I have been thinking it over a lot lately....

I have this VQ35 block coming and I am having a change of heart. Right now i am thinking trade my 03 sentra in for a 2000 or 2001 Maxima with about 50,000 miles (and a manual) and then swap in the VQ35 crank rods and pistons.

The tricky part is:
I have terrible credit
My monthly payments can't go above what im paying
a couple dollars isnt a big deal.

My specv might be worth 11,000 on trade? I owe $16,000

What do you guys think? stick with VQ35 swap or try to get a maxima

 

Vq35 swap in Sentra....Humm....how you gonna get that to fit ?

 

It should fit easy. The VQ35 isnt as long as a QR25 because its 3 cylinders wide instead of 4. If you look in the engine bay of my car you can see a lot of ground between the exhaust manifold and the radiator.., so i think there is plenty of space there. Im not saying there wont be any fitment issues.

I have another thread about that going called "mini maxima"

 

You do this and I give you major props. Might as well pop on the SSR turbo also. All that in due time but good luck.

 

And money grows on tree's :-)

Id love to throw on a SSR turbo, but I'm on a budget. I got a VQ35 block for 350$ Shipped! I want the car to be reliable and edge out the occasional mustang GT :-)

Turbo's are certainly fast but can have tons of tuning issues, and much much more expense then you see upfront generally.

The bottom line is im sick of my sentra so i was going to make it something i enjoy. But i keep your looking at your maxima's they are sooo hot. My sentra may be fast with a Vq35 but never look so good.

 

Wish it did grow on it though...

$350 shipped? Nice... but i have seen some sentras that do look nice but do require money (cause of body kit blah blah blah). All on you bro. Big engine in a small car hahahahaha speed man SPEEEEED!

 

i would really like to see this done as well...

 

You guys wanna see the VQ35 in the sentra? you know it would PROBABLY be like 100x better on my pocket book to get a maxima and swap in the internals.

The VQ35 i got has somethign wrong wtih it too. It was pulled from a car under warranty and sent to a j-yard. could have cracked cylinder wall. or block. I dunno yet, its in transit to my mechanic's shop.

As long as the crank, pistons, rods. are good i may get a used VQ30 block and put that in the sentra. or another vq35 and use both engines to make one good one.

Here is my problems with the motor swap. I cannot afford to waltz into a dealer and have them order me a ECU, wire harness, bell housing, possibnly a tranny. This is ghetto project VQ35SpecV.

it really needs to stay under 2000$ Im forced to sift through junkyards uintil i get the parts I need.

If i just got a maxima and swapped the VQ35 pistons/rods/crank in i'd be pretty happy. im just looking to be happy ;-)

 

First find out if it fits in. The junkyard is your friend. Quick question is about the tranny. Did the block come with a tranny? If not then you'll be over your buget in no time.

 

OK... I fully support the idea of putting a VQ35 in another FWD platform such as a B13,14,15 Sentra or even a A32 Maxima. But it would be a complete waste of money to buy a A33 3.0 Maxima just to do this. It would actually be cheaper just to buy a 2k2 6 speed and be done with it.

Those who already own 2k0 or 2k1 Maximas are a different story. I can actually see them wanting to do this since they already own the cars and make payments on them.

 

your sick of your sentra? Is your sentra v spec. I think those cars are pretty good even compared to a maxima. those things handle crazy, my friend has the se-r version and pulls pretty decent for a 4 banger and grips the ground like a champ. I wish my max could do that the max just feels like a boat compared to the se-r and im on kyb's and maxspeeds.

 

Compared the maxima how? Terrible build quality, terrible paint, terrible ride, cramped space. So it grips the ground like a champ, should i be taking 25mph curves at 75? So the max feels like a boat, its a really good looking boat that can blow the doors off a sentra and be comfortable.

With the mods ive done to my sentra it feels more like a race car then a daily driver. I want to get rid of the vibration's , the obnxious exhaust. but then i would be slow again. (not that im fast now...)

If i got a VQ30 powered Maxima I would not swap the VQ35 in . just the internals. Keep in mind the block i got for 350$ may have a cracked cylinder wall or something else wrong with it. i Dont know yet. a VQ30 with vq35 internals would be plenty of power i think.

 

Again, IMO that is a complete waste of time. And even more so than using the entire 3.5 short block. Because the only internals that can be swapped are the crank and rods which only bring the thing upto 3317 cc. Your compression will go to 11.0 to 1 which will certainly take the thing out of boost territory. There is absolutly no benefit whatsoever to buying a 2k0 or 2k1 for this purpose. In the long run it really is cheaper, parts and labor wise, just to buy a 2k2.

 

If he really want's to do a 3.0 with 3.5 internals why not just get a much cheaper 95 or 96 maxima?

 

I would just get a Maxima.

You can spend alot more time and money swapping the engine and you are already talking about how little the value of the car is compared to what you owe, you will really go in deeper.

When it is all said and done, you still have a Sentra.

Getting the Maxima would take you to a different level in some peoples eyes, not to mention you have more room

It is your call, but I would save the hassle and just get a 2k2 6 speed and be done.

You can get them for around $12-15k now. Sale that sentra for around 10k and roll what you still owe into the Maxima loan and eat it, that would be my suggestion.

 

I agree with the Maxima votes

 

i dunno why u feel the maxima is so much better do you have kids? and need a big car to take groceries in? But yea if you wanna ditch the sentra go for a 2k2 maxima manual they have big power off the bat and you say that money is really an issue, well you have to work with what u got. hey i wanna beamer but end up on a maxima. trying to make the maxima like a beamer just work with what u got. sentra spec v is pretty tight to me.

 

I like my Max and my Spec-v so I'm torn. I think a Maxima is just a classier car. I cant go to the store in the spec without getting revved in by some Honda or Neon. Your choice though, both are great in ther own way. Just my .02.

 

definitly a MAXIMA