Nissan Altima Engine Failures

683 messages,  Last post on May 08, 2013 at 10:43 PM

You are in the Nissan Altima Forum.

What is this discussion about? Nissan Altima, Engine, Sedan

    
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#661 of 683 Re: 2004 nissan [smedsleas] by electricdesign

Mar 17, 2012 (8:03 pm)

Replying to: smedsleas (Dec 19, 2011 10:10 am)
Hello all. I rarely check in here anymore, since I got rid of the 2002 Altima 2.5 and I now happily drive Toyotas. I will try to briefly respond to some of you.
 
Post # 656 by smedsleas - Your fuel pump runs, but no fuel to engine. The answer can only be 2 things, either no gas in gas tank or fuel pump is not pumping. If the fuel tank has gas, then check the fuel pump. The fuel pump is in the gas tank and has the fuel filter built onto the fuel pump, all serviced as one unit. Remove and replace the fuel pump to fix the problem. Since you said it was running, there must not be an electrical issue, can you hear it running?. When getting to the fuel pump, check that all hoses are connected and not kinked.
 
Post #658 by questk - Definition for code" Intake valve control circuit failure bank1"
 Possible cause:
" IVT control solenoid open or sorted"
"cam/crank sensors out of phase"
"dirt buildup at control valve"
Ok, the IVT solenoid is fairly easy to reach and test on the outside of the engine. It is simply a solenoid valve operated by 2 wires, it controls oil flow to the IVT clutch on the end of the intake camshaft. The circuit can be checked, the solenoid can be removed, cleaned and checked. I'd get that done first.
 
Post #641 by freeadventurer - If you have excessive oil consumtion, it means you have excessive wear in the engine cylinders, pistons and rings, no matter what your mechanic says, your engine is dying and you need to get rid of that POS and never get a Nissan again. The way to test is to do a cylinder compression test, or better yet a cylinder leakdown test. Get all results written down.
 
My final advice is do not spend money fixing these cars, it's a big waste of your money! A GOOD car will run and take you where you need to go, all you have to do is put gas in it, change oil once in a while, put on tires and brakes maybe every 4 or more years, and that's it! That's all I do now with my Toyotas.
 
That's all Folks! I only get by here on rare occassion, I will be out driving my car with no problems. So Mr Shiftright will take good care of answering your questions.
Have a nice day,
E.D. in Sunny Florida!

#662 of 683 Re: 2004 nissan [electricdesign] by greg_de

Apr 18, 2012 (10:07 am)

Replying to: electricdesign (Mar 17, 2012 8:03 pm)
After reading many of these posts, I'm having 2nd thoughts about purchasing a used 2003 altima with 53k miles.
 
There are 4 outstanding recalls... head lamp, water pump screen, engine programming change, and exhaust mods. The delaer said that the exhaust mods depend upon the code on the motor. Different codes identify different modification flow charts to include mufler hanger pin, pre cat, water pump, and more (not sure about crank shaft position and cam shaft sensors). My question is will these mods correct the cereamic dust resulting in pemature engine failure problem or should I still have the pre cat hollowed out or replaced with header.
 
My mechanic will inspect and perform compression test for current status of engine. My test drive was fine (no SES lights, oil level ok, exhaust seemed ok). I knew the owner and know the car was driven lightly.
 
Any thoughts would be greatly appreciated

#663 of 683 Run, don't walk. by fboner

May 01, 2012 (6:05 am)

Hi all,
 
Like electricdesign, I don't come back often, even though I still own and drive my '03 Altima SE. My previous car was a super dependable Toyota Camry V6 5spd...but it was a little boring (some people like that in a car).
 
This Altima has enough design flaws that you should run screaming like a mad man for the horizon rather than touch this car at 10 years of age. I did get my engine replaced, and the pre-cats (post 346, 351 etc.) by the dealer and the replacement is still going 25kmi later. I did have to do the Y-pipe shortly thereafter (dealer $1200, Amazon $200).
 
Every 18 months or so I have to redo most of the brakes, rotors and pads for sure, sometimes the odd caliper--rear more often than front. The car eats rear bearing caps (I'm on 4th set already) and if you don't feed it your ABS controller will fry. My ABS still randomly fires on the first brake after a long highway drive then goes silent again. The crimps fail on the a/c hoses ($250 each at the dealer) and $400 more to put 'em in and refill. The door handles break like potato chips (I stole that quote from another forum) and even better the door latches ice up during thaw/freeze cycles and then the doors refuse to latch and just bounce back open again (handy tip...pull seat belt out through open window and then roll it up to hold door mostly closed while trying to drive home). The car stinks like a refinery on cold morning startups (maybe the smell of future dead precats?), and yes, all recalls/reprogramming have been done.
 
That said, I'm still addicted to the 250hp/250ftlbs grunt that it pulls off, but my next car will NOT be a Nissan. For the money and trouble I've had, I could've been driving a 3-series BMW and probably will next time round.
 
Caveat Emptor.

#664 of 683 excessive oil by mouse0723

May 14, 2012 (9:15 pm)

I have a 2005 Nissan Altima that I bought New. It only has 51280 miles and I have the oil changed every 3500 - 4000 miles. I noticed that the car sounded funny so my brother checked under the hood and he said I was low on oil. I had just had and oil change 3 weeks (218 miles) ago so I was shocked. I have the extended Warrentty until August of this year and would like to hear why my car would be using so much oil. Oh yea, it is not leaving in marks under the car on the driveway so am at a loss. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

#665 of 683 Re: excessive oil [mouse0723] by pibzz

May 14, 2012 (10:17 pm)

Replying to: mouse0723 (May 14, 2012 9:15 pm)
As you have probably discovered (by reading other posts) your engine has sucked its own catalytic converter, back into the engine
 
There is a valve that recirculates exhaust gasses, back into the engine (to improve efficiency and reduce emission)
 
The problem is, your pre-cat (located right next to the dipstick) has started falling apart. The comb medium inside the cat (stuff its made out of) is basically silicate glass, and shrouds of this glass stuff has been sucked into your cylinder, scoring them - which causes oil to get into the cylinder and burn off. This is where the oil is going - into your cylinder and burning up with the gasoline.
 
Sadly, your engine is likely doomed. It will probably run for another month or so, but ultimately the entire engine will need to be replaced.
 
When you get your engine replaced - GET RID OF THE PRECAT !
 
THANK GOD YOU HAD THE WARRANTY ! YOUR GOING TO NEED IT !

#666 of 683 Fighting Nissan on this issue by kafeend

May 16, 2012 (10:59 am)

I am experiencing the pre cat failure (pieces sucked into the motor) on my 2006 Nissan Altima. I am currently battling Nissan on denying my claim for them covering the cost of a new motor. Please follow me on Twitter to help make this a more public issue and hopefully get some resolution on not only my issue but others as well. Follow me kafeend. Hope we can get something from Nissan other than the runaround.
 
In my opinion this is something they should replace/repair at no cost to the consumer. It is an engineering/design flaw that they are aware of but take no accountability.

#667 of 683 Re: Fighting Nissan on this issue [kafeend] by mouse0723

May 16, 2012 (10:45 pm)

Replying to: kafeend (May 16, 2012 10:59 am)
Thank-You and I wish us the best. I have the extended warranty until August so I will be contacting them in the morning. So Here I go.....hope I get what I need, like a new engine.
I do not have a twitter account so sorry but will try to keep this site up to date on the issue.

#668 of 683 Re: excessive oil [pibzz] by mouse0723

May 16, 2012 (10:47 pm)

Replying to: pibzz (May 14, 2012 10:17 pm)
Thank-You. I will be contacting my extended Warranty company in the morning and will let the site know what happens.

#669 of 683 Re: Fighting Nissan on this issue [kafeend] by gomez_adams

May 31, 2012 (7:47 am)

Replying to: kafeend (May 16, 2012 10:59 am)
Yep. Just happened to me. Blown engine. Was told to call Nissan for possible replacement but they wanted us to pay for the tow and to have their mechanics to look at it. Therefore, their mechanics Decide what happened and of course Nissan would say their not responsible. Spending close to 400.00 for the tow(both ways) and the mechanics charge, I'm need some more information on this.
 
Any futher progress on your car would be appreciated.

#670 of 683 Re: Fighting Nissan on this issue [gomez_adams] by kafeend

Jun 21, 2012 (4:55 pm)

Replying to: gomez_adams (May 31, 2012 7:47 am)
They denied my claim as well. They stated that since I have 120,000 miles on the motor that they will not assist in replacement. I have been after them up until a few weeks ago. They blocked me from FB page and then stopped responding to twitter. We really need to try to get a class action lawsuit as this is unacceptable. Their engineering flaw (which they deny) is what is destroying motors not customer negligence.
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