Looking at buying an 04-05.Driven several, cpl with terrible trans problems. Currently testing an 05 SL with 114k miles, auto. I have it loaned for few days to have a dealer/mech do inspection. Involved in an accident in 08. Carfax reports no structural damage. I have inspected body top to bottom from what I can tell repairs were done right. Will have mech look further. Since you guys have much more experience than me, I have two issues would like your opinion on so I can maybe give a little more info to the inspector.

Only way to describe first one like something very heavy is loose and making very slight noise when driving at slow speeds (goes away with road noise?) Not rattle or knock more like something heavy maybe loose and moving around very slightly. Possibly coming from right front. When I check right front shock/strut/coil over seems very soft and probably needs to be replaced. Bounce is significant. If strut were loose, damaged or worn out could that cause a similar noise? Also wondered about motor mount? I’ve been under the hood and the car and can’t find anything. Noise is not bad just annoying (and of course may get worse).

Carfax shows very few service records, but the owner may have been a diy’er like myself. Or he could have changed the oil every 40,000 miles. Ya never know.

Just found something else. When starting cold, took 3-4 tries to get car started. Would start and die.

Any other info you guys could give would be appreciated.

 

First issue might be a motor mount.I replaced mine and front wasn't tightened enough and I was getting a heavy movement/rattle at slow speeds or when I was taking off.It might be your passenger side motor mount but you won't be able to tell from the cabin.If you can hear the noise from the cabin to pass side it might be a strut..you never know..

Second issue...Have you checked the spark plugs??I know mine only had 4 replaced when I got it(from previous owner),and the hardest 2 behind the throttle were really bad.Sometimes on winter times (below 30F) it was starting on second try and shaky until the old spark plugs would kick in...Also the coils maybe?...Good luck

 

Thanks for the quick reply UniqueMax. omw to have the car checked. will defo have them check that. And no I have not checked the plugs. I had the same problem with my 99. 2 were almost seized in the head and I had to work them out (loosen a little, retighten, loosen a little more, etc...). And *shudder* on the coils. Replaced all them on my 99 to the tune of $500.

To all who replace their own plugs: be really careful if they seem hard to remove. Loosen and tighten them a little at a time and USE A LITTLE ANTISEIZE on the new plugs.

 

This is a real good hint in there Nayehi , specially with these Alu heads .

 

Yep had a jeep straight 6 that took me over 2 hours to change plugs once. I was a nervous wreck that I was gonna strip or break a plug. I am now a firm believer in antiseize. I keep a cpl tubes around the house and shop and car. Messy stuff though; I usually end up with it on my face somehow

 

First, thanks to those who have posted.

Edited original post; removed something that only happened once (probably in my head-too much JD and water night before?).

Wanted to add:
I have read about the numerous tranny problems with these cars (driven a couple of those) and, of course, I have become "transmission aware" when test driving. This one seems to shift in what I will call the acceptable range. Normally, the shifts are smooth and timely, no slippage. Maybe occasionally a bit snappy or untimely. However this morning when the car was very cold, twice there was quite a hesitation on the 2-3 shifts (like 2secs to complete shift). After the car warmed slightly (like cpl minutes of driving), shifting returned to "normal".

Also, the a/c does not work. As for that, Since it is early Mar here I will require the dealer to give me a 6mo written warranty on the A/C rather than just fill it with gas. There is prolly a slow leak so a little dye in the gas fill will find our problems.

I really like Maximas (owned 2 of them) and really like this particular car. Cosmetically it is in very good condition. I just want to make sure that the things that are wrong with the car are either (preferrably) fixed or are documented and the selling price adjusted accordingly.

 

What is the condition of the transmission fluid? It may benefit from a drain & refill. Just keep it in the back of your mind that you may have to replace that valve body at some point, so you are not caught off guard if/when the time comes. I believe people have been getting a new Nissan OEM valve body for between $700 and $800.

Your A/C problem may be due to a refrigerant leak from the low pressure hose. They tend to develop leaks at the crimped connections.

 

I will check the tranny fluid. It's at a Nissan dealers now being inspected. I decided to have to pros take a look and give me some documentation i can take back to the dealer i am trying to buy the car from. And i figured as much about the a/c leak. Thats why the 6 mo guarantee.

Thanks for the reply.

 

No problem. Just re-read the OP. Some people have experienced both starting/stalling and shifting problems when the camshaft position sensors were failing. That is another common repair around here. They don't cost very much, may be worth a shot to just change them out (be sure to use only Nissan OEM sensors) if you do buy the car.

 

Im one of the victims with the tranny problem.Had it for almost 2 long damn years...nightmare that seemed that will never end and it was getting worst and worst every damn day.Broke motor mounts(all of them),sometimes i had to HOLD on stering wheel when it was shifting up or down shifting because it felt like im hiting a car(or getting hit from the back by another car)...Anyways Im not trying to right a book about it but anyways...I didnt have my ValveBody replaced.Nissan Stealership wanted $4300 for a "new" tranny,found a local tranny shop that were charging $2800,and after some reading/research i did it myself.Transgo kit SUCKS.All it has is some tools how to build your own solenoids.Rostra makes solenoids that fit on different cars (Volvo and such) that have the same problem as our cars.Rostra made these aftermarket solenoids that eliminates that problem from EVER occuring again...Payed $274 for them(ebay) and replaced them myself.Car runs like that jerking never existed=nightmare over

 

Man, UniqueMax, sounds like some nightmare experiences you've been havin. I have had those damned cars myself. Ones I didn't even want to get into in the morning to go to work. During this shopping trip I drove an '04 with similar symptoms. Shifts were erratic and when you were slowing to a stop, better make sure your seat belt was fastened for the 3-2 or 2-1 shift. I'm surprised the air bag didn't deploy. How do they think they are gonna sell those?

Anyway, re: the OP. Took car to a Nissan dealer to do inspection and man I'm glad I did. Had a nagging feeling. Inspection results:
RF strut
motor mount
leaking a/c hose
throttle body position sensor
transmission cooler reseal was seeping
and few other smaller items.
Total P&L from inspection 2725.
I doubled the strut charge since I've always replace them in pairs.
So now 3196 P&L plus tax which here in the lovely state of TN is 9.5% Grand total is 3499.62.

Won't go into what happened at the dealer when I took the car back. I will be putting a post in the Dealer Experiences forums. But I will say that the car is not in my driveway.

I asked the salesman if they inspected the cars they took in for sale. His response was, "Uh, Well..... we look them over here in our service department then we have a local mechanic do the actual inspection." HUH? I took that as a probably not or at best a kick of the tires.

Anyway thanks to all who replied. Think I'll take a cpl days off from car shopping.