Civ

Hello Everyone, hope y’all can help me with this issue.
I own a 2000 Maxima GLE 3.0 Automatic transmission. It runs amazingly well. It has about 260,000 miles on it and I have taken very good care of the vehicle.

THE ISSUE:
After driving long distances, smoke would come up from underneath the car. Upon closer inspection, we noticed it would also come from towards the center of the car, just behind the engine and halfway towards the underside of the car.
My dad and I washed the bottom of the car meticulously with a mixture of soap and water, then carb cleaner and engine degreaser the next day (both with a scrub and rinse after applying). We then idled the engine for about 15 minutes, then waited another 5 minutes. We noticed the accumulation of oil coming from the orifice in the picture shown below. We’re ABSOLUTELY sure it is coming from there, and is not dripping from somewhere else.


<<<The picture is larger than its preview, I dont remember how to resize it in the actual post itself.>>>

I’ve read from other forums that the issue could lie in the rear valve cover gasket, the rear main seal, or from something called a half-moon gasket (first time I have heard of that one).

Can I get a confirmation of which one of these could be the actual problem? I would hate to drop the tranny and try to fix something that isn’t the problem.
If it is the rear main seal, are there any tips to help me get started? I own the FSM but would like a general approach.

Lastly, will I have to take out the transmission to fix the problem if it is the rear main seal?

Thanks in advance,

Civ

maxipower

by the looks of it after 260k miles ,,the seal may be giving away,,the rear half moon seal must be replaced,,no seals last forever

Civ

Thank you for the reply, maxipower!

You're right on the not lasting forever part! So to replace the half moon seal, would I need to take off the transmission to get to it?

Child_uv_KoRn

iTrader: (7)

Yes, the rear main, so don't bother replacing it LOL

Don't overfill with oil and it shouldn't leak much.

Donkeypunch

Hello.
If it's engine oil from my experience and from reading others similar problems
the seal on the oil pan goes before the rear main.

The job is alittle time consuming if you don't have proper instructions.
search google and you'll see pictures of what needs to be done.

site:maxima.org upper oil pan seal

Civ

Thanks for replying, KoRn!

I see...it seems like a pretty difficult task at hand...My dad was going over some of the things we might have to take off and it looks like a long list. I'll see if I can take some oil out or wait for it to level itself off instead!

Child_uv_KoRn

iTrader: (7)

Yeah, I couldn't remember if those went bad or not.

Either way, not worth the time

Undo bottom strut bolts and tie rod ends to pull axles, remove crossmember, support engine, remove shifter cable, remove tranny mount bolt, lower engine/tranny down, remove bell housing bolts (or do it before lowering), have a tranny jack or something to catch it when popping tranny off, remove flex plate and flywheel

Did I forget anything?

It's a pretty easy when you learn how to get the tranny back up in there. I use an engine hoist and pull it up, then just muscle to thrust it in. This can all be done with one person if they've done it before :P Same goes for pulling and reinstalling the motor.

Civ

Thanks donkeypunch!

ok, I will look around for information regarding the pan. thanks for the insight!

I'm hoping that Ill be able to get enough information to know what I'm doing before I put my car on jacks. I'll give those keywords a google search and see what all I can gather!

Civ

oh man, i think you actually mentioned everything that my dad mentioned earlier this afternoon before I posted here...he said he wasnt sure himself but since you're listing many of the same things he told me its gotta be all that stuff

Child_uv_KoRn

iTrader: (7)

BTW, if I were going to remove a high mileage tranny... I would pick up a low mileage AE tranny b/c it's LSD. Replace the driver's axle with AE one and I THINK you're good to go.
We all know autos are the weak spot of any good car. So I would get two birds stoned at once.

Civ

Update:

My dad and I started another project with our house while we are waiting for some supplies to come in. I'll still be getting the car prepped to do a more serious maintenance job but progress will be slowed until we get this other one finished up.

Ill be sure to look into an AE tranny as well!