I am thinking of buying a 02' 6-speed Maxima as a additional car. I had a 00' Maxima SE before. I also own a 00' Corvette Hardtop that pulls around 330rwhp and will run 12.6@112 in the 1/4, with just a CAI.

Is there a consenses estimate on how fast this car will be? I'm guessing low 14s at say 97-98mph. These engines just do not seem to respond that well to mods and given the current Maximas putting down 180fwhp, I'm guessing the new one will put down around 210-215fwhp.

Also, what are the avaiblilty and cost of gears for Maximas?

Ryan

 

Your guess is probably right in there. But I don't get your comment about the VQ series not responding to mods. Y pipe and intake alone is probably worth 10-15 fwhp. In fact, there are 4th-5th gen maximas already deep into the 14's with the 190hp and 222hp engines.

Gears?? They are not available for the maxima. Remember, it's 5x more difficult to replace the differential in a FWD transmission vs a rwd(tranny and rear diff seperate) car.

Funny you mention your times. Just for kicks, I think the new Q45 is a mid 13 sec 1/4'er now. About 350hp or more out of their 4.0 or 4.2 liter V8. Not bad huh?

 

To be honest, I think you might want to consider an '02 Altima as well. The 6-speed apparently will be a no-go for Nissan at the moment, leaving practically no distinction between the '02 Maxima and the new '02 Altima. The '02 Altima will be bigger (yes, bigger) than the current Max and Nissan will have to offer MAJOR discounts on a car whose only distinction will be 20 more ponies than the Altima. The new Maxima won't be out until '03 or '04, when it goes RWD/V-8 platform.....

As far as speed, probably more like mid 14s at 96MPH.

Maximas mod fairly well. Granted, compared to a 'vette, there is basically zero aftermarket support, but there are a few things you can do..the S/C being the big one...I would guess the new one would put down 205-210fwhp......

 

the new Q45 has a 4.5 V8 with 340hp and 0-60 in 5.9!! im not sure the 1/4 mile but i would imagine somewhere in the 14's, i doubt 13's

 

Not quite right. Motortrend tested the 2002 Q45 against competitors and the Q45 was unusually slow. 0-60 in 6.51s, and 1/4 mile 14.83@95.67 MPH. Not even close to 5.9s, or 13's. Motortrend tested another Q45 and the results were the same. Nissan's response was that they are still tweaking the engine management system to optimize the Q45's power. Even the LS430 beat the Q45 on the dragstrip with 0-60 6.34s, 1/4 mile 14.67@97.66 MPH.

 

How come you say there will be know 6-speed? Is it just a rumor you have heard or a actual fact? I recall hearing somwone say something about some issues with the 6-spd, but how reliable is the source? I sure hope there is going to be 6-Spd in my new max or I am going to be pised! Hopefully the 02 max will be releades soon. BTW my local nissan dealers all say it will have a 6spd and either 260 or 280 HP, or maybe both.

 

the q45 mt tested was preproduction. they have yet to test a production version.


and the way rumors are going, the se will be the only model available in 6 speed while the gxe manual will only be 5 speed. any idea if the auto trannies will be 5 speed?

 

Just don't supercharge the 2002 Maxima if you get it or else you may end up selling the Vette. j/k
Lookie Here:
http://forums.maxima.org/showthread.php?threadid=43795

 

The 2002 Maxima will have a beefed up 4-spd automatic. This is because that's what the I35 will have, and Nissan would never one up the I35 by putting a superior transmission in the Maxima.

Also, it's the June issue of Motortrend that tested the Q45. I figure they must have done the test in March or April, but then the Q45 was available to the general public in April, so I can't see why they have not tested the production version yet. My guess is that the production version is unusually slow like the tested versions. Also, the Q45 is a boat compared to the LS430..it weighs 4400 lbs, LS430 weighs 3950lbs. The Lexus is short 50hp, but then max hp and torque arrive earlier in the Lexus than the Infiniti, significant enough to make the LS faster than the Q.

Oh well, let's hope other Q45 reviews will see faster times. Motortrend also noted that a drive by wire system prevents brake torquing past 1500 RPM.

 

you got it the other way. The Q is 3801 and I don't know how much the LS weight.

 

Motortrend says 4405 lbs. But yeah, Infiniti website says 3801 lbs. Could it be possible that the "luxury package" adds on weight? The slower acceleration is consistent with the added weight.

LS weighs 3950lbs according to Lexus website.

 

I don't see how the Q weighting 4405lb. my huge a$$ minivan is lighter and longer then that

 

you have a minivan........haha
J/k

 

make that V-TEC minivan with fully independent double wishbone supension,not even the civics have that!! only the integra does its a 2000 honda odyssey. You can kinda see it in my sig.

 

thats one minivan i wouldnt even try to get a light with.

 

This is strange becasue MT sias the new Q ways 4409 Lb's. I also looked at my new Road&Track and it had the Q weighing in at only 4050 lb's and the LS is listed at 4130 lb's. BTW R&T points out the fact that the new Q ways 80 lb's less then the LS. In any event I think MT screwed up.

 

F--- the media.

 

The Maxima already has a superior transmission...it gets a 5-speed manual

 

It is also rumored that there might be a Maxima SE-R with close to 280 hp. Is it true? We are only months away from finding out.

 

I hope they make a se-r! That would be so sweet. The day that comes out I will have to say goodby I30. BTW my Nissan Dealer seemed to think there would be a 280 Hp max for 02.

 

The lack of 6-speed is still rumor at this point. The part about them having problems is reliable, but after that it's speculation as it's not known if the issues can be resolved in time to go to production.

Following Nissan's recent pattern over the years, I suspect they'll get the 6-speed in there half-a$$ style and we'll get to do quality testing.....

The Max will not have 280 ponies, but only 260. Otherwise, the I35 would have 280 right now, and it's not going to.

Thank heavens the slushbox has been strengthened. That should have been done for the 2000 Max.....

 

Don't forget about the Nissan Pathfinder, it has 10 more HP then the QX4. Thats because of the 5spd VS auto thingy. Maybe we can enjoy this HP increase too?

 

emax,

That is a good point. I forgot the 240 figure is downgraded for the auto only......Since the I35 won't offer a stick, you could be right on that one, with 280 being for the 6-speed and 260 for the slushbox....

I still worry about the 6-speed being thoroughly tested/developed....

Makes me wonder, the stuff I've read on the Altima indicates they're offering a 5-speed yet the pony output was 240 as well. I wonder if that will still be the case?

 

I think the Altima only has 240 because it is detuned. Just compare the 280-300 Z which is the same engine but has been tuned better. The maxima should definatly have more HP then the Altima becuase what else whould sell the max next year? I think if they want some 1/2 decent sale figures they better have atleast 260 HP in the new max and 280HP would be sweet. The new max will be about as fast as my SC I30 was!~ That will be fun! The day this new beast comes out it will be mine

 

I'm under the impression that the SE-R monkier is only for the Sentra line. Just like GT-R is only used for the Skyline, and GTi-R is only used for the Pulsar. In other words I don't believe there'll ever be a Maxima SE-R, perhaps there will be a high performance variation which will have some other designation.

Though I don't see that as happening, Nissan is now focusing on making cars that are "everything to some people instead of something for everyone". This statement leads me to believe they won't offer a lot of variations on each of their cars, but rather a few that are specificaly oriented to niche markets.

 

Who knows, maybe Nissan will switch the Maxima over to the stupid new model trim levels they use for the Altima. Something like LE, SE, and SLE. Or something silly like that. GXE,SE, GLE were just fine.

Imagine a Maxima SLE...sounds like a Chevrolet model!

Oh well, in either case, I think it is highly unlikely the Maxima will get a 6-spd manual or an engine more powerful than 260hp. It's 260hp..how much more do you want?? (okay, dumb question) It's already 33hp more than the old engine, and a full 70hp more than the 4th gen Maxima, which is already plenty fast. My guess...260hp across the line, and 4-spd auto or 5-spd manual transmissions.

 

Well, if that previous rumor is true about the Maxima going V8 and RWD, then it looks like they might one up it because the Maxima will become the Low End Q and the Altima (which is now larger than the Max) is the new I35. Really, with Nissan doing so well financially and the current technology shift going across the board, it's anybody's guess.

 

if the maxima gets the V8 down the road, looks like it will be putting out about 340hp, like the Q45 because nissan matches the hp #'s for cars in the same class... like the I30 and the maxima, they stayed the same... who knows, it will also probably look very similar to the Q45, just not as fancy

 

Nissan will keep the current Maxima platform for at least another year, maybe two. The 2002 Maxima is a "facelifted" Maxima, not a total redesign. The biggest change will be the powertrain and minor trim adjustments.

Honestly, where do people get the idea that the Maxima will be totally redesigned for 2002? Also, there is absolutely no proof that Nissan will be going RWD with the Maxima. The only official stance of Nissan is that the next Maxima will be based on a stretched Altima platform. So, I think RWD for 2003 will be unlikely.

What it looks like now is that the I35 will eventually be built on an Altima platform, and the XVL will become Infiniti's mid level RWD car. Where the Maxima will come in for Nissan is uncertain. I hope they don't just don't turn it into a Toyota Avalon, but well, you never know.

 

I would think the performance numbers would be around high 5s and low-14s @ 98.

Right now, modified 5th gens (like mine) with y-pipe and intake are putting down around 203 to the wheels which is about 240 at the crank. Madmax2k, with the same setup as me on a cold night at the track ran 14.35. Consistently runs 14.7s - I'm more like 14.8s. Main problem is getting off the line - 60ft times.

Add another 20 hp at the crank, which is 18 to the wheels PLUS the LSD (which the 2ks don't have) and that bad boy ought to get off the line well and then move pretty good.

Now, add the standard mods and I think you've got close to 300 at the crank. OOOOOH!