I spent Thanksgiving modding my car. I must say that I am very pleased with the results. I thought it might be useful if I gave a rundown of the mods and my initial impressions. So here goes:

1. Clear sidemarkers - look very good on black car
2. Smoked taillights - I had the red ones as my car is GXE, they look great, well worth the $150 they cost
3. Phillips VisionPlus Headlight Bulbs - nice white light and much brighter
4. Home Depot Mesh Grille - I put the grille in the lower valence as well as behind the top grille, looks great
5. H&R Springs - not the drop I expected but maybe they will settle some more, ride is very smooth with stock struts, only 2500 miles on car
6. Courtesy FSTB - looks good, can't comment on usefulness
7. Addco RSB - painted it red, looks great, can't comment on usefulness

The reason I can't comment on the usefulness of the suspension upgrades is that I didn't notice much change. Maybe my expectations were too high. My car didn't ride on rails as I drove through the curvy mountains of WV on my way back to DC. Should I feel more? In the end though, I am glad to have a Max that has drawn a fair share of glances on the road already. It's nice to stand out. Hope this write-up helps.

 

congrats, you must've had a fun time gathering all that stuff and installing at the same time. i just got the FSTB too, noticed a slight difference mainly on the freeways during on/off ramps and quick lane changes. not much else on regular roads.

 

SWEEET! That must've been a pretty long project with all that in a weekend! Anyhoo, congrats!
The FSTB and RSB are mainly felt when doing lateral movements...quick lane changes, quick turns, circle off/onramps, etc...

 

where are you located in d.c.??? mods sound nice. i have a 2k1 gxe and i am getting ready to do more mods to it. let me know.

KJ

 

I'm in Arlington actually, more specifically Ballston. Where are you?

By the way, it was a week long project, I just did stuff every now and then. Helps a lot to have a step dad who owns a shop with lifts!!

 

good for u...
i just installed JWT intake 2 days ago. haven't really try that since my office only 4 miles from my home. but i like the sound.

 

Someone had a fun weekend

 

Sounds fantastic!
btw, where did u purchase ur smoked tail lights for $150? I was thinking about getting them as well.

 

What do you buy from Home Depot? Is it chicken wire or cement mesh? What should I ask for and whats best way to apply to bottom opening...? I could probably powder coat it at work, that may look real nice.

 

I got them from the Nissan dealership in Lexington, KY. But I was able to get a discount because my I bought them through my stepdad's shop. I think normally the price was 200.

 

I keep hearing about these Home Depot mesh-grilles. What the heck are they? And do you really buy them at Home Depot? I know...weird question, but....Home Depot?? LOL

Tony

 

Yep, you buy them at Home Depot. Go there and visit the gutter section. THey'll have stainless steel mesh gutter guard. I think it cost $1.17 for a 6 in. by 36 in. piece of it. To get install intructions go to www.5thgenmaximas.com. It looks great. Good luck. Oh yeah, you'll need black wire ties, I used 8 inch ties for the top and 4 inch ties for the bottom.

 

Wow. Very cool! Thanks!

Tony

 

Congrats on the new mods!!! It sounds like you had a pretty busy weekend.

 

great price!
Thanks

 

ok. i'll bite. how does installing the mesh help btw? does it act as some sort of bug deflector for the lower grill?

curious.

thanks.

 

The mesh grille doesn't "help" anything. I believe it will become covered with bugs and be difficult to clean. However, just like I picked a car with black paint knowing it would show dirt easily, I installed the mesh grille because it looks great. The front end of the Max is very empty to me. The mesh grille fills in some of the gap and makes the car look sporty. For less than 5 bucks and 30 minutes time, I feel it's the best "mod" out there. To see a pic and learn how it's installed, go to www.5thgenmaximas.com under the how-to section. Hope this helps.

 

Protects leaves from going into the car.

 

I recently took off my Stillen RSB and I sure feel a difference when I take hard turns.

 

hey did u take off your fstb too??? the rear of my car is kinda unstable now, but i still have some control from my fstb