kukx30de

iTrader: (4)

I'm currently a 5th gen owner and know pretty much the quirks of the car and what to look for. However, I came across a 2002 5.5gen 6spd locally and it seems to be priced right so I thought I'd go look at it.
The car is pearl white with 129K miles on it. According to the owner it doesnt have any dings or dents.
I had some questions just specific to the 5.5 motor and what to look out for.

1. oil burning: If I pull out the plugs on the front bank near the radiator, and see oil on the plugs, do I assume its an oil burner? I know if its oil on the coil then its potentially the valve cover itself. I asked the owner if he has had to top off any oil between oil changes and he said he has not had to do it at all

2. 6 spd grinding: I've read that some of the transmissions have grinding in some of the gears and symptoms of worn out synchros... Are any sounds normal? vs. what to keep an ear open for and cause for concern?

3. What should I be looking out for in terms of noises at engine start-up? Does the early 3.5 have the timing guide issue that plagues the 6th gen?

4. Clutch? What is the engagement point for a good clutch vs a clutch that is almost going out? Does the clutch auto adjust in the 5.5? Does the clutch engage towards the bottom of the pedal travel or towards the top? I ask since in my old civic the clutch engaged almost at the bottom since new and in my 330 it engages almost up top.

5. VIAS: does the 5.5 have the same vias issue as the 5th gen? I know most folks do the vias BOP but in general does it have the same power loss symptoms like the 5th gen?

6. any other 5.5 gen related quirks anyone would care to share?


For those who think this should go to the other looking at cars thread, I noticed it hardly has any activity and I am looking at this car this evening, so this would get me my answers faster

Responses and feedback appreciated.

02pearlmax

iTrader: (8)

#5: The 5.5 gen VIAS is much more reliable than the 5th gen's. The BOP is just an inexpensive mod that deletes it and provides slight gains in the higher RPM range.

#1: If possible, have the seller or someone else start the car and rev it a bit while you watch the exhaust. An oil burner will blow blue smoke out the exhaust on startup and revving. Also, take a close look at the muffler. If the tips and the inside of the tips are covered in excessive amounts of black soot and dust, the car may be an oil burner.

Eirik

iTrader: (2)

1. No one can pinpoint an oil-burner without opening up the engine to examine the condition of the piston rings. Check the oil level--if it's not even showing on the stick, then he's been running it dry between oil changes and you should be super-leery. Worst case, though, it's just a normal oil-burner and you'll put in about 1qt every 1000 miles.

2. Synchros on their way out grind when you're changing them. Some 6-speeds make this clunking noise when shifting into 3rd, it's "normal" and won't cause problems besides annoying you. Changing the gear oil can help alleviate both symptoms, if only by a small amount. If it makes sound while the lever is firmly in gear and the clutch is fully engaged (your foot is off the pedal), then something is seriously wrong with the transmission.

3. I haven't read about any 5.5 gens having issues with the timing chain guides. My '02 didn't make any noise upon startup, but the valves/lifters definitely ticked way louder than the ones on my '05.

4. The clutches engage super-high on 6-speed Maximas, and G35s according to some other posts. Meaning, it will engage like your 330. Nissan warns not to short-shift by not pressing the pedal all the way to the floor, though. Full pedal-travel is still required, bascially.

5. No, it's a completely different design. Have someone blip the throttle while you're looking at the VAIS. You'll see the thing move if it's functioning. When you're driving, you'll feel it swith when WOAH the tach jumps up around, what, 3800 RPM?

6. Ask when he changed the engine mounts, because that clunking will annoy you AND place extra stress on your transmission mounts and.. yeah, they suck.

Bring a code reader with you to see what codes are there. I've yet to find a Maxima that hasn't had active codes. Usually, the seller is clever enough to reset the light, but you can wager large sums of money that it'll come back on the next few days after you buy it. Better to be prepared by borrowing a OBD-II reader from a friend, or "renting" one from Autozone or the like (you put down something like $50, then they give you the money back when you return the tool. Or you can just keep it.). The scan tool will tell you what codes are sitting there, waiting for enough time to pass to re-light the bulb.

Look for an afermarket head-unit to tell if he's already dealt with the BOSE subwoofer cut-out problem. If it's still stock, prepare to shell out monies to get a fully-functioning sound system.

Edit: My muffler never showed any traces of the oil consumption, even though it varied from 1 qt/600 miles to 1 qt/2000 miles, usually staying around 1 qt/1000 miles.

q.man06

iTrader: (2)

If there's enough blow by through the rings to get oil on the plugs, I would assume that it wouldn't be running smooth at all. Oil consumption is hard to find by just looking at it. The muffler can be a good indicator, I know mine is really black in and somewhat around the tips and I burn oil, but keep in mind he might have cleaned that off too.

Check to see if the CD player works if it's the 6CD changer, made that mistake. The sub cutout has only just become an issue for me, so i'm not sure what that entails yet.

Check to make sure heated seats work, made that mistake also. (only passenger side works on mine)

Timing chain rattle, mine does it on most startups, especially when the engine is cold. You'll hear it.

Drive it fast, drive it slow, drive it normally. Listen to hear for pinging as it's common with the 3.5L. I've heard it being everything from coil packs, MAF, or for me, a bubble in the cooling system.

Basic things like looking at the tires to see if their wearing evenly, fluids are clean, all accessories work, everything is dry underneath, etc...

X2 on bringing a code reader! I wish I had done this on several cars i've bought.

Good luck!

trooplewis

iTrader: (1)

1)Mine burns a qt of oil every 1500 miles, and my plugs looked fantastic when I changed them at 103,000 miles. I did not have any "puffs" of smoke at any point.

3) Many of the 2002 Max's have the 1-second rattle at start up. Evidently it does not cause any damage, because many of those same cars are at 150,000-200,000 miles.

4) I disagree with a previous poster, on my 6-speed you have to push the pedal WAY down to get the clutch to disengage. Several people have commented that as the plates wear, engagement comes up higher and you don't have to push so far to disengage the clutch.

Yes, buy a $35 code reader on eBay, it is a great tool.

q.man06

iTrader: (2)

I think a lot of this depends on the clutch brand/type you have too. I know in my civic I got an OE replacement from Autozone and it engaged really high on the pedal, and it was brand new. That was high compared to the blown one I replaced too.

On my Maxima, it engages really high, but it also has 170k and is on it's way out-- kinda has been for 60k miles lol.

When I look at cars' clutches I typically have a few things I look for.

Does the clutch slip? Check full load at every RPM, mine slips around 2k rpm in high loads if I do some spirited driving before checking.

Is the pedal excessively stiff? I know mine is, it's stiffer than the race clutch in my civic-- which is pretty damn stiff.

Any noise coming from the bell housing area when engaging/disengaging the clutch? Mine makes a slight noise like it's rubbing on something, I assume the grease on the input shaft is just non-existent after 170k...


I hope that helps!

kukx30de

iTrader: (4)

thank you for the great responses guys!
i never heard back from the guy to meet last evening but i hv an email from him to meet today or tomorrow
yep.... excited.... lets see what this 5.5gen 6spd is all about!

Scottwax

iTrader: (8)

My clutch engages in the middle, but you still have to push the clutch pedal almost all the way down for clean gear changes.

Mine has no oil burning issues, maybe a quart every 4500 miles, no way to tell without driving the car 500 miles or so.

ewakefield

iTrader: (3)

+1

Mine engages really high, but If you dont push it all the way you'll will get some syncro/grinding noises.