Gene Breznay

I've posted a few questions about the MIL indicator and whether or not there was a recall on this item. I spoke with a dealer who said there was a problem with the MIL and Nissan had extended the warranty to 5 years or 60,000 miles. My MIL came on again and some posted that it could be a number of things to cause it as did the dealer. Now the light shut off after about 160 more miles placed on the car after the light initially came on. The light came on after filling up the gas tank and some said the gas cap may not have been on tight enough. I tightened it and waited and waited for the light to go off. That was about 3 weeks ago. Now the light is off, could it take that long for the sensors to reset or check the system or whatever they do to determine there is nothing wrong?

Daniel B. Martin

Yes.

The loose filler cap MIL is a two-trip failure. That means the computer-driven test for a small fuel leak must fail twice in a row for the MIL to turn on. The MIL will be turned off if the test is passed for "n" trips in a row. The factory service manual does not disclose the value of "n", but it is at least 20.

dwapenyi

iTrader: (3)

You seem to be experiencing what I think is a very common problem for the Gen 4 Maxima. It's not a major problem, but it seems to happen alot. In fact, it happened to me on my 98 SE. My MIL kept coming on and off frequently. I did the screwdriver thing on the ECU and pulled the code. My problem was the vent control valve and the charcoal canister. Emissions, basically. I took it to Nissan twice. Piad $50 the firts time, but the MIL turned off and Nissan did nothing. The 2nd time, the MIL stayed and Nissan acknowledged the problem. The vent control valve got a piece of metal stuck in it that prevented it dfrom working properly. They went in and replaced all the parts. $387 bill. I then found a thread on eityher the mailing list or here mentioning that, as well as the Nissan Warranty, all US car have a Federal emissiions warranty that the Manufacturer has to honor. I called Nissan coprporate and they said yes, that's true. The Federal warranty lasts for 3 years of 50K miles. Because my MIL wnet off due to bad emmissions parts, I sent the receipt to Nissan and they refunded me.

TO know how to "talk" tot eh MIL go here;

http://web2.airmail.net/scutchen/max_faq/

Look under the maintenace section in the heading Diagnose Check engine light.

Hope this helps.

DW

thanjp

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Daniel B. Martin

MIL = Malfunction Indicator Lamp. That's the official OBD-2 name for the dashboard warning lamp more commonly known as the Check Engine light or the Service Engine Soon light.

dwapenyi

iTrader: (3)

Sit in your car. Turn your key all the way BUT don't start the car. All your indicator lights light up. The MIL is the yellow one to the right under the speedo and it says Service engine soon.

DW