The surface of as-prepared LiMn2O4 was modified with ZnO, Al2O3, CoO and LiCoO2 using a simple nitrate melting impregnation method. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) studies indicated that oxide nanoparticles in the range of 10～50 nm are coated on the surface of the spinel. The surface modified samples show better capacity retention than the unmodified LiMn2O4 spinel at both room temperature and 55℃. Among these samples, the ZnO-modified LiMn2O4 shows the best combination of a high capacity and a low capacity fading rate of 0.036% per cycle at room temperature and 0.064% per cycle at 55℃. The improvement for surface modified LiMn2O4 can be attributed to the inhibition of Mn dissolution and O losses on the surface.