My max has 70K and needs the 60K tuneup--so I called the place where I take my car and they want $400 for the tuneup and it needs rear brakes (another $150+). I haven't ever worked on my car (except for putting new corners, headlights etc.) First of all, If I got a manual COULD I do this tuneup on my own? And if I could, how long would it take me (consider my inexperience) to do it, and how much would it cost. The car shop said it's so expensive because like it has Platinum Spark Plugs etc. but 400 just seems high? So is it worth it do myself, if yall think I can???
Thanks

 

$400 is very high.
Yes you can do the Tune up. I did it and trust me I'm a mess with mechanical stuff.
Get the haynes manual and do a search here on all the work you will do (air filter, fuel filter, plus installation...). The org will be here to help if you get stuck.
You can do it in one day.
If you have the tools it will cost less than $150 (platinium plugs will cost around $50).

 

I had mine done a few weeks ago, yet I'm not at 60k miles yet (59xxx). Anyways it was $450 including a $130 front brake service (rotors resurfaced and new pads) and NGK Platinum plugs ($11/plug).
-Cyrus

 

anyone go to the nissan service? anyone get screamed at, looked down upon, given looks for putting stuff on your max??
after my 60k im taking off extended warrantying- does this mean im on my own now? when should i bring the car in ?

 

dealership where i am wants 525 for it. there is no way i had that kind of cash. i have been slowly doing the stuff myself and have spent about 60 dollars and thats for ngk's, fuel filter, oil filter, oil, throttle body cleaner, and all my belts seemed to be fine. However i might pay for them to flush out the radiator fluid cause thats a mess. If you don't have the money, id suggestion doing what they say to on the maximadriver.com how2.

 

Exactly. Your basicly done and saiving around 300 bucks or so in the process. It really is not hard as long as you just take your time and go through it step by step. It really is worth doing it yourself and then you learn how to do it from now on so you wont have to pay for it on your next car either.

SuDZ

 

I took my car to the dealer to take a look at a weird noise after i worked on my brakes. He basically told me I did a **** poor brake job and had the ***** to redo all 4 rotors and pads, even though i know they were fine and, in hindsight, just needed some adjustment.

Then he told me that my K&N Intake was useless because i have to change my ECU to make it useful. he said that i was trying to be like the guys on Fast and the Furious. bastard....

I say don't bring it into the dealer until you've exhausted all of your other resources, ie the .org page, service manuals, other mechanics, etc....

 

like the guys on fast and furious!!?that is THE ULTIMATE insult. screw it when i go in next im going to bring someone older with me just to see if theyll say stuff to him, or if they only pick on younger guys. screw it im still going to do my 60k there but after that im thru

 

I just did the 60k last week, its not very hard. Discount auto parts can order the plat plugs for a little under $8 each. The fuel filter was something like $10,the pvc is just a few dollars and then some throtle body cleaner is $2. I would go ahead and take out the batery and the intake up to the TB. You will need it to get to the fuel filter. Do the fuel filter first then its down hill. At first it looks like one screw is backward on the FF but its not, take the top clamp off first and the hose then bend it forward and you will see that the bottom screw is now in the right place to loosen, And the hoses are a ***** to get off so dont get discouraged. Dont forget to depresurize the fuel system 1st. The PCV is a little tight but no biggie. The the front 3 and rear 2 on the passanger side spark plugs will take you 25 min tops. however the last plug is right under some smog controle crap and its very hard to get to. I didnt have my good tools so I couldnt get the 2 13mm bolts off and had to work around it. I fed the spark plug socket down and then attached a long extention and a swivle and worked it out. The coil pack was a ***** but some swearing and pushing and it comes out and goes back in even with the smogg stuff still atached. If you live in a warm climate and dont see severe weather you might not need to replace the accesory belts. I live in fl and mine were perfect. Clean the throtle body and put it all back to geather. I also adjusted my throtle cable. You should also check the ecu for codes when you are all done. Tools, Sockets, philips head screw driver, stubby philips head for the fuel filter, spark plug rench, swivel, antiseeze, extentions for the sockets, rags, a friend, a light, something to hold ur hood HIGH if your shocks are blown, and patients.

 

i have 104k miles and the only thing that was ever done to the car was oil changes. i think i should go get that 60k tuneup, maybe thats why i ran 15.7...

 

so if i go in theyll have to take out my POP to get to the ff? theyll def yell at me then haha

 

I just completed the tune up myself at 65k miles...

Get some spark plugs, fuel filter air filter, check the belts, pcv valve, change the oil, flush the tranny oil... I think my tune up cost me no more then 100$, doing it myself.. spark plugs = 54$ or so, fuel and air filter = 20$, the rest is cheap...

On my old maxima i had a shop do part of the tune up and they ended up putting in the wrong spark plugs.. This time I did it myself, made sure everything is done properly and my car couldn't run better right now

 

How did you remove the PCV valve? I have to do that and then I am all set but can not remove it. Was yours difficult to take off or did it just pop right out? I cannot get the tube off of it so that I can try to take the valve itself out.

SuDZ

 

I pulled the tube off first, they just used needle nosed pliers to pull it off. Who cares if you mess it up its trash anyway.

 

Thanks a lot guys, I think I'll just take it piece by piece. If any of you that have done all of the 60K tuneup want to get a ton of annoying e-mail questions from me as I go through this, then let me know. I don't have ANY tools outside of standard socket wrenches and screw drivers. So I think that's where I'll start. Thanks again.
And where can I get the Haynes Manual? Is that what I need?

 

Could someone tell me a little more about the PCV valvue, what it does, and where it is, also which one to buy. i must have overlooked it when i was doing my tune-up.

thanks
eric

 

You guys payed way too much for your damn tuneups...Mine was $69.95 from the Nissan dealership where i bought my car from. I don't know how or why you payed $400-$500 for a tuneup

 

I couldn't tell you off the top of my head what it does but the haynes and chilton manuals explain it. I got a PCV at HiLo/O'Reilly autoparts - none of the stores in town had it in stock so O'Reilly ordered it for me. about $5.

 

There's no way you could have gotten a full 60K tuneup for only 69.95. Parts alone cost more than that. They're supposed to change out your spark plugs - platinum - as well as the ATF, oil, belts, other fluids, i think they even flush the cooling system, fuel filter, air filter if you don't have an intake, and 3-4 other things. Check your service invoice to see what they actually performed.

 

Here is information about what it does that I just found on a site.

PCV Valve
The process of combustion forms several gases and vapors; many of them quite corrosive. Some of these gases get past the piston rings and into the crankcase. If left in the crankcase, these substances would cause all kinds of bad things (rust, corrosion, and formation of sludge), so they have to be removed. Back in the old days, they used to be dumped out into the atmosphere through a tube. Once we realized what a problem pollution was in the sixties, the PCV (Positive Crankcase Ventilation) system was developed to take the place of the old "dump tube."

The PCV system uses a hose connected between the engine and the intake manifold to draw these gases out of the engine's crankcase and back into the cylinders to burn with the regular fuel. The only problem to solve is how to keep these gases from going *****-nilly into the manifold and upsetting the required air-fuel ratio. The solution to this problem is the PCV valve.

The PCV valve controls the release of crankcase gases and vapors to the intake manifold. The valve is kept closed by spring action when the engine is at rest. When the engine is running normally, the low vacuum it creates allows the valve to open and release crankcase vapors and gases into the intake manifold for burning. If the engine is idling or you are slowing down, the vacuum level rises and pulls the valve plunger into the valve opening. This partially blocks off the opening so that only a small amount of vapors and gases can be drawn into the intake manifold.

One really comforting feature of the PCV valve is its behavior in the event of a backfire. If your car backfires in the manifold, the pressure makes the spring close the valve completely. With the valve closed, there is no chance that the flame can move into the crankcase and cause an explosion.

SuDZ

 

It says, and i quote: "Replace spark plugs (1 per cyl.) Check and adjust idle & timing Inspect air filter, plug wires, & distributor cap Road test vehicle"

 

thanks sudz for the info

eric

 

That's correct for just a "tune-up." But for a full 60K service at the dealer, more things are supposed to be done, as I mentioned earlier, hence the $500-600 invoice. At 60K, the dealer should have replaced the air filter, not just inspect it. Furthermore, if you're driving a 4th gen. maxima, your car shouldn't have a distrutor or a distributor cap. The 4th gens use the Nissan Direct Ignition System (NDIS). Nissan made a big deal about that when the 95's first rolled out.

 

an air filter replacing isnt even the major part of the cost though. whats the biggest things they have to do at 60k?
also, how long should i wait, i just hit 60k but i dont think i need servicing yet.
and..what does pcv stand for

 

How hard is it to change the back 3 plugs and was it about the same amount of time also thanks

 

shane How hard is it to change the back 3 plugs and was it about the same amount of time also thanks

Why dont you read the tread before you post?

 

fsumax i did read it and still dont see where anyone talked about the back 3 plugs so tell me who did respond and i will find it then

 

I did-

The the front 3 and rear 2 on the passanger side spark plugs will take you 25 min tops. however the last plug is right under some smog controle crap and its very hard to get to. I didnt have my good tools so I couldnt get the 2 13mm bolts off and had to work around it. I fed the spark plug socket down and then attached a long extention and a swivle and worked it out. The coil pack was a ***** but some swearing and pushing and it comes out and goes back in even with the smogg stuff still atached.

Its on the 1st page like the 9th post

 

I would NOT bring my car back to the shop that did this to your car. I don't see how they could have adjusted the timing or inspected the plug wires and distributor cap because the Maxima does not have a distributor or plug wires and the timing is adjusted continuously by the ECU. All they really did was charge you $70.00 to replace the plugs. If I were you I would pull them (all of them) to make sure they put the correct ones in if they replaced them at all.

It makes me sick to see people get taken...

 

The dealer where I got my stuff done was okay he charged $289 for replacing sparkplugs, oil, fuel filter, air filter, radiator drain and refill, transmission, and a bunch of other stuff. He wanted to charge $70 extra for rotating and checking the tyres!! I said screw that, cuz I have free lifetime rotation and balance from another place. Anyways, speaking of tune up, anyone know about replacing timing belts?? How involved is the work and are there any special tools required???

 

4th gens and up don't have timing belts - they use chains. Ideally, they should last the life of the engine and don't need to be changed the way belts do. I wouldn't worry about it. Generally, they are a pain to replace.