6th Gen Crew's Opinion: on 6th Gen NZ Nissan Maxima Spec - R
 

New Zealand 6th Generation Nissan Maxima Spec R

Click Link:
http://www.nissan.co.nz/offer_files/maxima_spec_R/


What do you 6th Gen guys think about the Spec-R Maxima?

repost.....but i think it's really nice! it's a cross between a Lexus LS430 and a Infiniti M45 :thumbsup:

Wow sharp,looks like an M45

The only thing we don't have is the body kit. 180KW is only about 240HP.

Why don't we??? :banghead:

yeah sorry about the repost, thought it would be interesting to get 6th Gen only responses, didnt even check in the general thread to see which Gen owners were commenting.

Im still curious as to why the New Zealand 6th Gen VQ35DE is underpowered compared to the US Spec. Beyond me ?

Curious, does HP matter to buyers ?

Maybe it changes insurance rates, or maybe its for fuel enconomy? Gasoline has come down in price here but still a $1.50 a liter for middle grade. So around the $6 dollar mark a gallon.

Our gas is back to well under $3 for premium, and HP still matters a lot in the US. We get 28+ MPG on the highway for our VQ. When our gasoline goes above $4 mark, we might change our minds. :nervous:

I don't care about HP, just performance. It's a very different looking car, more upscale.

My conversion shows that 180 KW is 241.4 HP -- so your rounding down to 240 is probably more appropriate.

If you click on the options at the bottom, it says the engine only has 170 KW of power (which converts to 229 HP) for all three versions available: Si, ST and Ti versions. Then click on the specs option to find that the engine produces power of 170 KW at 5600 RPM and torque of 333 Nm at 2800 RPM. I tried to convert Nm to Ft-Lbs, and believe that the conversion is Nm(.7233) = Ft-lbs. On that basis 333 Nm converts to 240.8 Ft-lbs. My 04 borchure shows my VQ has 265 HP at 5800 RPM and 255 Ft-lbs of torque at 4400 RPM. The compression ratio of both versions is 10.3 to 1.

This makes this Max underpowered versus the US version. Perhaps there is more need for fuel economy than for HP in New Zealand -- and this engine is tuned for fuel economy rather than power. I would prefer a little better economy from my VQ -- but not at the expese of the existing HP.

For a while I too was getting 28+ mpg on the highway (driving 70 to 75 MPH) from my VQ, but recently this has fallen to 25+ mpg.

I don't like the Spec - R styling as much as our 6th gen styling -- particularly the wheels and the rear end.

Both US and New Zealand (NZ) versions are only available (2007) with a CVT trannie. The NZ version has a 70 liter fuel tank which is only 18.5 gallons and not the 20 gallons our tanks hold. The tires are only 16" on the NZ Si and 17" on the NZ ST and Ti versions versus the 17" on the SL and 18" on the SE. These smaller wheels and tires give it a turning circle of 11.4 meters or 37.4 feet versus 40 feet for our Max. The curb weight for NZ is 1513 KG or 3335.6 lbs versus our range of 3436 to 3473 lbs. And NZ only lists halogen headlights.

Ceasar, what are you driving over there?

Dosn't change insurance rates as i checked when insuring mine,more worried about engine capacity ie 3.5L etc.

neat....

Looks good, that rear spoiler on the trunk, I've seen a silver 6th Gen with a similar style spoiler and though it was a Taurus

Long time ago thread, but it seems like yesterday that I posted in it :D

Pics of this vehicle of yours?

holy resurrection

http://hometown.aol.com/johnmscalzi/zombie0519a.jpg

why bring this thread back from the dead?!?!

https://farm3.static.flickr.com/2234...68eaec2b8c.jpg

yup you guessed it, that's old thread...

i never seen it. so its new to me.
spec R sounds sporty but that body stylin is eh. front bumper does infact look like a lexus

oh how nice im 28y/o all over again !

And I'm back to having my Max for only 7.5 months and being only 17 some years old :laugh:

:laugh: acutally im back with my A33 still , I just realized I was still working on that

Sorry about bringing up old thread but i have same query as you did about loss of hp in New Zealand and Ausy,feel a bit ripped off,you guys lucky to get the full hp.My Maxima [STI Sport] only puts out 170kw,the r spec gets extra 10kw through sports exaust.Will get some pics when stops raining,havn't seen any on this site that look same as mine.

:) I know that feeling. I was wondering about the same thing, when i owned my I30 A33(euro maxima) rated at 200HP while the US spec Maxima/I30 had 222-227HP. I think the US Max is simply overrated, because it uses the SAE specifications, where the power is calculated at the crank and the Euro DIN spec is at the wheels.
I would suggest you make a dyno run and we will be more clever afterwards :)
Just a thought

SAE stands for the Society of Automotive Engineers -- It is NOT the Socitey of American Engineers. So the Japs use the SAE specs for their engines -- here and in Japan.

The SAE's HP calculations were recently revised to make them more "real world" and many on this site complained because the HP values went down -- although it was the same engine producing the same output. If you prefer to measure HP at the wheel, what trannie do you use, etc? It is much more consistent (auto manufacturer to auto manufacturer) to measure HP at the engine crank -- which is why SAE specs call for that measurement location.

Nice....

I'm not 100% sure about the wheels, but i know for sure that DIN measurements are being made when all "load devices" like alternator, cooling fans etc are ON while the engine power is measured...



Found some good info about the different methods for measuring power:

hp: horsepower
ps: stands for Pferdestärke, equivalent to hp.
kW: kilowatt. 1kW = 1.34hp. EU countries such as Germany prefer to use kW.

There are different methods for measuring power, test conditions such as ambient temperature, air pressure and accessory loss could be different, thus the same engine could obtain different power rating by different methods. The most commonly used methods are:

EEC: European standard. Measure at 99kPa and 25°C. Rated in kW.
SAE: American standard. Measure at 99kPa and 25°C. Rated in hp. 1kW = 1.341hp (SAE).
DIN: German standard. Measure at 101.3kPa and 20°C. Rated in hp (ps). 1kW = 1.360hp (DIN).
JIS: Japanese standard. Theoretically same as DIN, but we always find it is actually smaller.
British horsepower: same as SAE. Rated in bhp (could be confused with brake horse power).

In other words, 300hp (SAE) = 300bhp (British) > 300hp (DIN) > 300ps (JIS)

In AutoZine, generally speaking, horsepower of American, European and Japanese cars are rated by SAE, DIN and JIS respectively. However, USA or Europe-targeted Japanese cars are rated by local standards.