Owner: Steve D.
Year: 1999
Model: Maxima
Color: Custom
Engine: VQ30DE
Transmission: 4-Speed Automatic
Trim: GLE
Community Member Credit: Carlos Armijo
I pulled the BBK off the i30krab, and with the help of Victor Dragos we identified it as a Brembo GT JR big brake kit, using 2-piece Brembo 13″ rotors. These rotors were commonly used on VW, Porsche, and Audi applications.
- Calipers & Adapter: The calipers are radial mount, and a Brembo-marked adapter (with part and serial number visible in the pics) was used to fit the Nissan application. The caliper mounting holes are 130mm apart. The adapter bolted up with no modifications to the knuckle.
- Fitment Mods: The brake dust shield had to be removed for clearance. Steel braided brake lines were also added.
- Wheel Fitment: On the i30krab, the kit cleared 17″ Volk wheels. On my current setup, 18″ wheels with +35 offset clear with room to spare.
- Caliper Work: I painted the calipers with two layers of G2 epoxy paint. I actually split the calipers during the process (not really recommended). While doing that, I had to replace the separator O-ring for the brake fluid transfer port. I lost one and ended up sourcing replacements — New Provisions Racing O-rings for 2004–2017 STI Brembos worked perfectly.
Overall, this is a great kit. I’m still researching more details since some info I gathered came from old sale posts, so specs may vary slightly depending on the exact kit.
Community Member Credit: CS_AR
NOTE: This thread covers remedying the timing chain rattle on 1998 and 1995 model VQ30DE engines. There are differences between those engine years that require a different approach.
If you have a 96-99 model VQ30DE, a new tensioner and gasket can be installed without removing the timing cover and replacing the guide. The tensioner can be accessed via the access panel door on the lower left side of the timing cover using a 10mm socket wrench.
Only the 95 model engine required timing cover removal to replace the guide with the updated version.
Today I performed a Timing Chain Tensioner transplant from a 99 model I30 to the 98 Maxima. The 98 Maxima had the typical morning timing chain clatter noise that comes from a worn tensioner piston inner seal and leaking valves.
The 99 I30 received a new Tensioner and Gasket sometime in 2012. This used tensioner has approximately 40,000 miles. However, this old tensioner has a gasket. I will find the gasket part number and report back more information on how to perform a quick tensioner transplant.
Meanwhile, the 98 Maxima appears to be getting along very well with the replacement tensioner. The engine runs smoothly and quietly now. Hopefully, when I start it at 5 AM tomorrow morning, the usual clatter will be gone.
Here’s a picture of the replacement tensioner with a gasket on the left with a regular OEM tensioner from a 97 model SE “junkyard vehicle” on the right.
The results are almost unbelievable. After sitting all night, there was no morning clatter or valve train noise today at 6 AM. This must be how it sounded when it was new.
TSB Notes
- Make: NISSAN Model: MAXIMA Year: 1999
- Service Bulletin Number: NTB00054 Bulletin Sequence Number: 139 Date of Bulletin: 06/00
- NHTSA Item Number: SB613977
Component: ENGINE: TIMING GEAR AND CHAIN
Summary: VEHICLES BUILT BEFORE JN1CA31D1YT746029 MAY EXHIBIT A ENGINE TIMING CHAIN NOISE.
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Note that I just ordered a tensioner for a 95 model with two gaskets and four bolts from CourtesyParts for the 99 models that is running a 95 model engine. The 95 models use a different tensioner.
The Tensioner I ordered for the 95 model engine is 13091-31U26 for $83.84 at CourtesyParts. The only picture I see of this part contains a guide and the tensioner. If that tensioner requires a new guide, then I’m stuck with removing the timing cover. I need to see how this 95 part is going to work before I can recommend it.
Here’s a picture below for engines built from 1/96 +.
For an I30, I see OIP has the part listed for $61.62.
This tensioner looks like the ones I’ve pulled from a 97, 98, and 99 model engine.
Somehow I think the gasket seals the drain vent to hold oil inside the chamber for long periods of time to reduce the amount of morning clatter.
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The tensioner sits behind this timing cover access panel. The access panel is held in place with four 10mm bolts.
Note: ALL bolts associated with timing chain tensioner replacement are 10mm.
Remove the Power Steering return hose from the reservoir and loosen the A/C line bracket. The idea is to get the PS hose and A/C line out of the way to provide more room for working with the tensioner.
Mechanics wire came in handy to secure the A/C line to the PS fluid reservoir. You can see the tensioner cover in the lower right center of this picture.
When the tensioner access panel has been removed, you can see the tensioner and the two 10mm bolts that hold it to the engine.
A close-up of the tensioner shows the piston is held in position for installation by the retaining pin. I used some mechanics wire to make a pin for an old tensioner that kept for example purposes.
Here’s another picture of the retaining pin. The pin must be left in the tensioner until after it has been bolted down. The final step in the installation before closing the access door is to pull the retaining pin.
To get the tensioner to align properly over the bolt holes, I cut off the head of an extra bold to make an installation guide pin. I turned the guide pin into the block just enough for me to hang the tensioner on it to get the lower bolt started. Once I had the lower bolt started, I removed the guide pin and installed the upper bolt.
To get the access door properly aligned over the timing cover when the edge was covered in RTV, I used some extra 10mm bolts and made two additional guide pins. Once the access door was in position, I installed two cover bolts, then removed the guide pins and finished installing the remaining two bolts.
Here’s a picture of the access door at the end of the operation. You can see that I used Permatex Ultra Grey RTV.
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The parts arrived from Courtesy Nissan today. Now that was a Nissan Fast order. It looks like I have everything I need to work on the 99 models (with the 95 engine) this weekend.
So I purchased the tensioner for a 95 model that comes with a guide. I really do not want to use the guide. It was just over 3 years ago that I had the timing cover off of that engine and examined the guides. That engine only had 82,000 miles at the time. I will get a mileage reading this weekend when the car returns. That engine easily has under 150,000 miles.
The new OEM tensioner is on the left. The two tensioners in the middle are from a 97 (salvage yard car) and the 98 models. The tensioner on the right is an SA Gear that I purchased over 3 years ago to go in the 99 models. The guy that did the engine installation and changed the water pump did not install it. While it looks like the OEM, it doesn’t have the same tight/precise feel as the OEM. I can tell the OEM has been built to some very exacting standards. So I don’t know if I will ever use the SA Gear guide.
The gaskets are the right parts exactly. The bolts are correct. I ordered an extra set of bolts and gaskets. I suspect the secret to success here is to always include the OEM gasket with a new tensioner.
Here’s a close-up of the tensioner back sides below. Again the new OEM is on the left with the SA Gear on the right.
The piston on the new OEM has a very tight and precise fit. There is no piston wobble or shake with the new OEM part. I sure hope I can use it on the 95 model engine.
The SA Gear part (far right) is listed for 95-04 models with both 3.0 and 3.5 engines. I call the SA Gear part a “generic aftermarket” tensioner.
Here’s a video of the 99 Model (95 Engine) before the new tensioner. Yeah it sounds like a diesel in the morning.
The 98 sounded like this before the tensioner upgrade.
Here’s a video of the 98 model after the new tensioner and gasket installation. The 99 model will sound like then when I finish the upgrade. This engine has approximately 237,000 miles.
Here’s a picture of the old 95 model tensioner (left) compared to the new (right). I like the new design.
Here’s picture with the new tensioner on the left and the old on the right.
Side-by-side comparison of old 95 model guide compared to the new replacement.
The new tensioner, bolts, gasket, and guide installed.
Based on the chain health from the picture below, I think the chain and engine will outlast the rest of the car.
The car (body) now has over 210,000 miles. It looks like a low wear engine.
No oil sludge in the upper oil pan parts.
I used the M6 -1.00 x 31 mm automotive stud bolts from Ace Hardware as guide pins to hang the Timing Cover and access doors today. Here’s some pictures from today’s work below.
Another picture of using a stud bolt as a guide pin to hang the timing cover.
Removed the stud bolts and then used the regular 10 mm TC bolts.
Using stud bolts as guide pins for installing the access doors.
Here’s a picture of the water pump access door after installation. Note that I did not completely remove the alternator or A/C compressor for this operation. I used some wire to suspend the compressor so it would not dangle by the hoses. The alternator is resting on the compressor.
The upper oil pan has been released but not completely removed in this picture. I reinstalled the passenger side engine mount so the engine would be held up by at least two engine mounts before I removed the center cross-member to remove the upper oil pan.
Started the engine this evening. After the expected new tensioner noises that sound like a train clattering down the tracks, all chain and valve system noises stopped. You’ve got to hold the RPM at 2,500 for about 10 minutes after the initial warm up to let the oil circulate through the tensioner system for the system to get quiet. This is a very different running and sounding engine now.
I will make a “cold start” video tomorrow morning and upload it to youtube.
I can’t recall having a 4th gen without some amount of clatter. It almost seems weird.
Here’s the before and after videos from the 99 (95 model engine) so show the difference made by replacing the tensioner, guide, and using the gasket as recommended in the TSB.
Before
After
Community Member Credit: 95maxrider
After much internal debate, I decided I wanted an aftermarket steering wheel to replace the stock wheel. My hope was that it would make the car a little easier to drive at auto-x, due to my hands having to travel less distance.
The install was pretty straight forward, and taking the first turn the difference was immediately noticeable. I was secretly hoping that the wheel would increase turn-in sensitivity/quickness, but this didn’t happen, as I suspected. However, the “feel” of the wheel is now (comparatively) incredible. I’m not sure if it’s just the extra effort needed to turn the wheel (stock wheel is 390mm–>350mm, a roughly 10% decrease also corresponds to a 10% increase in effort), the thickness of the wheel, the thumb grips, or the lack of vibration caused by the loose damper thingy inside the stock wheel, but the car is 100% more fun to drive now.
The wheel has changed steering feel more than all of my other mods combined. No joke. I’m still not happy about driving around without an airbag, but the enjoyment I get driving the car now makes up for it. I drove my buddy’s 97 SE after my car and it felt like I was driving a toy. It reminded me how I felt after I drove an BMW M coupe then got in my car (with the stock wheel). If I think of any better descriptions I will post again…
Oh, BTW, my self-canceling turn signals still work 50% of the time (only on hard turns). Also, I bought the wheel with a quick release, but found it pushed the wheel too close to me so I removed the quick release, and it’s now where the stock wheel was. I’m guessing taller drivers won’t mind as much, but I’m 5’10”. I’m pretty sure it also weighs about 10-15 pounds less than the stock wheel (with airbag).
Community Member Credit: 95maxrider
I recently installed a 6 speed into my 4th gen using one of the how-tos, and while it was improved over the original guide, it left out a lot of details, so I wanted to make my own guide with new pictures and details to help people do this swap in the future. New parts are also available now that weren’t available when older guides were written which make the swap easier and reversible.
Required Parts:
- 6spd Maxima transmission-You can use the 6 speed from 5.5th or 6th gen Maximas. The external physical dimensions are the same, but internal differences include different final drive ratios (3.8 for 5.5th gen, 4.1 for 6th gen) and synchros (double for 5.5th gen, triple for most 6th gen).
- 5.5 gen 6spd Maxima shifter assembly– I didn’t try, but I’m pretty sure the 6th gen shifter assembly can also be used.
- 5.5 gen 6spd Maxima shifter cables– 6th gen cables are longer and will be more difficult to fit. Attempt at your own risk.
- 5.5 gen 6spd drivers side axle– Not actually necessary, as the stock 5 speed (open diff only, not VLSD) axle can be used.
- 5.5 gen 6spd passenger axle
- 6spd frame transmission mount- Buy the front (drivers side) motor mount for an SR20 Sentra. 11210-0M800, about $30. Will also need Energy Suspension poly insert for that mount,
- 6spd transmission mount bracket- Buy the custom adapter bracket made by Schmellyfart (schmellyfart@gmail.com), which allows you to use the factory frame mount so you don’t need to cut it off like in previous guides. This allows you to easily revert back to a 5 speed if desired.
- Passenger side axle carrier bracket– You can reuse your 4th gen bracket, it’s the same as a 5.5th gen bracket.
- Aftermarket Maxima 6spd flywheel – I used a JWT flywheel, but Fidanza can also be used. Around $450.
- 6spd clutch– I put together OEM parts for my clutch/PP setup. Users report this setup can support 300 whp.
- 2003-2005 350z clutch disk 30100-CD019 – $135
- 2005 Maxima pressure plate 30210-7Y010 – $210
- 9 bolts (PP to FW) 30223-07S00 – $11
- 9 washers 30240-07S00 – $22 (JWT flywheel includes washers, so these may not be necessary)
- 8 Flywheel bolts 12315-8J100 – $22
- Pilot bearing 32202-B950A – $4
- Throw out bearing 30502-41U20 – $47
- Custom 5 spd timing ring (same number of teeth and spaces as 5 speed, but no offset)- Schmellyfart (schmellyfart@gmail.com) makes these as well, support him so he can make ever more cool parts for our cars!
- 6spd starter– I paid about $100 for a new one on RockAuto
- 6spd slave cylinder– I paid about $20 for a new one on RockAuto
- 5spd or 6spd bell housing bolts
Fluids:
- Brake fluid
- GL-4 transmission fluid (Motul, Red Line or Amsoil preferred)
- Brake parts cleaner
- Red Loctite
- White lithium grease / Lubro-Moly Long Life Grease + MoS2 / Sachs High Performance Clutch Spline Grease for
- The throw out bearing and associated parts (follow the directions in the FSM!)
Optional Parts:
- Rear main seal
- Shift assembly lower cover from 2002/2003 Maxima with the 6 speed. This goes under the car and protects and insulates the shifter assembly. Highly recommended if you can find one, but they have a tendency to rust out. NLA from Nissan, must be found used.
- I bought 2J Racing delrin shifter bushings. Red Lion Racing (on Facebook) and Energy Suspension shifter cable bushings can also be purchased.
- Axle seals
- Short throw shifter – I bought one from Axxtion, but 2J Racing also makes one. Users report the 2JR kit will leave the shifter slightly tilted to the front, while the Axxtion kit leaves it centered in the correct position. Unfortunately the Axxtion kit doesn’t fit A32s with ABS without repositioning the ABS pump.
- Stainless steel clutch slave cylinder line
- Speedometer pinion/sensor (if necessary) (32702-AD012). This plugs right into the 4th harness, no wiring modifications are necessary.
Various sized metric nuts and bolts
Equipment:
- Drill and step bits
- Tap and die set
- Impact gun
- Flare nut wrenches
- Bolt cutters/electric saw/angle grinder/metal cutting tool
- Dremel with reinforced cut off wheels and metal grinding bits
- Propane/MAP torch
- OTC 4754 Universal Pulley Holder Wrench (optional but helpful)
- Wire crimping supplies and/or solder iron and supplies
- Electrical tape and/or split wire loom tubing, heat shrink tubing
- Engine Traverse Bar (to support engine from above when you remove crossmember)
Helpful notes:
Identifying transmissions in junkyards:
You can also visually inspect the transmission and tell if it’s HLSD. If you look through the axle holes on either tranny you can see out the other side. On the HLSD you can see through with nothing in the way. You’ll see a perfect circle. On the open diff tranny there is a round bar in the way partially blocking the view through. You’ll see a half circle.
How to tell if HLSD?
-Metal pedals with rubber grips
-Plate on firewall by driver, RS6F51H, H as last digit means HLSD, A is open diff
6th gen axle info:
6th gen passenger side axles are slightly longer than 5.5th gen axles, and 5.5th gen axles are quite a bit longer than 4th gen axles. When installed, 5.5th gen axles are already compressed and close to binding, so 6th gen axles are not recommended for 4th gens. Also, the carrier bracket for 6th gens is very different from 4th/5.5th gens, and can only be used with 6th gen axles.
Wiring up the 6 speed starter:
The 6 speed starter ground cable is a female connector, and so is the connector on the engine harness. I cut the male connector off of a 5 speed starter and soldered it onto the 6spd starter. Don’t forget to slide some heat shrink tubing on the wire before soldering together. I forgot to do this! For extra protection you can wrap the area with electrical tape. And for an OEM look, protect all the wires with split wire loom tubing.
Wiring up the park/neutral position sensors for the 6 speed:
On 5 speeds the PNP switch/sensor is a single piece on the bottom of the trans. On 6 speeds, it was switched to being two switches/sensors, so you will need to need to splice wires together so your car gets the right signals and doesn’t throw a CEL. You want your reverse lights to work, don’t you? On the 6 speed, the blue sensor on top is for reverse lights, and the black one on side back is for neutral. Cut off the wires from the PNP switch on your 5 speed so you’re left with about 12″ of wires and the connector that plugs into your body harness. Leave the switch in the 5 speed. Here’s how you’re going to wire that up to the connectors for the 6 speed.
Reverse (blue connector on top of the trans)
Connect the orange (12V+) wire on the 6 speed harness to the blue/red wire on the 5 speed PNP harness.
Connect the green/white (to backup lamps) wire on the 6 speed harness to the solid blue wire on the 5 speed PNP harness.
Neutral (black connector on the back of the trans)
Connect the green/white (to ECM) wire on the 6 speed harness to the blue/white wire on the 5 speed PNP harness.
Connect the black (to ground) wire on the 6 speed harness to the black wire on the 5 speed PNP harness.
Make sure you slide some heat shrink onto the wires before you crimp or solder them together to protect the connection from moisture. For extra protection you can wrap the area with electrical tape. And for an OEM look, protect all the wires with split wire loom tubing.
1995/96 cars with giant EVAP canister on firewall under master cylinder:
You will need to cut/grind the shifter cable bracket so it doesn’t break your EVAP canister when you try to get the trans mounted in place.
Interference:
Original:
After cutting and grinding:
If your car has ABS:
Previous guides correctly noted that the bracket for the ABS pump (under and in front of master cylinder) gets in the way of the shifter cables/levers and said to remove the bracket for the ABS pump. I believe this is unsafe and strongly recommend you do not do this. Their solution was to hang the heavy ABS pump with a zip tie from the master cylinder. This is a bad idea and would not pass tech inspection at any sort of racing organization. The proper solution to this problem is to use either an angle grinder with a cutoff wheel or a Dremel with reinforced cutoff wheels to remove portions of the bracket that interfere with the shifter parts, and leave the rest of the bracket to support the pump. This is much easier with the bracket removed from the vehicle, so remove and cut yours while you don’t have a transmission in the car. I recommend painting the bracket when you’re done cutting to prevent the bare metal from rusting.
Original bracket:
Cut and painted:
Install guide:
JWT Flywheel: To install the custom timing ring from Schmellyfart onto your JWT or Fidanza flywheel, you will need some sort of torch to apply heat to the screws that hold on the ring that JWT supplies. JWT uses Red Loctite to the small screws, so if they are not heated up you run a very good chance of stripping them, which is really going to suck. Heat them up one at a time, then loosen by hand, do not use an impact. One they are all removed, remove the JWT timing ring and install the one from Schmellyfart. Apply Red Loctite to all the little screws and reinstall them. Since they are so small there is no torque spec, just make them hand tight and do not tighten with an impact.
The JWT flywheel arrived with a thick waxy/oily coating to prevent the surface from rusting. This will need to be fully removed before installing so you don’t contaminate your clutch disc material. I first used some 3M Adhesive Remover on rags, making sure to also remove the wax from the top of the screw heads. Once it looked clean, I blasted the whole thing with brake cleaner to remove any residue. Make sure you also spray your new pressure place with brake cleaner for the same reason.
To install the JWT flywheel follow the included directions. Mine barely fit over the crankshaft and had to be hammered on with a rubber mallet. I recommend leaving the flywheel in the sun for a few hours before installing so the metal heats up and expands. You will need something to keep the crankshaft from rotating while you torque the bolts that attach the flywheel to the crank. I used the OTC Pulley Holder tool mentioned above, although some people will just put a socket over the crank bolt and hold it with a breaker bar. I chose to have a helper hold the pulley holder tool for me while I worked the flywheel bolts. It’s very important that you torque the flywheel bolts to the proper spec and that the flywheel is perfectly flush with the crank. JWT also recommends using Red Loctite on the flywheel bolts, and while that may make them damn near impossible to remove in the future, I chose to follow their instructions. I just didn’t apply very much. If you need to remove them later, be sure to use plenty of heat.
Don’t forget to very thoroughly clean up the mating surface between the engine and transmission, otherwise your starter might not have a good ground path and the car won’t start. Clean both the engine and the transmission! I used one of these plastic bristle things so I wouldn’t damage the aluminum.
Now is a good time to chase the threads for the two bolts that hold the slave cylinder in place, mine were pretty grungy.
I recommend also cleaning up the area around the ground cable on the transmission so it can make a good connection.
Make a new ground cable using the appropriate glue-lined heat shrink.
Here’s how mine looked when I was done:
Getting the transmission in place:
I removed my crossmember when I removed the 5 speed. You will need to support the engine from the top before you remove the crossmember so the engine doesn’t fall on you. Theoretically you could support the engine oil pan with a jack stand, but that’s really not a good idea as your only means of support. Best bet is to use an Engine Traverse Bar.
I tried to use my transmission jack to get the 6 speed in place, but no matter how I oriented things, it just wouldn’t fit. Don’t waste time like me, just bench press the trans until the input shaft lines up with the hole in the crankshaft, it takes like two minutes. Be mindful of the dowel pin on the rear, it needs to line up before you start tightening bolts.
I removed the shifter cable bracket from the trans before installing it, which made getting it into place much easier.
Cutting the firewall, running the shifter cables, and installing the shifter:
If you are doing this with the engine still installed, be prepared for a tight squeeze. I could not get a straight shot on the firewall to use a step bit on my drill gun to make a nice round hole, so I had to improvise. I have a flexible arm attachment for my Dremel that allows it to reach into tight areas very easily, and that’s what I used to cut my ugly, square-ish hole with reinforced cutoff wheels. I’m embarrassed by the results, but it’s what I could do with the space available. You will need to seal the hole in some way, either with sound deadening material, silver HVAC tape, or something else. When I pull my engine I plan on drilling two holes and hard mounting it to the firewall.
I had a hard time getting the cables into the cabin of the car. I chose to remove the ECU and the metal ECU cage from the car as I just didn’t see a way to get the cables to the shifter with them in place. This part is much easier if you have a helper guiding the cables in the car while you push from the engine bay. Get the cables roughly in place and reinstall the ECU cage and ECU. I had to fold some metal flat on top of the cage to allow the cables to go where they wanted to go since space is so limited in this area.
As for the shifter assembly, there are bushings on each of the 4 bolt holes. The two front bushings must be removed because if not, the bolts attached to the floor won’t be tall enough for nuts to thread onto. You will need 2 nuts and bolts for the back holes. I noticed that even with the front bushings removed there were very few threads for the nuts to grab onto, so I decided to grind away some of the plastic from the top and bottom of the shifter assembly around the bolts to thin the plastic out and allow the nuts to grab more threads on the studs from the body. I used an oval grinding stone on my Dremel to grind away material from the top down, and then a flap wheel on my angle grinder on the bottom. I’m guessing I removed about half of the material thickness, and this allowed me to securely install nuts. Before installing the nuts, I installed a washer or two in the hole so that the washers were level with the plastic, which I hope will prevent any movement in the shifter assembly and will also provide the best base for the nuts to clamp down on.
Regarding the shifter cables and bushings on the transmission, I used a set of 2J Racing delrin bushings instead of the stock rubber bushings. I added a couple washers above and below the bushings to bring the stack up closer to the retaining pin/clip. But the assembly needs to rotate freely, so do not stack washers too tightly against the pin/clip.
Another thing I learned was that the retaining clips that holds the shifter cables to the bracket really should be the thicker variety, rather than the thinner and flimsier version. I no longer remember which cars had which version (whether 5.5th or 6th gen), so if you only have the thinner ones, you may want to order the beefier versions from the dealer or go scrounge around in junkyards. If you can only get the thinner ones, the more important thing to note is their orientation when you install them. I initially installed one of them from the top down, but this allowed the bottom of the shifter cable to not seat fully and wasn’t flush with the bracket. Installing the clip from the side resolved the issue and the cable was properly secured against the bracket.
Thick version is in the middle:
Schmelly’s transmission bracket
I’m writing this section something like two years after I did the install, so I’m going to gloss over a lot and possibly forget things. The bracket I got from Schmelly was a prototype, so fitment wasn’t perfect. Things may be different now, so please check with him. I basically had to grind some metal from a couple areas, nothing too serious.
First up was a small area of the body mount, on the rear part of the mount. Do this while the transmission is still out of the car!
I eventually took even more metal out to make tightening up the bolt below easier.
Then I had to grind a bit from the SR20 mount so the nut could sit flush, as I encountered some interference from rough casting marks.
One of the bolts was too close to the Energy Suspension insert for the SR20 mount, so I shaved off some poly.
And to get the bolt/holes to line up for the mount, I had to use a pry bar between the frame and the trans to force things into alignment.
All done!
Owner: Eric S.
Year: 1996
Model: Maxima
Color: White
Engine: VQ35DE
Transmission: 4-Speed Automatic
Trim: GXE
Notes:
- 3.5 block, crank, rods, and pistons with 3.0 heads, timing and de-k intake manifolds 100%. I stuck the factory 3.0 coil cover back on the car too.
Mod List:
- 237,000 miles on clock
- PW, PL, power drivers seat, power mirrors
- 3000-4000 miles on the swap
- Stock ECU with Schmelly adapters 3.0 timing
- 2010 bottom end and cams
- 1996 heads
- OOVI upper and lower intakes
- 1996 TB and intake tube with hacked air box and
- brand new k&n drop in
- 1999 130 4 speed auto with LSD (shifts crisp and clean)
- New axles both sides
- eBay digital window switch for 00VI activation
- Revup returnless fuel rail w/ AEM FPR
- Green Denso injectors (stock 2010)
- Motor mounts filled with window weld
- All aluminum radiator
- External trans cooler
- Stock exhaust manifolds
- Warpspeed Y-pipe
- 2.5″ full exhaust, gutted cat, 4×12 resonator
- Vibrant streetpower 1148 muffler
- 2009 18″ 10 spokes
- 245/40/18 Cheap tires
- KYB struts and Megan springs, sits about 1.5″ lower
- Pioneer head unit and speakers (Bluetooth works) Recent lower arms and ball joints
- Professionally installed U-haul hitch with 1.25″ receiver
- Key fob works, including window function with fob! 15″ full size spare
Community Member Credit: 95maxrider
Normally I would just keep this in my build thread, but I figured this would be interesting enough to post in the 4th gen section.
Over the summer I was at the junkyard looking for parts when I came across a gold 1996 I30. From a distance it looked it like it had the boring old tan leather but when I got closer I noticed something was different. I was looking at a car with a white interior!
The dashboard was the normal tan color, but the seats, doors, and headliner were all this color I have never seen before. I was dumbfounded, but also giddy with excitement. What was I looking at, and how did such a thing exist? I’ve been doing the 4th gen thing for 20+ years, and I don’t ever remember seeing such an interior before. If I had to guess, I would say 49% of cars had black interiors, 49% had tan, and 2% were that weird gray in some later 98-99 cars. Now my car (1996 I30 as well) was a little different since it had a black dash and doors, but a lighter gray leather that wasn’t the same as what came in those later 98-99 cars. It also has matching gray leather door inserts.
(Excuse the crappy pics, they’re very old)
Here are some more recent ones:
And here are some pics I found of the all (darker) gray 98-99 cars:
But this car was something entirely new, because not only was the leather a different color, but the doors were as well. All I can assume is that the first-year 1996 I30s had some weird options that didn’t exist for Maximas and were gone by the ’97 model year.
Unfortunately, the front door panels were trashed beyond repair, as was the driver’s seat. The rear looked better, but due to an accident I couldn’t open one of the rear doors to get a better look. All I could do was take pics and wonder how such a thing ever came to be.
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Over the course of that week I decided I wanted to go back to that yard to pull some other parts. After I got those parts, I couldn’t help but go take another look at the strange I30. I used my super pry bar to free up the rear door that was stuck shut and devised my plan. I remembered pics of the BMW Z4 concept car from a few years back, where the driver’s side of the interior was black, and the passenger side was orange/brown, like so:
And even though it didn’t really make a whole lot of sense given the color scheme of my car, I figured I would try something similar, just on a far less ambitious scale. Really, I just couldn’t stand to let these rare pieces go to the crusher, never to be seen again. So I pulled the passenger seat, back seat, and rear door panels. Since I’ve got the Recaro in my car the trashed driver’s seat wasn’t really needed. It would have been great to grab the front door panels, but they were too far gone. But I could save the rest!
And that’s how my garage turned into this:
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In a fit of Ebay purchasing, I bought some silly things, and they have slowly started to arrive. The first was some literature dealerships got when the I30 came out. I was on the hunt to see if I could find anything about this white/cream/bone colored interior. Not to mention my own interior, which is a combination of mostly black parts with gray leather. I don’t think I’ve ever seen another 4th gen with my interior combo. So I thumbed through the paper, and on one of the last pages, I found it:
So there you have it folks, a white interior was an option on 1996 I30s! I didn’t order literature for 97s, but I have a feeling it was no longer offered by that point. This of course still leaves the questions about my interior wide open.
Cleaning
The first thing I had to do was to clean them up. I started with soapy water and a MF towel to get the bulk of the loose stuff off. On the area of the front passenger seat with permanent marker and pen ink, I used some rubbing alcohol and scrubbed it vigorously. That got it pretty clean, but not perfect. One things were clean enough, I did a round of Leatherique rejuvenating oil and let them bake outside inside a hot car. Allowing the oil to “soak” in supposedly helps bring dirt and grime to the surface, allowing it to be cleaned off more easily. It should be noted that 99% of all automotive leather is coated/painted, so claims of oil really soaking in are suspect. The only places oil 100% soaked in were where the top coat/paint has been scraped off or damaged, allowing the oil to actually reach the underlying leather. I then cleaned them with the Leatherique cleaning solution, which frankly didn’t appear to do a whole lot. It probably didn’t help that the stuff I had at the time was 13+ years old.
I did another round of oil/cleaner for ****s and giggles, and then followed up with a Magic Eraser (ME) on everything. This is where things started to get REALLY clean. The ME started pulling out grime that I thought was baked in. I’m aware of how abrasive the ME is, but it didn’t appear to damage anything, and the results were pretty spectacular. And since I had came that far, I did one final round of (new) Leatherique. With everything as clean and conditioned as it was going to get, I moved onto the experimental stuff.
Superglue removal
I had previously used “Bob Smith Industries Un-Cure” super glue remover on some interior trim and came away pretty impressed with what it could do, so I decided to give it a go on what appeared to be super glue (nail polish?) on the upright portion of the back seat and the side of the front seat. This stuff has the potential to damage plastic (and surely whatever this leather is coated with) so I tried to be as careful with it as I could. I squeezed out enough to cover the glue, let it sit for a minute, and then gently worked on it with a little dull pick tool I have. I would then wipe everything clean with a soapy paper towel. After a couple rounds it got off most of the glue and I did a finishing round or two with Q-tips soaked with the stuff to get up and remaining residue without damaging the leather more than I already had. The super glue had damaged/cracked the leather and apparently had also soaked up some of the color, so what I was left with wasn’t exactly pretty, but at least it was free of super glue. I would attempt to cover up this damage in later steps with varying degrees of success.
Before
After
Before
After
Dent removal
There were dents/divots/stretched leather in various spots that I wanted to see if I could minimize. I had seen videos of people using heat guns/hair dryers to massage out those sorts of things, so I gave it a try. On leather this old and stiff, it took a loooong time but in principle it works. It goes something like this: heat up the area for a few minutes, then rub the spot with something to stretch it out (but only a little!). At first I tried using my finger, but I got tired of burning myself, so I moved on to the round end of a kitchen knife. But sometimes I pressed too hard and stretched out the leather too much, which meant I had to apply more heat to allow it to pull itself tight again. The deeper the divot, the less likely it is you can get it all out. But I would say I was able to reduce them by about 50-75%, which I was pretty happy with. I got impatient in one spot and ended up getting the leather too hot and “burning” it a little. I’m sure this wouldn’t have been noticeable on black leather, but on white leather it turned it just a little bit brown. Oh well, lesson learned.
Before/after of each spot:
Repairing cracks and tears
I bought a vinyl-based leather repair kit for about $20 to see if I could patch up the large gashes and make them less obvious. First step is to fill them in with white vinyl glue stuff along with a small amount of fabric to kind of tie everything together with. This cured by itself overnight and seemed to make a pretty solid base to work from. I no longer had to worry about the gashes getting any bigger if they got tugged on.
Next up was the top coat. This part had to be mixed up with various colors to match the leather, and then cured with heat to solidify. Getting it to match was time consuming, but I eventually got it pretty close. The ratio was something like 20 parts white, 4 parts brown, and 2 parts yellow. The most annoying part of this part was getting it hot enough to cure and harden. The kit comes with this tiny little metal circle on a wooden stick that you’re supposed to heat up with a clothes iron, and then press onto a sheet of patterned vinyl/plastic over top of the goo you applied. Naturally, this didn’t work very well and/or took forever, so I got impatient and just (carefully) put the iron onto the patterned vinyl sheet on top of the goo. This sped things up considerably, but only worked on flat surfaces, of which I only had one or two. The rest of the repairs involved more heat gun action, and took forever. Some areas didn’t feel like they ever fully cured, but I didn’t care at that point. But I will say that it turned out pretty well, and the cracks/tears/gashes were substantially filled in and repaired. It wasn’t fun, but it was effective.
Before
Mid-way
Finished (after painting in the next step)
Final step: Touch up paint
Yes, paint. Again, I mixed up white, brown, and yellow until it was close enough, but this product (which is different than the vinyl stuff in the previous step) cured quickly by itself. Unfortunately, when it dried the color seemed to change a bit, which made it not look as good as I thought it was going to. I used this stuff to cover up the areas where I had removed the super glue, as well as all of the little nicks and scrapes. Once I got the hang of using the tiny brush that came with the kit it went down pretty well and did a great job of covering things up.
To get the full picture of what was accomplished, let’s do some fun before/after pics.
So that’s it, I did the best I could to restore this extremely rare interior and save it from being lost forever. I’ll install it in my car at a later date and post up pics, but this is it for now. It’s far from perfect, but it’s no longer the disgusting mess it was before, and is at least semi-presentable. It even got my wife’s tentative approval, so I must have done something right!
Credit: Tavarish
The car that started it all for me was my 1998 Nissan Maxima and I always regretted getting rid of it, because my dream was to make the ultimate Nissan Maxima, a grocery getter that can beat supercars in a race. And today, I got my chance, because I bought back the car I used for Car Trek, for $1,000. It has some major issues, but I’m confident that I can turn it into the six figure supercar beating monster I’ve always wanted. Fingers crossed.