Opened up my front valve cover today for a peek inside and found this little bugger on the right side, just laying there.

I have no clue what this is, or how it got there. Perhaps you all have some idea's?

It's about the size of a dime.

2002 Maxima 3.5L MT

Side1:
https://i.imgur.com/azka6.jpg
Side2:
https://i.imgur.com/Cr2Yv.jpg

Comparison w/ dime:
https://i.imgur.com/Q85j0.jpg

Any idea about what this is, or where it came from? I'm all ears

 

IDK, but if I were you, I wouldn't drive that car anywhere or even turn the engine 'till you find out!

My best guess would be the tip off a rocker???

 

Looks like hydraulic valve lifter, otherwise called hydraulic tappet??

Is your engine making abnormal noises?

 

Yes, the motor is making noises, but I assumed it was the timing chain tensioner/guide

 

Looks like a melted nickel that somehow fell in there, put it side to side to a normal nickel and you'll see the similarities.

 

Due turn that off immediately. I would guess you have some bent valves. It looks like a hydraulic lifter but I thought vq35's have solid lifters? Something is terribly wrong though

 

Yea, I'm not running the car until I have a better idea of what this is.

Weird though, notice the machined circle in the one picture. I can't imagine what this could be, being machined like that..

In case the pictures aren't to clear.. the edge is completely smooth and rounded. I looked around at a few different things, but most edges seemed straight.

It is just about the size of a dime, tiny bit smaller.

 

It obviously wasnt that shape before and was crushed by movement of some engine part. Im not familiar enough with the 35 engine to even make a guess

 

 

That looks like the top of one of your cam buckets or retainers that got smashed flat...

I wouldn't drive the car anymore.

 

It looks like it came off one of your valve lifters - see p. EM-45 here: http://www.nicoclub.com/FSM/maxima/ (valve lifter)

 

Thank you for your valuable input

 

if that was my car I would replace heads, timing chain, water pump and guides. That looks like a piece of lifter.

 

 

Contact member aackshun for a quality used replacement engine

 

Im 99% sure its a valve lifter just by the shape. Running the engine after that came off has no doubt bent some if not all the valves on that bank. I don't know how that came off but its possible you were on the rev limiter for to long and valve lift occured and it just popped off. Its a big deal but the good news is now you can shop for a low mileage engine and they are not terribly expensive and you can do some maintenance on it before it goes on

 

I was/am leaning towards it being a foreign object. It's so lightweight.. and tiny. The edges except for the one side with damage look to be in perfect order. I thought it was a lifter too, or a piece of it.. but I can't imagine them being that tiny and flimsy.

Am I really looking a new engine??.. What can I do to check? I'd hate to put a new motor in just to find out this fell off some oil gun or something during some moron oil change.

 

Just go drive around

 

Can you take your front VC off again, take some pics from many different angles and post it on here?

It's kind of hard to tell from the video, but can you tell where does the noise come from in your engine?

And you are right... It doesn't look like a lifter... The lifter should be very smooth so there is the least amount of friction between the camshaft and the lifter.

Here's a link that has good pics of a VQ35 assembly. The lifters on some of the pictures look much different than the pics you posted in the OP

http://importsnc.com/forums/national...d-special.html

 

It's hard to tell where noise is coming from, but it does sound like the timing cover. Also after changing the oil the other day. dropping the oil pan, and cleaning it, and the oil tube.. the sound seems to have gotten a bit quiter.

I will pop the valve cover off and take some pics when I get off later. Thanks for the help everyone!

 

Your valves are knocking. Im about 99% sure thats what the noise is because Ive heard it a hundred times. No way something that didn't belong could have got INSIDE your vale cover like that. It could be a valve collet? If you are running the engine to check for sounds you are continuing to bend your valve and new ones for the 35 are not going to cheap

 

I'm not continuing to run the motor to check for sounds.. It possibly could be a valve but how would it get into the valve cover?..

I've only owned the car a couple weeks, so I have hardly no idea of the history.. but if you've ever worked at a small oil change shop like I have, you would deff see how something that didn't belong could get into the valve cover. People are very careless..

 

Find out if they changed the valve cover gaskets soon and then you may have your answer but that noise still sounds like valve knocking.