Roshan

was wonderin why the wheels on the 6th gen are differnet heights... the rear wheel seems to be close to the top of the wheel well that the front.. why is this different? any way to make them even?

DocHolliday

Mine are the same way. I bought mine used so I was nervous until my salesman(good friend of mine) showed me some pics online of other maxes. It doesn't really bother me that much and I assume its set that way for a reason.

In other words, I have no clue.

crispykid717

iTrader: (7)

I think it's just the notorious 4x4 maxima front wheel gap. Not the actual wheels themselves. 5th gens are the same way.

MaximaPolak

iTrader: (9)

Measure from the ground to the wheel wells....see that the back is lower than the front because the back fenders are made lower for some reason...IT'S A NISSAN...WHAT DO YOU EXPECT?

SSurfer

It's not your tires, it's the way Nissan designed the Maxima(Sheet Metal). Does'nt make sense to me either but seems like other brands do the same.

silvermaxSI

I thought this was a problem as well but when i took it to my mechanic , and he put it on a lift he measured the space and it was exactly the same but obviously on the ground it is lower this is very confusing

DocHolliday

I am not concerned. If the suspension feels out of whack then I will worry, until then I will enjoy the awesome ride the SE provides.

NismoMax80

iTrader: (6)

front well is higher because the turning wheels need to move in and out of the well. This prevents rubbing if you hit a dip or bump while turning.

Many do not like it and therefore use lowering springs. The front gets lowered more than the rear.

DeusExMaxima

iTrader: (1)

The Eibach springs appear to drop the front 2 inches and the rear only .8 inches to compensate for the larger gap up front. They are at the top of my WANT list.

SSurfer

CHECK OUT THE FOR SALE FORUMS!
Theres a set for sale cheap!

maximusprimus

its cuz the rear fender. check all nissan they are all like it.

BLAXIMA2K4

iTrader: (1)

Yes the Eibach springs do remove the gap and lowers the Max 2" in the front and .8" in the rear. Looks a whole lot better. Check out my pics, more in my cardomain link below.

VTmaximaVT

from what i've seen, most of the cars had bigger wheel gap in front than in rear. ex) 01 Accord, 02 TL type-s, 99 Prelude, 03 Maxima SE, 00 Eclipse.

Though, 04 Maxima had noticeably bigger front wheel gaps.

I guess it's just the way the maxima is...

Roshan, don't worry, your rear wheel has exactly same height as your front wheel. It's just the smaller rear wheel gap that makes the rear wheel look taller...

MaxMus

Yep, one design feature I would have changed. It just looks weird to have such a huge gap on the front wheels.

lightonthehill

Yep, there are ways to make the wheel-to-fender gaps the same on front and rear.

BUT, the big front gap is there for a VERY good reason. NismoMax80 mentioned it earlier in this thread:

When we hit a bump, go over a speed bump, go thru a culvert/ditch turning onto a driveway, service station, etc, the wheel and tire move up into the wheel well, sometimes HIGHER THAN THE FENDER CUTOUT.

For the rear wheels, this is no problem; they are never turning, so never stick outside the fender.

The front, however, is another kettle of fish. If you turn thru a culvert going into a driveway, the front wheel/tire could rise into the wheel well several inches. But because the wheel/tire is in a 'turned' position, PART OF IT IS STICKING OUTSIDE THE FENDER CUTOUT. THAT is why the cutout is higher at the front on almost all cars. So the tire won't bump against (and damage) the fender at the top of the cutout.

Those changing their suspension to reduce the front gap need to be aware they may be setting up a situation where the front fender could be damaged in certain driving situations, especially maneuvers that 'twist' the car suspension.