Say gents. This is a 4th (96) and 5th (01) gen question. I scrolled through the 4th gen FAQs and someone mentioned that you never need to change the timing chain on 4th gens or later. Is this a fact, is it never recommended through the dealer no matter what the mileage or is there a check that can be done to let you know when its wise to do so? Also, are our engines interference or non-interference designed? Thanks in advance!

 

as with any other piece of machinery it can fail. however, since its a chain and not a belt its longevity is much greater.

your dealer mechanic (or other) can tell you if it needs to be replaced, but Nissan doesn't have this check as a regular part of maintenenace.

das

 

Nissan dealers will tell you that you need to change that every 60k miles. Thier reasoning: the links weaken over time and it's more economical to replace it rather then check it. You can't check it. This is due to the labor involved in getting to it.
Bottom line. It's just Bull%$it. If it aint broke don't fix it. It's meant to last the life of the engine/car. Thats if you do regular driving.


If you do hard racing or otherwise.
There is a chance it can fail, (but then that would go for any other engine part at that point).
Second part of question I don't know the answer to.

 

149,000 mi and still original chain