Albert

This is more impressive than getting a catback.

Here's something from car and driver:

A variable-capacity muffler bows alongside the Maxima's new V-6 for 2000 (see C/D, June 1999, about the V-6). First seen on the Skyline GT-R sports car (it's sold only in Japan), this muffler has one inlet pipe and two outlet pipes. At part throttle (less than 2000 rpm), a spring-loaded steel valve directs exhaust to one outlet pipe. At wide-open throttle (more than 2000 rpm), the valve opens and
directs exhaust to the second pipe, reducing back pressure by as much as 40 percent. The muffler is good for five more horsepower on the Infiniti G20. The I30, which shares the Maxima's new V-6, is rated 5 hp higher than the Nissan, thanks to a larger muffler of the same design.

Micah95GLE

I don't see where it says a 10hp gain.

Eric L.

Well, I went to the Infiniti's "I30 Experience" event and saw a display of a split open muffler. You know what? It looks identical to the same muffler on the 2k Maxima. Maybe it was bigger, but I did not notice. In fact, the I30's muffler has pipes that bend down towards the ground. The Maxima's stick straight out with a rectangular chrome finisher. The I30's is just brown rusty muffler color. I'm not slamming the I30, but I just have a hard time believing the I30's muffler is better than the one in the Maxima, since they are the same car.

Despite the 5hp advantage over the Max, the 2k I30 I autocrossed was a dog. It didn't even feel as fast as my 4th gen automatic.

Lordrandall

iTrader: (4)

The 2K I30 and 2K Max mufflers are the same, same part number, same muffler.

Paul6speed

Same part # as 2000. The tips turn down like the I30 though. Personally saw one tonight at my dealer.

Albert

if the 2001 limit maxima is 5hp more and
it has the same muffler as the i30, then
there's your difference. if it's the
same muffler, then why would nissan go
with a different one.

Johnny

It depends what you want. These days there are 2 liter motors that crank out 200+ hp. List the 2 liter motors which do that have that kind of power/displacement ratio and crank out more ft-lbs of torque than hp. The answer is zero.

If I'm not mistaken the 5th gen motor cranks out more hp than torque. That has to do with delivery. The 4th gen is 190/205. I would prefer 222 hp and 275 ft-lbs but I guarantee you can not get that no matter what you do, it's the same vq motor.

So rather than replacing components to the same motor that's been in use since late 1994, it is time for Nissan to reinvent the wheel and put something new under the hood. But I don't think they have the bucks nor engineering talent to do that.

Paul6speed

But the 2001 muffler is the same on ALL Maximas, even the SEL. Saw one last night and crawled under the car to investigate.

brianw

iTrader: (3)

I30 muffler probably produces a power gain... but I wouldn't know how much. Can't be much at all..............

But for some guys, any noise-reduction they can get while sacrificing some performance is what they want! (aka guys with y-pipes and cat-back exhausts who get a nice rumble that sets off car alarms )

Slickismax

iTrader: (4)

Okay, if the muffler is the same, then why does the I30 have 5 more hp then the Maxima? (not including the 20th ann.) And why does the 20th ann. have 5 more hp then the others? And why does the 20th ann. muffler look a little bigger and have different tips then the other max's? And why does freshalloy.com say that the 20th ann. have a 5hp gain from the I30 muffler? It makes a difference, its a slightly different muffler, and it gives an extra 5 hp. Bottom Line.

WoodEar

they can claim whatever numbers they want, since it's a special edition, they boosted the the number abit higher to sound special, sure i know the exhausts are different, but do you really think i30 will see 4 more fwhp than max, and 20th edition will see another 4fwhp than the i30??
i doubt it.

Slickismax

iTrader: (4)

No, but I don't see how hard it is to belive that a different muffler will see 5 more hp at the flywheel. None of the numbers given are at the wheel. It doesn't make that big of a difference in performance, but what does on a Max besides a SC or NOS? Compare adding a chip on an S4 and getting 50hp, and adding a chip to a max and getting 8hp. Sure, mods do help, and I do realize that the S4 is a twin turbo and the chip modifies the boost, but still, it seems that bolt-ons on a max do almost nothing. Here's an example. I added a stage 3 clutch and a aluminum flywheel, and at the track I saw almost no gain. Now, my clutch does grab a lot better, and it does rev faster, but as far as track times, they were negligable. My intake did nothing but make the motor louder. The most noticable difference was when I lowered it and it kept most of the weight from shifting to the rear when I got on it.

WoodEar

hmm i think you missed my point.
i agree it's a different exhaust, i agree that it might adds hp, what i meant is that factory can claim whatever numbers they want due to marketing strategy. so the crank hp is pretty much just on paper, what it counts is how much it puts to the ground.
for example, if nissan wants, they can say max is 217hp(instead of 222), and i30 is 227, to show a bigger difference of 10hp to make people think i30 is faster and want to pay the premium for it. for the same reason they can claim whatever reasonable number for the 20th limited edition.