I've been hearing some goofy noises from my vq and I'm preparing for the worst case scenario- a $300 motor from a junkyard. I know about the 3.5 but I don't know who I could trust around here for that swap so I'll probobly stick with a 3.0. I know I could call around but it's the weekend and I'm not sure if I trust the estimates I would get. If anyone has paid a shop to do this I would appreciate knowing what the labor cost was. Thanks in advance.

probably around 900-1300 all together with an independent mechanic.

if you have to do a engine swap sooooo go for the 3.5....thats what im gonna do when my engine dies in hopefully 150,000 more miles

since there are only a few shops in the country that are actually capable of doing this

Thats not necessarily tru...just a few shops have tried it....any capable mechanic should be able to do it...I've done a swap, a 3.0 swap and paid nothing...did it myself. Easy work, if you have the right tools.

but once again, you did it yourself.....and you're maxima crazed

most mechanics without in-depth nissan knowledge would not take on the task of swapping in a 3.5

I replaced one about a month ago.
The labor was $750.

You replaced a 3.0 for a 3.5 for 750?

No. 3.0 with 3.0.

If you are hearing funky noises start with the easy things that are the likely culprits of your noise.

The belt tensioner pulley
The alternator
^^^ both of the above are things that can easily sound like the motor going bad. My mechanic thought that the bad alternator was the water pump. There is also of course an easy way to test both of these at the same time. Disconnect the drive belt that powers the alternator. Its easy all you need is a box end wrench to lossen the nut on the side of the belt tensioner then you use a ratchet to loosen up the belt and remove belt. Then start up the car if you still hear noises then its in your engine if not then your problem is going to be cheap to fix.

Thanks for all the replies, seems that only when the ac is on I hear noises like a fan hitting something as the revs get higher. And when the idle drops down to about 1200 rpm, there is this moaning sound. The ac compressor was replaced about 10K ago. Noises stop when the ac is off. ??????

Chit, it does it with the ac off too.

moaning sound?... isn't that a good thing?
is it more like a whining noise?

Ha ha, Kind of a hum at low rpm and an occasional buzzing/something hitting a fan sound that rise with the rpms- with the fans off, I even unplugged them to see if it would matter- doesn't matter. Its a long shot but I hope it's an exhaust leak.

I get a similar sound. engine With about 148,000miles

I have 171000 but it looks like a different engine from a junkyard or something. I bought this at 157000 and ran super quiet until just recently.