Throughout the Summer of 2010, I started cleaning my engine bay as an in-between kind of project. For about 7 years, I gave zero attention under the hood, except to check the oil, and even then not that often. I bought a FSTB from Racingline Performance in Spring of 2009, and that was the first thing that made me look twice at the engine bay. Since then, I’ve been slowly doing this Benjamin Button thing under the hood. Now, I didn’t go full-on-chrome crazy, but there are a few titanium bits & pieces, and a fair amount of stainless steel.

Of all the clean-up techniques, one of the easiest things you can do to doll-up an engine bay is replace various nuts & bolts. And there are a lot of them. This write-up is for the obvious ones that anyone can get at.

The full list is something I’ve been tweaking as I go, including a fair number of obscure items. It you want, you can download that spreadsheet, and use it for your own project. These pictures are just for the obvious and accessible ones. Simply right click on this URL and “save link as”, or whatever your browser does to save the file:Some quick items to be aware of:

• Everything is Metric, and almost everything is M6.
• Most bolts have a tapered tip, so even though it might be 25mm long, a 20mm replacement bolt is your best bet.
• Not everything needs a washer, however, stainless steel washers with a rubber backing work really well, and look pretty darn good, too.
• DressUpBolts.com is a great place to buy stuff from, with good prices and good customer service.
• If you like the machined look better than bling, hit up your local Fastenal Store for stainless steel parts, and far better pricing than you’ll find online.

 

Here is a picture of my engine bay. This is a 2003 Maxima SE 6MT, with a short-ram intake instead of the stock air-box:




And here is that same picture, softened into B&W, with markers over each of the nuts & bolts that you can replace.

Details to follow…

 

There are 3 fender bolts on each side of the engine bay, but only 2 are actually visible; (the third is under the windshield cowl.) These are painted the same color as the car, so you might not even notice them at first. Don’t be afraid to give the ratchet a good twist, because they come right out. These are M6x15mm bolts. I’m using a polished stainless steel buttoncap from DressUpBolts.com, with a stainless steel, rubber backed washer bought from Fastenal.

 

The fuse box in front of the battery uses two M6x15mm bolts that hold the plastic base to the battery tray. You might not think to do these two bolts, but it really is worth doing, because my originals were misshapen hunks of rust, and it looks so much better having attractive hardware there. I’m using a polished stainless steel buttoncap from DressUpBolts.com, with a stainless steel, rubber backed washer bought from Fastenal.

 

Each headlight is held to the cross beam by a standard M6x15mm bolt. I’m using Password-JDM Fender Washers here, in black. These “fender washers” are stainless steel, countersunk, allenheads with an anodized aluminum collar. You can find them all over eBay for about $15 to $20 for a set of five, in a variety of colors.

 

(2) Radiator Brackets
There are two roundish-bent brackets holding the radiator upright, bolted to the cross-beam with M6 flange nuts, just like the bumper tie-downs. I’m using polished titanium flange nuts bought from DressUpBolts.com. And BTW, these brackets are yet another clean & re-paint opportunity.

(2) Bumper Tie-downs
There are two bumper tie-downs on the cross-beam. These take simple M6 flange nuts. I’m using polished titanium flange nuts bought from DressUpBolts.com.

(2) Open Hood Switch Plate
This sensor is between the two Headlight tie-downs, at the driver’s side of the engine bay, on the cross beam. It also takes two M6x15mm bolts. I’m using a couple of small, stainless steel button heads and rubber backed washers from Fastenal. BTW, this bracket is another clean & re-paint opportunity. Mine was rusty to the point of getting misshapen, so I did the best I could with it. (An OEM replacement will cost over $30 from CourtesyParts.com.)

 

(6) Strut Nuts
There are 3 M10 flange nuts on each strut tower. I replaced these with polished Titanium nuts from DressUpBolts.com. (I also had my FSTB brackets sand-blasted and powder coated in “black chrome”, in case you were wondering.)

(1) SRI Tie-Down
At the top of the driver-side strut tower, there’s a tie-down bracket holding my Short-Ram Intake configuration in place. This uses a M6 bolt of pretty much any length. I’m using a polished Titanium buttoncap from DressUpBolts.com, with a stainless steel, rubber backed washer bought from Fastenal.

(1) Clutch Breather Valve
On the side of the driver-side strut tower, there’s a funky little breather valve held in place by this odd bracket. The bracket uses a single, standard M6x15mm bolt. I’m using a polished Titanium buttoncap from DressUpBolts.com, with a stainless steel, rubber backed washer bought from Fastenal. You might want to clean and paint the bracket while here… mine was pretty rusty.

 

The PS tank is attached to a bracket that’s bolted to the side of the passenger-side strut tower with M6x30mm bolts, but you can use 25mm bolts in replacement. The tank slips off the bracket by simply pulling back on the backside clip. Once off, you can easily ratchet off two of the bolts. The third, behind the wire relay box, is a total PITA. If you can get it off, great… go paint the bracket. Otherwise, just focus on the two accessible bolts. BTW, this is a good opportunity to tuck the ABS sensor wire behind the bracket, clean up the spacer washers, and recondition the rubber spacers with silicon. Here I’m using polished Titanium buttoncaps from DressUpBolts.com, with a stainless steel, rubber backed washer bought from Fastenal.

 

The OEM engine cover bolts are M6x25mm, with a large, parallel sockethead cap. Although they’re 25mm, you’re going to want to use 20mm replacements when using flange-head bolts, because of what I said earlier about tapered tips. However, if you use countersunk bolts, get 25mm. I’m using Password-JDM Fender Washers here, in red. Although they’re 20mm, that’s measured from the flat-top to the base. It’s long enough, but another 5mm would fit perfect. These “fender washers” are stainless steel, countersunk, allenheads with an anodized aluminum collar. You can find them all over eBay for about $15 to $20 for a set of five, in a variety of colors.

(1) Wire Harness Box
There’s a open-sided, black-plastic box over a good section of the wiring harness, just in front of the VIAS. And there are two M6x15mm bolts holding it down. One is obvious, the other is not. Replace the obvious one. I’m using a Password-JDM Fender Washer here, in black.

 

The PS valve behind the passenger side strut tower is held to the frame with two M6x30mm bolts, exactly the same as the PS Reservoir. This particular item is probably pretty corroded on your car; I know it was on mine. I’ve tried cleaning it up, and made some small progress. As to the bolts, they go through these spacer-washers which slip down a rubber bushing. Clean and paint the washers, and recondition the rubber bushings with silicon. Here I’m using polished Titanium buttoncaps from DressUpBolts.com, with a stainless steel, rubber backed washer bought from Fastenal.

 

(1) Passenger Mount
The Passenger-side Engine Mount has a single M8x20mm flange head-head bolt on the top. When I bought my Torque Link Connector (engine brace) from NWP Engineering, it came with nickle-plated steel, which looks really nice when new, but corrodes soon as you look at it. I haven't done anything about this one yet.

(3) VIAS Plate
The VIAS valve (or VIAS-delete Block-off Plate) is secured to the end of the UIM with three M8x20mm flange bolts. NWP Engineering gives you nickle-plated steel bolts when you buy their BOP... again, these things lose their finish instantly. In Summer 2011, I replaced my BOP bolts with titanium buttoncaps from DressUpBolts.com. These look fantastic. I highly recommend them.

 

(4) Wiper Motor
The Wiper Motor is held to the firewall by four M6x30mm bolts, similar to that used by the PS Reservoir and the PS Pressure Valve. 3 of the bolts are accessible, but the lower left is a total PITA. Admittedly, I haven’t finished (or started) working on the Wiper Motor yet. I want to clean the corroded housing, and repaint the plastics, then use some Titanium buttoncaps for the hardware. Here’s a picture of the wiper motor, as it currently is. Someday, I hope to improve the situation, but for now… meh.

(2) Master Cylinder Nuts
There are two M8 flange nuts holding the master cylinder to the brake booster tank. Facing it, the one on the left is a total PITA to access, but the one on the right is easily reached. I didn’t actually replace them; I just cleaned them up on the wire wheel. Personally, I think they look fine when cleaned, but these are highly visible, and a good target for replacement

 

Great, nice details!

 

Kudos to one of the cleanest how-tos on here.

 

Very Nice Job

 

thats...supreme!! i love it man i'm going to DL the excel spreadsheet tonight to see what you have

 

wish we could give good "rep" on here... i'd hook'em up

 

Excellent write up! Time to upgrade my nuts/bolts.

 

Kind words, everyone. Thanks. If this inspires anyone, that's would be fantastic.

Oh, crap... I wondered what would happen if I rated my own thread, and it let me do it without letting me un-do the rating.

Well, that's a little embarrassing.

 

Nope, that looks good to me.

Edit: I also like the other thread about the part identification in the engine...

 

Wow! Very nice! I thought my engine bay was clean, you got me beat! I wish I had the time, patience, and the motivation to do that. Very well done.

 

The reality is that there's still lots of worn & rusty parts; like the water pipes, and the transmission mount, etc. And the camera is very forgiving with the right bounce flash...

...but thanks. I really do appreciate the compliments.

 

Very nice write up man! One day I'll have to fix up my 4th Gens engine bay... ( I have a dremel with polishing bits and I'm not scared to use it!)

 

+1 for a great write-up. Really, when was the last time you saw an excel spreadsheet on the org . Way to take that engine dress-up thread to another level. The minor details makes a huge difference. At the very least, you've inspired me to clean my engine bay.

 

this thread is amazing...engine bay is gorgeous( i wuld just turn the maf so u wont se the plug and also i painted everything i can get my hands on to make super clean...ex. wiper motor..coolant lines(infront of motor under 02 sensors) all my brackets and everything, a/c lines... the thing behind the passenger strut mount(forgot the name lol) ex... i also took all of those bolts u replaced and put them under a wire brush till shiney...hit them with a clear coat and BAM lookin good lol

 

Awesome write up John. If this somehow made my car faster I would be all over this.

 

Ouch.

Touché, Mr. Ziebart.





C'mon, Markus.... I know that you want Titanium parts inside your Polished Titanium, Titanium Edition Maxima.

 

Sadly, you are correct. Honestly I am envious, the reality is I'm just too lazy to be this meticulous under the hood. Your car looks great.

 

Everything looks great, if people don't want to spend that much money on nuts and bolts, home depot/similar stores have decent bolts for a good price too.

I got this nylon washer(20 cents) and screw which uses same size as oem($1.50) today for my engine cover screws

Look at Rochester inspiring me lol

 

That's fantastic, and gratifying to know I sparked some inspiration. Thank you.

Home Depot and Lowes is a great way to get the ball rolling.

Keep it up, man, and have fun.

 

as always very nice.

 

yeah i also wish i had the patience for that, very nice work, i'm jealous.

 

Staticxout2, I met you and your Dad at Maxus, and I've seen first hand the detailed attention you've applied to your modified Maxima. So for you to say that you're jealous... high praise, indeed.

 

you deserve it, looks great! I'm sorry i don't remember names very well, but faces i do so if don't remember your name sorry.

 

Dude, I was literally about to start doing this stuff on my own. There are so many rusted bolts/nuts now that our cars are rounding up to ten years. Once I get my headers/exhaust pipes set up, VIAS block, torque brace, and intake gaskets on, I'll be moving along with this project swiftly. The engine mounts look like crap, and so do the strut bolts. It's almost sickening. Thanks for the write up!

 

Great write-up John!! I've been waiting for this for a minute now. You should sell your idea to DressUpBolts and other companies who sell "kits". They may be interested in this...

 

I value your opinion, so thanks, Roy.

DressUpBolts.com has seen the write-up, and are looking into our Forum to see if there's a marketing opportunity here with the Maxima community.

 

i likes!

good one Rochester. I got some rusty nuts that i need to get rid of as well...

seriously though. great job and great write up. as always great pics. you need to send in some pics to those people that make the manual of how to's.

B

 

Let me point out that the nuts and bolts found at a hardware store are lower grade metals than those found at an automotive shop. We need grade 8 or higher for automotive work. Hardware stores typically use grade 5 which will not hold up. Please take note when dressing.

 

Well is that for like engine mounts etc or everything? I don't see us needing some really high quality bolts to hold down the headlamps and stuff