JAmerican

Hey 4th genners,

I have been around on these forums for quiet some time but I've rarely posted. I think it's because I always thought I'd rely on a mechanic. Now, I'm trying to become more active in the maintenance of my own vehicle. So I need some help and I brought pictures because I love pictures and people here love pictures. So these are my problems. Any advice on any of them is great.


(1)Very Slow Transmission Fluid Leakage (I think). I had an Oil leakage before and it could be that but I fixed that last year and I've since had multiple snow storms and car washes.


(2)How the heck do you get access to the filler plug of the transmission? I've tried a 1/2" racket and it's stuck together quiet well.


(3)Above center... The metal bar with teeth is the rack assembly shown through a broken bellows boot. I can get the parts and fix the boot but I want to know what grease and lubricant are recommended for the boot and for the rack assembly so that it doesn't dry out. I do NOT have power steering issues that I'm aware of. My car makes moaning/creaking noise when I turn deep left every so often but not every time. This could be because of wheel bearing or suspension not sure. Can I use WD40 as a spray-on lubricant for the rack assembly or can I just leave it alone and let the Power Steering Fluid handle the rack assembly?


(4)Remaining oil leak I presume?

Please ask questions and more importantly provide feedback. I'm a novice at car repair but I'll take any advice and constructive criticism necessary to learn.

Thanks, JA.

JAmerican

bump... maybe just advice on the bellows boot?

ShocknAwe

iTrader: (3)

Looks to me as if the last leak is probably a rear main seal leak as that is where the oil drips to the ground from when you do(pass. side). This oil leak is VERY difficult to get to and fix and im getting a bargain from my mechanic who is charging me $500 to do it. It about a 2 day job for sure. With the rack boot torn, repair that IMMEDIATELY or else you will have to replace the whole thing. In reality you should fix the oil leaks first because no matter what you replace, if the oil is still leaking on it, then it will deteriorate again and break. Im not sure its the rear main seal, it could be as simple as the oil pan leaking. If you clean up the area with degreaser then you can more easily tell where the leak is originating from. Oh and the FSM recommends NLGI no.2(lithium soap base) as the multi purpose grease of choice. Any litium soap base should do though. No WD-40 wont work on car mechanical parts because it simply drips off. Its not thick enough to stick and stay like grease is. GL and post back about where the oil leak is coming from

atriuum

iTrader: (3)

Get brake parts cleaner, and clean off all the surfaces as best you can. Get like 6 cans of Brake cleaner. Put some cardboard underneath where you're cleaning, because all that caked-on dirt and grease and oil will drip on the ground a leave a stain.

After you've cleaned off with brake cleaner, you'll better see where the leak is originating from.

The boot you'll have to replace. Or have it replaced. From what I understand you'll need to take the wheel off, mark where the outer tie rod end link is screwed onto the inner tie rod, disconnect the outer tie rod end link (pickle fork), remove old boot by removing the clamps that hold the boot ends, put new boot on. You might need to remove the inner tie rod too, I am not sure. Someone else has to chime in. Probably will need an alignment if you don't put the outer tie rod end link on the tie rod as you found it.

ShocknAwe

iTrader: (3)

I love when people repeat the same suggestion lol

sergofast

iTrader: (22)

You can also get "engine cleaner" from your local auto parts store. You spray it on, let it sit for a bit and then hose it off. Just be sure to hose ALL of it off...that works really good.

For what its worth, my engine looks exactly like yours (in concern to the oil leak). Ive got 219k and burn/leak about a quart of oil every 3k miles. The best way to diagnose where it is coming from is to clean it like previously suggested, change the oil and add some florescent die. Then you can use a UV flashlight and it will glow where the leak is coming from.

As far as the fill plug is concerned....PB Blaster....then a large dose of "PUT SOME EFFORT INTO IT!!!"
If it sticking real good, you can use a "motivational tool" (i.e. Hammer or 2ft piece of pipe to stik onto the end of your breaker bar for added leverage). Just be sure you are going the right way with it and not actually tightening the bolt!!!! It will come out, but may just take some added "motivation" to do so lol

Trini Boom

iTrader: (5)

The first and last set of pictures show that the upper oil pan half moon seals are work and need replacing. You would have to undo the lower oil pan to get to the upper oil pan to reseal.

As for the middle pictures with the teeth, that's just the rack and it shouldn't be heavily greased. It looks fine from those pictures. As long as your inner tie rod is good and not moving or loose, just replace the boot. Otherwise, replace the tie rod with the boot and you should be fine.

whiteSE

iTrader: (2)

About the filler plug......just put some extra force into it. Put some muscle into it

JAmerican

UPDATE: I purchased the following at Advanced Auto Parts:



Beck/Arnley Steering Rack Boot Kit

and got it installed for $143 (~$60 alignment) at a shop. I'm going to get a car wash on Friday and do some fine cleaning of my own afterwards. I'll post updates. Thanks for the suggestions and support.

JA

2brosgixxer

Any luck figuring out what this leak was caused by and a fix for it? I am having the same issue and not really sure where to begin. I've been searching the .org all night for an answer but nothing definitive. Anyone have a definite source of the leak? I just noticed it the other day when I did an oil change so I cleaned the area and will check it again to see if I can track down where it is coming from but any insight would be helpful. But it did look like the oil was coming from the area where the arrow is pointing in the pic below.

GGENIUS

iTrader: (1)

its funny youd say that because thats literally all you do. come in and relay a bunch of verbal diarrhea that other people have said to you. except your version is halfassed and generalized as hell. thats probably why it bugs you so much when other people do it...

cashoit

OP,

The fluid on you tranny case is engine oil. ATF is red. Engine is brown/black.

Like others have stated, clean the area thoroughly to determine where the leak is originating.

Unless u leaking 2 qts a month, i wd say f it and ride it out.

2brosgixxer

BUMP. Any thoughts / possible places as to where the oil on the tranny case may be coming from?

benjie

Check your dipstick and smell the oil. Then check the oil on the tranny and smell that. They should smell the same as in engine oil. So it's either your rear main seal or your upper oil pan seal. I recommend you change both if you're going to drop your tranny to fix the leak. If it smells different as in not good, then it's tranny fluid.

For the OP, I recommend that you check the oil pressure switch, and the crank seal as well. Those appear to be common places the engne leaks from as well. Also make sure you take a look at your valve cover gaskets (especially the rear) to make sure you're not leaking from up top as well.

2brosgixxer

It's definitely not tranny fluid so I am betting its gonna be leaking from the upper oil pan then. From what I've read that's quite a job to remove so I think I'll hold off since its not leaking too bad yet. I'll probably end up just paying someone to do it if it gets worse. Will using any stuff like stop leak work where its not leaking a whole lot?

Trini Boom

iTrader: (5)

It is the upper oil pan half mon seal. There is one on the opposite end under the crank pulley. If yours is leaking from there also, its the same on the other end. You have to disassemble both oil pans and reseal. There is no other way to fix it. I tried to shortcut and it does not hold up.

2brosgixxer

Thanks, you confirmed my suspicion then. I figured it would be those seals.

JAmerican

Another Saturday of Blood, Sweat and Pain but I cleaned up the base of my transmission. I applied the PB Blaster to the Filler Plug and it still would not budge. I replaced one of my rear brakes and now it's quiet. I am running out of ideas for how to open the filler plug. I may need an impact wrench. I couldn't see where the leak was coming from but it was definitely a brown fluid. So, unless my transmission gear oil hasn't been replaced since the car came off the lot (which is possible) and the transmission oil burned up, I'm thinking it's motor oil.

benjie

Use a flat tip screwdriver to clean out the space where the socket fits for the plug. If the ratchet actually fits, then just buy a breaker bar. It will come loose. I keep a 36" breaker bar in my trunk. It's way better for tire changes anyway so it's a good investment anyway.

JAmerican

I have a 12" breaker bar. It is kind of short but it does work under the car for getting to the filler plug. I brought my car to the shop for a brake caliper replacement (not confident to mess with brake lines yet) and told them to check my transmission fluid . I hope this means I can easily remove my filler plug now that they did the hard work.

2brosgixxer

HAHA, nice work on that!!

JAmerican

I had to justify the cost of the brake caliper replacement some way lol.

JAmerican

I finally got the Filler Plug out of the transmission. The tranny fluid is as brown as the motor oil so I'm going to drain and fill. The mechanic shop told me my fluid level was okay (which is true) but they didn't tell me it needed replacing. They probably wanted me to run into transmission issues

BTW, I saw a 2nd Gen Nissan today and it was being driven. Think it was a Maxima, looked like the ones I've seen online. If my car has almost 210K miles, I wonder how much that car has?

JAmerican

I'm starting to think it may be a tranny leak because my Tranny fluid is brown. When I do a drain and fill, I'll be under looking to see if it's red.

edwardh1

what is the wire going to in the picture that shows the oil filter.
I always thought nissan was dumb to run a wire where oil gets on it when u unscrew the oil filter.

rear main seal leak- suggest try high mileage oil, my nissan rear main only leaks in colder weather (below 40) a few drops each night. been that way for 5 years, my 2 toyotas and 2 civics never leaked, my moms buick leaked from new around oil pan gasket

2brosgixxer

Nah, gear oil is thicker than that...its 90 weight and has a stronger smell. I am thinking rear main seal. I had a buddy look at it and he is thinking rear main too. Other than the color, do you have any reason to believe its NOT motor oil? Keep me updated with what you come up with though please.

I believe the wire goes to the oil pressure switch, and yes, its in a bad place I agree.

JAmerican

Just my luck, its raining today and I don't have a garage. Looks like I have to wait to do the transmission oil change. When I stuck my finger (with gloves) into the filler plug, I got a brown-colored fluid and it didn't seem that thick. Then again, I wasn't looking to determine how think it was at the time so I could have ignored this. When the weather gets better, I'll be out there and I'll take more pictures. Last time, my gloves were covered in caliper grease, anti-sease and crud from the bottom of my car. Don't like to mix those with my smartphone lol.

2brosgixxer

Cool, keep this thread going. I kinda want to check my gear oil now that you mention this. BTW, I am 5 speed as well. There's another guy having the same leak if you want to follow his thread too for updates. He has replaced rear main seal and is still leaking. Here's the link http://forums.maxima.org/4th-generat...nsmission.html

2brosgixxer

Heres a quote from the other thread just as an FYI

JAmerican

The leakage issue seems like it would cost more than it's worth and since my oil level is still at high and I'm near to my 3000 miles for an oil change, I think it's fine. What I was worrying about was the transmission oil being brown and it being hard to tell the level without getting under the car.

2brosgixxer

I am thinking the same think. I may tackle it myself this summer and just take my time with it.

JAmerican

What oil do you think I'm changing below?






If you guessed motor oil, you'd be incorrect.

As I suspected, the Manual Transmission Gear Oil had not been replaced for a very time. I put some 4+quarts of RedLine MT90 GL-4 Gear Oil and now shifting from first to second is smooth. It used to drop significantly or stutter. The shifting feels much improved as well.

2brosgixxer

Yeah, I should do mine too sometime soon. Glad you posted what you used as I'll probably use the same. Also, in reference to the leak, with a lot of help on here, I have pretty much narrowed it down to that is is the Upper Oil Pan half moon seals NOT the Rear Main Seal. Looks like I have 2 summer projects now when I actually have 2 days off to complete them. Changing the gear Oil didn't help with your leak right? Also, heres a link that makes me think Upper Pan...as you can see in the diagram, the rear main (number 12296M) is just above the half moon seal (number 11121+A) so its gonna be a 50/50 shot id say but seems that the upper pan is "easier" to do than the RMS and a more likely culprit of the leak. http://www.courtesyparts.com/maxima-...1785_1788.html

JAmerican

Well I haven't checked the leak yet, did the change mid-day to evening yesterday. I also have a very slow coolant leak that I can't seem to find. I just hope it's not at the water pump... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ibfs1Zu9h4o

JAmerican

Next problem is a coolant leak. I think it's the water pump but I'm not certain. The leak is under the passenger side. For the time being, I need coolant. I can't figure out what type of coolant was placed last in the car. What should I do? My level is quite low.

2brosgixxer

You can buy stuff that says "can be mixed with any color coolant" I'd get that unless you plan on flushing your entire system.

JAmerican

Thanks, you've been very helpful responding to all my posts in this thread. I don't know if it is the water pump because sometimes a lot of coolant leaks and sometimes nothing leaks at all. I'm not sure what it could be.

2brosgixxer

strange that it only leaks sometimes. Unfortunately (or fortunately for me ) I have not had a coolant leak yet so can't help you there. But, I went to advance auto and priced out the seals for the upper pan today...$10. Cheap parts and a **** ton or labor. I am actually gonna try some of that stop leak crap before I yank the pan to see if that works. It says it will repair rear main seals so maybe it'll work for the upper pan seals. Guess it can only make the leak worse and force me to do it sooner than later. Gotta replace the oil pressure sensor as soon as I find a socket for it since that is leaking too. Just got the sensor today for $11 at advance. I'll update with results of stop leak/pan drop when I get to it.

JAmerican

Good luck. BTW, I posted video about my coolant leak...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8DLLD-iHDPA

Trini Boom

iTrader: (5)

That's the timing chain tensioner access hole but there is no coolant in that corner of the engine. When you have your car parked, where exactly from the bottom do you see the coolant sitting or dropping directly under? Chances are its one of two things:

-Water Pump
-Coolant hose behind rear valve cover