Fantastic that is all that I can say about them. Dead reliable, good ride, mod friendly. Good VQ35 in it.
#1
So my truck was recently totaled by a senior citizen who will remain nameless. No pictures of the totaled truck but the rear axle was tweaked about 7 feet toward the rear.
I have decided to move on to a 2003 Maxima and I am looking for info on possible issues and any links on what lip kits and/or wheels look decent on these cars. It's a 2003 6-speed, silver with black leather interior.
Heres some pics:
Thanks for any help.
Last edited by rsj0714; 06-15-2012 at 11:15 PM.
Originally Posted by Dave Zero
#2
Fantastic that is all that I can say about them. Dead reliable, good ride, mod friendly. Good VQ35 in it.
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#3
Thieves still rip off the HID headlights? Or by now they've been all gone and owners just replaced them with halogen versions.
#4
I had mine for just short of 10 years and never had any theft problems with my HIDs. I would think that the flood of cheap HID parts from China killed demand for stolen Maxima headlight parts.
#5
http://forums.vwvortex.com/showthrea...whats-the-deal
See thread started a few days ago.. i made a detailed reply.
#6
Didn't they come with a 3.0 engine? VG30?Fantastic that is all that I can say about them. Dead reliable, good ride, mod friendly. Good VQ35 in it.
Look at your signature, now back to mine, now back to yours, now back to mine. Sadly, yours isn’t mine.
#7
Negative... VQ35DE
And the 3.0 was also a VQ30DE. Which was introduced in 1995.
FLY NAVY
#8
Look no further than wheels off other nissan , infinit products
#9
Prior to 2002, yes they came with a 3.0L. I don't think that's the right code name though.
#10
Thanks.
I have no clue how that didn't show up in my search.
#11
They are very reliable. Friend has one with 250k now, only radiators, tstats, and clutches replaced. Pretty strong motor as well, the thing had some top end pull with the V6.
#12
LOL except for the oil burning issue. It is a fun ride with the 6MT, though.Fantastic that is all that I can say about them. Dead reliable, good ride, mod friendly. Good VQ35 in it.
#13
Have already answer that. It was the VQ30DE, which was developed to replace the VE30DE (190 HP 92 - 94 SE) and the VG30E (160 HP)
FLY NAVY
#14
2002+ had the VQ35DE which replaced the VQ30DE.
IIRC.
I owned a 2001 back in the day and my roommate at the time, that bastard, bought a 2002 to smite me.
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#15
These are great cars, torquey and smooth, comfortable, reliable. However they are not capable of more than about 25-26 mpg highway, if that is an issue for you.
#16
The VQ30DE-K on the 2000-2002 in noticebly smoother (in noise), but the VQ35DE makes it up for more pah.These cars are beasts on the highways. I've rented a few for roadtrips back then (I also owned a 1999 SE at one point.)
I am pretty sure HID theft was not an issue for this car, but more so for the 2G 99-03 Acura TL (the HID housings drop right into an Accord of that era.
City MPG isn't the greatest, and the turning radius isn't exactly awesome.. I would not hesitate to buy one as a DD
In our neck of woods, a I30/I35 are cheaper to buy, but you are stuck with the 4spd auto.
#17
I am not sure what you are trying to say here....
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#19
I remember that car in 2001. It had the VQ30DE with 222 HP. 32 more than the regular VQ30DE, but that is still a bit shy in the HP department compared to the VQ35DE.
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#20
The 2001 SE 20th Anniversary model had 227HP vs. the standard 222HP. Of course the 2002-2003 had 255HP.
#21
Mine never burned any oil and I had it from 63k-100k miles. Though some did, it's not a very significant number. Like any issue with a vehicle brought to the attention of a vehicle forum, just because it happened to ten vehicles doesn't mean it happened to a majority of them.
Current: Saturn SL2- exhaust leak|saggy headliner|autotragic
Old: 2005 VW Jetta GLI|2003 Nissan Maxima|2000 Pontiac Trans Am
#22
I wanted an 02-03 6 speed but settled for an '01 anniversary 5-speed instead because for added reliability. The 02-03 6-speed cars are known to burn oil and have notchy, self destructing transmissions.
Came across an orginal owner '03 titanium 6-speed with 100k miles recently for $3700 canadian... was considering buying my 4th maxima, but decided to hold off.
Current: '00 Mustang GT 5MT | '04 Mazda 6i 5MT
Past: '01 Maxima SE 5MT | '03 G35 Coupe 6MT | '00 Accord SE 5MT | '00 Maxima SE 4AT | '97 Civic CX 5MT | '98 Maxima GXE 5MT
#23
Those Nissan v6 engines are pretty darn reliable in my experience. There are a couple minor things you might run into depending on the year and exact flavor/variety of engine that's in there, but for the most part they last a pretty long time. My uncle had a 97 (or so) Quest with a VG30E in it and he brought that thing up to nearly 400k miles before my aunt forced him to trade it in during that Cash For Clunkers program. Their old Maxima (a 98 SE) with a VQ30DE in it was passed down to my cousin (their son), who drove it all over the place and it held up quite well considering that he skipped a few maintenance items on it (that I later corrected). It has 215k or so miles on it right now and runs very smoothly.
I usually get most of my Maxima info from Maxima.org (regarding faqs, fixes, known issues, etc) so you might want to check it out. It was very helpful in fixing the clogged EGR valve (a known issue) on my cousin's 4th gen Maxima. Rather than paying a garage for all that labor, we just did it ourselves and payed only for a can of carb cleaner.
There’s more to it than that, though. I feel the fast Golf is a part of me. We’ve grown up together. When it came along, all simple and full of fun, I was living in a flat in London. Now it’s soft and luxurious and I’m slouched in a house in the Cotswolds. It’s like 1970s rock music. New stuff comes along which I’m sure is cleaner and better produced but it doesn’t have the heart and soul of the original.
#24
I've seen several 1st gen I30s with a 5 speed.
Previous: 91 CRX Si / 93 S-10 / 99 Neon ACR / 87 325e / 90 Accord Coupe
#25
Yup the A32 i30t was available with an LSD 5-speed.
Current: '00 Mustang GT 5MT | '04 Mazda 6i 5MT
Past: '01 Maxima SE 5MT | '03 G35 Coupe 6MT | '00 Accord SE 5MT | '00 Maxima SE 4AT | '97 Civic CX 5MT | '98 Maxima GXE 5MT
#26
We had a 2000 Maxima for 10 years. Let's straighten things out first: this gen Maxima came out in 2000 with the 3.0L VQ30DE putting out 222 hp. In 2002 it was refreshed with new headlights, taillight, front facia,and minor interior trim differences, not to forget a larger 3.5 VQ35DE with 255 hp. Initially, the 2002+ vehicles had high reports of headlight theft because they were HID and can fit the 2000-2001 vehicles.
My grandma first drove the car so ours was a 4speed auto and it was pretty reliable. There were issues with coil packs and oxygen sensors but I am not sure if the VQ35 has these issues. We went through a radiator, brakes, tranny fluid, 2 sets of tires, and plugs in 90K. The 3.0 was super smooth and buttery, but I hear the 3.5 is a bit courser but much more powerful. Even though ours was not as powerful, there is a good amount of torque steer, so I imagine the 3.5 has it too. We averaged 22 MPG with 50/50 city and highway, but I think the 3.5 drinks a bit more; IIRC ours required premium and so does the 3.5.
There were some issues of oil consumption on some cars, luckily ours didn't have it. Also for routine maintenance, watch out for the suspension. The Maxima has a solid rear axle combined with struts, so all corners have struts on em which can be pricey. The car itself was a nice highway cruiser, but the beam axle really shows itself when hitting bumps on corners. I did not like the seats, after an hour my entire back and legs would be numb so try it out if you plan to dive long distances.
#27
For maximum Grinnage id recommend the VQ35 with the manual tranny.
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