Enough procrastination, I've made up my mind, I'm through with the VQ30DE, I still love and respect the motor, but I want to finish A LOT of this car up by August because I want to go back to school full time (I know, school > car should have been spending $$$ towards school and not the car, but I can't help myself).
This is the to buy list.... and prices I hope to pay for each item
FWD VQ35DE (05-06) ($700)
VQ30 Timing Chain Kit ($250)
VQ35HR Head Gasket ($50)
VQ35HR Head Bolts ($60)
Solid Mounts ($60)
Intake
- 6" Pop Charger
- Pathfinder Throttle Body
- Custom UIM?
FPR Regulator ($40)
Walbro 255lph ($100)
JWT ECU ($600)
Cam Adapters ($125)
I'm hoping for around 270whp and 275ft/lbs, a bit high I know, but one can always dream ^_^
Depends on the current job situation is how fast I can get this done, but little by little I'm going to be chomping away at this.
Sidenote, I did install my coilovers, but i want to make a good detailed post about it, so give me some time on that.
And yes, there's a 6spd installation post I need to make too, it's in the works.
Wednesday, April 27, 2011
Wednesday, January 26, 2011
OBX 02-03 3.5L Maxima Headers INSTALLED!
This post is a little late, but I've installed the infamous OBX 3.5 Headers on my car.
I do not have that many pictures, but here is a quick overview of the installation process, I will not go into gross detail, because the swap happened awhile ago.
Installation (Sort of in order)
-Put the front end of the car on stands-Remove Upper Intake Manifold
-Remove 02 Sensors
-Drop the Y-pipe
-Work on the front collector (6 bolts)
-Begin to unbolt the rear manifold (if you're really pro you can do all 6 bolts)
-Get the jack and support the engine/tranny
-Drop the crossmember
-Remove the rear mount thingy (4 bolts on the motor, it's what the rear mount attaches to)
-Drop the rear header
-Install OBX headers
-Delete EGR
Reverse process, starting w/ the rear mount thingy.
Problems/Things to know...
-There will be an EGR delete during this process, I'm still working a way around this so I won't have a CEL-Two M18x1.5 bolts will be required (unless you're running a wideband and want to plug it into the headers) to block off the extra O2 ports.
-You can not put the rear o2 sensor on the rear collector, the steering rack is in the way, I used one on the front bank and one near the oil pan, use the screws on the rear collecter and the other o2 port near the oil pan.
-I had to extend the O2 sensor wires for it to reach the location pictured below.
-Get OEM nissan gaskets, atleast the O shaped one, people suggest re-using the old header gasket on your car, they say it's a superior design, I am using the OBX manifold gaskets and so far no problems, but if you really want to go the extra mile, order some new nissan manifold gaskets and O gaskets (remember you're still saving hundreds of dollars compared to cattman, so put that money to good use).
Onto the media/fun stuff....
Drive around with your max like this, you will OWN THE ROAD (it is scary loud, see vid below).
Monday, December 27, 2010
The Cattman 3" Catback
So I have nearly completed my Exhaust setup, with this being the focal piece of it, a 3" catback...
The Cattman 3" Catback system for the 4th gen (1995-1999) Nissan Maxima with an extra bung for a wideband sensor, this ran me right around $810 shipped to my front door.
The System
Just some pics here and there....
(The stock muffler is HEAVY)
Here is a good post on the org for some more comparison shots: here!
The Installlation
The installation is relatively simple, my only reccomendation here is to install the O2 sensors last, because of the location of it when you bolt up your main catylitic converter gets in the way of a ratchet, also make sure you set the car up on stands fairly high, this is a 3" exhausst sytem and getting the rear section over the axle with a low clearance can be tricky.
If you need install help use this site here: Click Here
If you haven't already, buy one of these to replace the gasket from Cat->Catback, the part number is in the picture, either local, courtesy, or Dave B. from southpoint nissan, shop around. Do NOT use the walker gaskets, only OEM, my walker gaskets lasted only 2 days, on the 3rd I had an exhaust leak from them.
You'll need new sets of these if you haven't replaced them. These are exhaust hangers, you'll need 3 for the muffler and 1 for the midsection. People say use the nismo hangers, but others have said that the walker's are just as good (NOT FOR GASKETS THOUGH! The gaskets SUCK!) and they seem to be holding fine!
Muffler Hangers : Part Number: EXH 35725
Midsection Hanger : Part Number: EXH 35460
After that you should have your exhaust in with no problems! Just need a floor jack, jack stand, some PB Blaster, 14mm socket, a ractchet, a 14mm wrench and off to the races!!
Final Installation Pics:
Performance
The first half of this will be my opinion with the warpspeed Y-pipe ("Exhaust Leak" setup) not the OBX headers.
As soon as I left the driveway I noticed a major increase in the low end torque and part throttle acceleration, but I could not wail into it because the car had not made it's adjustments and it would misfire if I gave it anything more than 1/2 throttle.
As soon as I hit the 51st mile... I had a completely different car, the gains were felt throughout the powerband and at ALL throttle positions, throttle response remained the same, but I gained some precious, precious top end in my car which gave me a big edge over those Hondas in 3rd gear (before I would lose to them in 3rd gear, but now the car stays in the race in 3rd gear then when I get into 4th, which is a short gear btw, I walk away!).
As for the comparison with the headers....
It is quite unfair to compare these to the headers, my only initial reactions will be a header vs. y-pipe reaction and not too much of a stock catback to 3" reaction.
It is quite unfair to compare these to the headers, my only initial reactions will be a header vs. y-pipe reaction and not too much of a stock catback to 3" reaction.
Sound
Well besides the performance this is the other crucial part to having an exhaust system... The sound!!
I will let the vids do the talking for me here.
The "Exhaust Leak" Setup:
-Bomz SRI
-Warpspeed Y-Pipe
-No gaskets (or completely rotted away) between the manifold->y-pipe.
-Magnaflow High Flow Cat
-Stock catback
The "New" Setup:
-Same as above but instead of the stock catback, it's the Cattman 3"
The "Final" Setup
-Bomz SRI
-OBX Racing 02-03 Maxima VQ35DE Headers
-Magnaflow High Flow Cat
-Cattman 3" Catback
From a Dig:
- The Exhaust Leak:
- The New Setup
From a 40 Roll:
- The Exhaust Leak:
- The New Setup
High Speed Flyby:
-The Exhaust Leak
-The New Setup
-The Final Setup
In Car Pull:
-The Exhaust Leak
-The New Setup
-The Final Setup
Final Thoughts
Well all and all, I truly think this is the last mod you will need if you want every ounce of your 4th gen's performance (N/A or FI'd), I don't regret one single penny involved in my ehxaust, I am really happy with how it sounds now, and I hope the test pipe I will be getting won't change much.
I guess I'll include some complaints in here too...
Rear 02 Sensor mount: I do not like how the post cat 02 sensor is mounted, I wish it was done another way because removing the cat becomes annoying because of the position of the 02 sensor on my catback, of course dropping cats aren't an everyday thing but it's just one thing to gripe at.
The "Drone Zone": If you have been researching cattman catbacks then you should already know about the drone between 2k-2.6krpms, if you don't know, just know that the catback has a drone between those 600 rpms, you can literally cruise @ 4k and it would be quieter than 2500rpm. The catback is whisper quiet @ 3k though which is awesome for those highway cruisers (like myself).
Dyno? Sure...
Thursday, August 19, 2010
Just Clearing My Head...
The long delayed 6spd project is finally about to go down... Sometime in the future... See note below... I'm pretty excited and scared @ the same time because this mod features a "POINT OF NO RETURN" so if I mess up I could be stuck w/o a car for awhile.... Anyways, I've come to terms with that and now I have to just focus my time and energy on reassembling the transmission correctly and make sure this goes as smoooove as possible.
Anyways, here's a quick price list of my swap...
Swapping a 6spd HLSD Transmission from a 2003 Sentra SE-R Spec V into a 1999 Maxima SE-L....
Parts that I've brought for this project
$105 Maxima Bellhousing and a Final Diff
$300 Fidanza Lightweight Flywheel
$43 '03 Maxima Pressure Plate (Brand new)
$86 New Clutch Disc (G35/350z 6mt clutch disc)
$42 6spd Cable Shifter
$213.15 Spec-V Transmission
$17 Clutch Fork/TOB+Bolts+Slave Cylinder
$142 6spd Mount, 04 Maxima oem shift knob and bolts.
$37 Starter from an '03 Altima
$40 Custom Timing Ring, Sentra shifter cables, flywheel bolts
Side Project: Poly Urethane Suspension Update
While the car is in pieces why not take advantage of this and update the suspension? Plus my bushings are blown so my car is literally ALL OVER the road whenever I get on that gas... and that ain't cool.
$40.95 ES LCA Bushings
$17 ES Anti-Sway Bar Bushings
$61 Ball Joints
$22 Anti-Sway Bar End Links
$22 Anti-Sway Bar End Links
Anyways, expect the next post soon as it will be full of pictures and details as I try to attempt a "How-to" on this stuff....
Random: I also purchased a brand new Diamond Audio D3 12" Sub via ebay for $59, that's my "Good job boy" present to myself... the box and amp will be my victory celebration after the swap.
[Edit]
6spd is postponed until further notice, ran into some things today and I did not want to continue w/ this project because there is NO going back once I saw off my old transmission/motor mount. So I'm going to wait until everything is purffffect.
But I did do the side project and man does my car feel AWESOME!!!! I highly recommend anyone who corners hard to make sure they keep the front end of their car properly maintained.
Random: I also purchased a brand new Diamond Audio D3 12" Sub via ebay for $59, that's my "Good job boy" present to myself... the box and amp will be my victory celebration after the swap.
[Edit]
6spd is postponed until further notice, ran into some things today and I did not want to continue w/ this project because there is NO going back once I saw off my old transmission/motor mount. So I'm going to wait until everything is purffffect.
But I did do the side project and man does my car feel AWESOME!!!! I highly recommend anyone who corners hard to make sure they keep the front end of their car properly maintained.
Wednesday, May 12, 2010
6speed Swap How-To Teaser Pics
Tuesday, March 16, 2010
Replacing the Front Bumper on a 1996 (CD) Accord LX
So today I helped my friend Chris replace his front bumper. He had gotten into a little fender bender and was tired of the hole there.
So you don't know how to remove the bumper eh? Well here is (what I think) a very detailed writeup, you should be able to teach your mom how to remove a bumper with these directions ^_^.
Side Note: I really HATE those silly black screws w/ the black plastic housing around them that you have to pop out, in my opinion I find them VERY annoying and easy to break, if I had more time and wanted to put more effort into this I would've went to ace hardware and try finding a metal bolt, something that won't easily break or strip. YOU MUST BE CAREFUL NOT TO STRIP OR BREAK THESE, because then the bumper will be stuck on in that location, and the only way to remove it without removing the screw is by breaking the mounting hole on the bumper.
1. We'll start from the very first screw under the wheel well (pictured at the bottom)
2. Then we'll remove the corner/parking lamp by unscrewing the one screw up top and you'll see one screw there.
3. Next the three screws
4. Repeat step 1 and 2 for the opposite side.
5. Now, this was the least fun of the whole bumper removal... Actually it took the most time... The front turn signal light removal... Ugh.
There is only one screw for each light but I had an extremely hard time getting to it, if you peek your head into the lower grill you'll see a little opening for a phillips head screw driver. These two screws are different from the bumper screws (obviously).
(View from the opening)
(Close up shot of the screw)
You have to stick your Phillips in there and unscrew that screw quite a few turns, after that slide the signal light towards the outside of the car then it will come right out.
6. After fooling with the bumper lights, you're about halfway there, behind each light there is one screw.
7. Now it's time to go under the bumper and remove two of these screws...
This is where they are in relative position to the car.
8. This may be optional but I removed these two bolts (and then we didn't put them back on lol).
9. Another possible step.... You may have to remove the headlights if you have screws in these locations, when we removed the bumper there weren't any screws there.
-Location of screws that we removed. (Not Pictured: Two screws under the front turn signal lights)
-Location of possible screws that we were somehow missing.
10. Give it a little tug then... Tada...
Removing the lower lip is simple, just unscrew everything at the bottom and then it comes off
Again, comments, complaints & compliments are always welcome.
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