gt350mike

My son had a "minor" accident and messed up the hood and bumper on MY 20th AE. Before I run out and buy replacement parts I wanted to know if anyone has bought "CAPA Certified Parts" on their Maxima? I've bought cheap stuff from E*ay that wasn't "CAPA" certified before (to replace the bumper on my other son's Subaru) and I got what I paid for; the fit was pathetic.

Keep in mind that my car has 165k miles and its in great shape but its not a show car. I hate the idea of my son cutting grass all summer long just to buy a Nissan OEM bumper and hood, but if the CAPA stuff is junk then I guess its going to be a long summer!!!



One more thing..........If anyone has replaced the front bumper of their 01, I would greatly appreciate any guidance.

Thanks in advance!

djfrestyl

iTrader: (89)

Certified aftermarket parts in my experience fit 95%. Pretty good, but you can just tell that its AM. Take a look at the lines on my rear bumper

pic:
http://www.eden.rutgers.edu/~nbalani...s/CIMG1235.jpg

It's pretty good, but still has that little bit of misfitment. If you/your son can handle this, it's worth it. Replacing a rear bumper is not a hard task. Keep in mind you MAY need to swap out/replace your front AE lip. Where you planning on doing it yourself?

AceofSpds

iTrader: (4)

I dunno if this helps you or not but my maxima had the same problem exept without the hood, it was just headlights and front bumper and i replaced the bumper and headlights on my 00' (only difference is lip right?)

Doing the replacement was easy, i did it bymyself for the most part and my friend gave me some help too, easialy done with 2 people

Check out my cardomain http://www.cardomain.com/ride/2104250/1 and you can see all what i had to remove and replace, i got my parts from this site: http://www.carpartswholesale.com/sto...N&model=MAXIMA
and you can judge the looks of stuff for yourself but the fitment and everything was fine

btw: i am 16 yrs old

qballjr13

What about junyard parts?? Authentic Nissan without the price.

AceofSpds

iTrader: (4)

arent 5th gens kinda hard to come by in junkyards? but yeah if you can get your hands on a junkyard 5th gen thats by far the best option, i looked for a junked maxima all over alabama, south miss, and florida n couldnt find one when my car was wrecked.

gt350mike

Thanks for the info......I think if the parts are "95%" solution, then it will work for what we need.

Regarding junk yard stuff, if I could find what I need then I would seriously consider going that route. Since most recycled cars are smashed on the front, then I figured I wouldn't have much luck. If anyone can recommend a good junkyard, please let me know!

BTW....Chopstix; I'm impressed that you did the work on your Max! I'm hoping my soon to be 16 year old does as good!