Well the thing us that have done the swap love the most (awesome huge-TQ response at any RPM) is exactly what kicked my rear at the track. Trying to control 1st gear at launch is no joke! My mods are

-02 VQ35DE SWAP with 3.0 Timing equipment and ECU
- CAI
- PF TB
- Stock 3.0 Headers+ WSP Ypipe+ WSP Straight Pipe
- MotoStorm UDP
- Fuelab FPR
- Z33 Head Gaskets
- No P/S belt
- SAFC1-Tuned for 13.0:1 and slightly richer towards redline
- VI powerflap is running full open
- Spec Stage 2 clutch on stock 3.0 flywheel

I did run it full trim with 1/2 tank of gas. Also ran it on my street wheels/ tires (22lb Borbet 17x8s with Fusion ZRi 235/45ZR-17 running at 22psi). I wanted to see what it would do under full trim. Next time Im going with some weight savings and POSSIBLY lighter wheels with DRs.

I did 4 runs total.
1st run was
2.376 60'
9.64 @ 76.38 1/8
14.75 @ 95.92 1/4

2nd run
2.434 60'
9.68 @ 76.60 1/8
14.75 @ 96.81 1/4

3rd run- My Best for the Night
2.301 60'
9.48 @ 77.40 1/8
14.53 @ 98.06 1/4

4th run
2.457 60'
9.807 @ 76.25 1/8
14.896 @ 96.04 1/4

I will put up videos soon.

The problem Im having is at launch. Slipping that Spec Stage 2 is no easy task, especially when the TQ steer is pulling the car from side to side and Im trying to hold it straight (with no P/S btw, so it takes a bit more testicular fortitude to hold it straight lol). From 2nd gear on I know Im doing everything perfect. I just need to practice those blasted launches. Im pretty sure that if I can get my launch down to 2.1 I could do a low 14 sec pass.

Im not dissapointed with my trap speed, judging from my dyno #s (http://forums.maxima.org/showthread.php?t=511885) and the fact I was running a full trim'd car that is a pretty good trap to me. But my 60' is killing my times.

Things I want to have done by the next time I go...
- WSP Catback
- SSIM
- Hopefully headers, looking into HS
- Grey99's Volt-B00sta (dont ask, I will post any results from this when I have dyno proof to back it up, its just an experiment)
- Perhaps I will keep the Z32 wheels Im selling and just put DRs on them
- I might just put the P/S belt back on to help me control the TQ steer more (plus, its getting annoying to have the lady in the car and Im here fighting with the wheel to park my car, lol)

Does anyone have any other suggestions for me or tips?

Thanx in advance,

Eddy

 

Are you just going wot & spinning the wheels all the way thru 1st gear?

 

No Im trying to slip the clutch and ease into the gas. But the moment the clutch graps the wheels go loose and I end up modulating the gas. Its just a matter of practice and finding "the right spot". Its not as if Im running mickey mouse tires either. I think Im going on the gas too fast

 

I never got better than a 2.2 60ft on my 4.5 gen.. But the way I do it is drop the clutch at 2k and nail it once the tires stop spinning. Not too shabby for your first time but there is ALOT left in it!

 

Oh Im sure there is plenty left in there. This motor is still running on stock timing. Once I get my hands on an EU Im going from ~25* base timing up to the high 30s. I also want to retard the intake cams with custom-spec'd adapters from StephenMax. That, coupled with the SSIM and headers should make for a huge increase in power on the top end (especially with an extended rev limiter to take advantage of it better). But EU is long run. For now it catchin up on bolt ons

 

OK, as you say finding "the right spot" try just watching the tach & keep playing [modulating] it around 3500 RPM's till u get traction,

 

Practice lauching on an empty street or something. Thats what I've been doing with my Z. Its crazy going from no traction problems in my max to almost everytime i hit the gas the wheels spin in my Z.

 

Or you can just put an auto in there with high stall tc

 

95BLKMAX,

You need traction bars - badly. All that torque-steer drama just goes away. Buy some, steal some, make some, but you will be amazed.

I launch and drive with one hand at the strip, and can easily steer the car while going down the track. And they are great when street-driving. Before the Jbars, it took both hands clamped to the steering wheel to keep the car going kinda straight.

 

He already has a pair. He only had 1 installed for his runs though. The passenger side bar was hitting his oil filter.

 

Oh - I didn't realize that - no wonder he has steering problems. He can fix that very easily - take the bar and bend it with a conduit bender ( $10 at Harbor Freight) so it clears the filter and re-install it. Mine has been like that since a week after I got mine. Also bent the driver's side bar to clear the automatic tranny. Together, they have worked great for me!

 

yea grey, Im still pending to bend the passenger side to clear my oil filter. I've already decapitated 2 oil filters (one of the 3.0, the other last week on this 3.5, lol) so its not gona go back on again until bend it, lol)

 

oh wow I didnt realize they were that cheap! Im gonna make a trip to harbor freight tomorrow and bend it. Lets see what it does! thanks Grey (I was planning on going to a muffler shop and have them bend it, I didnt even know where to get a conduit bender)

 

Good - it's really easy to do, too. I remember trying to figure out what to do with my brand-new Jbars when I first tried to install them and neither side would clear. Bummer. Then I realized I just needed to bend pipe, so I borrowed a pipe bender and bent both of them in my driveway. The tranny side is more radical than the oil filter side, but both have remained in adjustment since then.

 

It's like bending a 3/4" electrical conduit pipe, if anyone asks. When you see one, you'll figure it out. Harbor Freight for weird stuff ..


EDIT - I just check on-line and they don't show the manual pipe benders any more.. Sorry - you'll have to try hardware or "farmers' supply" places, I guess.
.
.
.

 

Allright - this is what I was talking about - this is the head of the bender, and you need a piece of pipe for a handle to complete it.



http://www.hardwareworld.com/34-Thin...e-pGJXLFK.aspx

 

grey, indeed they do not have the conduit bender any longer, so I just got this massive sucker --> http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/cta...emnumber=94623, hahah. Well, the bar is bent. I will try it on tonight after work and hope it clears the filter. Once I got the right angle on it, Im returning that sucker! Thanks.

 

Daym, I think you need a bigger pipe bender! I'm sure you bent it with that sucka... It really does clear with a little bend at the filter end of the Jbar.

No hippity-hop = better launch.. Now back to the track!

Side note - I just got my OBX pipes this evening. They look good - much better than I expected. I'm gonna go out to the garage now and start taking photos with a ruler showing actual dimensions, for all you ORGers who want to know.....

 

Bottom line...and you already said it...you need to work on the launch. You need to ease into it. In my auto, I just power brake as far as I can get it and simply let go of the brake on green...no added gas. About a second in, you start easing into the gas...ease, ease, ease...then punch. As someone alluded to above...find the "sweet spot".

Here are my results in a stock setup:
http://forums.maxima.org/showthread.php?t=510349

 

I stopped selling the traction bars a while back after I realized the oil filter clearance was a real problem. It was truly confusing at first, more than half of the people I sold them to never complained about it and I NEVER had any problems on the VQ35 4.5 gen test car. EVER. Talk about mind f*ck. I was using the stock 12$ Oil filter straight from the Dealer, too.

It seems alot of 4.5 gens have trouble getting out of the 14s. Its somewhat hard. Im working on something for you guys though. This summer I might start selling a new updated design of the traction bars that takes care of ALL the Oil filter & Auto tranny clearance problems. Im also going to do a second prototype of the Stage II I talked about a while back.

I wont go into details about it until its tested, re-tested, finalized and done - but I did pull a 2.07 60 foot with my bros car on stock tires last summer with an early prototype of Stage II. With both stages on, you wont see a maxima launch straighter than that.

And I still have that 5th gen control arm I ordered a while back, and now have access to a 2003 test car so I just might make then for all 1995-2003 maximas... But I have a lot of things, including my S13 and my bros car to take care of first. So look for them this summer.

 

Yo Ed I know how ya feel man, as soon as I swapped to the 5spd I had the same problem. About the very next day I went out and got BFG DR's. Damn near solved all my traction issues at the time except for the TQ steer.

Did you get the bars to fit properly ?

 

we'll be anxiously waiting.

 

Dont hold your breath though. I wont rush things.

 

wow I didnt even catch my thread had activity once again, lol.

JClaw once I bent the bar its all good. The bar is now about 1.5" away from the filter and they work beautifully. I also changed my whole front bushings (including subframe) to urethane. Its a night and day difference, and the traction bars on top of that really bring it out more. Launching is alot easier to control, but I still light up my 235s like nothing.

Y0 sup fred! Yea man thats exactly what Im looking for next now, some BFG DRs to wrap my Z32 wheels with. Neal was nice enough to school me on DR science because Im new to that.

So far since this run I've done SSIM and just this weekend I put in my WSP catback finally. Im going to hit the dyno this Saturday to re-tune and see what #s I can pull up :-D

EDIT- now that I think about it, I got to pay for summer tuition. So I think I'll pass on the DRs for now and keep trying with the stockers until i get the $ for DRs.... which would be a while. Chances are once I get extra $ for parts I'll probably get headers before DRs, lol But def DRs will eventually get on my car.

Another thing. Im not into doing weight savings. Yea I know I would run a faster time, but whats the point if once I get back home Im gonna put the stuff back on anyways? The way I see it, if I run a fat 14sec with weight savings, soon as I get back home and put the stuff back on, I no longer have a flat 14sec car, so in a way its like cheating myself. Its just my opinion tho. Maybe one day I'll completly gut the car and see what it will do just to have some comparison # from the same car, lol

 

Can't wait to see what you run! Those runs are pretty disappointing for a 3.5 (2.3 60 foot times regardless, the 3.0 guys (me) are running 2.3 60 foot mid 14's too....) so i hope you do better next time.

Don't wanna jack the thread, but how much $$$ have you 4th gen guys spent on doing the 3.5 swap? I want one so bad but.... $$$$ is so tight

 

If you do the swap yourself and get the engine for 600-700, it can be done for one grand flat.

 

VQ35 will do that to your tires yeah... Have you thought about running stock 15-inch wheels at the track with tall sidewall winter tires... something like a 215-65-15 on a stock wheel. Your 17s sidewall are hard and stiff and do not help launching, they are also robbing you of some trap speed, probably 1-2 mph.

Next time you go to the track you might wanna throw on stock 15s and soft mushy all seasons or winter tires. Basically the lower the speed rating the better. Even ravaged Goodyears with totalled sidewalls might do.

I used to dead hook 2nd gear on the street in my 4.5 gen trapping 104-105 mph, and pulled a 2.02 60 foot on stock 215-60-15 tires and sawblades. You should see the pair of ravaged, POS tires that the guys pull their best 60 foot on. I know a Camaro guy that went 1.87 on POS Goodyear Predator tires... Sh8t I went as far as buying used 235-70-15 all seasons for the rear of my 240. Cause im broke for now.

Now thats even better. And Neal knows a thing or two about launching a car.

If you do decide to go the DR route (Street legal! Watch out for stoplight racing mustang dudes! ) and already have Z32 16x7.5 wheels, do yourself a favor and forget about BFG and go for some MT DRs. The new ones. Stickiest street legal radials available (though dangerous in the rain). They make a 255-60-16 size that would be perfect for you.

Pics on a foxbody stang: