kenjio6

Nissan has a tsb out already but nissan won't help you if you are over 60k
The tsb has been out since july 17,2007 according to the copy i got from my friend who is a service manager at a nissan dealership
Reference # NTB07-042

MDeezy

iTrader: (27)

damn! I'm shocked at the shoddy work on the timing components

MAX2DAMAX

iTrader: (5)

bump for some info, how many hours did you guys get charged to replace all the timing components, my dealer is charging me with 14 hours = $1500 just in labor!!!!, I think that is way off, but that is just me, need some feedback

d97p

I am about to repair my timing chain tensioner and I just wanted to find out more before I do. When I start up my car, there is a loud ticking noise. As the engine warms the noise goes away, but still makes a light rattling noise when I accelerate. Should I go to a Nissan dealership or should I go to my trusted mechanic to replace this part? Also, roughly how much am I looking at for this job? By the way I drive an AT 04 MAXIMA SE with 132,000KM. Any help or opinions would be greatly appreciated, thank you.

Oolatec

iTrader: (5)

I'm close to 50k, but I've had the car since '03 so I'd be SOL. Thankfully, no issues as of yet.

Kashanova

my car had been making the noise for a while and i was planning on taking it to the dealer, but now the car won't crank to start and my engine light went on... I feel it's the timing chain issue

mustangking74

Guy i have an 04 s.e the car starts fine but will not go over 50mph it bogs down all the way up to 50mph even in park it bogs down. I was told it jumped timing by a local shop but dont see how as the car has a perfect idol. It has a check engine light that says it the crank sensor . there is no noise for the timing chain it is so quite you cant really here the car run. I was also told maybe the cats are bad. Has anyone had this problem??

MDeezy

iTrader: (27)

If you have a code for the crank sensor. see if your under warante and get it fixed, if not then pay and get it fixed. Crank sensor is an important one.

If you jumped timing the car would feel like crap overall not just above 50mph. Have the sensor tested, replaced it needed, and then cel reset. Drive and see if the problem comes back

spddracer

iTrader: (3)

Check the air flow meter. You are probably extremely lean causing your problem.

mustangking74

The car wont go over 50 mph and takes like a mile to get it up that fast. it bogs down in park as well. Once it gets past like 4000 rmp the motor seems to come alive in park. Im to the point im just going to sell the car. What is cel reset? i dont want to just start changing parts not knowing what it is

DeusExMaxima

iTrader: (1)

CEL reset, is resetting the check engine light. There are two ways to do it: 1. disconnect the battery for a few minutes, or 2. Follow the reset procedure outlined in many places, including on here somewhere (use search) or Technosquare website.

xoomer.com

iTrader: (19)

Here is the updated TSB

http://www.scribd.com/full/15758859?...yxkacbrm5pm7qc

gailofiowa@msn.com

I just brought my 05 maxima (with 85,000 miles) into the dealer for an air conditioning fix. With the inspection, they noted that there was a sound at start up with the timing chain and tensioners. I was advised this problem will only get worse and the repair would cost between $2,000 and $2,600, depending on how many parts had to be replaced. When I research this issue, it appears that timing chain problems are an issue with maximas. The tensioners are defective and it is a matter of time before they need to be replaced.

Should I make this repair? What are the consequences of waiting to make this repair? Is the cost estimate reasonable?

I'm a bit bummed because I purchased this vehicle with 77,000 miles and I have already had to replace the abs sensors and actuators for over $2,000, plus assorted other repairs.

Talon05

There are several threads about the tensioner issue, but this one has a more visual look at the issue. My Max going in for Surgery in the morning to have tensioners and chains replaced. My piggy bank empty now.

bmckendr

Well I'm still under my extended warranty and brought my car in this morning for this issue, and thyre asking me for service records as this "problem generally occurs due to lack of maintenance". What a joke. Of course I can't find all my receipts, not sure what to do right now....

Talon05

Man that blows. I learned a long time ago to keep every record(oil changes, tire rotation, general inspection) keep it all cause warranty companies will deny your claim without those records. Point to the TSB and tell them they have to honor your claim or its a breach of contract.

lilconfused

ive had the same problem with the tensioners, i had all that work done to my car aswell i only have a few pics tho should have took more, nissan told me it was a factory ricall on the the tensioners and certain other parts, , like spddracer i had the tencioner metal plunger pushin into a piece of metel within the timing , its makes alot of clickin noise and can be very serious if it causes ur chain to snap

lilconfused

damn i got a six speed wish i had the cash to mod it to something like that tho., but i want to know what i can do to the engine its all stock rightnow

NSMO240

iTrader: (5)

this is so false its not even funny, the reason the tensioners go bad is because whoever nissan paid to make the tensioners used a very thin cheap plastic on the shoes of the tensioner, and it wears down with the timing chain sliding across it. i would argue with them that a tech from a different nissan dealer stated so, they probably just dont wanna do it for you because it is time consuming and the tech does not want to do it. it is very labor intensive. also have them install the updated timing chain guide while they are there, if you dont get this replaced at the same time and it breaks, it will make a rattle noise on start up and when applying the throttle.

Talon05

I wish this was a recall. I argued with Nissan for a week about this noise and I was told that I wore the part out since I have 126k. I told them it went bad at 88k and I called them then and got denied. She told me that parts wear out. I said oh you are a real einstein lady. I had every service record since day one and they denied me. Took the MAX in for surgery today at 815 this morning and the guy said he will press NUSA hard for half payment. I wanted full payment, but I can agree to half.

Safiloo1

Maintain your car with the respective oil change (I change mine every 3000 miles) 70000 on my Max, and no problems so far Thank GOD!!!

311rulzz

Has anyone done this repair themselves. I have my max torn apart. I have it set at TDC but my cam chain sprockets aren't lining up like in the service manual. Can I just mark them with parts marker and just keep them still and reinstall my new chains that way. also, do you need to take off the front bearing cover that is directly above the tensioners to get to the bolts that hold the tensioners in? Sorry it seems that everyone has taken their car in for this repair. I don;t have $2500 and our car just started this at 90,000. Any help please!!!1

po8pimp

did the vq30's have this problem? If not then why don't you just have that installed to the vq35? They are pretty much interchangeable correct?

-AoW-JP

Let me start by saying I love my car. I had a 98 and traded it in for my 05. The 98 was a much better car. The 98 was a GXE and the 05 is an SL with all the toys except the rear console and rear glass shade. I now have 98kl miles on my 05 and the timing chain sounds like a 10 speed bike coasting. I've replaced the garbage transmission they used in these cars & had the car painted. I really want to keep it but don't think it's worth it and I am not going to buy Nissan again.

BzJeep

I feel you JP, I had to replace my transmission 4 months after I bought my car at 61,000 miles... cost me $3000, and that's for a factory rebuilt installed by a local transmission shop.

I have also been experiencing occasional "rattling" when cruising, but if I let off the gas, it stops. From time to time, I also here a clicking sound when I crank the car, but it stops as soon as the car starts.

I've got a pesky P0011 code that has been diagnosed by the dealer numerous times and they're telling me I have to replace my timing cover gasket for the problem to go away, so I'm considering having another shop replace my timing components since they would have to remove the cover anyway...

Should I purchase all the parts and take it to a local shop or is it better for the dealer to handle this issue? I'm at 80k now and the noises haven't gotten any worse, but I'm tired of the SES being on and I want to spend as little money as possible!

-AoW-JP

Thanks Bz. Here's what the dealer told me. It's 1500.00 labor + parts. from what I read here it sounds like 400.00 to 500.00 woth of parts. Plus the cats bad now and 2 02 sensors. This cars really trying my pocket. I was going to buy a winter beater and start moddin this but with this kind of headaches it's getting 4 snow tires and that's it! I sure do hope the people at Nissan read these posts. I still love my car but sometime you have to know when to cut your looses and move on. I'll let you know when the front half of the motor comes apart because I'm not fixing it. Thats over 3k in repairs for a car thats worh 9500.00 I'll do a trade and take the tax break add the 3k in myself and get something reliable. One disappointed Maxima owner.

JP

BzJeep

Well, at least the quotes are similar from dealer to dealer... I think at this point, I'm going to hold off on the repairs since my vehicle drives just fine and wait until tax season at which point I will likely just trade her in on something new.

-AoW-JP

My noise is getting louder. I'm making an appointment on Monday. I'll let you know how it goes. When I do something I gut it and start fresh so every timing chain part is getting replaced and the water pump too. This dealer is going to love me

smplyamzng

Had mine done on Sunday. $1050 with my mechanic, just so happens he works at Nissan and does his side jobs at work as well. He says he gets one of these a week.

luis narvaez

So the mighty maxima,the so called "flagship sedan" from nissan is nothing but junk huh? Tranny problems,timing chain problems,suspension problems...and the list goes on,..i have an 04 with only 74000 miles and im already experiencing this issues.Not bad for a $30,000 car when it came out right?( BS)! I dont think i will ever buy a nissan car again.

Street Legal

I've had this rattling chain/tensioner issue at about 80k miles (im at 120k now). I took it to an advance auto when a check engine light came on back in late 2008. Turns out the code was for a "Cam shift sensor" or something like that (cant remember the code). I asked the salesman if it was a serious problem and he said its nothing to worry about now so he cleared the code and i went on my way.
My car has been sitting in a garage this year for 5 months due to my deployment and when i returned and started her up, i was disgusted by the rattling sounds. I couldn't remember it being that loud before i deployed. So i did my research and came upon this thread which was very helpful.
The dealerships over here try to rape your pockets any way they can because I live in a military town so i didn't even take it to them. I noticed that they try to figure out what rank you are and charge you accordingly (believe it or not). So based on that trend, I took it to a mechanic shop out of town and got an estimate for $1120 (including parts) to get everything replaced. Just waiting on the parts to arrive at their store on Tuesday and she will running as quiet as a mouse (hopefully). I will try to give an update on how it went when i pick her up on Thursday.

Street Legal

Update: Mechanic shop told me that i didnt need my chains and tensioners replaced. The rattling that we thought were the chains slapping around was actually bad alternator bearings. They changed out the alt and she runs quiet now. They are holding on to the Max for another day to cold start it in the morning to make sure the rattling sound doesn't come back. Final bill will be alot cheaper. Now ill have pocket money to buy Battlefield 3 and Arkham City

SR20DEN

iTrader: (7)

I just helped my co-worker replace the main tensioner in his 2004 quest. I almost could not believe the amount of rattle that thing made before we opened it up.
Once we installed the new tensioner I had him spin the engine over a few times, via the starter, while the tensioner cover was still off. To my amazement I noticed that the new tensioner was making the exact same noise as the old one (keep in mind this is before it was primed with oil). I could see that the tensioner was rapidly hitting both stops , in and out, as the timing chain had tension and then no tension (because of the timing of the cam lobes).
We then cleaned everything off, put the cover back on, waited thirty minutes, cranked it up and everything was fine after the tensioner was primed with oil. Now the engine sounds about as smooth as it did when it was new. The whole job cost about $75 in parts (tensioner, can of brake clean, tube of ultra grey) and really did not take long to do. Had it been my job to do alone I could have done it in an hour, not including drying time.

Once important thing I did notice was that both tensioners were extended pretty far, almost to the maximum. This would indicate excessive wear on the chain guides and perhaps some other places as well.

So for those of you that do not really have the funds to spend on an entire new chain replacement, this should probably work fine for you.

L36

iTrader: (4)

That's to this thread it looks like i got the good old chain rattle. My rattle lasts even after start up, so yeah looks like il be replacing everything in there.

Only 83K miles.

4DRZ

iTrader: (4)

This can be done with the engine still in place. The hardest part was the removal of the front timing chain cover. If you gouge out any part of the mating surface you will more than likely develope a leak. The thing is, with doing this with the engine still in the car there is alot more that was taken off or moved to gain access but it wasnt hard at all. Great time to upgrade the oil pump, replace the old water pump, and if you are planning on replacing your stock alt with a high output one, this really isnt bad. You have to remain faithfull to cleaning all the old RTV off the mating surfaces but I tell you from experience, it isnt hard at all. To me dropping the engine via the sub frame is more work just to have more access to the components. However there is alot of good information on here. After you do this once, it is really easy to do agin as in with a friend's car. . I can answer questions for anyone that might want or need to do this with the engine in place. When I did this to my car I went ahead and had the heads sent off for port work and new Ferra valves etc., and installed new cams. This was an awesome experience for me. Yes it got frustrating and such, but I now have a new level of respect for how this car is designed, and my ability to fix nearly anything with it.

alwayzast3pah3ad

can you send me the parts list

Maxsulli

I just purchased a 2004 Maxima SL with 120,000 miles on it. A week after the purchase I had the oil changed, now the engine makes a rattling noise on start up. The noise subsides after driving for about a couple of minutes. I called the dealer and he told me to bring it in....that it sounds like it needed and I quote " an oil additive." Upon reading some of the post here it sounds like the timing chain. Am I being taken for a ride by the dealer?

spddracer

iTrader: (3)

Is the oil level correct?

4DRZ

iTrader: (4)

If your oil level is correct I would suspect that the plastic broke off of the top of the chain slack guide allowing the rest of the plastic guide to slide down a lil. This was the case with mine. Nissan now has the updated version. They knew this was a major flaw. If you dont mind taking off a few parts and moving others, you can make certain that this is the issue by removing the service cover on the front timing cover. There are 2, you will need to remove the one closest to the firewall. After you remove it if this is the case, you will notice that the plastic has broken away and the tensioner is fully extended, while the remaining plastic guide has slid down.

smplyamzng

anybody had this issue reoccur in less than a year from fixing???