I just bought a mint low mile 99 SE last night too. Sterling mist, auto, black leather int. 89K miles. Ive always had manual cars but this time I don't care because of the traffic I have to deal with everyday. Can't wait to get it registered and start driving it.

 

Cool, my last car was Sterling Mist. Did you find it at a dealer or a private party?

 

Bought it private. The car had been just sitting in the dudes heated garage while he drove a company car. I got a screaming deal on it. Very happy !

I had a G20 before this and didnt like it at all. I love this Maxima though..Ill post some pics in a bit.

 

Wow, that's awesome. Let's see those pics.

 

Random question - should the should the hamburgers on the trunk and nose of a 99 SE-L be titanium colored or chrome?

 

SE-L should be 'titanium'-ish, IIRC. Maybe not the grill emblem, though.

 

Right, ish. The 'Maxima' on my trunk is ish and the grill emblem is chrome. I was curious if the grill emblem should be ish on this car.

 

Let's see some pics.

 

The only badges that are titanium are the ones on the sides and Maxima on the trunk. The front and the rear hamburger are chrome. I went and looked at mine just now.

 

I just replaced the spark plugs and cyl 2 coil. I used a bwd coil from pep boys ($65). Ngk pfrg5-11 oem spark plugs from advanced for $65. I also used permatex anti-seize and dielectric grease. The anti-seize came in a decent size tube for $4 but the the dielectric grease came in a tiny tube also for the same price. I put dielectric grease on the top of each spark plug and on each pin slot opening on the coil connector. I asked the parts guy at pepboys if the coil was new or rebuilt. He said they are new and as good or better than oem. Then why is the nissan symbol scratched off? The car runs great now. It starts easier and faster as well. I torqued the plugs to 18 ft. lbs. The old plug gaps were .040" except for one which was .039". Are they still good?

 

i have used coils from autozone before and they r cheaper plus they r good as well, i have bought coils from there 3 different times and i have been very happy with them.glad to know ur cars running good

 

Yea, it's running great right now and the KS isn't replaced yet.

 

 

u should replace the knock sensor if need be u can try to do it urself but its easier if u have small hands. When i had mine done i paid $144 for the part from nissan and $60 for labor to get it done, i didnt even try becuz of the cold here in nyc.

 

I live in north jersey and go to school in LI,ny so I know what you mean. It was warm out today so I did it. I know I need to replace the KS. I'm buying it on ebay for $40 and doing it myself to save that $160 for the rest of the 60k mile service which I'll be doing when it gets really warm.

 

gen4 have starter problems as well, i'm on my third starter, and like snyda said, knock sensor

 

2 pics, I'll take more soon...





Car came from California

 

I replaced all 6 coils as well as 6 NGK platinum sparks and I am happy to announce that my car situation has been fixed. The power loss is gone. The idle issue is no more. The acceleration is better than ever (No more stalling when letting go of gas pedal then re-pressing). So much difference. My next target is the knock sensor though I hear that it wont make much difference. I won't rush it.

 

What kind of coils did you use? Where are you getting your knock sensor from?

 

^Sup quick,I don't know what kind they were, but I got them brand new in the box all 6 for 230$ including shipping plus 37$ dollars custom taxes.
http://www.amazon.com/IGNITION-NISSA...4326796&sr=8-2

they sell individuals as well.

As for the knock sensor, I have not started my research with prices but I'll let you know if I see something reasonable....let me know as well mang.

my bro who also has a maxima told me that knock sensors go out in almost all maximas and that replacing them is useless. His car had the engine code for it for years but it runs great.

 

~$60 shipped on eBay, OEM part.

Replacing them is hardly 'useless'. From the factory they were probably overtorqued, many are cracked. IIRC they also changed the material the outer casing was made out of to keep them from melting/cracking.

 

Good looking out pmohr, one day I am gonna confront my bro as he doesn't like to be proven wrong. I am learning so much from the forum. Without it, I'd be in the mercy of Nissan dealer mechanic devils of whom I will never forget when they told me "it takes at least 2 hours just to get to the back coil packs". Mother*#@%^&$.

 

Seriously? It's possible he was confusing the VQ30 with the VQ35, as the rears on the VQ30 are easier to get to than the fronts (assuming you have the front coil cover on).

 

So when I go to replace mine how tight should I be on it?
BogardiDough You could have used ebay and saved enough to cover a knock sensor from there as well.

 

15-20 ft/lbs.

 

does 97-99 max usually have the same problems you to look out for, or is just 99?. i have a 98, and i will say knock sensor is a definate problem, and the damn starter.

 

NATS and coils are 99 only/most common, respectively.

 

I can vouch for that. But I still love the car.
Just wondering if I use one of those u-joint/swivel sockets on the KS will it affect the tq. wrench reading since it will be at an angle? And do different torques on the KS affect it's sensitivity?

 

Yes, and yes.

 

Try 2 on a 3vz under the intake.

 

3vz, 1mz, etc. They're all great fun. I have a 3vz which kinda died for some weird reason. Might replace it with a 5vz. Someone at nissan actually thought about the simple stuff when they made this engine. I think.

 

Should I worry about it at all?

 

Too tight, and it'll think everything is spark knock. Too loose, and it won't pick up any at all.

 

I have a 92 cam v6 xle with a blown head gasket, rebuilt 4k miles ago. The knock sensor going bad was the straw that broke the back, among finding liquid on the #5 cyl spark plug. With a PS pump on it's way out, the rack leaking, needs a set of struts, flex pipe bad, the tranny harsh shifting, needing a paint job, a few expensive sensors, radio with no display, stumbling while cold, but other than that, it's just great!
Previous owner trashed this car. But it still runs good when it's warm. Go figure.

Im ready for a Max.

 

That sounds like hell. If you are ready for a max then make sure it has little to no problems because steering racks, coils, rotten rad. supports, etc. can give you the same hell.

 

It seems that my car still has issues. I changed all 6 coils and packs and although there has been a significant improvement, the car feels like its running on 4 cylinder or something. When I floor the gas pedal, SES light flashes. While the car comes to a full stop, when I let go of the brakes the car has a shaky feeling though the RPM remains at normal level.
Also, the slip light TCL off lights are on for a strange reason.

 

Since it's getting warm out I'm going to fix the brakes. My braking is faded and during/after a fast stop I get lots of vibrations. The rotors have tons of grooves on them and seem to be warped. After looking at a few threads I'm thinking of getting brembo blanks and hawk hps pads. Has any one used Satisfied GranSport 6 Pads? Also I saw a cryro-stop, cryogenically treated rotor for $57 each on tirerack. Anyone ever used those?

 

whats up guys,,new to sight,,bought a mint red 99 SE limited w/blk leather before winter for my girlfriend,,i got a slight pulsating at times at idle assuming it might be a coil,dont know anything about these cars, besides that and the bose stereo not working we love the car,,plan on putting some charcoal grey 18s on it and small cosmetic stuff, use it mostly for daily driver in the summer ..lookin to put an afermarket cd player in it,any thing i should know about doing that w/ the bose system before i start???? thanx..

 

Yes, you can't just throw in a regular headunit in place of the Bose unit without a converter or replacing all of the speakers as well.

Search, and look at the stickies in the audio subforum. Also, instead of using other's threads for your own purposes, just post in the newbie thread.

 

It's time for an update and more questions. Any and all input will be very much appreciated. I would like further help with a few things I would like to do. BTW The hps pads are working great. The rims get dusty but I love the performance.

First is the exhaust.
I bought an apexi (what looks like a WS) cat-back that was meant for a 95-96 maxima but was modified in the rear to fit a 97-99. It needs a flange welded on at the front and the muffler welded on at the rear. If there's anyone in the north jersey area that can weld it for a reasonable cost let me know, I have pics of the exhaust that I can show you. I was trying to decide between a budget (do they still exist?) and warpspeed y-pipe but after not being able to locate any way of contacting budget or pricing I guess only warpspeed is available. My muffler is peeling, I hear some tiny leaks, and the exhaust sometimes shakes and vibrates while I'm in gear and stopped. It also bangs around going over bumps. The cat-back hanger is not secured to the stud. All the hardware is rusted pretty bad. What nuts will I need for the y-pipe to exhaust manifolds, nuts and bolts for y-pipe to cat and nuts and bolts for cat to cat-back? And any extra bolts or nuts for hangers. Should I buy all metal exhaust gaskets? I was thinking about exhaust wrap or high-temp paint but I think I should just leave it alone since I've read salt will get trapped in the heat wrap and a standard exhaust has lasted this long anyway. I plan on leaving the stock cat and sensors. I think that about covers the whole exhaust but if I forgot something or if you have any input let me know.

Automatic Transmission.
The car has 70k miles and I would like to drain and fill my transmission. I have a beckArnley seal and screen kit so I'm going to drop the pan, clean it out and replace the screen. I've read that I need 5qts for a drain and fill and if I drain by removing a cooler line I will need 10qts. Since I will be removing the pan should I remove as much as possible? Which method should I use and how many qts. should I get? I was thinking of going with amsoil synthetic atf. Should I install an external cooler? My engine is stock and the car is a daily driver.

Suspension.
I've installed a progress rear sway bar and I like what it did. I would like to get a front strut bar to even out the front and have seen the $25 ones on ebay. Will that work or should I buy something else? I would also like to stiffen up the suspension so I plan on getting all new kyb gr2's and eibach 1.5" lowering springs. I want a comfortable ride. Maybe some spacers if I can to make the tires more flush, especially the rear. If I'm going in the wrong direction anywhere here let me know. For tires I am looking at good year triple treads since they have a great all around rating. If you have recommendations feel free to tell me.

Maintenance.
New rotors, pads, and right side calipers plus bleeding. I have replaced the spark plugs with ngk laser platinum's and one front ignition coil at a little over 60k miles. I still feel a little jerk once in a while so I suspect another coil. For those of you who bought all six off ebay let me know how they worked out. I have recently replaced the fuel filter with a 300zx filter, cleaned out the iacv and throttle body; all nissan parts. I had to adjust the idle and also removed throttle cable slack. I was hoping this would solve a problem I've been having but it hasn't. The problem is that when I start the car on cold mornings and put it into gear, the engine stalls or is about to stall but it runs fine in park or neutral. I'm able to move the car out of the driveway by quickly shifting into reverse and then neutral to roll the car a little. Then when I drive down the street it feels like the trans is stuck in high gear. When I start the car on cool mornings it won't try to stall but when I shift into gear I'll have to wait a few seconds before it engages and then it engages very violently. It pretty much drops into gear and then it also feels like the trans is stuck in high gear. I read a few threads with similar problems and maybe it's a coolant sensor or something. Any help is appreciated. I only use premium fuel mostly from shell.

If I put too much into one post let me know. I didn't want to make a bunch of posts\threads all at once.