Considering the price for getting intake, exhaust, y pipe, struts, springs, wheels, etc.. That adds up to several thousands. Isnt there a car similar to the Maxima that costs maybe a few thousand more yet drives like a modded Maxima right of the dealership?

 

yes, g35 sedan.

acura tl

but when you get that car, you will want to mod that car and will think is there a car thousands more than that would drive like a modded g35 or tl for example..it's an ongoing thing

 

^ what he said

But the buck has to stop somewhere, and if you comfortably afford to drive a G35 Sedan get that instead of a Maxima. Personally the Maxima was as expensive as I was willing to go, so I might mod it or I might not.

 

If you have the money definately buy a car with a little more horsepower than you desire. That way you will be happy with it for a while. Mods will get you marginal gains at best, but having a strongr engine will provide smoother power output. I kind of wish I would have left my Max alone because one you modify it the car will not run as smoothly as before. Vibrations will increase and also noise.

Just buy the car that has the power you want and leave it alone. My 2 cents

Mark

 

Mod Mod Mod Its just really fun so YES its worth it !!!!!

 

I think that if the aftermarket performance parts are of high quality materials, the installation is pulled off without a hitch and the parts are maintained as well as you'd maintain the OE then the car shouldn't have an increase in vibration and/or noise.

Personally, I haven't done anything very serious to my car. I have an intake and a RSB in the mail and some cosmetic changes to mine.

 

Buying a TL or G35 and soon or later, you will want to mod them too

 

Especially after joining one of their boards... except that you'll start comparing your times with those of the really serious cars.

But if I were to choose, I'd save up for a faster/newer car, because:

1) The more you mod your car, the more sentimental value it will have to you, so you'll be stuck with it for longer (unless you have a ton of money)
2) The more you mod your car, the narrower the scope of the people that would be willing to buy it from you later on.
3) The more you mod your car, the less you have left to save up for a newer car down the line
4) The more you mod your car, usually the more things start breaking down/malfunctioning after a while.

Those are the downsides to modding, you have to decide what is worth more to you.

 

Some people just enjoy modding, so it really is a personal decision. Also, modding is a way to personalize your car and make it stand out from any other Maxima out there.

Most of my mods are cosmetic. I am happy with the power already.

 

I would say a few minor mods for the max and if you want a fast car save up a little and get a used 2000 or so Z28, you can get them pretty cheap and stock they're as fast as a highly modded max.

 

I think for most, it's a matter of just personalizing the car.

 

For me its a lifestyle its that simple. I think most true car lovers here on the ORG or anywhere else for that matter dont even think twice about spending time and money on their cars. Its just second nature. Stay within your budget and you'll be fine. You can't buy a perfect drivers car from the factory. Take the BMW M3 for example...possibly one of the nicest daily driving cars you can buy. BUT also one of the most popular cars in the whole aftermarket. Which just proves you can't buy perfection. At least not from a single manufacture.

 

How do things start breaking down if you mod your car? If you go for bolt ons and higher airflow mods like Intakes and what not, instead of Forced Induction (Supercharger, NOS) I don't understand how the car breaks down and malfunctions. How do suspension mods malfunction? Back this statement up.

 

First of all, my disclaimer: I'm all for mods, it can always be made better. Suspension mods do not malfunction, they just cause your wheel bearings to wear out faster than stock setup would do, and those are not exactly cheap to replace after you rack up some miles. Intakes and blown MAFs are another example. Not to mention that a lot of people complain about losing power with an intake... Hotshot headers at some point were quite a controversial issue too. I'd come up with more if it werent 3am right now, but my point is that the "I'm going back to stock" type of statement is not all that uncommon at all.

 

With the exception of suspension, I've been debating on going back to stock for the last 2 weeks now, and so far, its more than likely gonna happen.

 

Agree with most of that, although an M5 is knocking on perfection's door...

 

Depends on what you want. There are many variables to consider. My Max is a daily driver, so I leave it alone. 225 HP at the crank ain't bad for tooling around town. To play, I have a 98 Corvette, which is not nearly as expensive as everyone thinks if you buy one with around 50K miles and are not afraid to wrench. The Vette has been more reliable than the Max in fact--and the miles are the same. Corvettes are fine daily drivers, so if you want excitement with excellent driveability, consider that--and you will save thousands over the cost of anything Japanese or European with 100 HP less.

 

Sorry this is so long....

Rhetorical question if I ever heard one!

Many people have said a lot of what I was thinking when I first read your post. But I guess I've got a few things to add. First of all, the Maxima that I own is for my fiancee and it will pretty much remain stock. It's got an alarm (necessary living in Jersey City) and the window deflectors but big freaking deal. She wants an intake and after reading about some people blowing MAF's and some not (I did at about 130K miles on my SE-R) I'm not so sure.

As many others have said, you'll always want to go faster. It's an addiction. You buy a faster car and you want that to go faster. It's a cycle. Sooner or later, you'll be looking to buy a jet engine

It's definitely fun to modify your car and work on it and get dirty. When I first bought my car I knew very little about cars in general. I knew how to turn the key in the ignition, change the oil, swap tires, etc. Nothing too huge. I was petrified of pulling any door or trim panels off or unbolting anything for fear that it wouldn't go back together. I've learned a LOT with my car and wouldn't be too afraid to try anything right now. With the Maxima though... all I'm doing with that is maintenance stuff. That is the DAILY DRIVER. My car is for working on and I had tons of time working on my fiancee's last car (see sig). At times working on cars can be relaxing (when you have all day to do something and it's 65 degrees and partly cloudy outside) At times it can be a royal PITA (when it's below 30 or above 80)

Maximadmoiselle hit the nail on the head with several points:

1. my car is a 1995. I have spent so much money and so much time on the thing that I will be with it to it's grave. It'd kill me to sell it and it'll kill me even more when it's wrecked on the street by some bozo or on the track by some bozo (me)

2. I don't think there's anyone that would really want to buy my car. Not to mention the fact that I'd NEVER get what I've put into it. The car was somewhere around 16K new. Since then, I have seriously put $20k or so in mods into the car in various forms. Not to mention labor (that of friends and myself) *IF* I were to ever sell it, the spectrum of buyers would probably have to be someone who was at least interested in track events. More probably someone who's want to take it and do a few more tweaks and make it a racecar (like adding the front hoop for a full cage)

3. sort of the case... money's a bit tight now that I've bought the Maxima. It's technically my car but my fiancee's driving it. Lucky her

4. Bingo! The more you mod the car, the more possibility of things going wrong. Some examples.... everything in my car is tried and true... proven on several other cars. I don't think I have a first generation of ANY type of mod on my car. Everything's worked on other people's cars without problem. I, however, have an EGR problem. Every 6-8 months my check engine comes on. And every two years or so, I dissasemble the ENTIRE EGR system and check for blockages and check the solenoid, relays, tubes, etc without problem. Last time, I had a few friends look it over too. I even had a very knowledgeable friend look it over with a friend on the phone who works for Nissan in SoCal. Couldn't figure it out. Problem being that the car won't pass emmissions here in NJ. If you want more examples, PM me and I'll continue. The list goes on and on and on (vacuum leaks, leaky/cracked headers, exhaust leaks at gaskets, knock sensors, cracked radiators (race motor mounts), squeaks, squeals, cracks, thumps that are all weird and of unknown origin, bucking on partial throttle, severely dented oilpan from a too-low suspension that I can't find a spring compressor to compress the spring enough to jack up the collars on the struts, etc, etc, etc, etc)

One thing no one hit on... you mod the car partially to surprise the other guy at that traffic light. I know I'd pull up next to several of you at a traffic light and you'd laugh. But when we got to the next light (even if I didn't beat you) you would no longer be laughing. It's the sleeper attitude. No one expects your Maxima to be that fast

As for my car.... 1995 200SX SE-R, Hotshot Gen IV header (with a 6th gen on the way), Hotshot CAI, JWT S3 cams (S5's probably soon), JWT ECU w/ S3 program, Greddy exhaust, SMC short shifter, SMC SS brakelines, NX2000 calipers/rotors, NX master cylinder, Autopower rollbar, some crappy 4-point harnesses (track only... I'm not that stupid), SHigSpeed suspension (380f/300r), GTiR radiator, Nismo t-stat/rad cap , water temp, oil temp/pressure guages, Unorthodox 4-pulley set waiting to go on... and the stock passive anti-theft alarm or whatever they call it so that they can break the window and take what they want so long as they don't open the door, pop the hood, or pop the trunk. There may be more that I'm forgetting. I recently had a problem with the car stalling (coolant temp sensor) and overheating (crappy copper radiator) but it's now fixed and I'm happy with the car again

 

No, it's a stupid money pitt in most cases. Almost invariably if the person dropping all the money on mods had of saved up that money and instead thrown it on top of the maxima's price to buy a better car, they'd be happier.

 

Modding is not worth it, because you are putting money into something that will devalue it... you lose money on both ends..

Will most of us still do it knowing this, probably...

 

This thread just depressed me

 

I think that if you look at it from strictly a numbers point of view then any money that we spend on things that we enjoy, people that we love as being blackhole expenditures.

I like spending/wasting time, money, and energy on my max. Hell I even like spending time just looking at the way my glacial white max shines in the sun after a good wash and wax (even though half my vision is being sun spotted). I believe that my car is a very personal statement, very much like how the clothes I wear are a reflection of who I am. Ok now I'm just plain rambling so I'm going to rap this up.

If you enjoy it, if you can afford it, go for it!

 

Here's what you can do for under $1500 that will make your max a whole new car in terms of handling/performance

Y-pipe
Intake
Rear Sway Bar
Lower Tie Bar
Intake
Springs
Struts
Subframe connectors

Then your car will be reasonably fast and will handle better than a g35 or the like....

as far as if it's worth it well that's up to you. Are you happy with the car the way you bought it? The maxima will never drive like a racecar.......

Also, in my book modding isn't worth it if you're just going to have a shop put all the stuff on for you. Most of the fun of modding is doing it yourself - working on your car with your own two hands, spending hours sweating and getting down and dirty..... Granted not everyone has the ability, tools, or knowledge to work on their own cars, but there's nothing more gratifying than installing the mods yourself (plus, it's free!) and then taking the car out to test out your new mods...Also when you do the things yourself you learn more about the car - what it needs, what mods are complimentary, etc....

 

I agree that it is enjoyable to work on the car and plus you gain a lot of experience doing so. The only concern I have is how reliable does the car become after several engine and suspension modifications. How much of a difference will 20 hp actually make in daily driving? Most people dont race on the street, so u'll mostly see the gains on the track and it will be minimal improvement over stock. Handling modifications make much more sence since it is a mod that is actually usefull in everyday driving.

 

That's precisely why I've done the mods that you can see in my sig....car is not much faster than stock (if at all) but handling (both normal and emergency handling) is much improved, as is ride quality and stance. Also as you stated regarding reliability, suspension mods won't affect car reliability (as long as you don't drastically lower the car which may result in bad wheel bearings) as much as engine mods might....

One very cheap DIY mod that I would strongly suggest is the hyperground. It DOES make a difference and can be done for $20 in materials....gives improved throttle response, quicker revs, and smoother engine. Check out my homepage for a how-to...
this is good for daily driving and is a noticeable improvement (at least to me it was)...

as you can see from my homepage, I like to do "little" mods as well that improve the car in small ways ("home depot mods").....lighting, appearance, etc.....these are often cheap to do and sometimes they turn out really good!

 

irish, i see you have that brake upgrade, how big of difference has this made in stopping? I am tihnking of getting new rotors, but thinking of getting maybe bigger size rather than just getting stock size.

 

Nobody said you have to buy it all. Nobody said you have to keep going.. Isn't that the entire point? Do what you want to do and stop trying to be like the pack as if it were a pass/fail exam of life..

sigh

 

Honestly, I see it like a hobby. It can get out of hand if one is not careful in controlling his/her spending addiction. Yes, it can be addictive especially if you spent enough times on this board.

To me, modding my car serve as a way of personalizing my ride. Like most had said, the process of getting and the anticipation after the mod(s) are installed, create new excitement. Though the excitement may not last...but hey, it's worth the efforts when things perform as claimed. So far, I have not regret any mods that are currently on my car.

Just do lots of research in here and outside of this board in regards to any mods that you've contemplated in adding to your car. Read and try to use your own logic to justify whether you need it or not. Do not follow anyone else recommendation or claims 'cause you never know if they were overwhelmed by their own excitement and be bias toward the product.

 

You will not spend "thousands" on bolt on products like you listed. Thousands come into play when you want to have a 13 or lower quarter milers

 

not a huge difference in stopping (maybe a little) but the main difference is no warping rotors. Plus I think it looks damn good filling up the entire wheel....
btw you can only do it if you have OEM 17's or larger....

 

Not really "worth" it but definatly worth it! I was going to start a post about this. A professional looking guy (not a scrub) came into my work today as me and a couple associates as we were killing time b4 we went home. Asked if we knew who owned the black maxima. My jaw dropped as he said I need to compliment your car your wheels are really nice! We went outside and he did the walk around and we talked cars for about 10-15 minutes. It turns out he used to have a 4th gen maxima and now he wants wheels for his CL. Thats why we mod!

 

Reasons why I wanna mod my car:

1) To personalize it.

2) To learn more about it and improve its performance a lil.

Like someone mentioned earlier, ya always wanna go faster... and since ya own a Max and presumably, love the car, wouldn't ya wanna make it be able to go faster and handle better? I think its so much more fun doing performace mods of your choice and doing them yourself rather then getting a performance car and doing nothing to it. Plus ya also learn more about the car and how to take car of it, regardless of its mods...

I'm sure I'll hit my limit at some point... but for now I can't see that coming...