2009 Nissan Maxima: Nexus 7 in Dash, Pioneer, Alpine, LEDs

[choicewhitemeat]

Ended up getting some work done because it warmed up to 40 degrees. Got the ground part of the big three done and ended up swapping out batteries with my old Maxima. It was brand new and the current one in the black max was from the factory. The ground system for this car is all under the battery tray so I had to remove that. The ground from battery the frame and the frame to the engine block are crimped in parallel with a side mounted tab. Really weird but made for an easy grounding. Just had to remove a bunch of stuff because these Japanese cars pack everything in tight. I found a run of 4 gauge in my basement and soldered some ring terminals on. Grinded down the spot to bare metal and then spray painted with engine enamel. Next I just have to find the alternator on this thing.

Can't wait till this winter is over so I can clean out that engine bay.

That side mounted tab is called a flag terminal, I have one too on my Altima. I am going to do what you did, 2 separate cables. Here is something else I wanted to share with you, since you have a Nissan. On the positive terminal, we have that OEM plastic harness thing that contains the Alt fuse, etc. I was thinking of ways to attach new cables, and I came up with this.

I'm gonna mount it like this. I'm gonna take off the nut that's there, slide this on, and tighten it down. What do you think?

That's nice but I don't know if I want to completely get rid of the red plastic cover. I'm gonna think up some ideas. I really like the way that looks but I will probably cut a notch in the red cover and run my amp power and alternator wire off the top left post just straight to the middle of the engine bay.

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Warmed up to 50 today so I decided to finish up the big three and begin the power wire for the amp. I plasti dipped my fuse holders because I hate the clear plastic look and the flat black seemed to work. I used the wiring I had so i simply zip tied to the existing wire runs. I'm thinking about getting some new terminals but that Nissan fuse link messes everything up. I'm waiting to sell a whole bunch of stuff on ebay and craigslist and I should be ordering the rest of the supplies for the rear.

Had to use a 12 inch extension to get the the alternator post. Busted a few knuckles trying to get in there.

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Got the amp wiring ran today and the amp mounted. I have a temporary sub setup in there because I need some bass. Been doing some testing and I think if I make the fiberglass boxes big enough, it will sound really good. Definitely gonna go sealed.

Ya I know the colors are mix matched but it's what I have. It's the same exact wire.

This was absolute hell. Took me at least an hour to poke a hole big enough to get 4 gauge through.

My seats in the back are a 60/40 but only the 60 part folds down. Really stupid and I'm kinda mad. I'd rather have this though then have the silly ski hole. I usually hate mounting amps to the back of the seat but I couldn't find any room on the back shelf and this worked out really well. If I plan on ever upgrading to better subs and amp I will have to find some place better.

[choicewhitemeat]

Just a small update. I realized one of my mirror turn signals was out so my original intent was to switch out all the LED's with white ones. When I removed the units from the mirror, they were completely messed up. All the plastic was cracking and there was so much moisture in the lenses. The chipset in which the 4 PLCC's led's were resting was completely ruined. So I decided to create my own turn signals using strip LED"S. I plastic welded and fiberglass the tray back together. I had to tint them a little bit to hide what was inside. Overall I like how they turned out. Not so noticeable in the daytime but nighttime they look awesome. Now I just need to wait until it's above 50 degrees so I can fiberglass.

What I used to attach the LED strip to the plastic. The 3M backing just wouldn't hold. This stuff is awesome. Really holds well and fast.

What I used to seal the headlights again. This stuff is strong and flexible but takes forever to cure.

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Well it's been a hectic couple of weeks. I had to wait on a whole bunch of stuff including some specialty turn signals because I have CK style sockets and I didn't want to have amber switchbacks. Also I had to go to LA for business for a week. Anyways, the weather is turning for the better and I'm finally getting some stuff done.

Got the trunk sound deadened with some leftover deadener. No idea what brand. Was from my old car.

Installed a spoiler. Ended up taking the wiring plug from the stock high mount and soldering it to the new spoiler mount 3rd taillight and running the wire to the stock location. Came out extra clean. Got the spoiler painted on eBay for around $120. It's not OEM but I can't tell the difference.

Also got the taillights tinted and all the bulbs replaced with LEDs. Used about 3 coats of Rustoleum Lens Tint along with some High gloss clear enamel. Wet sanded and polished with Meguirs ultimate compound. It looks dark but the LED's shine through perfectly.

The right one looks lighter because the sun is coming from the west.

They don't make a blockoff plate for the high mounted stop light for this model maxima. They do for the 04-08. So I cut up the old HMBL and made a plate myself and simply texture coated with plasti dip. Turned out really well considering a new back shelf was around $175.

[choicewhitemeat]

Now it was time to start on the front getting the HID ballasts mounted along with the resistor for the led turn signals. For this car, you have to remove the bumper in order to remove the headlights. Wasn't to bad but definitely more work that I wanted.

35W OPT7 AC 6000K fog lights. OPT7 makes quality stuff. Not too expensive but also offer a great warranty. Costed around $120 for both sets. I may need to get a relay but the stock headlight wiring is pretty beefy and has a 15 amp fuse for each low beam. I will keep testing and see.

55W OPT7 6000K AC low beams

Opening the headlights to paint the housing KH3 super black and add Angel Eye's (Halos) to the high beams.

Installing the resistors for the turn signals to prevent hyperflashing. Soldered and heatshrunk everything. I don't trust the quicklok clips.

My Grandpas multimeter from lord knows when. It says made in Japan on the back and is extremely well made. He was a lieutenant in the Naval Engineering Corp so I have no idea where this thing has been. Just trying to find a fuse that turns on with the ignition. Believe it or not, there is only one or two in the engine fuse box. I drilled a hole at the base and installed a grommet to protect the wiring. This is all for the Halos.

All back together and installed. The halos were simply attached with high temp quick set epoxy from the back.

Bad ass light output. Exponentially better than the halogens. These model maximas already have projectors installed so it has a really clean cut off.

Pending the weather I will most likely be starting the fiberglassing tomorrow for the sub boxes.

[choicewhitemeat]

Well it's been a tough winter for the streets here in Indianapolis. I tore both my front and back left tires on one pothole. Completely destroyed two Michellins in under a second. Thanks dad for road hazard. Got to see a really cool flat black Eldorado? (I'm 26. Not really good with cars before the Gulf War.) on bags while at the shop. Thing was pristine.

Finally was nice enough to get the girl clay barred, waxed, and buffed.

Started on the dual fiberglass boxes. I know these aren't the nicest subs but my budget is low and I had these lying around. I'm not trying to brake any windshields. Just want good clean bass.

1.5OZ Chop Mat. This stuff was well made and thick. Got it here. Also used about a gallon of fiberglass resin (Bondo from Lowes).

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=221388794497

If you look at the sellers page, he has tons of size variations and amounts. Fast shipping and great prices.

[choicewhitemeat]

Well on to the ring process. I don't have a plunge router and really didn't feel like doing the extra work to create the recessed look. I probably will do it if I ever do it again.

I ended up going to wal mart and buying a yard of under armor type material for around $2. Worked really well. I read a bunch of stuff online about not using fleece because it settles rough and absorbs a ton of resin. Attached with hot glue and then glasses over for the first layer. Ended up doing a layer of mat on the inside and out to get a good seal. I was able to stand on these by the time I was done. Good test for strength I guess

Sanded down and got a layer of body filler on there just to remove all the highs and lows. Rough sanded because I knew I was going to carpet. I got the carpet on eBay as well. I've used this carpet for about 4 box builds. Doesn't stretch to well but really strong and clean.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Professional-Grade-Subwoofer-Speaker-Box-1-yard-Black-Carpet-36-x-72-/230848375301?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item35bfa2aa05

I was really hard to make these congruent because the spaces are different sized. Overall, both boxes are right around 1 cubic foot after woofer motor displacement. They sound way better than expected. I just used packing peanuts and a 1x1x1 box I had. I will get a video of my whole set up here when I have some time. Extremely busy with work and golf season. I still have to find a way to attach the boxes into the car so they don't fly around during corners. I have a general idea but it will take some thought because I want to use the factory holes.

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I figured out a way to mount the boxes to the stock location. Took some time. basically I used T nuts and small sheet metal screws to create mounting points for 1/4 inch bolts. Took a little but of measuring and testing. Used rubber washers to make sure the mounting holes through the boxes were sealed.

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Decided to ditch the fiberglass box and go with a custom mdf box.

Switched from birch to MDF mainly because I messed out some cutouts. Got the holes filled and everything sanded.

Fiberglassed the inside corners for strength just in case I change subs in the future.

I always get bad box slide so I fabricated a bracket to mount to a stock hole in the rear deck.

Carpeting this thing was a pain because I wanted to cover the whole thing. Took me around 4 hours and a ton of blades. You can see the amount of cuts I had to make.