Ok, first off im a noob, so be easy with the words lol. I have a 02 GLE MAX and i gotta say the ride quality is HORRIBLE, for instance i rented an 07 dodge charger base model and it feels EXTREMELY smooth and more ON THE GROUND then my maxima. I DO LOVE MY MAXIMA AND I WANT IT TO RIDE AS SMOOTH AS ALL THESE OTHER CARS. basically when going fast over bumps, it feels like the car loses a little control, and just any bump, its as if the car has no shocks at all u feel EVERY BUMP, and when turning at high speeds like over 40MPG u feel the car sway to the sides. other than that i cant really complain, everythings stock so i think as i just bought it used about 2 months ago and am REALLY looking for a good direction to be pointed in as to wat i need to make my car ride SMOOTHER and handle better, my main gole is COMFORT and some handling. what is the best things to invest in that i can just find online, buy and have my mechanic install, no complicated **** that needs to be tuned every 2 weeks n ****. please lol HELP.

 

Also my friend has a air suspension on his lincoln ls, i LOVE the ride his car has, is there anyway to put that on my car. any pros and cons about air suspension, PLEASE HELP PEOPLE. THANKS

 

You might have blown dampers. If that's the case, replace them (preferably with Koni Sport dampers a.k.a. "Yellows").

If your dampers are fine and you still don't like the way your car rides and handles, you just need another car. It is impossible to make your car handle better AND ride better without some fairly serious modifications.


The Lincoln LS rides well on air suspension because its air suspension was designed for that. There is no such thing for the Maxima. All the aftermarket air bag kits are designed for a low drop, and that's it. They might ride better, but they'll handle like a$$.

 

can u plz tell me how i wud kno if i had blown dampers? thanks

 

Dude, I'm pretty sure in the other thread you posted in about your suspension issues, I told you exactly how to check your dampers yourself...read more carefully, we're not going to do all the work for you.

 

na no1 ever told me otherwise i wudda checked..

 

Apparently you missed this post, in which I quoted you explicitly and told you what to do:

http://forums.maxima.org/showpost.ph...&postcount=225

 

Id buy a Cadillac. /thread

 

sorry to but in... but i have that clunking/rattleing noise when i hit potoles here in ny. I would do anything to get rid of it and have a smooth ride...i made the mistake and i currently have Tokico blues w/ stock springs.....What is "SFC" that you are talking about?

 

Subframe connectors. They are welded to the underbody and prevent chassis flex which allows the suspension to do its job better. Basically they will make the car feel much more solid and reduce most of the interior rattles. If you're complaining about the ride on stock springs, though, I'm not sure what to say since the ride with stock springs is pretty good. SFCs would help with stock springs but not as much. NYC roads suck, that's probably your main problem. Unless you have huge rims, in which case you should switch to 17s at the largest.

Do an Org search if you want more info. I'm sure there are shops in NYC that will make custom SFCs.

 

Dan,
you ever do any of this? (since ur PMs are full...)

wait, is Dan still around???

 

UPDATE: a company has just started making SFCs for 4th gen and 5th gen version is on the way. This is MAJOR Maxima news! There will be a group deal for a very reasonable price and then it shouldn't be more than $100 to have an exhaust shop weld them on.

http://forums.maxima.org/showthread.php?t=516058

 

Haven't seen Dan around anywhere for a WHILE. Last post is sometime in November. Tried giving him a call to see what's up, never got a response.

 

I am getting some rattling and floating on my suspension and I have a 2002 max SE. I have a semi rough ride but not dramatic. I am running 20's on mine and I know that will make it a little rough. I am running the stock setup but think I will be changing to struts to KYB with stock springs. Will I get a pretty good ride doing this.

I really need a strut that can take on the 20's. I am also going to change my sway bar links and strut mounts to be safe. This should make the bumps more bearable and make the ride a little more quite.

People saying this car drives rough I have to say this looks like a sedan but it's a sports car in a family car shell. Drive in a accord and see if it's a great ride. Just as rough with a weaker engine

 

Get subframe connectors, you won't regret it. They totally transform the car by making the chassis much more rigid. A group deal for 5th gens just opened yesterday. Here's a review thread:

http://forums.maxima.org/showthread.php?t=518814

 

Although this is true, the poster has a 5th gen, and the SFC's are not quite done yet for the 5th gen.

 

The 5th gen group buy thread is now open, as I stated above, and 5 people are already on the list. A 5th gen set was produced last week and was welded onto blackmaxx's 5th gen Maxima yesterday, in fact. So yes, they are done. They will begin shipping the first group deal sets as early as next week....

http://forums.maxima.org/showthread.php?t=518805

 

Wow, spoke too soon. Awesome.

 

h&r or eibach

 

I had Nex coilovers

From what I remember they had 440/330# springs and somewhat squishy dampers. They were actually pretty comfortable other than some sloppy low speed damping.

But for the $$$ shock wise you just can't beat Konis. If I can I will get a set of Koni Yellows on every car I own.

 

i know you said springs and struts but i wanted to add my 2cents in on my set up.

I have the Tein SS coilovers and these things are awsome. I compared it to some D2's that i have and they don't compare at all. The teins springs are so much bigger on the Teins. my ride is like on air. HIGHLY RECOMMEND THEM !!

If you can invest in some good coilovers these or the BC are the way to go.

 

H&R/Koni yellow.

 

Look at that, he DOES know about suspension.

 

For comfort go to the dealer and get stock parts. The thing is they don't last long. I replaced my failed shocks with koni struts and shocks and Eibach springs. The cornering and handling is wonderful. But if you hit a pot hole it will knock your fillings out. Small price to pay. The Konis are adjustable however. Also I got all four done for just a little more than the dealer wanted for just the front. But the dealer thing is a whole other thread.

Peace.

 

I just rode in a 5.5 with Illuminas and they rode nice. I think he may of had stock springs though. He also had some 50 series tires I believe on the stock TE wheels

My question is what are the price differences from koni yellows and tokico illuminas and where are some of the places people havent recently got a decent deal on them?Also are there any deals on the LTB 2's or SFC's running on the org or any online site?

I'm also looking to get the kyb dust mounts and boots. Im not so sure about the SFC even though people were swearing by these 3 years ago. I was also reading up on the LTB 2 or 3. One of them, if I remember right, cleared OBX/Cattman headers. (I think it was the LTB 2)

 

illuminas and stock springs, if u do want to lower, illuminas and eibachs (never rode on progress but i hear good things of em)

 

nice info

 

Konis are only rebound adjustable (you typically won't notice the difference in ride over the adjustment range, i.e. if you hit a bump it won't rattle your brains on full stiff), did you cut your bump stops?

I had this setup with my 4th gen, Konis and Eibachs were my favorite setup for a 4th gen without going coilover.

 

Progress are a little lower and a little softer than Eibachs

H&Rs ride higher and a lot softer than Eibachs

For comfort, H&R > Eibach

 

SFCs transform a noodle-framed rattle bucket of a 4th or 5th gen into a quiet-riding (even with pillow ball mounts and coilovers) no-drama chassis. Do not doubt this. Get them, love them, scrape them on stuff, proceed not to care.

Last I checked (8ish months ago) there was only an SFC2. The LTB2 does NOT clear Cattmans, although I believe some have modified it to do so. The LTB2 was a nice upgrade to my car, but it will reduce ground clearance. For the handling benefit, I didn't care.

 

no feedback from the OP?

 

If you could rate the LTB2 and SFC on a scale 1 to 10 what would each of them be?