This is the page for my 1997 Infiniti I30 Touring
Unfortunately, on October 13, 2004, this car was hit by a dumptruck and declared a total loss. I had just replaced the clutch (10.10.04) and re-done the suspension. It was aligned the night before the accident, and the suspension was completeted on 10.12.04. See page 5 for post-accident pics.
Nissan Infiniti Car Owners Featured Ride, June 2004:
http://www.nissaninfiniticlub.net/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=67772
Page 1: Current I30t information and updates
Page 2: Exterior (with pictures)
Page 3: Interior upgrades (with pictures)
Page 4: My Infiniti, after the accident
Page 5: Chronological history of my 1996 Nissan Maxima GLE
I purchased this car to replace my 1996 Nissan Maxima GLE, which was damaged in an accident on December 24, 2003. See Page 4 for information on the Maxima.
The I30t was owned by another member of www.maxima.org, who sold it to buy a 2002 Subaru WRX. I bought this car over another Maxima (or over keeping mine) for several reasons:
- The car is white. I have wanted a white car for a while now.
- The car has a 5-speed manual transmission. My Maxima was an auto, and I really wanted a manual tranny.
- The car has a factory-installed VLSD. This aids in traction, launching, and handling.
- The car was partially modified to where I wanted to take it, but I knew that the modifications were performed correctly.
- The car was just flat-out more fun to drive! What more reason is there than that?
- It was a rare model. It is the Touring ("t") trim (similar to the Maxima SE) with a 5-speed, wing, luxury interior (leather, auto climate control, heated seats and mirrors), it has the VLSD, and it came stock with BBS lightweight alloy rims (which have now been swapped out for lighter, wider BBS rims).
- Oh yeah- and the car was cheaper than what I got when I sold my Maxima.
For those of you who do not know this already, the I30 and the Maxima are fairly similar, with nearly identical interiors and drive trains. This body style is designated the A32 build.
On October 10, 2004 the car received a new Japan-Spec OEM clutch. This was not the US-made factory replacement, but a made-in-Japan replacement that takes the car back to what is effectively 0 miles on the clutch, and has all of the characteristics of the OEM clutch. This setup is MORE than stout enough to handle any N/A modifications that you can bolt onto a Maxima or I30. Since I have no plans to go FI, this was an economical and robust solution to a slipping clutch that had had me shifting at 2000 RPM for the last 3 weeks. While we were in there, I replaced both axle seals, the rear main seal (which we found was leaking), and the transmission fluid (with 75W-90 Mobil 1). I am happy to report that the car is running better than ever.
What modifications are on the I30 now?
Performance:
The car has a Warpspeed Performance Y and B pipe setup. CarDomain does not have this manufacturer listed, but estimated FWHP gains for these parts is around 13-15 HP. I erred to the low side in my estimation and listed my estimated CHP at 205 with these mods. Between the Manual tranny, the VLSD, and the exhaust mods, this car CLEARLY feels quicker than my Maxima.
Handling:
The car is equipped with a Stillen RSB. It feels a little more stout than the Addco RSB from my Maxima, but that could be the springs and struts as well. To balance out handling I also transferred over my front strut tower bar, which seems to help a little bit with cornering.
This takes us to the suspension, which is something of a Frankenstein setup: KYB AGX adjustable struts in the front, Tokico Illumina adjustables in the rear. The struts are matched with Tein HighTech (H-Tech) performance springs. This was not my initial setup, but it is 90% of what I want out of my suspension. This suspension is what I really wanted out of my I30 from the get-go. I have a very tight, controlled ride that is free of harshness or bounce. Everything feels solid and connected, and the struts and springs work well together. Highway driving feels almost-stock, and in-town driving features reduced body roll, better control in turns, and a sportier overall feel, all while maintaining a smooth ride over potholes and speed bumps.
The car also has Brembo cross-drilled rotors on the front. These are a huge improvement over stock brakes- I wish I had done this modification to the Maxima. I had Brembo Cross-Drilled rotors on the rear as well, but I cracked one all the way across the radius. On July 14, I finally replaced the rear rotors with real OEM rotors, and went with new ceramic pads in the rear. I must have been in bad shape, because the car stops MUCH better now. When I took it all apart, the inner pad on the side with the cracked rotor was in pieces and was barely holding on. I feel a lot safer now.
Exterior and Rolling Stock:
Visually, the vehicle has added side marker lights and cleared taillights, and I have shaved all of the rear emblems except for the center Infiniti logo. All of the "INFINITI" lettering and the "I30t" badging are gone.
After some wrestling over my wheels/tires/suspension issues, I decided to go with a 15" rim with good tires. I came to this conclusion after riding on the OEM BBS rims and a set of wearing Yokohama 215-60-15 tires. These did the trick to test-fit the comfort on 15? rims before making a final decision on what to run.
For my permanent solution, I settled on a set of 15 x 7" BBS rims that were a dealer performance package item on an Infiniti Q45a. These rims have a 36mm offset and 7" width. With a nice tire in the right size, these will give me a better ride, nice handling, and a stance that looks like aftermarket. The fact that the rims are only 13 lb. each does not hurt either.
I decided to go with Falken Ziex-512 tires in a 215-60-15 size. These tires come highly rated, at I got them for about $70 each with lifetime balance and road hazard protection. The rims arrived a few weeks before I was ready for tires, but after much anticipation, they are on and ready to roll.
I am pleased with the new ride, and the traction seems to be great, especially for a tire in this size. I had worried that they might not be a comfortable tire, but that is not the case at all. Right now, I am waiting for the suspension to settle, after which I will take some more pics.
Watch Page 2 for updated exterior pictures.
Interior:
I transferred over from my Maxima the SE gauges from a 1997 Nissan Maxima. This gave me white gauge faces, but I kept the OEM speedometer and Odometer, which kept the modification legal in the eyes of the DoT. See Page 3 for pics.
I also swapped out the OEM bulbs for bright white bulbs, which work well to illuminate the gauges but do not seem to affect night vision.
I also added a MOMO Race Air Leather shift knob that my wife purchased for me years ago (when I had a Jeep Cherokee w/ a 5-speed). I had kept it for years in hopes of using it again, and it looks great with my Redline Goods shift and e-brake boots. Finally, the car has chrome ?Infiniti? door sill plates (from a 1999 I30 Limited) and MOMO pedals. For some reason 97 Infiniti I30 models have a 95-96 Nissan Maxima center console- (WHY?!?). I had swapped a 97 Maxima console into my 96 Maxima, but it was sold with the car, but eventually I found a 97 Maxima console to retrofit for use in the I30.
See Page 3 for more information on all interior modifications
NOTE: I do NOT have a port & polish, but performance upgrades will not show up for me unless a major upgrade is checked.
Page 1: Current I30t information and updates
Page 2: Exterior (with pictures)
Page 3: Interior upgrades (with pictures)
Page 4: My Infiniti, after the accident
Page 5: Chronological history of my 1996 Nissan Maxima GLE
