I had a '96 Maxima SE with a 5-spd. I know the Max rev's faster, and the 95-96 are the lightest, and fastest, maxima's of that generation. I ran against a 97-99 SE stock 5-spd in my 92 5-spd coupe. He dumped the clutch to hard and spun. I took him without a problem. It would be a good race. You can always save your NOS for when you are loosing, if that happens.
Later!
Lee

 

Screw that Maxima . Its a :****: looking car IMO. You'll kick his a$$ if you know how to drive. Last summer in Denver, 2 of my friends rented a 2001 Maxima automatic. I was behind them in the Ack Leg when we were shooting off an on ramp to I-70. I swung out wide left when we got to the Interstate. I stayed right beside him door to door all the way up to 105mph, then we stopped. Maximas suck, but the brand new one will kick the living $hit out of any Legend on the road.

 

Yea those barnd new ones are fast little things... with what 250hp? :bowdown:

 

Yeah, don't mess with the new ones, they can hang, then pass you..lol.

 

to echo sleeprlegendcp I have had 2 Maximas of that Generation

I had a 96 Auto and a 97SE 5sp with I/E and Y pipe. The 5sp with the bolt ons was very quick off the line and like Lee said it Revs very fast. But the Legend has better top end than that generation Maxima. I have now converted my Akimoto intake to a CAI and the acceleration is more linear. If it were possible to race my previous Maxima I am certain in the Max would get the jump off the line but by the top of second the Legend would hold it's own.

Auto to Auto I give it to the Legend. I previously owned a 91 auto Legend and it chirped the tires shifting into second. THe shifts with the auto tranny in the Maxima are soft and lazy stock.

 

Maximas have mad torque. If it was daily driving on small roads I think maximas will own. But if you go over 60 - 80...you will win...their high end arent that great.

 

a new 02 6-speed will eat you up. Any other max as long as its a auto u will take it. I raced a 95 SE 5-speed and beat it. I was stock and he was also "stock" but he worked at a Nissan dealership so i dont think it was stock. I only beat him by like

__________________________ much

 

i dont know if ur a 5spd or not. but if its a 5spd, and u didnt use nos. it would be close. the maxima has one of the best v6s in the world. they are fast and some people think there just 4doors like camrys or accords (sorry honda). also watch out for 92-94 SE maximas. they are just as fast as the newer ones. w/ 190 hp and high end DOHC engine. i could keep going on and on about the maxima, just because that is the car i know most about. I was about to get one, but i found the legend and it just happened.

 

hey harrison, have you ridden in a G2? When I was out looking for a new car(used). I test drove many maximas and thought that's what I would end up with, but I drove a legend(my fav. car) and luckily, it felt really fast, faster than the maximas i drove. I drove an se with 5-speed and it felt torquey, but not fast when I punched it on the highway, the salesman said floor it, so I did. I was not impressed anymore after driving the auto type 1 legend, I was sold.

maybe I drove a handful of "slow" maximas. I turned down maximas real quick like even though they came with warranty and the legend didnt. This legend's highway speed feels just awesome.

my 2 cents.

 

true i guess ur right about the torque of the maxima and the high end of the legend. i should ride in a G2 sometime. hopefully sometime this summer during a meet! any of you hearin me?

 

I would put my money on the Legend. I have raced many sedans and 200 horsepower cars and believe me, the legend is the 200 hp king. If it is an auto u will surely win and you will still probably win if it is a 5 speed. He may get you off the line but in the end you will win.

 

All my peoples own Maxima's they have a club called Maxxed Out and they're always talking sh*t. I hate the Maxima. Yeah mad torque and will get you off the line but trust me I've raced 92-99 and you will win in the end. Take him down.

 

I have driven the 222HP GXE before. Weak, so, I had my buddy jump in my then stock auto Legend, and we raced them. The Legend, to my surprise, inched by that near new 222HP Max (from off the line straight thru the top end, not even close).
I had a 91 Max VG30DE, and it was FAST. Much more so than the 2000 one I drove.

 

Maximas are QUICK. A Maxima is a FORCE TO BE RECKONED WITH. Powered by the almighty Nissan VQ, the mid-to-late 90s Maxima will outrun most cars, possibly including the Legend. If you don't know about the Nissan VQ, then just know that it powers almost everything great and Nissan: the V6 Altima, the new Maxima, the 350Z, the CotY G35 sedan AND coupe, the FX35 SUV... don't even let me get started on their Japan-only cars. If a Maxima is well-modified, I doubt any Legend can hang with it.

The heart and soul of the Maxima is that VQ engine. The aerodynamics of the car are okay, the handling is decent, but the weight balance sucks. If you are drag racing, then it is all about who can launch... the Legend might have a slight advantage because the Maxima experiences pretty bad torque steer, whereas the Legend does not. Most Maximas and Legends are auto, but in a drag race, whoever has the manual trans. will win.

If you two are freeway running, then it'll be a good match. The Maxima and Legend are quite similar, and the only major difference is the powertrain. If both drivers are equal, it's a question of which motor is superior: Honda's C-series, or Nissan's VQ? :eek2:

 

I *THINK* The Max used a VG series motor thru 99 or something. If it was 190HP, it is the VG30DE, I think. The VQ is their newest one, first debuting at 222HP. *I THINK*

 

VG blocks are predominately RWD, such as in the 300ZX and the Pathfinder/Xterra/Frontier trucks. VQ blocks were originally FWD (Maxima only) but Nissan saw potential in it and now puts it in everything.

Early Maximas use a VG I believe. I have trouble finding sources now, but I am almost certain that Maximas did NOT use VGs very much, and not at all in the 90s. 1992 ~ 1994 they used the VE motors, which were VG based and had iffy VTC (Nissan's wussy "VTEC"). After that, they switched to the then-new aluminum VQ block which incorporates all sorts of new technology such as direct ignition and microfinished crankshafts/camshafts and molybdenum-coated pistons.

http://www.freshalloy.com/site/features/tech/engines/home.shtml

I know my Nissans.

 

I know my Nissans.

so, tell me why my KA24E Stanza, my KA24DE Altima, my VE(?)30DE 91 Max SE and my VG30E 300ZX tended to hesitate real bad. REALLY BAD. The Nissan dealers could NEVER fix it.

And, all my VG30E's (1985 and 88 300zx and 2 87 200SX SE V6) overheated real bad.

I bet you can not answer that.

Obviously, I have had a few Nissans, I also had a new 97.5 SE Altima and 95 200SX SE (both were new) so I know Nissans a bit, obviously not well.

BTW, several thousand dollars were spent on these cars at the Nissan dealers. I do know my 91 Max was hesitating because the hydraulic chain guide was blown out, causing timing fluctuations, but the other cars could never be fixed.

I just want a answer to those 2 major probs that all my Nissans had!!! It is a mystery to me, other than those 2 probs, I actually really liked my Nissans.

 

VGs in general overheated. The radiators were too small for their size *fixed in late model Nissans* and like the SR, KA, and a few other Nissan motors, the water pump was known to cavitate at high RPM, just spinning there making bubbles instead of circulating water.

About your hesitating... how so exactly? Was it engine or was it transmission? If they were autos, then I can see why you say they hesitated, but if it was engine-related, I can't think of anything else besides retarded timing. Advancing the timing on my G20 did wonders for throttle response. As for you Maxima's "fix", that hydraulic chain guide thing sounds pretty *whoa* I never would've thought of that :2cool:

Oh and to keep it on-topic: if you are racing a newer Maxima, it will probably not overheat. Don't count on it.

 

Can’t respond to the overheating issue but I have owned 3 VGs and 2 VQs (4th Gens) and the find it hard to believe that the VG kept up with the VQ. I am not calling you out but the VG just runs out of breath fast. The torque was great (at the time) the engine was only 160hp but the torque was 182 how many engines put out 20+ more torque than HP. For that day the VG was hot and if you can find a 89-91 Maxima SE 5sp you would really enjoy the car. Some of the VG guys argue that the VG has more lowend power than the VE 92-94 SE (190hp) but as mentioned earlier the VE had the VTCs so the topend is incredible. When I had my lightly modded 97se with intake/Ypipe and muffler I got walked by a VE after 120. I think real enthusiast love cars in general. But I will say for it’s day (1991) nothing was coming close to the Legend. In 92 the Maxima stepped up with performance and then in 95 with the introduction of the VQ it was over. If you are a off the line low end torque guy the VQ 5sp will not dissapoint. I have run with and out run 98 Mustang GTs with that car. Some of the better drivers have hit 14.2 with just bolt ons and 13.9 with slicks The very best I could do in Georgia was mid to low 15s. I will not get rid of the Legend how rare is a Legend Coupe with a manual tranny? I have sacrificed my off the line torque but on the road the Legend really holds it’s on

 

The VEs were okay motors, the VTC was the real problematic part. Oil often didn't make it all the way up to the VTC system, so they'd click and clatter over time, especially if an oil change is missed. The newer VQs have much better CVTC. As far as I'm concerned: VQ = :bowdown:

 

im proud that u guys know ur nissans. VG, VE, and VQ, people can be easily confused. its nice to see some other nissan enthusaists here. but i guess we gotta keep it on the DL. since after all, it is a legend site.

 

Yeah I'm thinkin' about changing my sig soon hahah I already had it "forced" off on some other Honda forums a while back. Insecure little *****es....

 

Max gets dusted!

I'm not gonna knock the Maxima, it is what it is, a pretty-damn-good automobile with a Japanese V6-----BUT ITS NOT A LEGEND, and truthfully, it is not going to beat one! (shouldn't beat one anyway)

I've driven only three Maxs in my life, a '89, '95, and a '98. The '89 will get killed by ANY YEAR Legend, starting with the '86 Legend sedan on up to the Gen2. The '95 is a different story. It will barely-but-reliably defeat the Gen1 Legend, but the Gen2 still takes it. Same for the '98.
I'm not sure of the times on the Max, but to me it seemed that the '95 model year was faster than the '98, but the '98 I drove had 17-inch wheels.

All-in-all, the Maxima is a very good car, reliable, fast-ish, roomy (4doors), etc, etc. Its just not going to beat a Legend, either in speed or reliability. It seemed that the Nissan 3.0L six was a good motor, just not up to racing a Legend, it seemed to have no top end, kinda like a Pontiac GTP.

THE BIG QUESTION I HAVE IS: IS THAT 3.0L V6 THE SAME MOTOR NUMBER AS IN THE NON-TURBO 300Z, AND IF SO, WILL THE TWIN-TURBS FROM THE 300ZX APPLY TO THE MAX,

I think a 300hp '95 Maxima will trouble the 'brand-new' 265hp Maxima.

But then again, the 260hp 3.2TL Type S (0-60 5.7 Manual, 6.3 Auto) will do some thangs to the new Maxima! Same for the new Altima (5.8 with the Manual)or its Infiniti twin, the J35 I think its called.

Nissans are no Hondas, but they do well for themselves anyway.

 

im proud that u guys know ur nissans. VG, VE, and VQ, people can be easily confused. its nice to see some other nissan enthusaists here. but i guess we gotta keep it on the DL. since after all, it is a legend site.

I used to own a 93 SE with the VE

 

i used to whip a teachers 93 Max SE, i believe it may have been a 94. but what i can say is that...it had nothing on my Type I. it was PUNCHY hell it was nice, VERY nice, but it would not take out my legend. in a seat-of-the-pants feeling i had my friends in to see (people in my old HS used to hate on the legend and said a Max 92-94 would smash me so i took them to validate any claims) they said DAMN when VIS flipped over in my legend but were impressed with the SE's lowend but they said "It dies up top". i'd put money on the Legend to win.

i got to drive a 95 but that was before i drove the 94-ish, and i was impressed but in remembering the feeling...it wasn't too great. i know i sound biased but the max would get beat, but barely. Max 5spd 95-98(?) is very quick and nothing short of a 91 L 5 spd coupe or a Type II 6 spd (sedan or coupe) will beat one. i say 91 5 spd coupe because of shorter drive gears and light weight (3370lbs-3380lbs if im not mistaken)