For the past few weeks I had been hearing an weird metallic rubbing sound coming from the front of the car at low RPMs. I took it in to Firestone this past Saturday to be looked at and they found a loose exhaust heat shield and a bent rear oil pan shield. They removed the heat shield (before telling me) and bent the oil pan shield back into place. I drove the car for about 15 miles and the sound did not come back. However, my SES light came on.

I took the car back to Firestone and they pulled the code and said it indicated a bad mass airflow sensor. According to them, this could have been caused by some of the power braking they did to find the source of the sound I heard. They reset the code and I took the car because according to them, the car had been driven for 4 miles with no sign of the SES light coming back on. Well, I got two blocks down the road and the SES light came back on.

I took the car back and they said they would replace the sensor. However, one had to be ordered. Well, I took the car with the understanding that I would have to bring it back today. I did take it back in and Firestone replaced the sensor and reset the code. I got 6 blocks this time before the SES light came back on. I took the car right back and they said the same code was causing the SES light. At this point the mechanic checked the wires on the harness that connects to the sensor and he said one of them was loose. He repaired the loose wire and reset the code. I took the long way home and the light did not come back.

Just a few minutes ago, I went to the store. On the way back home, the SES light came back on. I am too frustrated at this point. I really think the original removal of that heat shield has something to do with this but I cannot be sure at all. Does anyone have any ideas?

 

I've got no answer for you, but I will say your first mistake was letting Firestone do anything outside of oil changes and tire replacements. They are a good place to go for fluid replacements, but anything mechanical/electronic, they are always guessing until they hit a brick wall and refer you to the dealership anyway. It's nothing against the guys that work there, they just aren't trained to diagnose and troubleshoot past the basics. They also don't typically know enough about a specific make of car, and rarely are any of them certified; even if they are, it's typically not with the make car you brought in.

Good luck. How much did the MAF sensor with labor set you back btw?

 

Well, they got the problem resolved. It turned out that in addition to the bad MAF sensor, I also had a bad O2 sensor. The SES light has not come on since the replacement this morning. The total charges were $100 dollars. This was the deductible on my extended warranty.

 

Glad it was resolved. I'd avoid them from now on. lol

Did you ever get the actual code? P1283/1273 or P1284/1274? etc?

 

Got to love the Firestone mechanics. Please don't go there ever again.

 

Yup, I'll be staying far away from them. You live and you learn. One thing I can say is that they were polite and customer service oriented. MadMax was right, they just don't have the skills. I had the codes but left them on my laptop at work.

 

 

Had the same problem too....problem was not sensors but two tiny pinholes that were made upo0n removing the heat shield which was spinning an ses light...had them weld it...problem solved

 

Is this not a 7th gen maxima? or 6th gen that still should be under warranty? Shouldn't this all be covered, or am I missing something?

 

It was my 6th gen at the time and was being covered under the non-Nissan extended warranty that I purchased. My 6th gen was a perfect car for 99.9% of the time I owned it. The last two months were rough though.

 

well even tho this is last years thread, what they should have done was do the MAF cleaner, MAF rarely go bad and when they do they cause the car to heisitate...

Removing the heat sheild will have no effect or driveabitly.

the o2 however will trigger the SES and they should have known better when they ran the oboII scanner on it