Okay so from the beginning. I was in a minor front end collision near the end of December. I tried to have the car taken to Criswell Nissan, but they did not have a body shop so it was towed to Criswell Chevrolet. Geico came out and assessed the damage and found damage to the grill, front bumper cover, some supports, the bumper itself, and AC condenser. Some scratches on the hood and quarterpanels so a paint job for those parts.

They made all their repairs and were waiting on the grill to arrive and would take about 2 weeks for it to come in. No big deal. A couple days later Geico calls me again saying they went to look at the car a second time and found more damage, specifically the hood latch, and added it to the estimate. Cool, sounds good.

When the grill arrived (on time as expected) I received a call from Criswell Chevy saying they put the car back together but noticed that the hood latch is damaged and there are scratches on the hood/quarter panels that were not addressed, so they'd need to hold it a few extra days to paint those pieces and install the new hood latch. Strange, considering Geico should have told them about that and the other body parts being painted was definitely on the estimate already.

Come Tuesday the car is ready as expected, and I pick it up and drive home. I'm feeling good and all seems well. The body shop manager tells me there may be a faint coolant smell since they worked on the car, and there was a faint smell. The next morning I go out to inspect the front end and the paint job looks pretty crappy, there's scratches and globs of paint, and overspray on my fog lens? Also had a friend point out in a picture that my Stillen lip was re-mounted crooked. I remounted the lip myself, not too hard.







Nice. I emailed the body shop manager and let him know, he was understanding and asked if we can plan a date in a week or two to buff/blend/touch up any areas I was unhappy with. Okay cool sounds good, we set a date a couple weeks later for the paint issues.

That Saturday, there was the Maxima cruise so I figured why not I got the whip back let's go. Over the course of the week I noticed while driving a little bit of white smoke and talked to the body shop manager on the phone about it and he said it could be coolant spilled that is burning off, nothing to worry about. Okay that makes sense, no big deal. I wake up early Saturday and drive down to VA for the cruise. On the way down I see white smoke coming from the car, so I naturally assume its the burning off of spilled coolant. The smoke gets thicker. Something isn't right. I pull over.

Hood popped. My coolant is bone dry. Lots of white smoke pouring out of the engine bay. There is coolant sprayed ALL OVER EVERYTHING.





Something is definitely wrong! I called GMTraitor (you the man bro) who was at the meet already to let him know what happened. He very kindly left the meet to pick me up to go get some coolant and see what happened.
When GM showed up, he checked it out and obviously agreed something is messed up. We swing by a Nissan dealership to see if they have the green coolant, but their service department is closed. We grabbed some normal 50/50 from Autozone and went back. We went ahead and filled the coolant back up and let the engine run for a while. Everything looked and sounded like normal (seemingly).


After 15-20 minutes I did a quick test drive up and down the street. After that white smoke started billowing out of the engine bay again. Something has to be leaking. We open the bay but can't see anything actively leaking or spraying out so I take off and go straight home. On the way home the white smoke stopped coming out from under the hood. I called GM to let him know and again things seemed to be at least not terrible. When I got home I popped the hood though and the engine was making a terrible noise.

 

Engine noise 1 - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aU5wUqpqBlA
Engine revs - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xmiDdX2JEqs
Engine noise 2 - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gAYgdfJ0ZdY

^ That video shows my engine making a sound I have NEVER HEARD BEFORE IN MY LIFE. My car sounds like it has a diesel! WTF!

I sent the dealership an email immediately (since it was the weekend) and the manager called me back first thing Monday and agreed to look at the car, fix everything else that may be wrong, and have it diagnosed by the Nissan dealership before returning it. So while I'm pretty angry at this point, the dealership's manager is at least trying to work with me and is being polite about it. I do my best to be polite as well, no need to get angry at him since he isn't personally repairing my vehicle. I will note that at this point we're going on 3-4 weeks they've had my car.

I drop the car off, this time they put me in a fully loaded Altima as a rental which indicates to me they're at least trying to correct their mistakes. I get a call a few days later and Geico says they have added new damage to my claim, the radiator had damage on the reverse side towards the hood latch (wow go figure since the hood latch was damaged). Criswell Chevy called me later and said they replaced the radiator, flushed the coolant, and did a pressure test for leaks. They would be sending it over to Nissan for the final diagnosis and detail. The manager still was being polite and keeping me updated, so I did my best to be patient and polite as well.

Nissan came back saying there were no error codes and everything seemed to be operating normally. They flushed my oil in case it was scorched, and refilled with Nissan ester oil. The detailed and buffed the car which got rid of most of the paint imperfections and unclean lines, but it still wasn't up to OEM quality imo and there was still overspray on my fog lens. Whatever. At this point I don't care. At least my car is back and it sounds like its working fine.

So today, 3 days after getting it back after this ridiculous ordeal, I drive to work and notice my car sounds like a Mack truck again! It only seems to do this after being driven for a short period, when it's cold it sounds normal. I took it to two Nissan dealerships today (first the place that last touched it) and another one nearby and had their master tech's tell me this sounds normal for the VQ35DE in a Maxima. WHAT? I know my car didn't sound like this before. I KNOW IT FOR A FACT. I've had a bunch of other people tell me this sounds like valve damage due to overheating and needs to be addressed. I NEED YOUR INPUT MAXIMA COMMUNITY! IS THIS HOW OUR CAR SOUNDS? If not what can I do since 2 master techs already said it's normal?

 

I don't even have a 3.5 and I will definitely say the engine shouldn't sound like that, if thats normal for a 7th gen then I def will not be getting one.

 

^ Dude thats not normal... Its does sound like valves slapping shut/open but then again I also hear the injectors... lol

can you post a video of it rev up a little but... no redline rev either just a nice little rev thats all...

 

I've heard a few possibilities from those I've spoke with. Valve train damage, or maybe they put regular fuel in the car? Every Maxima owner I speak with says it doesn't sound right at all. Two dealerships though so far have said it's normal. They started up a 2012 Maxima on the lot and it made a similar noise, but MUCH quieter. They started up a nearby Murano and it was dead silent. I know my engine sounded smoother than this before.

 

To answer no this isn't how the car sounds at least mine or any others I have heard. I agree sounds like a MACK Truck. To me it sounds like the valve damage that you mentioned also since the radiator was damaged it would be possible for the overheating to happen that then causes valve damage. Seems like the dealership may not want to spend the money to fix it which is crazy. Contact NISSAN maybe or is there another Nissan dealership that you could take it to or talk to about this? Also I did a search to see if this comes up and didnt really find anything. Let us know sorry I couldnt be of more help to you.

 

I found a few other 7th gens on Youtube that have a similar sound, here is one.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2V8-4aq8Htk

Some of the comments indicate that other people had the issue and it WAS related to the valves. So question is where can I find a Nissan master tech that KNOWS WHAT HE IS TALKING ABOUT? Should I email the video to the service dept of all the local dealerships and see what they think?

 

Worth a shot

 

I did a video for Ghozt of my 2012... After listening to it on Video the injectors are so loud that it does make it seem sound diesel like... But whatever here it goes...

Alittle FYI 3k miles with mobil 1 syn. K&N Oil filter...

http://youtu.be/XxjRV0uvDuk

I fail at posting vids and holding the camera... lol

 

heres a vid of engine revs -

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xmiDdX2JEqs

also heres another vid of the engine noise and walk around as well as under the car. theres a "sssssssssssss" from underneath now? what? this is after a 5 minute drive around the block

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gAYgdfJ0ZdY

 

ghozt, go to the local used car dealership and find a a35.

pop the hood and listen to it, if it's obvious then call you insurance company and complain. the body shop will have no choice.

if u can't tell the difference then call it a day and enjoy the rest of the day.

 

Yeah its ur valve train man... just heard ur rev video...

 

if you want to check yourself for valve train damage, do a compression test, if one or more valves are bent or not seating properly, the numbers will be off.

on another note, I don't understand why people assume that the dealers who sell new cars would do a good job with body work. In my experience with many new car dealerships, their body shops are really of sub-par quality. If you want your vehicle replaced properly and with high standards, search for a top rated body shop who only specialize in body work and nothing else.

I know that if that was my maxima with that kind of results, I'd be furious. Of course if you're just leasing it, then it might not be that big of a deal.

Anyways back to your noise. My suggestion would be to go to a professional mechanic (NOT the Nissan dealer) and have a full engine diagnostic done. Usually what happens is this:

1 Nissan service agent sees you come in with a Nissan and automatically assumes you come in for warranty service.

2 Master mechanic might know of the problem but again does not want the warranty work (he automatically assumes that is what it'll be) so he might fudge his conclusion.

3 they figured you'll stop pressing the issue and continue driving long enough so when something goes wrong they might find a way out.

Again, I strongly recommend going to a top master mechanic who knows about nissan engines but does not work for Nissan, I feel that is the only way you'll get an honest answer.

good luck on your journey, it'll be a long one.

 

the Nissan dealership I go to usually has a great service department, I've never had issues. it's unfortunate that it got pulled over to the Chevy dealership since they're the only one with a full body shop in the area for Criswell. at the time I figured they wouldn't be that different, but now I'm finding that as you said all around they're both terrible.

and no im not leasing it, i bought it...

 

The SSS, sound just might be ur fuel pump working... Dont concentrate on other noises man or ur just going to drive urself nuts hearing things that are either always there and/or "new" to you... lol

 

Ghozt don't worry about the fuel pump I have the exact same thing it's totally fine!

But your does not suppose to sound like that! You need to take it to a very good smart mechanic who knows his sh*t. You need to find out what exactly the problem is don't assume it's this or that work on it.

I will personally show the video's to my mechanic tomorrow and let you know what's up. But here is a thing I had a 2001 Maxima and after I bought my car it had over 128,000 Miles it drove fine for about 2 weeks after that one day I had the exact the same noise I took it to my mechanic and all he just told me is "your car is done" changin the part would be over $800 bucks he said you rather replace the whole engine... other people told me it was the valve, bend rod, or w/e I just got rid of the car and that's it. The noise that I had was exactly like this, similar to yours here is a link to a G35 Coupe with knocking noise. It might be the spun rod bearing idk...

Here is a link man

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hk5A6MFla4Y

 

The people in the shop really messed up here. they need to fix your **** back to the way it was or I'd threaten them with a lawsuit. crooked mechanics do this crap all the time

 

might be sludge from overheating, giving you really bad lifter tick. It would have to be really bad but not out of the question. Drop a quart of rislone, $6 or so at AA or AZ, in there and see what happens. It might take 5-10 minutes to fully circulate but if it is sludge it will begin to silence them noticeably after 15 minutes or so, not all of the way that could take several changes or never depending on the severity.

 

So did mine, untill this recent issue where they just simply failed to stand behind their name...writting a huge letter to corporate and to the GM of both dealerships right now!

keep pushing them! They love dumb owners, but hate the more educted once that acually tell them whats wrong before they even can run the useless " diagniostics"...where has the common sense gone?

 

I read that the G35 (linked above) fixed it's issue by switching to Castrol syntec. Granted I would love for an oil change (and possibly Rislone to clean sludge) to fix this, but even that I feel like the dealership should do this not me.

I contacted my Geico adjuster today and sent them an email with links to all 3 Youtube videos + this thread. He said he's going to involve his supervisor, and a good thing too seeing as Geico's damage adjuster missed the radiator damage the first 2 inspections and had me tell him I needed a new radiator when mine busted while driving. Any subsequent damage to the motor is clearly their financial responsibility even though the dealership's are the ones giving me the hard time now. I'm taking my car to a couple mechanics I know with shops today to see if I can find a master tech who actually knows how cars work.

 

Let us know how it all goes. Feel bad for you man hopefully it all gets worked out. Looks like it most likely will

 

I swung by my boys shop, he helped me with my last car (Sentra had a transmission issue that Nissan and AAMCO said was fine) and he helped me get my transmission rebuilt. He listened to the engine and did some revs and said he honestly didn't hear anything other than the fuel injectors. He said if the valve was damaged the engine would be shaking at least. I'm still emailing the video around but now I'm confused.

 

Ghozt what you need to tell them is to listen to the background not the loud injectors ticking away... As in my video I posted you can obviously hear the injectors but the background noise from your video and mine is cleary the difference here...

 

ill definitely keep contacting people regarding the noise and keep the pressure up.

i had a friend suggest the following what do you think of this plan: seafoam the oil/gas/engine, then do a full oil flush to castrol syntec, and do a full tank of shell v-tec with castrol gtx. id obviously send the bill for all of this to the dealership if it fixes the problem, but do you think it's worth it to try these products (or something similar you recommend) to clean my baby up??

 

Your revving vid is painful to listen to, I once was a Nissan tech, your engine has an obvious click/tap metallic noise very similar to engines I replaced

 

Contacted Geico and I'm going to do my best to force them to figure out what is going on even if it means them paying for an independent master tech to open my engine and verify there is no damage. After all, they missed the radiator damaged initially so they are liable.

 

did u check the estimate written by geico?

it could have been in the original geico estimate but the body shop could have deliberately overlooked the replacement of it to profit a few extra dollars...such as re-using the old part since it "appeared" undamaged.

 

nope. these idiots literally just replaced the radiator and looks like the body shop covered the oil replacement and engine "diagnosis". interesting that the body shop is doing that, i guess they are also liable even though it was Geico's job to assess damages?

i love their notes. radiator leaking. found after repairs made. try found after car overheated.

 

took the car to a few more people to have it listened to. more reports that it sounds fine and from other Maxima owners in person they say it sounds the same as theirs. one owner compared it to the video he heard on Youtube and said the video made it sound much worse.

a few dealerships ive called won't even listen to the videos they ask me to bring the car in. so far here is the consensus:

- everyone who hears the videos says it doesn't sound right
- most of my close friends/coworkers hearing it in person say they dont remember my engine sounding like that
- every mechanic or Nissan tech I've taken it to (so far 2 master Nissan techs including the original guy who said it's fine, and several non Nissan techs I've taken it to in person)

A few comments were if there was lifter damage I'd be throwing codes. If there was valve damage I could throw a code or the engine would be shaking more. I still find it odd that it makes all this noise only after warming up. Why wouldn't it stay quiet even Nissan said they usually are noisy at start up not after warm up.

 

So it only does it once warm? Just listening and reading your history with the radiator/hood latch/front end damage it sound as if it is more water pump/pulley related to me. With engine cold, thermostat is closed not allowing a lot of "juice to be pumped." As the noises increases with rpm it is reasonable to question if they did the pressure test while warm and under increased rpm. That it passed a pressure test just says to me...no leaks...yet. Just an alternative theory.

 

Yeah only really sounds loud once warmed up. They did do a pressure test after the new radiator was installed so like you said they confirmed that there are no leaks. What would be damaged on the pump or pulley that caused noise and is that an easy fix?

 

^ hey didn't you advanced your timing? Try putting it back to factory spec and see if that makes a difference...? Its a suggestion might work might not...

 

yes i did, after the fact. the noise was present after i got back home after noticing the radiator was busted and my car overheated (before I advanced timing).

i did go ahead and seafoam the engine, seemed to clean some **** out but no huge difference. changing the oil today to castrol syntec and have been using shell v-power gas. i really hope theres nothing wrong thatd be great to put this behind me

 

the VQ35 timing chain tension usually cause that idle noise....and if your valves are bent or out of sync it will throw up a CEL or your knock sensor would of thrown up a CEL if it detects un-normal engine noise.

do you have a CEL on?

 

It might be a stupid question but you said that they changed your oil and filter because of overheating now if they changed it with crappy oil or maybe wrong oil spec non synthetic that could be causing noises or ruff idiling I know that in my 2010 I always use Mobil 1 but gave it to Nissan and they put some semi synthetic and brought out a lot more noise and shaking sounds so I changed it back after 3000 miles and then less shaking and less noise.... stupid but could be something so simple you overlooked

 

thats tru if u go from synthetic back down to reg oil it will not let ur engine run normally

 

Ya but I just read that Nissan put ghost ester oil in when they changed his oil stupid me
But still could be something related maybe too much oil or not enough

 

u dont have to put ester u could use full synthetic of amsoil

 

I know but that was what Nissan put in his car ester which honestly i don't like for the same price at Nissan for ester I would put royal purple

 

+1 i use royal purple and it defffffffffffff makes the engine run cooler and smoother

i used to use mobile1 and i would feel crazy heat coming out of the engine bay on my legs, with royal purple i dont feel the same heat