Gotcha. I thought maybe sound was the reasoning but was curious if there was some added performance that comes along with it as well. Which i'm sure there is but exactly where in the RPM range is what peeked my interest. But being as i'm still stock (intake and motor particularly) and having the 7AT the 2.25" with 18 inch resonators will serve me better for both sound and performance.

I though it odd as well reading that on their page. Maybe it's just something to do with their particular system and it's design IDK. When most people mod their exhaust and go aftermarket they usually go to a larger diameter and more times than not their not running any kind of forced induction, it seems anyways. They want larger, cooler looking, better sounding pipes or they just want to oust more spent gas better/faster.

A 3 inch exhaust on a 3.5L Maxima huh? Interesting. I'm sure that was a head turner as well when you drove by....

 

Superb I must say Your diligence again, paid off huge!

 

Such a great and classy build!! Kudos to you!

 

I was driving home to Rochester, NY from Altoona, PA yesterday, after a small car meet for 7 Sedans and the one Coupe owned by the meet organizer. The drive through Pennsylvania hills is always gorgeous, particularly on that new section of the 99 Corridor where the highway is way up at the top of the mountains... it's like you're flying through the clouds, looking down on the most amazing countryside.

But that's not why I'm writing. As the highway ended, I was following the Nav System instructions through the valleys on lower roads, when I came upon an unexpected detour due to a bridge being out. The detour took me off the side road deep into the woods, past a small Mayberry-ish hamlet. And OMG this road!

What an incredible ribbon of pavement! It not only undulated up and down, but twisted side to side, with banking 90 degree turns, creating the most challenging section of roadway I've ever driven. I attacked this little road, shifting 2-3-4-3-2-3-2-3-4 on and on for 10 miles! Windows down, radio off, just me and the car, the engine and my exhaust. The car performed flawlessly. After a few miles of this, I took stock of what was happening... my eyes were wide, heart was racing, mouth open in this stupid grin.

It was an incredible 10 miles before getting back to the main road. Absolutely incredible. All the suspension mods I've done to this car; sways, springs, CO's, PSS, braces, etc., all the added power and sound in the full FI exhaust and R2C intake, and the driving enhancements like the RJM Pedal and even the Titanium ****... it all came together as the perfect moment to showcase why I did what I did over the last few years.

I wish I had a go-pro to record that drive. Wow. Just wow.

 

Ahhh, John has had his official ZEN moment. Congrats, nice to see it working out so well.

 

Haven't had that feeling yet in my car . Have had it on my old bikes thou.

 

Awesome write-up of the exhilaration of finding the perfect strip of road!
I'd love to come drive some of the scenic East Coast roads one day. Not that I'm complaining, as I'm in a valley with amazing mountain roads on both sides, but they don't look like this:



I'm looking forward to getting sways installed to get more of the everything-in-sync feeling you described. For now I feel like I'm hustling a fat girl through an obstacle course...

 

It's been a week since the alignment. And a 600 mile round trip weekend. Just now I had to take the car out, and as I was checking it out in the parking lot, I can't help but reaffirm how happy I am with this setup.

Because we all check out our own cars as we walk away and re-approach. Admit it. Heck, some times I take a long, loopy approach, just so I can see it from a different perspective.

Anyway... perfect fitment. It's awesome.

 

hmm...what are your alignment specs? would you say this car is finicky/responsive to alignments?

embarassing, but i'm still on my oem alignment

 

Go back 22 posts.

Next year (probably) I'll be installing the other half of these Tein coil-overs, with a SPC Front Camber & Toe kit. So another alignment after that, and configuring the fronts exactly the way I want, just like I was able to do with the rears. Without the aftermarket parts, once you dial in toe, you're pretty much limited on what can be done with camber, relying on the physics of ride height.

 

Thanks for the reference, should have read the thread more closely

Was wondering if you had played with the alignment numbers enough to provide guidance on how finicky the chassis is.

[my last car had night-and-day difference in behavior and predictability depending on fuel level and whether i was sitting in the vehicle when being aligned: effectively 0.09* toe difference and 0.7*camber difference.

Eventually made a trade off for speed before wobbliness and turn-in responsiveness. 0.1* toe out in the front was great under 55mph, for example.]

In short, would you recommend setting aside a long weekend to do some a/b testing in alignments? Or is it something that I can get good numbers for and just drop it off at the shop then call it done?

 

IDK how to answer your question. As long as toe is in spec, the camber shouldn't affect handling to any significant degree (no pun), unless you were at some crazy negative angle. At least, that's my understanding.

As for dropping it off with instructions... if your plans regarding out-of-spec camber are primarily for appearance, then you should find a shop that allows you to be there to eyeball fitment and tell them when each corner is where you want it.

That's all I have for advice on the topic, man. I'm tapped out.

 

Gotcha. Thanks for the reply.

I'm not going for appearance at all [or rather, I find proper performance alignment the most attractive in appearance].

I'm aiming for a balance between AutoX and Track as I plan to do both but will still primarily be on the streets.

Apologies for threadjacking, and as others on this thread have communicated: your attention to detail is impeccable and the positive outcomes are evident.

As to camber being not much of an effect (my bad if you already knew/didn't need to be reminded of this): Less camber allows for more straight line power to be applied, but you need just enough such that the tire won't roll over mid turn. Outside rear tire should be effectively 0 camber in a turn right when the inner tire is about to lift off the ground.

 

You're clearly looking at this from a more purpose-driven focus than I am. I've only Auto-X'd the car twice, and not yet since getting the car lowered with these large PSS tires. I imagine it would be all kinds of awesome, but it didn't happen this year.

If I were looking at these considerations from your POV, then I wouldn't have purchased Vossens in the first place. Heck, if I were planning on Auto-X and Track events on a regular basis with my DD, then I wouldn't own a G in the first place. I think that's almost a given.

But everyone has their own sense of balance between visual- and performance-mods as they relate to that same car being a Daily Driver. And fact is, you either dance with the girl you came with, or you dump her.

 

Man, this would look good on my car. Really, really good. (sigh)