his reply answer my question? Nope.

What do softer replacement shocks for my Maxima have to do do with a replacing my entire car with Cadillac? I could have left out the reason I wanted a softer ride, but I didn't. I was simply explaining why.

Do you guys also post replies like this:
"If you want your Mxima to handle like a sports car, don't add stiffer shocks and springs, better tires, and a Stillen RSB, go buy a Corvette".

Or: "If you want to go faster, don't bolt on a cold air intake or Y-pipe, go buy something like a Dodge Neon SRT-4"".

I own a Maxima, need to replace my shocks, and I asked for information from anyone with experience with softer-than-stock, performance-type aftermarket shocks, such as adjustable or progressive models. They do exist.


Get it?

 

Hey, T-Bone. Thanks for the advice. I'm sure the harse ride is partially due to my tires.

When I bought my car, the tires were new, and are cheap Generals. I imagine they are too stiff on the sidewalls, and have a hard rubber compound tread for mileage sake. They're also too noisy.

I'll replace them eventually.

In the meantime, I was just wondering about the quality and ride of stock SE shocks compared to adjustable or progresive aftermarket shocks and struts.

OEM shocks tend to not be the best available, and since Nissan redesigned the rear suspension to reduce their cost on the 4th gen cars, I'm guessing they cut a few bucks on the shock and strut quality too. On many cars, OEM shocks are only good for about 25K miles. But, I don't know if this holds true for the Maxima.

Usually, ride and handling can be improved to varying degrees on most cars and trucks by simply replacing OEM shocks. I've changed them out on several of my cars, and it always resulted in a significant inprovement in ride and handling quality.

This is why I was asking if anyone had noticed a significant improvement in ride quality after replacing their stock Maxima shocks.

By the way, what tires do you run?

 

My stock SE struts were replaced(with AGX's) around 80,000 hard driven miles. They were still fine with no leaking.

Any other aftermarket strut/shock is probably going to be a little harsher/stiffer and not what you want.

Tires are going to make a huge difference. Get a full set of expensive "touring" type tires with the highest profile you can. Go to tirerack.com and check them out with all the reviews...

-RMB