Pri63

Ok...I know I've seen posts about this but now that the cold weather is kicking into full gear, I just wanted to see if anyone else if having these problems. First, the car has a weak start( battery?), then I hear a grinding noise when it starts ( starter? does it need to be regreased ), and lastly the god awful rattling on start. So basically, I hate starting my car in the cold weather...
FYI-
I'm running Exxon/Mobil 93, Mobil 1 SuperSyn 5w-30.

Also I've put 10k on the car since I bought it, it's at 70k right now, should I get a tune-up or the 70,000 mile service done by Nissan, I wouldn't mind DIY-ing but I figured this service included tuning, which I can't do?

Thanks for the help/advice./remedies..

Galo

Well, a weak battery is a bad thing to have anyway so replace it. The reason its not good to keep running on a weak battery is simply you're constantly 'leaning' on the alternator a lot -not good for the alty or your serpentine belt -which at 70k miles with some on a weak battery, you will likely need to replace.

The clatter which lasts for one to two seconds once the engine starts is simply the cam chain rattling until the chain tensioners (hydraulic) re-pressurize -all VQs do that to some extent. Use good oil of the right viscosity (now that it's cold, you are using 5W-30, right??) and a Nissan original filter of any other good oil filter that has a built-in 'anti-drain' valve and you should see this reduced in intensity.

I've no ideas on the starter's noises other than the obvious....a weak/bad starter, solenoid, of flywheel damage -you'll have to pull it & have it checked by a competent shop.

killer924007

ohh! i got the same problem..when the weather is cold..and i start the car .the rpm goes high and got the hizzz sounds,but when the weather is warm..the sounds doesn't come...don't know why!!!

Galo

The RPM will go high by design -it's supposed to do that. I wish it did'nt, but that's another matter altogether.

But, if the sound you're hearing is a true buzzing sound -a real bzzzzzzz- that's not the valve train clatter because the valve clatter sounds exactly like bunch of ball bearings in a jar -it is a thrashing, not a buzzzz.

If you car is an auto, that bzzzzzzzzzz could be the electric engine mounts...

ThaHotness2k

yeah, my max runs like crap until it warms up. But the high RPMs are there so there is enough air to burn the rich fuel mixture needed to start a cold engine..otherwise it would stall. If it bugs you just warm it up first.

Galo

Well, never said my car runs crappy when cold. Indeed, runs fine when cold. It does not stumble, it does not smell over-rich, it runs perfectly wel, thank you very much.

All I said is that I dont like the car going from a cold start to some rather high RPMs immediately, and the reason for that -which I did not wanna get into in my prior post- is because I would prefer thet it be programmed to start, idle slowly for a couple secs until the oil pressure came up & the oil was circulating freely and then come up in RPMs until the warm-up period was completed

If you Max is running crappy when cold, u have a problem

callmezeus

Galo has a point. It could be the electronic motor mounts. If it sounds like a servo motor then the mounts is a possibility. I still remeber the day, I found out from the dealer that the mounts were electronic. I didn't beleive them till they gave me the old one.

GreenSeMax

Max's run poorly when cold and are loud for the same reason. The Aluminum engine doesn't reach proper operating tolerances until it is at operating temperature ~195. That's why it runs ****ty in the cold. It's loud because the aluminum doesn't carry the same inherent dampening characteristics of iron, the common block material until recently. The engine will 'knock' essentially, not pinging or detonation, but the pistons will rock in the bore slightly until they reach proper diameter, which is when they warm. This happens because the bores are steel(i believe), and the pistons are aluminum. The same thing happens in older cars with traditional forged pistons in a cast iron engine. Just use a quality oil of proper viscosity, and let it warm up before you beat on it. Ideally before you even put a load on the engine.