Learn Me Maxima SE

Can anyone tell me about the early 90s Maxima SE? I know it was advertised as a 4 door sports car but was it any good and can it be tuned?

Well, i can give you some basics from what i know.

First off, i think you're talking about 3rd gens, which ran from 89-94.

However, SE's were 92-94 and had the dohc ve30de which was rated at 190hp.

Stock, the 5spds could run low 15s on a good day and 14s with simple mods.

One problem area is sticking/stuck/noisy variable intake cam thingies. I think they were called VTC's.

As far as potential, i believe i remember seeing one guy with one of those ve /auto cars getting low 13s or high 12s naturally aspirated.

The motor definitely has some potential, but parts/support will be MUCH less available then jumping into a 4th gen maxima with a vq motor. The 4th gen maximas weigh about the same and have the same stock power and acceleration, and at this point are about the same price and probably in better shape. I think the 4th gens are way more reliable.

As far as handling, i BELIEVE that the 3rd gens had a true independent rear setup and the 4th gens had a rear torsion beam. I dont think that says much about ultimate potential unless you like to race on bumpy tracks. Ive driven stock 4th gens and the handling is nothing to brag about at all when stock. I drove some 2nd gens, those were better handling cars imo. Never drove a 3rd gen.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nissan_VE_engine#VE30DE http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nissan_Maxima

How hard would an engine swap to a VQ be?

The engine is the famous and nearly bulletproof VG30. Two valves heads with 160hp from 89-92, with 190hp four valvers available in 93-94. 95 saw the introduction of a new gen Maxima. Only 4-valve heads from then on. They used chains instead of belts for the cams, iirc.

Trannys were five speed manuals and two-mode four speed automatics.

Performance suspension pieces for the pre-95 models are getting harder to find. 95 and later have much better options.

How hard would an engine swap to a VQ be?

Significantly harder than swapping a 4th gen. Cheap 4th gen maxima +vq35 swap is pretty much ultimate fwd cheap car win imo, and this is coming from a guy who built a fwd car thats that fast for less money. The 4th gen is just an all around decent/nice car to live with. My aries, not so much. You can get running 4th gen 5spd cars for $1500 sometimes.

What is specifically attractive to you about the 3rd gen? Styling?

I had a '94 SE for a daily driver. Car felt like it was going to last a million years. Sold it in 02. Just saw it a few months ago with 200k miles. My custom mandrel bent exhaust was holding up nicely! I was so proud. I have a 03 now. I love maximas, so all my opinions will be skewed.

In reply to Vigo:

I had just seen the four door sports car thing before and I liked the styling the best out of the Maximas.

I drove a 94 SE 5 spd for a few years. I called it the poor man's BMW. Great car.

I had a 1989 SE about 10 years ago. It was an auto (for shame, couldn't drive a stick back then) and it was absolutely bulletproof. I bought it with 199,000 miles on it and it ran like it was brand new. It was a comfortable and decent handling car. I drove it every day for 2 years, and it only needed basic maintenance. It wasn't the quickest car in the world, but the handling made up for it. Yes, they have independent rear suspension. The only PITA thing about it was the Bose radio. I had to completely replace everything audio related, down to the wires, due to the weirdo Bose setup. It uses 1.8 ohm individually amped speakers throughout the car, and they don't work with conventional head units. But doing all that stuff was super easy, even running the wires. If you are going to use it for a race car, disregard this.

Mine met its demise after a girl slammed into the back of it pushing me into a car in front of me on the way to school one day. I was super pissed, because I was playing the "how many miles can I get on it before something major breaks" game, and I was winning at 226,000 miles with absolutely zero problems.

If you can find a clean one, go for it. I like them a lot better than the 4th gen ones personally, my mother has one (a 1996 GLE) and it is an absolute pain to do anything to, not to mention the electrical gremlins that plague the 4th gens are very annoying. My old '89 was the easiest car I have ever worked on to this day. I still miss it.

I rear-ended an escort with my '94 Maxima. The rear quarter panels popped out, rails bent down, hatch would no longer shut. The Ford was totalled.

My nissan? CRACKED a fog light.

Mine was pretty messed up. I was braking when I got rear ended, and the girl hit my exhaust dead on. The shock from that twisted the exhaust and cracked the manifolds at the block! I got hit so hard that I went into the car in front of me and the core support became one with the radiator and battery and it made quite a mess. To everyone's surprise, the poor car drove under its own power right up the flat bed. I have no clue how it started, but it did!

There was a turbo one that sold in Louisville a couple months back that was making some pretty impressive power for a junkyard turbo setup.

Well over 300whp and something like 380wtq if i remember correctly. HILARIOUSLY mean sleeper.

Only thing that the 3.0 cars did at high mileage that I know of was drop injectors, otherwise very reliable with basic maintenance. Parts for this issue were not expensive.

I've been in a couple of these cars with high mileags and the interiors hold up well for their age.

One caveat on the VG30 engine is that it is an interference engine, and you do NOT want to break a timing belt. My son had an 85 turbo, and was not good at maintaing things. 800.00 to repair that one.

Belt? I thought they used chains.

VG has belts, VQ has chains.