How many of you are unhappy with the mods you've done to your cars. For instance since July, I've done all the basic suspension and engine upgrades. For a while I was really satisfied with the car, but now I feel the car is too much like a race car. I'm beginning to dislike the sound of the intake, exhaust and headers. Plus I dislike my newest mod (Place Racing motor mounts) which cause the car to shake violatley in the morning time and while at idle they vibrate the car. Last I'm beginning to dislike the 18" wheels and tires; although I like the look, I hate the stiff ride. My solution to all this is to take the wheels and tires off and put the stock ones back on and then buy some better tires in place of the stock Pootenzas. Next, remove the i,e,h and leave the udp on. So how many of you feel or have felt the same way? Also what did you do about it?

 

The stiff ride does get annoying sometimes

 

but, then i'd feel like I bought a buick if I didn't drop the bish

 

The one that really got to me was the intake. It wasn't so much the growl at wide open, it was the whistling at just above idle. Needless to say it is sitting in my garage right now.

Can't give up the 19s and the drop, though. Even though the ride is really rough sometimes.

 

damnit guys now you have me discouraged i am looking forward to putting on my eibach springs and buying illuminas and an intake

now u ahve me feeling liek i shoudlnt waste the money but i feel i need better handling cuz i feel like a caddy


dmanit!!!

-J

 

Well if you're being generous for Xmas- keep me in mind

 

I'll take the 18s if you're selling

 

homie...honestly, living on the EC with eibachs will hurt your body and your suspension...they are entirely too stiff for our potholed ridden streets

 

I do. I hate it when my FSTB grinds when I go reverse. I hate how my Xtreme White fogs doesnt match with my HIDs and the parking lights are more bluish than the HID.


~limsandy

 

I used a file to file down the point where they touched, no vibration since.

 

At the wise old age of fifty-something and having been there and done that not once but several times in my lifetime, I have drawn a line on mods that take my car too much 'over the edge'.

That's why I'm still riding on 17" wheels -albeit nice and light ones, why I refuse to go to a tire of less than 50-series aspect ratio and why I still have stock exhaust & intake systems.

The only things I've regreted after a while was half of the the Eibachs (the rears) which is why I now have H&Rs installed there and the 20mm H&R spacer in the rear axle -it's too wide. And that will be taken care of when my thinner (12mm) custom spacers are finished.

 

wow....50+ and still moddin...

although as much as I doubt it, at 50 I hope I have better things to do with my $$$ then mod my car..

keep it up though bro, I applaud your persistence

 

I feel the same way sometimes, my intake made my car ping like mad, the y-pipe was a major PIA to get on without it banging on the cross bar, the b-pipe went on ok. I won't go as far as dropping it or getting new rims, mabye a RSB. I'd like to get the ECU upgrade but am worried about what could go wrong there. I love my max and like the power but I realize that anything that you do to change the car comes with it's pros & cons. I do all the mods myself and get ****ed off when it doesn't go as planned because I spend a lot of time and hard work to make my car better, or better in my eyes. Whatever... my .02 worth.

 

The bluish color from your parking lights can be fixed by using polargs (I am assuming you have PIAA's), and you may want to try replacing the Xtreme Whites with Super Plasmas -- they are almost an extact match with the HID's.

 

Yeah there is no question i hate the "boom" sound that happens when I hit big bumps with my tein drop but i coudn't deal with the stock suspension.

I believe the best remedy for "overmodding" is to just not go overboard, I know its hard but its a lot less aggrevation if you keep it simple,
my mods are tein drop,clears and tint, thats all.

 

i get no regrets with doing any of the 1 mod i have done to my car..the front strut bar...its staying stock too...love every second of driving it

 

Im happy with them!!!

 

I'm happy with my franken/budget b pipe/stock muffler set up- I belive the UDP is next and last......
I too am considering 17" summer replacement w/50
series tires...... The reason I bought my Max was to
upgrade from the sporty/ricer ride (MX6)

Since AE's look tight w/ stock wheels & aero kit - I should be quite happy with my kit and finish there......Then I coul start saving for my Z

 

thats why im done modding! TEINS/GR-2s, Cattman y, frankencar, FSTB, RSB. I will add a pulley and real tires. Results, quiet car no complaints!

 

No FSTB yet but I'm with you on the rest. Stock is good for me. Anything more might overwhelm me.

 

I rode in my friend's 2000GLE last week, its like night and day. his ride felt so comfortable compare to mine.
If I had the choice to do everything over again, I probably wouldn't do anything to the max

 

just put up all your parts in the FS forum already so I can put dibs on them.

i like my ride on sprints and kyb's. Can't stand the floating feeling with the stock ride. Plus I don't find the ride harsh at all, maybe cause i'm used to riding in different 4th gens with coilovers, but I don't think those are harsh either.

 

I'm not sorry about the mods I've done. I think it adds a personal touch to the car and sets my car apart from the crowd. There are alot of Maximas around me and I am glad I am not "one of the crowd".

 

my car feels like its bout to fall off sometimes when i hit those bumps on the street or pot holes...
its a ***** to have a droped car sometimes

 

I agree with you too. I'm getting pretty tired of the harsh riding ground control coilovers. But I think the benefits outweigh the sacrifice in ride quality. I can fully adjust my suspension including the stiffness with the koni's and in winter I can raise the car up. And I cant stand the buick-like factory suspension which makes me sea sick.

At one point I was getting tired of the intake so I removed the Frankencar pipe. I also think the bpipe was a useless waste of money since I couldnt feel any difference, but the sound of it makes me want to keep it. The rsb is also annoying in the winter but in the summer its great.

Since this is my 2nd Maxima I chose not to buy a FSTB or an exhaust system b/c I quickly got annoyed with them.

Nathan

 

I respect people who want to mod their cars. However, I purposely keep the car stock and with a relatively bland(but good looking) color(Sterling Mist) to intentionaly blend in with the crowd as I tend to be a rapid motorist. I wouldn't want the ride to be any stiffer than it already is but I can see the need for suspension upgrades and better tires as the 3.5 can outgun what the suspension can handle.

 

FTSB + RSB + good set of tires = very happy!!!

 

I like more responsive handling, and more power than OEM offers. I can sacrifice some comfort for that. If I wanted to drive a La-z-boy, I would have bought one instead.

 

When I first got my car (14 months ago) and started visiting the .org, I saw everyones max's some of them extreme, and some of them mild and thought it would be very cool to do all of these mods. So I basically started out doing a lot of cosmetic mods such as clears, tint, lower grills, AE/TE 350Z pedals etc. I really think on the whole the 5th gen maxima is a solid car, smooth but sporty ride, and awesome looks (do I even need to mention the VQ). But recently I have realized that it really is a 4-door family sedan. It is arguably the best 4-door sedan when compared to camry and accord and others. So now I think I will stay with stock wheels, suspension, and intake. When I am ready for a true sports car, I will just get a 350Z or G35C or whatever is out at the time. Just enjoy the Max for what it is, because it is definately one of the best. I understand everyone has different tastes and expectations from their cars, this is just my oppinion.

And for those who don't like the stock suspension setup, I would say don't compare this car to a car in another class. I have owned a camry and a corolla. I have ridden in my grandmothers caddilac many times. The stock suspension in a 5th gen SE is heads and tails above the rest (sedan class). It is not a sports car, so don't expect it to handle like one right out of the box. This is not a flame, just my oppinion.

 

I agree with you about seeing everyone with mods done...both extreme and classy. I would say I'm happy with my sound upgrade and tinting but there is something making me hungry for some more performance. I'm feeling some Intake and later exhaust but that's about it. Mostly cosmetics...I always thought the ladies liked it when you rolled by, not sped by

 

I have no regrets about the mods I have installed so far and will do a few more. I want to add some 18's and tires, tint, complete the sound system, y-pipe and cat back.

Hey Galo - I'm 48 and have some of that 'been there, done that' stuff. My car is one of my hobbies. I agree about not going over the edge, but I want it to be different just enough to stand out a bit.

 

Well I've spent so much on my wheels and other mods that I'm in no way going to sell any of it. If anything I'll take the Stillen exhaust off and see if that will tone down the sound a little. As for the motor mounts, I talked to Place Racing and they said that I need to give them a couple of months to break in. Now if I could go back to the beginning then the only mods I would have done would be the suspension.

 

I do occasionally regret the stiff ride. Some of those bumps make you wanna scream. Of course, all of that goes out the window when taking a tight corner with ease. I have not grown tired of the intake nor exhaust, tho a little quieter would not hurt anything. Unfortunately, i have not been able to test my performance due to clunking upon any acceleration other than "normal driving conditions". That will be fixed soon enough....

 

Amen to that!!!! I'm actually seriously (very seriously) considering the Cattman headers.....now THAT's why I would call a demon tweak!

My wife keeps asking me when am I ever going to stop loving and tinkering on cars .....I tell her the day I buy an automatic...she'll know....that will be the day I'm done modding.

Am I sick??

 

I think the key is to mod slowly, that way you can enjoy every mod individually and then as a collective whole. Someone earlier mentioned not to get bored and I think that's what 1badmax did, if i remember correctly you bought a lot of stuff at the same time after you got back from your tour. Remeber slow and steady wins the race...

 

out of everything i think this is a very true statement- modding is a hobby once u finish it you begin to get bored and want to start another project

-J

 

I can see getting bored quick on mod projects. On the other hand, it would be nice to notice one big improvment as opposed to a bunch of little ones. That way you would really notice a difference

 

There's quite a few mods that you can do to increase performance without negative consequences.

For example, GAB or PAB for intake, Y pipe with stock catback, uderdrive pulley, VB mod, advanced timing, and lightweight rims. If you go with a 17x7.5 wheel you can put on some 245/45 tires and put some more rubber on the road with very little change in the sidewall.

I'm not sure how to drop the car without a harsher ride (maybe Cattman coilovers) but I do know the stock height drives me crazy when I look at at.

 

I started to regret getting a HU because of the ugly pocket in the dash. Then I heard a stock HU and never looked back. I'd say that the only mods that I was 100% happy afterwards was the gauge rings, leather seats, and rsb.

 

I have enjoyed every one of my mods so far. The most satisfying was the intake, because I did it all by myself.