twitch579

Went today to get my oil changed at a reputable import car repair shop, when they had my car on the lift draining the oil (I was with them the whole time) they saw oil on the bottom of my transmission and the motor.

The mechanic there who is also my friend told me it was the rear main seal leaking. Also knowing that the vavle covers are problematic I chacked them over with a fine tooth comb and no sign of oil anywhere. Its only on the ver bottom of the motor.

BAD NEW IS MY POWERTRAIN WARRENTY JUST RAN OUT 587 MILES AGO!!!

So I went to nissan and they said 11 hours labor minimum!!

Anybody else expierence this problem or have possible solutions???

Im on the verge of trading the car in for a 350z.

Thanks all -chris-

twitch579

Anybody??????

DcMaN

iTrader: (13)

yea its a pretty big job. Are you sure its engine oil and not gear oil ? Pictures would help.

twitch579

I never thought of that, We really didnt anylize the fluid that much come to think of it. Is gear oil a common leak on these cars and is it serious??

NmexMAX

iTrader: (22)

What is?


So what are the going to replace in those 11 hours? An what is a 'big' job, since you do not know where the leak is coming from?

Did you cehck the rear valve cover? So, you took the intake manifold off since you cannot check it with a fine tooth anything with the intake manifold on.


Hmmm, you never know, it might leak oil just the same

2002 Maxima SE

iTrader: (3)

587 miles should be "good will". I'd contact NNA and see if they will cover it.

Rydicule

Have much experience with Nissan and their "good will"?

They don't have much.

2002 Maxima SE

iTrader: (3)

All depends on the person and the dealership.

LA02MAX

iTrader: (3)

Could you tell at all at least where the fluid was coming from? And as nmex mentioned, did you remove your upper IM to check the rear VC for leaks? How much oil did you see, just a small stream or do you see it collecting anywhere under your car at all or spots on the ground?

Love_00_Max

As folks have said in the forum, talk to NNA and tell them your case, I have a friend who has an Odyssey and he got a rebuilt transmission from Honda at 82K miles, warranty was 80K miles.

FYI, I have the very same leak though I am way off the warranty. The leak is not messing up my driveway but then it is over the transmission.

I was quoted by AAA car care center as a 7 hr job to remove the entire oil pan and resealing with liquid gasket. Others on the forum have recommended to locate the leak and apply sealant from the outside where the pan meets the block. It is pretty tough with the crossbar and all the other stuff around.

Trust me it a labor intensive job and should be done by removing many hardware in the path. BTW, I have never understood why it would leak in the first place since it is a non-moving part that is bolted to the block. I hate these liquid gaskets, why not put a real gasket like the one on the tranny or the oil pan -- way to make money for the stealerships on high mileage vehicles, right!!!

getbigtony

iTrader: (1)

honda is a lot more generous then nissan
especially in the area of service..
but u should always contact and try; what's the worse that'll happen? they'll say no they can't warranty it

JohnWEngle

Trading one VQ35 for another? Hmmmm....

DcMaN

iTrader: (13)

I was referring to the rear main seal being a pretty big job.

Love_00_Max

I was referring to the seal on the Aluminium pan (on which is connected the filter, sensors, oil pressure switch etc) not the seal on the steel pan on which the oil drain bolt resides!

To get the Aluminum pan off, you need to get the exhaust and cross member off, pretty intense I would guess.

maximamass

I have oil dripping from the entire bottom of my oil pan but I have driven over 2000 miles since my last oil change and I am still not LOW on oil. Could this be tell tale signs of this?

GhettoMAX

crap, I need to check my max, as I seem to be running low on oil as well

twitch579

Well this weekend im going to do my own extensive study of the motor from underneath. Im also going to remove the **** plastic cover from the motor and see if its the valve cover, but im sure its not, ive had a bunch of people look at it already and the whole top of the motor is clean as a whistle.

Im currently trying to find the nissan customor service number so I can beg them for a out of warrantey fix. Not sure how im gonna word it to them, either yell and scream or ask real nicely. Other people told me to keep calling and give them hell and theyll finally give in. Anyone have the number for them?

NmexMAX

iTrader: (22)

Post#17I thought you already did that?


Post #1

twitch579

Well was on the phone with nissan for about 30 minutes today and there gonna get back to me they said within 2 business days. I explained how it was probably leaking before I was out of warrantey and they seemed pretty understanding about it all.

Hopefully theyll call back with good news!

pbn85

iTrader: (8)

bump b/c I did not want to create a new thread.

This is scary...I checked the oil yesterday morning and it was right at the "H" mark. I drove to school and came back. MAX miles put on must have been 7 miles round-trip. I checked the oil this morning and its noticeably lower than the "H" level. The engine itself was replaced by Nissan and only has 3200 miles on it and I KNOW I couldnt have burned any in that 7 mile trip...absolutely not. Burning would mean I have a piston rings problem. Even people whose cars burn oil would never burn oil in a 7-mile period...

So this leads me to believe I have a leak somewhere. I read the rear valve covers usually crack. Thing is, Im sure I got new valve covers when the engine was put in so I'll cross that out as a possibility. I see no oil spots on the driveway. All I could think of is the PCV valve...after lots of searching on here on PCV valve's I have come to the conclusion that it MAY be that. But the only problem is my pcv was replaced 10k miles ago so I highly doubt its that also...

Im stumped now . What I want to know is if there are any other places I could check for a leak tomorrow?

SoonerFan

iTrader: (5)

yeah good luck with that

nissan didnt cover mine...with 1K REMAINING on the powertrain warranty

jasonmax

iTrader: (2)

I had a greasy tranny bottom when I brought my car. The Nissan dealer checked my car and told me that my tranny cooler line was leaking. So I'm waiting for the parts which will be available on Monday.

Kyle00

iTrader: (5)

And.... what does that have to do with this topic?

pbn85

iTrader: (8)

lol...well Im gonna check my engine thoroughly for oil leaks in a bit starting with the valve covers and pcv valve...I only hope I isolate the problem to those areas and no where else

KRRZ350

iTrader: (29)

ftr, to the OP: It's probably not the actual rear-main seal, it's more than likely the rear upper oil pan seal that attaches to the rear main, even the VQ35 that I picked up w/44k was beginning to sweat oil from it. Oil pick-up o-rings, front and rear oil pan seals, permetex grey, and a lot of time to drop crossmember and exhaust, it's all in the fsm.

pbn85

iTrader: (8)

^ thanks man but I doubt its the rear oil pan seal b/c I see no oil on my driveway

I was gonna get ready to diagnose the leak today but realized I dont have my tools on me. Its so much harder w/o them so I wont even attempt it...Im just going to take it to Nissan. Besides the upper oil pan seal what else can I tell Nissan to check?

More than likely its not the rear valve cover b/c its a new engine and Nissan gets the engine in 1 complete piece so Im guessing theres already a new one in there

Torgus

iTrader: (10)

are you losing alot of oil?
i'll change your real main seal for $500. it's just a slow Saturday's worth of work. nothing you couldn't do yourself.

KRRZ350

iTrader: (29)

OP means Original Poster, I wasn't referrng to your leak.

Sllvermax, Did you check for oil residue in the exhaust tips, pcv or rings would cause that, pcv would also be more likely to cause idle issues as well. Rear oil pan seal will cause wetness around the bellhousing.

$500 is steep if it's the rear oil pan seal, which it almost always is, however if you're pulling tranny and supporting engine with hoist to do the entire rms the proper way that's a very fair price.

ktranne

iTrader: (25)

^^OP has the problem back in Jan. and hasn't been in here for amost 3 months now.

pbn85

iTrader: (8)

oh my fault...I was under the impression that I created the thread