Hi guys, I'm new to the Maxima group and I must say I've really enjoyed reading all the various posts.

I have to admit I only recently became Maxima enthusiast. After reading the performance numbers for the new 2002 Maxima and the price at which all that performance could be had, I instantly signed on. God willing, I should have my 6sp Maxima in a couple of weeks. One thing though still causes me to turn and toss at night.

I discussed the helical lsd option available for the December 6sp
production run at length with a sales person at my local Nissan
dealership. He's an avid performance enthusiast so I though I should
listen to what he had to say.

He assured me that for most situations the current viscous lsd is more
than adequate. The helical setup would show advantages under severe
conditions, such as track use or during street drag racing. Furthermore, torque steer would be more evident with the helical setup, something I definitely would want to avoid. I would have expected the viscous setup to deliver more torque steer though.

Some reports seem to suggest the new 6sp Maxima should be able to run
0-60mph times of 6.2 seconds. What sort of improvement on that time
might be gained with the helical setup? It snows a fair bit here in
Toronto, Canada; would the helical setup help with the snow? Would the
helical lsd handle higher hp numbers more effectively? At what hp
would the viscous setup prove inadequate? 280 hp 300 hp ?

I'm fairly performance oriented and intend to launch against a few
Mustangs, Grand Prix, Acura’s, BMW's ... etc on the street. Is the helical option worth waiting for, especially since I intend to take the car up to about 280 hp with some mods. If it's that important I don't mind waiting until Dec or Jan. Honestly though I'd rather have the care in a couple of weeks.

Unfortuantely I don't know much about how to rate all the various lsd setups.

Any comments?

Regards,
Rudy

 

Hi wolfmanjack210,

I think your dealer is misleading you.
The current 6speed (w/o HLSD) will not even come with a LSD!
2001 comes with VLSD but not the first batch of 2002 6 speeds.

BTW, if you want to compare the difference between the two of them, here is a description (based on Acura TypeR) that has some info.

Working in combination with a suspension setting designed to further improve front-wheel grip, the Type R adopts a torque-sensitive helical type limited slip differential for both improved traction and reduced understeer in high-cornering load situations. The helical gear generates repelling force in proportion to driving torque. This repelling force, in turn, pushes the pinion gear toward the differential gear casing, thus limiting the differential effect. Compared to viscous coupling-type limited slip differentials, helical limited slip differentials offer a more responsive, proactive torque transfer. This allows improved traction not only when exiting tight corners, but also when on slippery or uneven road surfaces.

 

I think all Maximas SE sold in Canada come with VSLD. The 95-01 Maximas SE in 5-spd have always had VSLD. I'm not sure if the auto has it.

I'm pretty sure the normal Canadian spec SE will have VSLD with the HSLD being an option on the 6-spd.

 

Forgive my ingnorance but what does the current (September production run) 6sp 2002 Maxima come with then? Something worse the VLSD and even worse than HLSD? From the picture with 12/01 ETA in your post it seems like you are awaiting the arrival of the 6sp with HLSD? The wait is obviously worth it to you.

Thanks for the TypeR description.

Regards,
Rudy

 

HLSD will not be an option (in Canada), it is a bonus to those who wait.


Nissan has always made a big fuss about the SE with VLSD (it was always written somewhere in the brochure or the internet). I don't think they will put a VLSD for only 3 months of poduction.

To answer your question: NO LSD at all (of any sorts) before the HLSD gets in (and it will be standard equipment like the VLSD was for the 5 speed here in Canada).

It will be no worse than most of the cars out there but, if you wait, you will have a bonus.

Amazing2