JvG

I have a 96 SE. I bought it from a dealer in 2006, with 100k k miles on it. It appeared well cared for, and the dealer did a lot of reconditioning before I got it.

I saw the dealer receipts. No mention of a clutch change at that time.

I have driven the car 110 k additional miles, so it' at 212ish k miles now.

I have never replaced the clutch.

I have driven mostly on freeway and highway.
I generally obey the speed limit, but it' fun to get there quickly.

There is no clutch slippage yet.

Should I plan on doing this soon, at my convience, or after it acts up at a bad time?

How much longer could the clutch last.

CS_AR

For comparison purposes, the clutch on the 97 model wore out somewhere between 210,000 and 215,000 miles. Now I think this all depends on the driver and traffic conditions. My last Nissan that needed a clutch replacement was a 79 z-car around 120,000 miles. If I recall correctly, you get a short amount time to react when a clutch starts to slip.

I had the clutch replaced on the 99 model at roughly 160,000 miles during an engine swap. The old clutch was a long way from being worn out. No record of it being replaced.

I would keep a new clutch in mind in the event it starts slipping.

KP11520

Too bad you weren't closer. But 3K miles is just past how far I'll drive. LOL

I probably would have everything staged and ready to go at this point, while I do appreciate you wanting to see how far you can milk the clutch. 215K is quite impressive already! Congrats on that!

Maybe in the gathering of everything needed, get a used flywheel and have it turned, so no matter what happens, everything going in is in house.

As usual, when the new one goes in, you'll ask yourself why you didn't do it sooner. Crisp is Cool! Way Cool! LOL

JvG

It's possible that the clutch was replaced by the previous owner before the 100k mark.

So my clutch has somewhere between 112k and 212k on it. Again, so signs of slipping as yet.

My miles were mostly freeway commutes and long drives.

So I guess my question comes down to how long does a clutch usually last in these cars if it's treated with respect?

I have another car to drive, so no big problem if the Maxima breaks down. I can take my time fixing it.
I have a heated garage to work in.

I am aware of the relativly short time between the beginnng of clutch slipping and failure to make it up the driveway. I'd rather not push my luck.

I prefer to do most of my heavy duty car repairs during Portland, Oregons' wet chilly winters.
So the car is ready to enjoy once spring comes.

But I don't want to replace a clutch with lots of life left in it either.

So, I'm guessing that 112k or more is a lot on a clutch, while 212k is well beyond normal?

CS_AR

Ahhh.. You need a good winter project.

Here's a thread on clutch life below with some good notes.

https://maxima.org/forums/5th-genera...h-mt-last.html

One thing that surfaced on the 99 model's transmission after roughly 210,000 miles is the seal for the shifting mechanism started a slow leak. So I need to add roughly 1/2 of a quart transmission lube with each oil change.

The transmission lube leaks on to the flex screen part of the y-pipe while driving. So it looks like the y-pipe flex screen has an oil leak. Another member indicated the transmission needs to be pulled and opened up to replace the shifter mechanism seal. So I may be pulling the transmission again next year to get the shifter seals replaced.

Two tools from Harbor Freight that really came in handy when we changed the clutch on the 97 model were the transmission jack and the engine stabilizer bar in the pictures below.

Its a shame you don't live closer or you could borrow these tools for the job. Or just bring it over and we could get my son and his buddy to do it over a weekend.

I used this to keep the engine steady while removing the transmission.



Transmission jack came in handy. I will tell you it really helps to have two floor jacks when doing this type of repair and a helper.



Since you are going to have the transmission out, you might as well go for a new rear main seal, half moons, upper oil pan reseal, poly ES cross member bushings, motor mounts, end-links, anti-sway bar bushings, and all the other stuff. :-)

JvG

Thanks for this information.

yes, I want to do a thorough job once im in there anyway.

specific clutch reccommend?

Exedy? LUK?

I'm looking for oem level quality, or better.
For normal driving.


Yes, a winter project.

last year I was overhauling a toyota corolla engine with clutch. New mounts, radiator, the works. I learned, or rather re-familiarized myself with many of the same things I can use on the Maxima project.

. My 2003 corolla will be my main ride while I'm working on the Maxima.

CS_AR

I had the same requirements.

I've made two 4th gen clutch purchases in the past 4 years for the 99 and 97 models. Both have been Perfection clutches. They work. No issues. IIRC my son did some research and picked out a Perfection clutch for the 99 model. It started out as his choice 4 years ago.

I'm sure there are a lot of recommendations for clutches with more performance oriented rates.

On the 2nd clutch, we went around to basically every parts store in town to look at the clutch kits. It turned out that the Advance Auto CarQuest brand was packaged in a Perfection box. So as of last summer, AA was selling perfection clutches as CarQuest. Based on a good experience from years ago, I went with Perfection again.

Now here's the kicker. On the stop at O'Reilly, I pulled out the throwout bearing and gave it a spin just to check the smoothness. It felt like there was a tiny amount of grit in the bearing. It just wasn't perfectly smooth as the old original OEM bearing. So I was worried about the kit's throwout bearing being noisy after installation. While at the store I asked to see a National brand throwout bearing. I took it and gave it a spin and it was smooth as butter-- like the old OEM bearing. I kept looking and testing out the throwout bearings and could not find a bearing that I liked.

In the end, I ordered a Perfection clutch from Advance along with a National throwout bearing from O'Reilly. Note the Perfection bearing that was installed years ago, has worked ok. I didn't do the installation for that job. I just went with the kit.

After the clutch installation on the 99 model, I installed a stainless steel clutch line. That firmed up the feel. It seems to be a popular addition to any clutch job.

I see a lot of good reviews on Exedy and LUK. If you are not drag racing, I'm sure any will be fine.

To me, the throwout bearing quality was the main factor.

JvG

[QUOTE=CS_AR;9165033]I had the same requirements.

I've made two 4th gen clutch purchases in the past 4 years for the 99 and 97 models. Both have been Perfection clutches. They work. No issues. IIRC my son did some research and picked out a Perfection clutch for the 99 model. It started out as his choice 4 years ago.

I'm sure there are a lot of recommendations for clutches with more performance oriented rates.

On the 2nd clutch, we went around to basically every parts store in town to look at the clutch kits. It turned out that the Advance Auto CarQuest brand was packaged in a Perfection box. So as of last summer, AA was selling perfection clutches as CarQuest. Based on a good experience from years ago, I went with Perfection again.

Now here's the kicker. On the stop at O'Reilly, I pulled out the throwout bearing and gave it a spin just to check the smoothness. It felt like there was a tiny amount of grit in the bearing. It just wasn't perfectly smooth as the old original OEM bearing. So I was worried about the kit's throwout bearing being noisy after installation. While at the store I asked to see a National brand throwout bearing. I took it and gave it a spin and it was smooth as butter-- like the old OEM bearing. I kept looking and testing out the throwout bearings and could not find a bearing that I liked.

In the end, I ordered a Perfection clutch from Advance along with a National throwout bearing from O'Reilly. Note the Perfection bearing that was installed years ago, has worked ok. I didn't do the installation for that job. I just went with the kit.

After the clutch installation on the 99 model, I installed a stainless steel clutch line. That firmed up the feel. It seems to be a popular addition to any clutch job.

I see a lot of good reviews on Exedy and LUK. If you are not drag racing, I'm sure any will be fine.

To me, the throwout bearing quality was the main factors.

JvG

Thanks for the offer of help from the east coast.
CS-AR, I'm guessing Arkansas, Where else ?

Thats the cool part about this forum. Doesn't matter where you live. Someone has been there, done that, and offers to help.

I have replaced several clutches. I usually manage with a floor jack. But after my last experience, that transmission jack is also about safety .
I was replacing the clutch on a 92 Nissan pickup. Their transmission are long, surprisingly heavy and difficult to balance. As it slipped off the jack, and down 12 inches to the floor. I was careful not to be under it.

I am contemplating this Not So Fun project as one of things I'm going to have to experience sooner or later. So I might as well do it a week or a year early.
Better a winter project now than waiting till it slips in a really bad place.

The alternative might be something like clutch slipping on an Interstate freeway, on a mountain pass. Siskiyou Summit in Oregon at the California border. It's a steep one for miles on end. This would mean a 1500 buck shop.rate, and the tow truck.

​​​​​​which means junking the car.

CS_AR

Jack recently swapped a Camry automatic in the driveway only using floor jacks. I guess it depends on the transmission.

Here's a picture from the 97 model clutch job. You can see how far we took that one with the upper oil pan removal.



Here's a picture of the transmission on the jack just after removal.