No more Nissans for me. Long post.

Status
Not open for further replies.
Nissans have never been any better then any other company. dodge used too be the worst you could buy because of there trannys, but wait nissans where the same way. This is a long poston why I wont ever buy another Nissan. I wanted a used dodge Dakota or S10 when I was looking for a new truck (my first car was a 65 impala that I'mrestoring and have been since 03, followed shortly by a 91 camaro, 94 k1500 chev and a big burly 76 gmc k20, both trucks where sold because of gas milage, 13 and 6mpgs max)

So I was looking for a new (used, I was 17 at the time) truck or car, something that would be good in the winter. Well the dodge dakotas where out, my dad said they had bad trannys and wouldnt ever buy a Dog,my mother was much the same way. So we went out looking for a s10. Well, this was winter so every 4x4 s10 with less then 200,000 miles was 3500 up. Well after much searching and then some not so savvy haggling I had a nice looking 1995 pathfinder. 160k, "bullet proof 3.0 v6" and a nice shifting auto tranny. Well three weeks into owner ship the frame breaks in the rear. My dad takes it back to the dealer ship and they would only trade it for 2 cars, a 89 dakota, 4speed stick, edelbrock carb, hood scoup, old 3.9 v6, duel exhaust. Nope not a dodge fan my farther. The other was a beat to junk Elco with chrome tape on the rear bumper hiding rust for 2k more then I bought my not so cherry wd21 for.

Long story short we had the frame fixed, twice, the genral stuff like the timing belt, water pump and such fixed. Then at 189k, despit having the tranny fluid and filter having less then 20k on it and the fluid was clear the tranny dies. Well it turns out its a defect in the tranny cooling system that nissan knew about since 88 when they first put 3+od autos in them. The cooler it self would plug, cause the tranny to heat up and burn it self out.
Which I found out when it went into limp home mode and boiled over. Yep, you would think the engine would burn out with it because of the temps needed to boil ATF. I've been called a lier about this last part from Nissan master techs, flat out been told I didnt know what I was talking about, that the engine would be on fire if it got that hot.
But hey, why would I say it if it wasnt true, the stuff came shooting at my face when I pulled the dip stick, and kept shooting out fora few minutes.
Further more there 5 speed sticks also had a major problem, they put the high fluid level hole too low, cause these trannys to blow out. I cant say I didnt like the truck, it was a good truck but these problems are way too much, I wouldnt think of ever buying another unless I was going to pull the drive train and engine and replace them with GM parts.
Well thats my .02 worth of nissan story.

But hey, what do I know, I drive a Ford F150.
 
Last edited:
Wow sayjac, sorry to hear about your Altima. I wish you well with your new vehicle.

I had a QR25 5m/t Altima, but mine was an '06 when they had the pre-cat and the butterfly screw issues sorted out. I did however have the cam position sensor cause some intermittent problems causing hard starting though. I was able to replace it myself for something like $16 at the time, so I wasn't too bothered by it other than inconvenience. I also had the plastic hood prop retainer break as well. Other than that, I did enjoy the car, although the VQ35 would have been more fun.

I agree with other posters stating the value of this site as well as make specific enthusiast sites. For those of us that are willing to do the research, it creates an awareness of model specific trouble areas and how to address them. Years ago, I owned a Saab 9000turbo, and after replacing the blower motor I know I certainly gained a healthy appreciation for them.
 
Originally Posted By: TMoto
Wow sayjac, sorry to hear about your Altima. I wish you well with your new vehicle.

I had a QR25 5m/t Altima, but mine was an '06 when they had the pre-cat and the butterfly screw issues sorted out. I did however have the cam position sensor cause some intermittent problems causing hard starting though. I was able to replace it myself for something like $16 at the time, so I wasn't too bothered by it other than inconvenience. I also had the plastic hood prop retainer break as well. Other than that, I did enjoy the car, although the VQ35 would have been more fun....
I wish Nissan had at least offered me the chance to at a "sorted out" pre-cat fix, as I said before and you confirm, clearly they knew (likely by 04) the proper fix/repair. I can ONLY conclude that Nissan determined it was expedient and less expensive for them to let 02-03 2.5L engines expire, a waste. Also the reason I can never put my trust in Nissan again.

Still rather incredible though, that Nissan had not sorted out the 2.5L crank angle/camshaft position sensor issues by 06. But, compared to the pre-cat/engine failure issue I consider that a managable quirk, I too replaced them myself. An engine replacement though, doesn't fit in the managable quirk category.

Thanks for the kind words.
 
Wow, quite the random bash Nissan thread. I had an 03 Spec V with the same engine that I ended up writing off in an accident. I knew about the pre-cat issue and had plans to replace the cat with an aftermarket header. I also lock tighted the butterfly screws.

All vehicles have weak points. Thats why I always read as much a s I can about them. If I know theres an issue, then I do what I can to make sure I don't get burnt.
 
Originally Posted By: Sal69
Nissans have never been any better then any other company. dodge used too be the worst you could buy because of there trannys, but wait nissans where the same way. This is a long poston why I wont ever buy another Nissan. I wanted a used dodge Dakota or S10 when I was looking for a new truck (my first car was a 65 impala that I'mrestoring and have been since 03, followed shortly by a 91 camaro, 94 k1500 chev and a big burly 76 gmc k20, both trucks where sold because of gas milage, 13 and 6mpgs max)

So I was looking for a new (used, I was 17 at the time) truck or car, something that would be good in the winter. Well the dodge dakotas where out, my dad said they had bad trannys and wouldnt ever buy a Dog,my mother was much the same way. So we went out looking for a s10. Well, this was winter so every 4x4 s10 with less then 200,000 miles was 3500 up. Well after much searching and then some not so savvy haggling I had a nice looking 1995 pathfinder. 160k, "bullet proof 3.0 v6" and a nice shifting auto tranny. Well three weeks into owner ship the frame breaks in the rear. My dad takes it back to the dealer ship and they would only trade it for 2 cars, a 89 dakota, 4speed stick, edelbrock carb, hood scoup, old 3.9 v6, duel exhaust. Nope not a dodge fan my farther. The other was a beat to junk Elco with chrome tape on the rear bumper hiding rust for 2k more then I bought my not so cherry wd21 for.

Long story short we had the frame fixed, twice, the genral stuff like the timing belt, water pump and such fixed. Then at 189k, despit having the tranny fluid and filter having less then 20k on it and the fluid was clear the tranny dies. Well it turns out its a defect in the tranny cooling system that nissan knew about since 88 when they first put 3+od autos in them. The cooler it self would plug, cause the tranny to heat up and burn it self out.
Which I found out when it went into limp home mode and boiled over. Yep, you would think the engine would burn out with it because of the temps needed to boil ATF. I've been called a lier about this last part from Nissan master techs, flat out been told I didnt know what I was talking about, that the engine would be on fire if it got that hot.
But hey, why would I say it if it wasnt true, the stuff came shooting at my face when I pulled the dip stick, and kept shooting out fora few minutes.
Further more there 5 speed sticks also had a major problem, they put the high fluid level hole too low, cause these trannys to blow out. I cant say I didnt like the truck, it was a good truck but these problems are way too much, I wouldnt think of ever buying another unless I was going to pull the drive train and engine and replace them with GM parts.
Well thats my .02 worth of nissan story.

But hey, what do I know, I drive a Ford F150.


You mind summarizing this? All I got is your parents hate Dodge and you bought a car with 160K and unknown history and the tranny blew up.
 
Quote:
Wow, quite the random bash Nissan thread. I had an 03 Spec V with the same engine that I ended up writing off in an accident. I knew about the pre-cat issue and had plans to replace the cat with an aftermarket header. I also lock tighted the butterfly screws.

All vehicles have weak points. Thats why I always read as much a s I can about them. If I know theres an issue, then I do what I can to make sure I don't get burnt.

Congratulations on being fortunate enough to have your Spec V written off and being all knowing on the exact correct thing to do regarding the precat issue that you never had to deal with. Not being clairvoyant, I wasn't aware of the issue before purchase, nor that it was always engine fatal. Obviously, I am not the only one who found out the hard way. Hindsight being amazingly always 20/20, I likely would have looked for a permanent fix or gotten rid of the vehicle sooner. As I see it, my only mistake was putting my trust in Nissan after the recall, a mistake I won't repeat.

In my case, hardly a "random bash," and since you are the only one to put it that way, I'll take yours as a minority opinion. Simply presented the facts as they happened to me with plenty of background and supporting information. That said, it must be wonderful to be all knowing regarding the perfect decision to make in every situation, including this one.
smiley-rolleyes010.gif
I just haven't acquired that skill yet.
 
Originally Posted By: sayjac
Quote:
Wow, quite the random bash Nissan thread. I had an 03 Spec V with the same engine that I ended up writing off in an accident. I knew about the pre-cat issue and had plans to replace the cat with an aftermarket header. I also lock tighted the butterfly screws.

All vehicles have weak points. Thats why I always read as much a s I can about them. If I know theres an issue, then I do what I can to make sure I don't get burnt.

Congratulations on being fortunate enough to have your Spec V written off and being all knowing on the exact correct thing to do regarding the precat issue that you never had to deal with. Not being clairvoyant, I wasn't aware of the issue before purchase, nor that it was always engine fatal. Obviously, I am not the only one who found out the hard way. Hindsight being amazingly always 20/20, I likely would have looked for a permanent fix or gotten rid of the vehicle sooner. As I see it, my only mistake was putting my trust in Nissan after the recall, a mistake I won't repeat.

In my case, hardly a "random bash," and since you are the only one to put it that way, I'll take yours as a minority opinion. Simply presented the facts as they happened to me with plenty of background and supporting information. That said, it must be wonderful to be all knowing regarding the perfect decision to make in every situation, including this one.
smiley-rolleyes010.gif
I just haven't acquired that skill yet.


I didn't say I knew about the issues before hand. I certainly did not know this or I would have looked for something else. All I'm saying is I read about the problem and had plans to fix it. I'm sorry if my foresight seems condescending.

No vehicles are perfect, and I'm certainly not defending Nissan for making a great engine with a ticking time bomb attached to it. Try not to take it so personally. We've all had sch!tTy luck with a vehicle in our lives.
 
Originally Posted By: sayjac
I wish Nissan had at least offered me the chance to at a "sorted out" pre-cat fix, as I said before and you confirm, clearly they knew (likely by 04) the proper fix/repair. I can ONLY conclude that Nissan determined it was expedient and less expensive for them to let 02-03 2.5L engines expire, a waste. Also the reason I can never put my trust in Nissan again.

I agree with you about how they handled this. I don't remember if it was you or another poster that said if they had driven the car harder, then it may have failed earlier and been eligible for replacement. Such a shame.

Quote:
Still rather incredible though, that Nissan had not sorted out the 2.5L crank angle/camshaft position sensor issues by 06. But, compared to the pre-cat/engine failure issue I consider that a managable quirk, I too replaced them myself. An engine replacement though, doesn't fit in the managable quirk category.

Thanks for the kind words.

I agree. Vehicles will always have their individual quirks, but you shouldn't have to be a detective or clairoyant to discover something that could cause a catastrophic and expensive failure like this. I guess what I'm not clear on, is why you didn't receive the recall notice years ago, and is there a time frame for when a recall won't be covered?

I don't know how much energy you want to put into this, but I'm wondering if arming yourself with enough information, you could raise enough of a stink to get some compensation from Nissan. There were recalls for this known problem, and yours just happened to be affected later rather than sooner.

All the best,
T
 
Originally Posted By: TMoto
I agree with you about how they handled this. I don't remember if it was you or another poster that said if they had driven the car harder, then it may have failed earlier and been eligible for replacement. Such a shame.
It was I who mentioned being a more spirited driver, the precat fails quicker while still under warranty, and I would have at least gotten a new engine.
21.gif


Being a fairly conservative driver and bringing the car in for 'the' precat recall in a timely manner, my assumption was Nissan was saying precats failing subsequently resulting in engine failure was not definite result. In other word, take care of the car, change the oil/filter regularly(done with proof), as was done in the recall, and the engine will last the life of the car. In this case, what is said about as(s)-u-me is true, as it refers to me and the other you 2.5L owners. I trusted Nissan to do the right thing.

I thought that a recall done to correct an issue. Or if there was no identifiable issue at the time, but a future potential, then an extended warranty would be offered to cover that potential future issue/failure. Nissan did it with the 03 Altima subframe, but not for the engine/precat. Verrry interesting, to me.

As for more recourse effort, son suggested after the fact, a letter writing campaign to Nissan. I guess after telling the selling dealer/parts manager, them knowing the issue immediately, checking for any recourse and saying there was none, I was ready to cut bait at that point. Didn't see any of them including the shop manager step up and offer me a new engine. Considering how Nissan cared about the perfect running 02-03 2.5L engines to the point of failure, likely the reason I decided to move on then.

As you say, every car has it's quirks, I dealt with sensors and lived with it, got used to it. But there's no living with a failed engine.

Lastly, I been thinking, I bet there are/were some internal memos on this issue and how to deal with it. Even though I have a good idea what they say/said, love to read them.

Thanks again.
 
Sure I'll get to the point. The nissan RE4r01A transmissions where weak from the factory and there stock tranny cooler was defective. It would plug, causeing transmission burn up despite changing fluid on time and every other bit of maintance. Which is death of the transmission. Nissan knew about the problem before 95, and even offered a "Fix" which was nothing more then a transmission flush.
There FS5R30A 5 speed transmission of the same era also had a massive defect, this transmission had the fill hole on it mounted too low, causeing the bearings and clutch too burn out. There fix on this was too have people fill the transmission from the gear shift hole.

This truck was in good shape and everything checked out on it. The fluid was clean and the filter had been changed, yet it was changed again when I bought it. Nissan still used this transmission up into the 2000's on the exterra but it was fitted with a better cooler and bigger clutch packs and a diffrent valve body which greatly deminished the possablity of the transmission burning up.
 
I have to wonder about all the CVT transmissions that Nissan is using now. For this reason alone I avoid Nissans. Not only do I not like the driving experience, I really question their long term durability.
 
Boy - I must be on borrowed time. My succession of Nissans is as follows:

'93 Altima
'96 Maxima
'97 Hardbody
'00 Maxima
'05 Maxima
'07 Frontier
'10 Maxima

Most serious repair was an EGR valve on the hardbody that was repaired using "good will" warranty money 18 months after warranty expired - zero cost to me.

About half were sold to family/friends and to my knowledge all are still on the road. Each of my succeding Maximas has been better and more trouble free than the prior - in terms of rattles, squeaks, etc.

I will also admit than I am fortunate to have what seems to be an exceedingly rare phenomenon - an excellent dealer service dep't. - that accepts and appreciates that I do most of my routine maintenance on my own. The service manager even appears to appreciate that a few times I have brought in TSB's before he even knew about them.
 
Originally Posted By: Sal69
Sure I'll get to the point. The nissan RE4r01A transmissions where weak from the factory and there stock tranny cooler was defective. It would plug, causeing transmission burn up despite changing fluid on time and every other bit of maintance. Which is death of the transmission.


Well what plugged the filter? Transmission fluid doesn't just "plug" a filter.

Sounds more like the transmission fluid was neglected to the point where chunks of sludge formed, and then the sludge plugged the filter and blew up.

160,000 miles on a neglected auto is pretty good in my books. My father has had a few go at 60,000 for no reason. (2 Mazda MPV's lol)
 
Quote:
Boy - I must be on borrowed time. My succession of Nissans is as follows:

'93 Altima
'96 Maxima
'97 Hardbody
'00 Maxima
'05 Maxima
'07 Frontier
'10 Maxima

Don't see any 02-03 Nissans with the 2.5L engines on that list. As that was the specific topic of this thread, and never mentioned other Nissans with other engines, doesn't change the 2.5L results here. Don't know if all those were bought as replacements for the previous but said topic Altima just turned 8 years old with relatively low miles and a documented solid/strong engine before the precat puked. That said, congratulations on your string of Nissan success.

Perhaps, you should shop for and buy any 02-03 Nissan with a non modified 2.5L engine/precat, and try your luck.
wink.gif
 
I love my Nissans and always will, will never own a QR25 engine ever in my life though, because of these problems.
Sucks that people think the whole company sucks because of that junk engine.

I <3 VQ.
 
Actually as my UOA shows, my 2.5L engine was running strong, until the pre-cat puked and destroyed the motor. I never once complained about my 2.5L, it was running just fine.

The greater shame as I see it, is Nissan knowingly let these Nissan 2.5L engines fail/expire, when it could have been prevented with a proper recall/pre-cat fix. That's what really sucks for all the 02-03 2.5L owners.

I'd still be driving the vehicle today, and this thread wouldn't exist, from me anyway.
 
A UOA does not say that that engine is good.
The problem was there from day1 and I think this is a good reason why people should buy first model year cars. I know 2002 was worse in actual problem numbers, I read that some time ago on Altimas.net.
I owned a 2002 Altima myself, but it was a 3.5SE/5MT... It was probably my favorite car to date. Problem free and incredibly powerful VQ35. I miss that thing. Also had a 2002 Maxima/6MT which was a sound and great car too.
 
Those 02-04s always made me wonder, as I know of two people who had that issue.

Granted, one ended up getting a great deal on an 08 Alty because of that...
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top Bottom