This car is pi$$ing me off
05-10-2003, 09:38 PM
#1
What we have here is a failure to communicate
Thread Starter
iTrader: (2)
Join Date: Nov 2002
Posts: 1,505
This car is pi$$ing me off
Dont get me wrong, I love most everything about this ride except the way it handles. I have a 2003 GXE. I have never had a car that feels like as if it foats while you are driving it and the handling leaves much to be desired. I have spoken to the dealer on several occasions and this is what they suggested to me.
Buy new struts and a sway bar and the handling and ride will become what I wish it to be. Only one question, before I spend alot of $, and I know this can be hard to answer, will I be satisfied once I do it. My biggest fear would be to doll out $ and then not be satisfied. Im all up for spending $ if it satisfies the end, so to speak. They recommended teiko (i believe that was it) for the struts. Something has got to be done or this car is outta here!!!!
Buy new struts and a sway bar and the handling and ride will become what I wish it to be. Only one question, before I spend alot of $, and I know this can be hard to answer, will I be satisfied once I do it. My biggest fear would be to doll out $ and then not be satisfied. Im all up for spending $ if it satisfies the end, so to speak. They recommended teiko (i believe that was it) for the struts. Something has got to be done or this car is outta here!!!!
05-10-2003, 09:50 PM
#3
Re: struts
Originally posted by scopium
if u wana get good street (racin) handelin just get Stillen strut bar and sway bar. that should do that work. you'll get better handeling on sharp corners and better handelin over all
if u wana get good street (racin) handelin just get Stillen strut bar and sway bar. that should do that work. you'll get better handeling on sharp corners and better handelin over all
~limsandy
05-11-2003, 06:17 AM
#5
Guest
Posts: n/a
Originally posted by 00SESoonToBe
How are those front strut bars that are sold on ebay for like $12.99? The price is right, but are they junk??
How are those front strut bars that are sold on ebay for like $12.99? The price is right, but are they junk??
as for the first post....get lowering springs and kyb GR-2's and u'll be very happy with car...less float and more resilience...
I don't specify springs because everyone on here likes something different...I have maxspeeds; for the value they were untouchable...and I didn't want too low and loose ride comfort
I'm very happy with my choice
05-11-2003, 07:00 AM
#6
Senior Member
Join Date: Apr 2003
Posts: 182
Originally posted by 00SESoonToBe
How are those front strut bars that are sold on ebay for like $12.99? The price is right, but are they junk??
How are those front strut bars that are sold on ebay for like $12.99? The price is right, but are they junk??
05-11-2003, 07:17 AM
#7
Faster than a speeding bullet...
Join Date: May 2003
Posts: 463
Re: This car is pi$$ing me off
How the Maxima handles is very subjective even after you perform mods. Before you bought the car, you should have really asked yourself what kind of car you want.
The Maxima is really a 'best-bang-for-the-buck' kind of a sedan. At a great price, it offers a good mix of luxury and performance without really being heavy into either department. But it hardly qualifies as a sports sedan in the European sense as some of the folks here seem to want and are sometimes unhappy about.
If you want to spend very little, go with the following:
- Generic FSTB (from eBay) and the Cattman/Progress RSB
All the FSTBs and RSBs out there perform the same. It just comes down to whether you want to pay for looks or not. I have this combo and it works great for me. I ended up spending $155.00 total and installed everything myself.
If you want to spend more, add the following to the above:
- Springs, shocks, struts.
If you want to go even further:
- Sub-frame connector.
Also, don't forget that your GXE, like the GLE, does not have the out-of-the-factory 'sports-tuned' suspension. Only the SE has that. The GXE and GLE are offered more for the average consumer who likes a floaty sedan ride to better seperate themselves from the road.
Some people put as little as a FSTB and RSB on their Maximas and are totally happy with the improvement. Some need more to be happy. And finally, some put on everything and are STILL unhappy. It's all subjective, and it depends on what you want, what you expect, and what you can accept out of the Maxima.
Peace.
The Maxima is really a 'best-bang-for-the-buck' kind of a sedan. At a great price, it offers a good mix of luxury and performance without really being heavy into either department. But it hardly qualifies as a sports sedan in the European sense as some of the folks here seem to want and are sometimes unhappy about.
If you want to spend very little, go with the following:
- Generic FSTB (from eBay) and the Cattman/Progress RSB
All the FSTBs and RSBs out there perform the same. It just comes down to whether you want to pay for looks or not. I have this combo and it works great for me. I ended up spending $155.00 total and installed everything myself.
If you want to spend more, add the following to the above:
- Springs, shocks, struts.
If you want to go even further:
- Sub-frame connector.
Also, don't forget that your GXE, like the GLE, does not have the out-of-the-factory 'sports-tuned' suspension. Only the SE has that. The GXE and GLE are offered more for the average consumer who likes a floaty sedan ride to better seperate themselves from the road.
Some people put as little as a FSTB and RSB on their Maximas and are totally happy with the improvement. Some need more to be happy. And finally, some put on everything and are STILL unhappy. It's all subjective, and it depends on what you want, what you expect, and what you can accept out of the Maxima.
Peace.
05-11-2003, 08:50 AM
#8
Senior Member
Join Date: Apr 2001
Posts: 4,968
Re: This car is pi$$ing me off
Originally posted by MaximaFastness
Dont get me wrong, I love most everything about this ride except the way it handles. I have a 2003 GXE. I have never had a car that feels like as if it foats while you are driving it and the handling leaves much to be desired. I have spoken to the dealer on several occasions and this is what they suggested to me.
Buy new struts and a sway bar and the handling and ride will become what I wish it to be. Only one question, before I spend alot of $, and I know this can be hard to answer, will I be satisfied once I do it. My biggest fear would be to doll out $ and then not be satisfied. Im all up for spending $ if it satisfies the end, so to speak. They recommended teiko (i believe that was it) for the struts. Something has got to be done or this car is outta here!!!!
Dont get me wrong, I love most everything about this ride except the way it handles. I have a 2003 GXE. I have never had a car that feels like as if it foats while you are driving it and the handling leaves much to be desired. I have spoken to the dealer on several occasions and this is what they suggested to me.
Buy new struts and a sway bar and the handling and ride will become what I wish it to be. Only one question, before I spend alot of $, and I know this can be hard to answer, will I be satisfied once I do it. My biggest fear would be to doll out $ and then not be satisfied. Im all up for spending $ if it satisfies the end, so to speak. They recommended teiko (i believe that was it) for the struts. Something has got to be done or this car is outta here!!!!
Just out of curiosity, what other car(s) are you using as your criteria for your displeasure, and also, wasn't this apparent when you test drove the car before purchasing/leasing it?
05-11-2003, 10:28 AM
#10
What we have here is a failure to communicate
Thread Starter
iTrader: (2)
Join Date: Nov 2002
Posts: 1,505
Dont get me wrong, I love this car and am happy overall with the purchase. Just a little bit firmer steering and a lot more tightness would be great and not such a floaty ride.
05-11-2003, 02:51 PM
#11
Senior Member
Join Date: Apr 2003
Posts: 182
Originally posted by jessa
im sure there decent, just prob not as good as a stillen one, or whatever... as for installing, its a 10 min job, just some bolts. very easy to do
im sure there decent, just prob not as good as a stillen one, or whatever... as for installing, its a 10 min job, just some bolts. very easy to do
05-11-2003, 09:09 PM
#16
KYB-GR2 struts paired with sprint spring, or Teins will help this problem big time. Compliment those with a FSTB and a rear sway bar and I dont think you'll have much left to complain about. The only other thing left to do is get ride of those crap potenza tires and get something else. This will aid a great deal in better handling. The one mod that will give the biggest differance in handling is the RSB, that alone is well worth the money. Addco works like the stillen, but the stillen is just better looking. I currently have Tein springs paired with Tokicos. (get the KYBs 
) and a stillen FSTB. As soon as I get the 03 6spd its all trasnfering over plus im gonna add the stillen RSB to spice things up a bit. If you reall got some cash burnin a hole in your pocket, well then you can always get the JIC FLT-A2's part that off with a rsb and fstb and you about done. Only problem is the JIC magic suspension will run you about $1800ish give or take a few.
) and a stillen FSTB. As soon as I get the 03 6spd its all trasnfering over plus im gonna add the stillen RSB to spice things up a bit. If you reall got some cash burnin a hole in your pocket, well then you can always get the JIC FLT-A2's part that off with a rsb and fstb and you about done. Only problem is the JIC magic suspension will run you about $1800ish give or take a few.
05-11-2003, 09:34 PM
#17
Originally posted by 00SESoonToBe
How are those front strut bars that are sold on ebay for like $12.99? The price is right, but are they junk??
How are those front strut bars that are sold on ebay for like $12.99? The price is right, but are they junk??
Good luck.
05-12-2003, 06:27 AM
#18
Senior Member
Join Date: Apr 2003
Posts: 139
Re: Re: This car is pi$$ing me off
Originally posted by jjs
Be aware that while many will suggest the RSB, there have been posts by people who live where the curves they want to take also have bumps/uneven surfaces...with the rear suspension being what it is, adding a RSB will only amplify the rear end hop over these bumps, etc. on curves. It will NOT be a total solution.
Be aware that while many will suggest the RSB, there have been posts by people who live where the curves they want to take also have bumps/uneven surfaces...with the rear suspension being what it is, adding a RSB will only amplify the rear end hop over these bumps, etc. on curves. It will NOT be a total solution.
05-13-2003, 07:37 PM
#19
Senior Member
Join Date: Oct 2001
Posts: 699
My only complaint is how couple of extra PSI in your tires affect the ride of the stock suspension. The rear end bounces over pronounced bumps and the steering wheel shakes and vibrates annoyingly. You keep the air pressure between 30-32 PSI all around and it's all good.
05-13-2003, 09:54 PM
#20
Senior Member
Join Date: Feb 2002
Posts: 1,322
Originally posted by WVmax
I was wondering about these myself. I didn't know these came so cheap. Is this a big ripoff? Honestly, I don't know much about them. Are they easy to install?
I was wondering about these myself. I didn't know these came so cheap. Is this a big ripoff? Honestly, I don't know much about them. Are they easy to install?
Thread
Thread Starter
Forum
Replies
Last Post
Lakersallday24
6th Generation Maxima (2004-2008)
10
06-16-2019 01:35 AM
kjlouis
4th Generation Maxima (1995-1999)
11
11-24-2018 06:09 AM
altome15
7th Generation Maxima (2009-2015)
5
08-10-2015 07:05 PM