New engine in old Maxima?

I'm sure this is an insane question, but I have to ask it. Is it even remotely possible to put a newer Maxima engine in an older Maxima car?

I have a '97 Maxima SE that I bought in October of '96. I love this car; it was my home for a few months during my divorce back in 2003. It, and my guitar, were the two things I took away from that whole trainwreck...

Anyway, it's dark blue with charcol leather interior. I don't know if I can post a link here but I'll give it a shot:

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I've never really been a car enthusiast but through the years there have been two body-styles that I absolutely love - the '68 Camaro rally sport, and the '97 maxima se.

My maxima has 169,000 miles on it, and the acceleration is still awesome and she still carves corners like a dream. There's an exit ramp off the pennsylvania turnpike that will probably be my demise someday.

Pretty much standard maintenance, new tires, and a new clutch at 150k. So... to make a short story long, I would love to drive her 'til the end of time. When it really, really, time for a new car, how much of a pipe-dream is it to think about paying to have a newer maxima engine put in her? Money isn't really the issue; I mean, I've had the car for over 10 years now, and I still catch myself looking at it as I walk away into a store or whatever. If it couldn't be done I'd probably end up with a new maxima anyway..

So, how stupid am I? Fire when ready, grizzly.

-------------- More practical question: Where would be the best place to find interior parts of the same year & color? The entire console has taken a beating over the years, and it'd be tough to install an after-market stereo. Any suggestions would be most appreciated. Thanks!!

Reply to
snowman
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I know plenty of folks who have swapped a 3.5l from the later maximas. But 169k is about half the life of many 3.0l maxima engines, the standard trannys tend to die first and the bodies rust out.

There is a guy with a shop about 20min off of the lancaster/lebanon (rt

72) exit of the turnpike who has done many maxima swaps.

classifieds on maxima.org perhaps.

Dave

Reply to
David Geesaman

I wholeheartedly agree. The 97-99 Maxima SE is still the best looking maxima in my book. I also think that the Bose system in the 95-99 Maximas is the best. The newer Maximas have the subwoofer bose system which I think was a bit of a downgrade instead of sticking with 2 woofers producing bass, as in the 95-99s.

As for longevity, I agree with Mr. Geeseman. Your engine's only half way through. Invest in some rust prevention and your car should be good to 300K miles.

Engine swaps?

Things to keep note of if/when the time comes.

Your engine is the VQ30DE, the venerable 1st generation VQ motor which has been a Wards auto top ten engine ever since Wards auto has been making the list. When I had my 98 Maxima, I loved its torque, and especially its quietness. At idle you could barely notice the engine was on. At cruise, you'd be going 80 mph and the engines turning over at 3000 rpms, a bit high, and the tachometer is the only indication to you that the engine is working. You just never feel it. That facor is the noise,vibration and harhsness factor, or NVH

In the 2000 and 2001 Maxima, Nissan made the VQ30DE-K. Basically same motor with more power and still the same refinement. That engine I believe is Nissan's best V6.

In the 2002 and later Maximas, they got a displacement boost up to 3.5 liters, in the form of the VQ35DE. Power and torque went up, BUT, NVH suffered. The Vq35 is not as smooth as the 3.0.

Now Nissan is up to the VQ35HR. This is a very new motor. Nissan may have finally fixed the NVH.This engine debuted in the 2007 (or 08?) G37 coupe. I get the fishy feeling that the VQ35HR will only fit in the RWD cars because it has twin throttle bodies. Twin throttle bodies in FWD format would be a bit of work with the plumbing. You'll see the engine in the Infiniti line up gut Nissan will remain with the VQ35DE, more enhanced of course.

Anyway, if I were to do a swap, I'd go for the VQ30DE-K in the

2000-2001.

CD

Reply to
codifus

Dave and CD -- thank you so much for your replies. I used to post to usenet a lot but got so tired of weeding through the bs. Thanks for reminding me there are great people out there..

I had a feeling that the new maximas might be different enough to prevent a swap into my '97, but I hadn't considered a 2000 or 2001.

And I'm thrilled that there is someone who could do the swap right near Lancaster.

The only ongoing issue I've had is muffler clamps. For some reason they seem to break, come loose, or rust rather easily.

If 300k is somewhat typical for the life of a '97 engine, then I want to do everything I can to keep her going. I did take it to a garage for something or other a few months ago, and I asked them to throw it up on the rack & see if there were any issues that I could take preventative measures on at the time. They didn't see anything, but they didn't take that much time either (they didn't charge me so I certainly won't complain), but they also took the 'if it ain't broke, don't fix it' approach. The thing is, I don't mind shelling out a few bucks for some good preventative maintenance, but I'm not sure what the things are that mostly go bad in my '97 - any recommendations?

Thank you both again

Reply to
snowman

The differential bearings tend to go bad on the 5 speed trannys. As they start to go bad, you start to hear more and more gear whine. Since you've replaced the clutch already you can try some preventive maintenance like changing the gear oil and replacing the hydraulic clucth fluid.

Also, if you're not doing so already, spend the extra bucks and use OEM Nissan anti-freeze. The Maxima's water pump is a fantastic pain to replace. Jobs usually cost $400-500 plus $85 for the water pump itself. Put that off as much as possible by using Nissan OEM anit-freeze. Prestone and other domestic makes have silicates whereas Japanese anti-freezes do not.

Lastly, make sure your oil filter is of good specification. When you first start the car, do you hear a little rattling that goes away as the oil pump pushes oil throughout the motor? If so, switch back to a nissan oil filter on the next oil change, or look for an oil filter that meets the Nissan OEM specs. I used to use WIX filters with no issues. The nissan filter has an anti-drainback valve which forces some oil to stay up in the engine when you turn the car off. Other oil filters have it as well, but some are cheesy and just let all the oil drain back into the pan, hence the next time you start the car the engine is completely oil starved for those 1st few moments.

CD

Reply to
Codifus

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