If you are looking to upgrade your Maxima with Akebono’s then check out the deal below at Autozone. You can get both calipers for $200.00 bucks. You can exchange your previous calipers to save the core charge. These calipers work great and are just like the original OEM ones.
Front Driver Side Part Number: 97S00635A Front Passenger Side Part Number: 97S00635AB
Depending on the Maxima year, you will also need the following:
Important Note: These brackets for only for the front calipers. The rear Akebono calipers are plug-n-play but only for the 04+ Maximas/ 05+ SE-R Altimas.
Four M14x45mm long bolts (Note: these bolts will stick out beyond the adapter to mount M14x1.5mm nuts if desired [recommended].)
Four M14x55mm long bolts
Four washers (if nuts are being used with the kit)
A pair of Grade 6 aluminum calipers
Tools you will need:
22MM sized socket or wrench
A fine file or fine burr drill bit (if modification required)
Torque wrench
STEP 1
Due to casting variation of the Akebono calipers, some slight modification may be required to the adapter in order for it to clear the body of the caliper.
Using your 55mm long bolts, thread the adapters to your Akebono caliper until seated. The adapter is mounted to the caliper with the bottom of the “L” shape of the adapter oriented to towards the bleeder while the machined notch sits towards the caliper.
Verify that the notched portion clears the body of the caliper. If it does not, mark the area of contact and remove the appropriate amount of material until cleared. (Take away about 1-2mm of material at a time at approximately a 45-degree angle to match the caliper body angle. Re-mount to verify clearance. Repeat if necessary).
STEP 2
Mount your adapter to your spindle. The adapter sits outside of the spindle mounting holes while the 45mm long bolts mount from the inside of the spindle towards the body of the car. Hand thread one 45mm long bolt by only a couple of rotations. Take your other 45mm bolt and repeat for the other mounting point while extending the adapter away from the spindle. This will allow for extra pitch and play to align your second bolt to the threads of the adapter.
STEP 3
Once both bolts are comfortably thread-started into the adapter, fully thread both bolts through and tighten to OEM specifications.
NOTE: DO NOT FORCE BOLTS ONTO STARTING THREADS OF THE ADAPTER! This may result in damage or cross-threading to the aluminum adapter.
Your bracket will look like this mounted to the vehicle:
STEP 4
Repeat all steps to the opposite side of your car. Mount your Akebono calipers using the supplied 55mm long bolts. Tighten to OEM specifications. NOTE: Part of the dust shield will need to be trimmed in order for the caliper to be mounted. Use metal shears or a cut-off wheel with the appropriate tool to complete this step.
STEP 5
Double-check all fasteners for tightness prior to driving your vehicle. Test drive and enjoy!
*** This kit is to be used for off-road use only. No warranty is implied or expressed. Purchaser assumes all liability. Tighten all fasteners to OEM specifications. ***
These brackets will guarantee the proper fitment of Akebono calipers on your Maxima or Altima. Say goodbye to pad overhang and knocking off wheel weights when running your 18s!
The kits will be made out of 6061 high-strength aluminum. I am currently in talks with the machinist to see if I can do a separate run of steel brackets though. I was quoted $45 USD more (subject to change).
The aluminum kits will cost $225 plus shipping and PayPal fees. ($50.00 Deposit Required)
Important Note: These brackets for only for the front calipers. The rear Akebono calipers are plug-n-play but only for the 04+ Maximas/ 05+ SE-R Altimas.
Improvements (Over Previous Brackets):
Mounting holes to the knuckles have been shifted to the correct spots to fix the pad overhang problem.
A notch has been made to clear the curvature of the caliper as it was not allowing it to seat on the bracket properly.
The caliper mounting holes were oversized. This is also corrected.
Ok, so since this is something that’s becoming ever more popular, I decided to compile all of the information you need to upgrade the front brakes on your 5th gen to the 6th gen brakes with 12.6″ rotors…
First check your wheel clearance to make sure you have enough room for the brakes to fit. Measure from the center of your wheel to the inside of it, and if you don’t have at LEAST 7 5/8″ these brakes will not fit on your car…they do fit the 5.5 gen 17″ SE wheels like a glove, but they don’t fit with the 5.0 gen SE 17s…
f you do have enough clearance, the next step is to purchase what you need for the upgrade. Here are the things you need to get your hands on:
6th gen calipers (I bought mine from Dave B. for ~$60 each)
6th gen 12.6″ rotors (I bought mine from automax’s GD; brembo blanks for ~$100 shipped)
6th gen front brake pads (Also bought from automax’s GD; PBR metal masters for ~$50 shipped)
6th gen front brake shim kit (got mine from Dave B. I think for under $20)
Brake fluid of your choice
These are DIRECT BOLT-ON for ALL 5th gens (5.0 and 5.5 alike) but you can also opt to get Matt Blehm’s relocation bracket on the 5.0 gen (but not the 5.5 gen) and use your stock calipers.
Installation for me would have gone smooth if I had a right and a left caliper, but I accidentally got 2 left ones! DOH! Make sure when installing the calipers that the bleed screw is on TOP. (shown in the picture below.)
For me, the pedal feel was GREATLY improved (although this may be because I was running on my stock brakes at 50k). The pedal feels firm, and even after beating the sh!t out of my car at MSR during Maxus, I didn’t get an ounce of brake fade with my ATE Super Blue Dot 4 fluid.
I bed the brakes in just after installation and so far no abnormal noises or vibrations. There is great feedback from the brakes and they don’t seem to lock up under extreme braking as they did before.
From a performance point of view, I could not tell any difference in acceleration. These rotors did feel really heavy, but IIRC they are only 5 or 6 lbs. heavier than stock, which also felt really heavy, so it would be pretty hard to feel any adverse effects on acceleration.
As for the paint on my calipers, I used the G2 silver paint kit. I applied the paint only where you could see the caliper from the outside, and I applied 3 coats with much more paint to spare. The decals are just stick on (I put a couple of coats of clear over it just to make sure they would stay).
Any other useful information is welcome, as I believe this is all I have. Good luck to anyone that attempts it, and in my eyes, it was a very worthwhile mod.
My rear brake line on 4thgen Nissan Maxima had a pinch in it and caused a brake fluid leak. I was going to replace it with another stock line but ended up ordering stainless steel brake lines from eBay. You get all 4 brake lines shipped for $67 bucks which is a great deal. The quality is great and serves its purpose well. Shipping took about a week since it came from Canada. After installing, I performed the brake bleeding procedure. Took a quick drive I can feel better braking overall with these lines.
As for stopping power, it’s a hell of a lot better than stock. It’s a lot smoother and you can actually feel the brakes grip. There is a little roar when braking hard because of the slots and holes in the rotors rubbing on the pads.
Pedal feel is a little softer, but you get used to it. I went from a stock brake system of 4 pistons total in the calipers to 12 pistons. There is more fluid to push so yeah…. expect a softer pedal if you’re going to use the stock brake booster.
The new e-brake that has to be used with the 300zx rear brakes isn’t as good as our stock e-brake but works okay. The lever is a lot firmer and you really have to pull it up to hold the car on a hill.
Additional Info: You have to mill down the diameter of the rotor, not the friction surface. the same would go for 5th gen rotors.. just because they’re 26mm thick rotors doesn’t mean they bolt right on. you have to worry about offset from the hub and inner and outer friction surface diameter. thus you would be better off to just use 26mm 300ZX rotors and mill them down 3mm and call it a day if you want to go that way.
For all the setups you will need to remove the dust shield, Obtain hardware, and calipers and rotors must be for the same setup, either 26mm or 30mm. These parts are not interchangeable.
The inlet for the clutch line is a 1/8-27 non-inverted flare. So usual regular SS one-piece lines won’t work as-is. You’ll need a SS line made along with a 90-degree adapter. That is pretty easy to get made locally so you won’t have to use any special conversion adapters. Also, there is no need for slave cylinder rod spacers because this pushes plenty of fluid.
90-Degree Adapter with Custom One-Piece SS Line
Product Info
Wilwood’s Compact Combination Master Cylinders have been designed for limited space applications requiring the output capacity of a full size master cylinder. The ultra short 3.37”compact body provides 2.16” of additional clearance between the mounting flange and the fluid outlet. A full 1.12” of piston stroke meets or exceeds the stroke capacity of most full size cylinders. With 1/8” NPT fluid outlet port located at the top radius of the cylinder bore, reduces the chances for trapped air. Enhanced fluid inlet port allows mounting of the standard reservoir included in kit and also contain 11/16-20 internal threads for custom reservoir arrangements. The black E-Coated aluminum body resists corrosion and maintains a durable long lasting finish.
