A lot of people here often complain about the small aftermarket that the maxima has, And how they wish there was a larger variety of companies that made various products for maximas. And while I can see where they are coming from I also see a positive to a small aftermarket. Look at catbacks for example; there are about 7 different companies that make a catback for the 4th gen maxima. Then look at a Civic. There are around like 15 different companies, many with different models (like Apexi's WS, N1 and GT for example). Now what do I see positive about this? Well even with only 7 different catbacks available for the maxima people still have to do a ton of research on each one before finally deciding which one is best for them, and sometimes still end up unhappy with it (too loud, or whatever). Well think about how many more products Civic owners (for example) have to research before buying. There are almost too many choices it makes it overwhelming. Maybe its just me but I don’t think having a relativity small aftermarket is all that bad, it makes it much easier to research and decide on a product. And much easier for you to keep track of the positives/negatives of certain products. What do you think?

 

good point

 

 

Your point is correct, but without a large aftermarket, price competition is not gonna be too much of a factor. That's why Honda parts are so much cheaper than ours. Instead of having 50 exhaust companies, we have about 10 at the most.

 

neuspeed among other mainstream companies would be nice....But what you are saying is true as well...alot of the stuff out their for the civic is from nonames..or knockoff companies = CHEAP **** (poor quality)

 

Personally, I would rather do a few hours of research to decide which manufacturer supplies the superior part as opposed to being stuck with only a few choices. Not to mention the more competition equals better prices. But yeah, as MaxWolf mentioned, I bet tons of the honda aftermarket is total garbage.

 

got my CAI, front and rear strut bar and lower rear tie bar for my Teg for $75...they are no name brands but hell its only a strutbar and stuff. but I agree with the part that was said about having to do more research when you have som many choices...right now I'm looking for coilovers and on Ebay there are tons of different brands from $60-300, alhtough its great to have so many choices now than what I had with my Maxima, you do have to be careful on many of the parts you buy when you have a bigger market because there is a lot of CRAP out there!

 

remember, more civics = more after market support = more products

also it means there are more civic drivers doing research on their mods. I think it is proportional to the size of the community. Maxima is a smaller community when compared to civic.

 

more performance aftermarket is a good thing, more rice aftermarket is not

 

yes, more civics = more and cheaper aftermarket. Civics are all over the world, and civic's aftermarket support is not an only-in-america thing (APC is an exception ). US is probably the only country that an average young person can affort a 3.0L (tax, gas, insurance, price, and size). For the crowed cities like Tokyo, civics are small, so good for the highway and street racing/showoff

 

True, but sometimes it would be nice to have more products available to create more competition with companies like stillen so that prices will be lower.

 

i agree with the original premise of the thread as well. the smaller availability makes for easier picking. that is, one will definitely know if something sucks or not. besides, why envy the lemming masses of civics and acuras? it takes a lot to be unique when the streets are flooded with eye-numbing parades of hondas. for me, it is far more tasteful and rewarding to elevate the maxima to a state of class and excellence and awesome looks and power. and have heads turn at THAT.

 

 

Civic owners don't care what's on their cars. Any coffee can seems to works as a muffler for most Civic/Honda drivers. Besides that, the more badges & stickers they have, the faster they go!

 

The best thing about all this...your car is more unique than the Civics and Accords. How many times have you said to yourself 'I have never seen that on a Maxima' as opposed to 'I have never seen that on a Civic?'

 

I didnt mean just civics, That was just an example. I mean look at the Supra aftermarket. That is huge too, but i suppose that most their parts are higher quality.

 

But on the other hand since Civics (for example) have such a large aftermarket people can see first hand and talk in person (rather than on the internet) to people who have experience with many different products. Myself I've only heard 3 of the 7 aftermarket exhausts for the Max. I've never heard or seen the stillen, never heard or seen OBX, nor cattman, nor warpspeed.... etc. I've heard the Greddy, the Apex'i WS and the Megan Racing.

On civics however I've heard damn near every catback available (and yes there are differences in how they sound). So with a larger aftermarket you can experience more things for yourself rather than having to trust the judgement of people who may or may not know WTF they are talking about.

Finally, I'd much rather do more research (I'm of an engineering mentality) and pay less money for products than have less difficult choices (because of less products to researc) and pay more money.

 

the only thing i don't like about the small after-market we have for the max is that your limited. 3yrs ago you could say we had stillen, now we have alot more. i hate when they say you see a max you have seen them all.

ppl would say i wish they make indiglo gauges or altezza lights and so on. we even at one time all e-mailed apc to make the indiglo gauges for our cars and they never did. about 6 months we did a group buy (15ppl pre-paid) for the M3 mirrors and that failed and they are still not made.

so i rather have a bigger after-market for our max then a small one. it gives us a better chance to be unique or at least look a little different.

i'm one that thanks all the companies that make product for our max and for those that pushed the companies (e-mail after e-mail, call after call, all the waiting and hope that they had for all of use). for those that have been here as long as me (3yrs) or longer now exactly what i mean. for those that just came in or even 6 months ago all i have to say it's a pc of cake for you now.

what i don't like is neg ppl flamming all the time. if you don't like a product don't buy it, don't put it on your car but please stop because other ppl do buy them and put the stuff on there car and are happy.

just my small input.

 

I disagree with the original statement. Why, Supply and Demand

 

true....speaking of stillen, I just spent 50 dollars on supercharger bolts (about 10 of them).

and 500 @ stillen you can only get a muffler?

I should've bought them elsewhere.

 

Quote:

US is probably the only country that an average young person can affort a 3.0L (tax, gas, insurance, price, and size). For the crowed cities like Tokyo, civics are small, so good for the highway and street racing/showoff

I think it is the need of American market. We have more roads, freeway, larger parking lots, etc. etc. People tend to look for something bigger....and to drag a big body....you need a big engine.

I went to Hong Kong this winter and I saw a lot of modified cars over there....a lot. But I did not see them floor the gas pedal at all. The place is just way too small. cars and people everywhere. traffic lights are so close to each other and I dont think you will have time to shift to another gear before you stop for a traffic light.

I only saw one car went WOT for less than 3 seconds. It was a Toyota Levin on a straight ramp inside a parking structure.


how sad....they have all the machines, but we have all the roads.

 

That is a very good point! I never thought of that...

 

it does get annoying not having many choices when i buy new mods. BUT! When i go to shows or just ride around on the streets, my car gets attention because its different(i don't see many modded maximas in atl on a daily basis). A modded civic eclipse integra etc etc has been done many times before. They look good, but they are to common. Something different gets attention.

 

i do agree that it is somewhat annoying that there is only a small availability of parts for the maxima. and i do not see that ever changing very much, as the maxima is not widely sought after by tuners, generally speaking. the maxima does have a strong and devout following of people who "get it," however. just look at the org.

so this positioning does, by default, make the maxima more of a special interest car, or a novelty, if you will. it is a car that is in many ways ignored and underrated, relegated to only a niche cult; perhaps, may i say it, to a group of enthusiasts with better taste. so that is the way it is. for me, i have taken up looking at other cars in the nissan family, particularly the skyline, to search for design ideas. yes, i must pay more sometimes to adapt the parts to fit, but it is all the more rewarding and awesome when the vision matches the outcome. and you get a powerful and not so 'expected' street machine: it is the subtle and often not so subtle design traits of the maximas that attract us to those cars above the other popular ones. so it is worth my time and money to try just a little harder and gain a creative edge over the masses of honda products, which to me often equals "cheap."

the maxima is in a sort of limbo: it is a luxury sports car with a strong heritage or bloodline derived from racing development at nismo and calsonic. and it has quiet moments, hints of skyline heritage. but the car is a bit heavy and stigmatized with FWD to be considered a full-on sports car. eventhough it really can be one. so our aim in tuning it is to 'play-up' and exploit the sport side of it's chassis and driveline, ie, to fully 'bake' it. no one said being better is easier. so it would be nice if there were a wee bit more parts. but that is not to be. (and i think it will only begin to dwindle all the more especially as the 3rd gen crowd sees their cars age into "aftermarketing obsolescence." >>> get the parts now while you can - they're not going to support aftermarket stuff for the already 13 to 14 yr. old highly ignored 3rd gens - my favorites).

 

amen to that