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Nissan Pathfinder Oil Consumption

24 messages,  Last post on Dec 28, 2011 at 9:02 PM

You are in the Nissan Pathfinder Forum.

What is this discussion about? Nissan Pathfinder, SUV

Messages Page 3 of 3

#15 of 24 I fixed mine !!!!! by lousynissan

Jan 20, 2010 (3:12 pm)

Replying to: poncho2010 (Jan 20, 2010 9:11 am)
I traded it in on a 2010 Ford Mustang GT !!!!!!!!!!!
Did I mention my diff was leaking? dealer said its "over full". Sure a diff that's never been touched "over full".Well of course it started leaking again after a 150 service. Just too much. I work too hard to keep paying on a pain in the ass. Bye bye Path.

#16 of 24 Re: 3.5 liter oil consumption problem - temp fix ? [poncho2010] by turbino

Jan 20, 2010 (4:57 pm)

Replying to: poncho2010 (Jan 20, 2010 9:11 am)
After my mechanic replaced the pcv valve on my 2003 Nissan Pathfinder (with one for 2000 Nissan Pathfinder), I was surprised to know that only about half a quart of oil was consumed after almost 3000 miles since the last oil and filter change, and I consider this to be normal.

#17 of 24 Re: 3.5 liter oil consumption problem - temp fix ? [turbino] by dpeter3425

Mar 22, 2010 (6:54 pm)

Replying to: turbino (Jan 20, 2010 4:57 pm)
My daughter has an 03 pathfinder le We have had it for 4 years bought used, THe engine light stays on and it burns oil and she always has oil with her and puts it in never had the oil light come on. The truck runs great sometimes and then others the rpm's go up but it wont change gears. Had transmission check it is ok IT is all the oil consumption Do you really think the pcv valve will help I told mechanics this and they say new engine Do you think the timming belt and water pump should be changed? I have not spent any money on this truck but OIL OIL OIL IT has 125,000 miles on it now
    Thanks Dawn

#18 of 24 Re: 3.5 liter oil consumption problem - temp fix ? [dpeter3425] by nightmonkey1

Mar 22, 2010 (7:50 pm)

Replying to: dpeter3425 (Mar 22, 2010 6:54 pm)
dawn,
 
i had a brand new passenger side valve cover (which also includes a new PVC valve by default) installed at the dealer a few months ago for $1000. My 2002 pathfinder had 65000 miles at that point. this $1000 did not help my oil consumption in any significant way. i still mystery burn about 1 quart per 1000 miles. i keep oil on hand and just refill, i check it every other gas fill. just live with it or trade it in, dont waste money trying to fix it. the truck runs fine, so at least things are tolerable as long as the oil deal doesnt get to the point where i have to refill every other day, right now i refill 0.5 to 1 quart about 1 time per month.
 
this problem may be due to bad piston rings, block or valves, probably a design or manufacturing tolerance issue, i am 98% sure it is one of those issues, and any of those cost at least several thousand $$$$ to fix
 
again, live with it or trade it in.
 
for what its worth i am a mechanical engineer (without time to work on my cars), i understand engines, there is a unspoken or not understood design or tolerance issue with that engine that can only be fixed with a lot of money

#19 of 24 Re: 3.5 liter oil consumption problem - temp fix ? [nightmonkey1] by badnissans

Apr 13, 2010 (8:50 am)

Replying to: nightmonkey1 (Mar 22, 2010 7:50 pm)
My son bought an '04 Pathfinder brand new in '04. Just out of warranty it started clogging cat converters and burning oil. Nissan said, sorry its out of warranty. He has had it in the Nissan shop at least once a year since then, They make $1,000 repairs but it has not fixed it. Last week it got worse. I had my mechanic look at it. He found an air intake flap value under the intake manifold. The screws on these had all backed out. One of these silver dollar sized flappers fell into a cylinder and beat the heck out of it. There was to much metal pieces in the engine from these pieces to repair. We are now putting a new engine in it. If you have a mysterious oil leak check these valves. You have to pull the intake off to get to them. Looks like a design flaw and grounds for a recall to me!

#20 of 24 Re: 3.5 liter oil consumption problem - temp fix ? [badnissans] by nightmonkey1

Apr 14, 2010 (7:47 pm)

Replying to: badnissans (Apr 13, 2010 8:50 am)
badnissan:
 
what u describe has been reported before under bad "power valve" screw falling out of these engines into the internals. look up on google to find more info on that issue. it is a definite problem
 
HOWEVER
 
ONLY AUTO TRANSMISSION 3.5 HAVE POWER VALVE ASSY FOR EXTRA TOWING POWER.
 
WHEN I WENT THRU THIS BS WITH THE DEALER THE FIRST TIME THE FIRST THING THEY SAID THEY WOULD CHECK WAS THE POWER VALVE SCREWS. WHEN I TOLD THEM IT WAS STICK, I ASKED THEM TO CONFIRM THAT MANUAL TRANNY DOESNT HAVE THAT POWER VALVE. THEY CONFIRMED THE MANUAL DOESNT. THEY STILL HAD NO EXPLAINATION FOR MY OIL CONSUMPTION.
 
SO THE MYSTERY CONTINUES. I HAVE NO LEAK, NO SMOKE, NORMAL MILEAGE AND IT RUNS FINE. BUT EATS OIL LIKE A SOB

#21 of 24 Diagnosis Help by scpilot

Jul 30, 2011 (3:57 pm)

Hi everyone. I have a 2003 Nissan Pathfinder with 140k miles that has slightly elevated oil consumption - about one quart every 2000 miles. I wanted to make the suggestion to use Blackstone Labs for oil analysis to determine whether your oil consumption is being caused by excessively worn rings, which would cause excess fuel to show up in your oil. They can detect the content of several wear metals and tell you how your engine is wearing. I had a report run on mine and they found nothing wrong with the internals of my engine, no fuel, and no coolant, so I'm going to attempt to determine if the baffles in the valve cover are clogged. Removing looks like a lengthy process, so I am not sure when I'll be able to get to it.
 
I've run Mobil-1 5/30 and filter since birth, every 7500 except 3000 when towing.

#22 of 24 Re: Diagnosis Help [scpilot] by steve_ HOST

Jul 30, 2011 (5:18 pm)

Replying to: scpilot (Jul 30, 2011 3:57 pm)
I know that Nissan would say consuming a quart every 2,000 miles would be within normal limits, but if that was happening on my Nissan minivan, my blood pressure would be "slightly elevated."
 
An analysis on my '99 Quest would be interesting (I'm at 158k miles), but it's running okay and isn't worth much anyway, so I have a hard time justifying the $25, when I can do an oil change for that and have $10 left over. I use SuperTech or whatever is on sale at NAPA and change at 7,500 mile intervals too. Don't tow. Never have to add oil between changes.
 
Got any blue smoke? How are the plugs? Do you have to pass emissions tests where you live? Thought about switching to a 10W-30 oil? Replaced the PCV valve lately?

#23 of 24 Re: 3.5 liter oil consumption problem - temp fix ? [nightmonkey1] by tschott

Dec 28, 2011 (8:50 pm)

Replying to: nightmonkey1 (Apr 14, 2010 7:47 pm)
I have a 2003 Nissan Pathfinder Automatic. Would lose about half a quart + between oil changes (3K) no smoke, no drips. Upon careful inspection saw that there was a lot of oil caked on right cv boot and the surrounding area. Turns out the oil cooler had a very slight leak from the o ring. Not enough to drip but it just kind slowly covered the surrounding areas. Found that it is a fairly common problem. The fix is pretty straightforward two o rings that can be replaced by removing the bolt that goes through the center 14mm I think. Kind of a pain to get it off then clean it up as space is a bit cramped. I just sprayed carb cleaner to clear the caked gunk off. Once disassembled did the same with all the internals that I could reach. Put in the new o rings and reassembled. Little less than an hour an a can of carb cleaner + a little. O rings were about 10 for both and I could only find from a dealer. No more oil seep. If that is your problem you will see caked up oil on and around cooler and cv. Good luck.

#24 of 24 Re: Diagnosis Help [steve_] by scpilot

Dec 28, 2011 (9:02 pm)

Replying to: steve_ (Jul 30, 2011 5:18 pm)
Nope, no smoke. No leaks. No power loss. Plugs are clean. For all intents and purposes it runs like a new car, except a rich exhaust smell when it's cold, and a bad temp sensor in the transmission causing it to take forever to lock the TC when it's cold. No codes, no emission problems. I had a CEL light once when a gasket between the filler tube and gas tank sprung a leak and allowed the vacuum to collapse (EVAP Leak CEL).
 
I really can't complain. It's been a fantastic car. I've put shocks/struts in it once, 3 or 4 sets of tires, and a complete brake system overhaul at 120K. Everything else by the book. In fact, it never even had to have an alignment until I had the suspension done at 130K.

Messages Page 3 of 3

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