dewd

Hey i was thinking about it and just got an idea.

what are the basics to having a nice strong long lasting 5/5.5 gen maxima ?

Manual mounts with ES inserts ?
Coilovers instead of flaky strut/shocks ?
17" wheels or less ?
spacers for better handling on corners at decent speed ?

i think all these things make the maxima way more enjoyable and way more problem free.

can anyone add to this ?

Mr. Brett

iTrader: (7)

The BASICS would be keeping your fluids up, and having everything serviced/inspected regularly.

As far as you're talking:

Dump the lousy pre-cats. Replace with headers.

Buy an extra MAF. Just in case.

By the way, spacers really won't improve handling. Wider tires will.

Z-Powered

Keep an eye on your oil level, especially if you have a 5.5 gen.

dewd

great tips! especially this one in red seems good. in correction i would probably do wider tires over spacers. but spacers do help slightly i would assume, as far as turn radius. and they make the car look nice.

but definitely not better than a nice wide tire could! +1

great tips. anything else ?

anyone else ?

Scottwax

iTrader: (8)

GAB + K&N drop in filter, NWP block plate and a test pipe on a 5.5 gen will give you a nice bump in performance for just over $100. All are easy enough to do yourself.

Other than that, change your oil and automatic transmission fluid (if applicable) regularly, wash, vacuum and wax regularly. Take care of any mechanical problems promptly.

I've got just over 174,000 on my '02 Maxima and haven't had very many problems with it over the last 60,000 miles.

Mr. Brett

iTrader: (7)

They do make the car look good, but they don't do much else. If you're looking for traction gains, you'll need wider wheels and tires.

As far as turn radius, they won't do much. Our car's dump truck-sized turn radius is pretty much there to stay.

Actually, I'm pretty sure dump trucks have a better turn radius than we do...

dewd

^^^ lol


well hey scotty whats a GAB ?
and whats a NWP block plate ?
and what are the benefits of a test pipe ?

sorry for sounding like such a novice on the subject.
i have a 5th gen not 5.5 would i still benefit or is it hopeless ?

anything for a 5th gen ?

Scottwax

iTrader: (8)

No "y" on the end of my name....

Do a search of GAB, pulls up tons of threads. Just a way of opening up the stock airbox for more airflow. You can't use the block plate on a 5th gen since you have a different intake manifold design. A test pipe helps on older cars that have the original catalytic converter. Compared to a brand new converter, gains would be minimal but if you've got 100,000 miles on your car, it can make a noticeable improvement in performance. Not sure if the main cat is monitored on a 5th gen but it isn't on a 5.5 so removing it won't give you a check engine light. No problems passing my emissions test here in Texas. They only check for codes and the only visible inspection is the gas cap.

Mr. Brett

iTrader: (7)

That's Mr. Detail to you.

dewd

damn why do i always call you scotty. lol im sorry scott its not the first time ive done it. you probably dont even remember. lol

so wouldnt it just be better to remove the cat all together and put headers/straight pipe/test pipe ? as the guy said before ?

yeah my 5th gen is safe i took the cat off before for some work i was having done and the thing didnt come on at all.

Mr. Brett

iTrader: (7)

Basically.

You'd want something like.

Cattman headers ---> Megan (or variant) testpipe ---> Cattman 2.5" exhaust (or something else)

Go with a test pipe and not a straight pipe. Straight pipe will cause raspiness. Test pipes have some glass pack material in them to quiet down the exhaust.

As far as the catback goes, that's up to you. Go custom if you want. Just make sure you get something with a decent resonator in the B-pipe and a good-sized muffler to eliminate drone.

Mr. Brett

iTrader: (7)

You guys are lucky. Emissions is similar here, with the exception being they slide a mirror under the car to check for a cat. So that means every time it's off to emissions for me, I have to put my cat back on.

Scottwax

iTrader: (8)

Obviously, if you don't have to worry about emission testing, headers are the best option.

2kNycMaxima

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e-subliminal-2

iTrader: (7)

Coilovers are a dream. Just put mine on. Handles TONS better.

DrunkieTheBear

iTrader: (17)

don't put bleach in the engine oil

Simple maintenance works, flushing all fluids, changing spark plugs, replacing all wearable parts (bushings, struts, etc) will all help to keep a car on the road.

Mr. Brett

iTrader: (7)

Following off of what Drunkie said, don't pour brake cleaner into your engine oil, either.

Also, contrary to popular belief, pouring sand into the intake of your car while it's running does NOT port and polish the manifold.

e-subliminal-2

iTrader: (7)

dewd

lmao. who told ytou that>?

well now i atleast know how to ruin a car. lol

Andypot1985

iTrader: (1)

Extra MAF for the win.

styliztik

The key to having a strong, long lasting car, is to stay on top of the fluids. Change them regularly. Don't abuse the car. etc. If you do that, then you can have a car that will almost live forever.

Norm Peterson

Don't beat on the car until it has warmed up. By the time the engine has warmed up, so has the transmission and things like wheel bearings (and their lube).

Spacers are at best a band-aid for getting wheels of slightly too much positive offset to fit. If they're thick enough to see with your eyes that the track has been made wider, they're actually hurting your cornering/handling rather than helping it. Better (read: grippier and wider) tires on wider wheels is what you want here.

Coilovers can make for an improvement, but the spring choices and the damping have to be somewhere near right. There is nothing magic about having a 2.50" coilover spring fitted to its C/O shock body that automatically makes it any better than a big spring of the same stiffness sitting on a normal strut. It's the spring rate choices and the likelihood that the damping is more sporting than OE that makes for improvement.


Norm

rroderiques77

iTrader: (45)

Maintain proper tire pressure and rotate those tires everyone other oil change.

Rods03Max619

iTrader: (5)

To me their is no basic's but once you do one thing your going to love it and keep going from exterior, interior, and the performance so much to do.But yes change the oil all the time and transmission fluid also

zero2sixtyZ

iTrader: (30)

Proper maintenance, switching to syn fluids, dedicated summer/winter tires if needed, extra MAF in the trunk (I have mine there), ridding the pre-cats, proper coilover system for suspension upgrade.