Hello guys
I am looking to buy a 2002-2003 nissan maxima and a lot of people tell me that there is a major problem that the 3.5 motor's eat oil. Now was there a recol for it or it was left as it is. Also know a guy who got 2002 3.5 and changed his motor 3 times and nissan and the problem is still there. i dont want to invest money in to the engine so what are the chances and what would you guys say. I know nissan motor are really good but the 3.5 i heard is horrible. Thanks in advance . Also any common problem on this car would definatly give me heads up

 

let me know what i am looking towards as you guys are owner's of these car's/

 

Not every 3.5 ate up oil. Mine didnt, and I know a handful of people that also had no complaint. It's only on some that they ate up oil. If it worries you that much, buy a max with warranty, less miles. So if it does happen, you can get it replaced by nissan

 

I bought my 03 SE, 6 speed earlier this yr. The issues I learned concerning the 5.5 Gen from this site were the oil consumption problem, the oil in the spark plug tubes, the bad brakes and the 3rd gear crunch.

I don't have the oil consumption problem but I do/did have the other problems. I could have kept driving the car with the oil in the tubes and the bad brakes but I decided to fix them. I'm not too worried about the "crunch" as I don't autox or race the car. I bought Hawk pads and an 04 valve cover which fixed my problems.

IMO you should be concerned most with the oil consumption issue because it can lead to needing a new engine. Look for a car with low mileage, (under 45k) and make sure you monitor the oil level regularly. Because from what I've read here Nissan isn't exactly running ppl down to give them free engines. You will have to provide "substantial" proof of your consumption and sometimes that isn't enough.

 

imo most 3.5s use a bit of oil...nothing to worry about. The owner's manual even says adding oil between oil changes is considered normal. Even my new engine w/ 4k miles burns very little every 500 miles. I have learned to live with it

 

I just had my oil change done yesterday. The Tech told me I was 1/2 quart low. No other problems.

 

Car and Driver's long term Boxster test showed 6 addition quarts of oil added over the 40k test period. Seems typical for a lot more cars than I would have expected, not just the VQ35.

As long as you aren't fouling plugs, seeing blue smoke or going through more than a quart every 1000-1500 miles and it isn't getting worse, I wouldn't worry too much about it. A drastic change in oil consumption is a huge concern though.

 

I changed my wheel bearing that seems pretty common, and I just changed my plugs and noticed my valve cover gasket leaked oil all over the plugs and coils so I have to change that

 

look no further I have what you need with a 03 6spd low miles.

 

Oil consumption is a documented issue but not nearly the "norm" like it may be portrayed on a forum like this where people typically come to get answers. The first oil change I did on mine after I bought it used was almost 5,000 miles since the oil change when I bought it, I might have used 1/8 quart in that 5,000 miles. I've not encountered the 3rd gear crunch or the oil in the spark plug tubes (bad VC gaskets), the stock brakes do kinda suck though I will admit. Only other "issue" I have encountered is the plastic splash guard that goes under the engine has broken or missing pins holding it up so I have to push them back in every once in a while when it is hanging down.

 

Thanks a lot guys for all the answers really appreciate it.
I can get one for a good price silver on black or black on black with around 70-85 thousand miles on it.

 

if you use a thicker oil like 10w30 or 40 will that slow or eliminate the oil burning? i would like to use synthetic in my engine, and i was hoping a higher weight synthetic would make a difference

 

get the new 05-06 maxima. i dont think they have the oil problem. or get the 01 5speed.

 

05-06 'Revup' VQ's have oil consumption issues in the G35....

 

yuck.. i hate the design on those... the 07's arent bad though, but a tad out of my pricerange

naa.. if im putting out more money, i'd rather upgrade to the bigger engine and the 6 speed tranny

 

well lets me talk to my dealer and let me see what he can find for me. BTW what is TE maxima i seen it in another posts something about TE i was assuming SE but then couple of different ppl said TE.

 

I think it's just an SE w/the upgrade of titanium polished wheels.

 

its more than just the wheels, more cosmetic upgrades too, but the biggest upgrade would be the HLSD on some T.E.'s

 

what is HLSD? and how can you tell its TE is says instead of SE or by looking at the wheels? Does 2002-2003 maxima 6 speed come with LSD (Limited slip Differential) or no?

 

i am assuming HLSD LSD is limited slip differential and the H is for something else. Does it only come on TE or it comes on all SE's

 

for TE you can tell by the silver center console, and polished wheels. thats pretty much it i guess.

 

k thanks

 

My 3.5 doesn't eat much oil at all. The car runs great, but there is the small 3rd gear noise when it is cold

 

does HLSD come on all SE or just some???

Thanks a lot

 

HLSD only comes on some SE's as an option...the H is for hydraulic. My 02 6-speed has the 3rd gear crunch and it burns some oil but I have learned to live with it. You will love a 5.5gen. Don't worry about it.

 

HLSD - Helical Limited Slip Differential

 

Oh...sorry my bad Helical it is, don't know where I got hydraulic

 

6CD changer, Auto Dimming Mirror/Compass, Chrome door step/kick panels that read MAXIMA. Also, one color was specific to the TE, Polished Titanium, even though all colors were available w/all the other aforementioned SE TE options.

 

can i tell if the maxy got HLSD without test driving it?

 

yes, here ya go--> http://forums.maxima.org/showthread....transaxle+code

 

mine 02 SE does not have the oil consumption problem and the sparks are good...
The third gear issue is a little annoying, but survivable. I also replaced one Oxygen sensor, which I thought was a fairly common issue...

 

check ebay I think I seen one yesterday on there for sale wile I was skimming through

 

at 56k, I use about 1/4 to 1/2 quart in my 10k oil change interval (synthetic). No 3rd gear or oil in tubes either. I know the oil consumption is a documented issue here; but when i look at the forums for any car i have owned in recent years, there have always been peeps with oil consumption issues. Not to generalize, but many people on forums are performance minded and tend to run their engines a little harder than the average person would. For example, on my f-body, i found a direct relationship between average rpms and oil consumption. when i was auto-xing and dragging more regularly, i noticed very noticible consumption compared to now when i rarely have time to get to the track.

 

Not to tread jack but I have a quick question.....is there a BIG difference between the 4speed auto vs 6speed 5.5gen? Sorry for being a newbie I'm just thinking of trading in my 04 maxima se(just too heavy for me and I still want a maxima) for a 5.5 gen and I don't know too much about them...thanks....

 

Not to tread jack but I have a quick question.....is there a BIG difference between the 4speed auto vs 6speed 5.5gen? Sorry for being a newbie I'm just thinking of trading in my 04 maxima se(just too heavy for me and I still want a maxima) for a 5.5 gen and I don't know too much about them...thanks in advance

 

hey if you are interested I think I read last night on the forum about a guy selling his 6speed I think the name of it prize for my car

 

yes

 

so what is the big difference? like in the 1/4mile&trap; 5-60 time?

 

Not as much of a difference as the previous generation. This is due to the torque threshold of the VQ35 vs the VQ30 and the 6MT's obese flywheel and 6 gears (more drivetrain loss).