# Just bought a J30 Maxima SE, what now?



## 48Hz (Jun 12, 2021)

IMO just got extremely lucky with a fair/good condition J30 SE with the VE30DE motor. It has an exhaust leak, but I will be fixing that this weekend.

So after I get everything running like a top, what is the general consensus on how to approach mods? My goal is obviously to go as fast as possible, but I don't want to ruin the car. If I could get a solid 220WHP that would be nice. I would also like to get it tuned if possible, but I have no idea who would be able to do it since it's a '92.

Please let me know your thoughts and thank you for reading.


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## rogoman (Dec 16, 2004)

Your VE30DE produces 190 hp at 5600 rpm and 190 lb⋅ft at 4000 rpm. This engine redlines at 6600 rpm. The low under-hood clearance on the 1992–1994 Nissan Maxima demanded a special head to be developed with 30°, rather than 46°, between the valves; so if you're thinking about going to the newer VQ series engines, you're going to run into under-hood clearance problems. For you to attain 220 hp, you're going to have to spend some *big dollars* to get there.


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## smj999smj (Jan 1, 2006)

The VE30DE was an interesting engine and only around a few years. We had a few problems with them back in the day. Ignition coil failure was a common one; often, they wouldn't set a code or wouldn't set a cylinder specific code, which left you guessing which one to replace. The would start acting up and cause raw fuel to get into the exhaust system until the gas ignited and blew up the muffler! Bad ignition coils would also create RF interference that penetrated the main harness and made the ECM go bonkers! We would add a supplemental ground from the ground wire at the ignition module directly to the negative battery cable to help with that. Another problem was a knocking noise caused by too weak of a spring inside the VTC gears. The VTC sprocket was around $550, but the spring kit was relatively cheap. Unfortunately, they were a real pain to disassemble and reassemble because they had splines that had to be lined up perfectly before you pressed the gear back together, which required a special tool from Kent-Moore. 
Honestly, I've never seen anyone modify one. I would imagine performance parts, like cams, are non-existent or obsolete, if they ever did exist. The Nissan ECM's have a soldered chip on them and since Jim Wolfe Technology stopped working on them, I don't know of anyone else who does, except for maybe JET, which has mixed reviews. I'm with rogoman in thinking that it'll take a lot of work and dollars to get to your goal. Personally, if it runs good, I would just leave it, as is, and do a tune up with new coil packs. You might consider some work to the suspension, which was always a bit soft on the J30 Maximas, instead. Let us know how you make out!


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## 48Hz (Jun 12, 2021)

smj999smj said:


> The VE30DE was an interesting engine and only around a few years. We had a few problems with them back in the day. Ignition coil failure was a common one; often, they wouldn't set a code or wouldn't set a cylinder specific code, which left you guessing which one to replace. The would start acting up and cause raw fuel to get into the exhaust system until the gas ignited and blew up the muffler! Bad ignition coils would also create RF interference that penetrated the main harness and made the ECM go bonkers! We would add a supplemental ground from the ground wire at the ignition module directly to the negative battery cable to help with that. Another problem was a knocking noise caused by too weak of a spring inside the VTC gears. The VTC sprocket was around $550, but the spring kit was relatively cheap. Unfortunately, they were a real pain to disassemble and reassemble because they had splines that had to be lined up perfectly before you pressed the gear back together, which required a special tool from Kent-Moore.
> Honestly, I've never seen anyone modify one. I would imagine performance parts, like cams, are non-existent or obsolete, if they ever did exist. The Nissan ECM's have a soldered chip on them and since Jim Wolfe Technology stopped working on them, I don't know of anyone else who does, except for maybe JET, which has mixed reviews. I'm with rogoman in thinking that it'll take a lot of work and dollars to get to your goal. Personally, if it runs good, I would just leave it, as is, and do a tune up with new coil packs. You might consider some work to the suspension, which was always a bit soft on the J30 Maximas, instead. Let us know how you make out!


Thank you for the great information! As far as the VTC tick, would that kill the motor or is it just the sound that bothers people? And yeah I might just go the handling route instead. Also JWT doesn't offer his ECUs anymore? I saw them on the site, but I haven't contacted him yet.


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## smj999smj (Jan 1, 2006)

48Hz said:


> Thank you for the great information! As far as the VTC tick, would that kill the motor or is it just the sound that bothers people? And yeah I might just go the handling route instead. Also JWT doesn't offer his ECUs anymore? I saw them on the site, but I haven't contacted him yet.


I don't believe they deal with anything that old, anymore, as far as ECU's; you can always contact them, of course! I don't recall ever seeing any engine damage caused by the VTC gear springs, but if the chain starts knocking, I would be concerned about it.


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