Hello,

Thank you for taking the time to help me.

I have a 1997 Maxima with about 170,000 Kilometeres. I bought the car in Dec. 2003 @ 160,000 kms. This morning, a whining sound came from the engine when I turned it on and remained. The pitch of the sound goes up and down as the engine speed goes up and down. There is no difference when I'm moving or not. The engine temperature is fine and I checked the rad coolant and oil only to discover that the engine oil was below the fill level. I'm shocked because I checked it about a month before a 1,000 kilometer trip and it was fine. I've never seen the oil drop down so fast. I did have the car rust treated with Krown rustproofing and I had a Motorvac done on it as well. I have been doing a lot of fast driving in the last month since the weather is nice now.

Does anyone know what this sound could be? How fast should the oil go down on a car with this mileage?

I'm topping up the oil right now and I'm going to see if there is any difference.

Thank you

97maxx

 

hey, the whining sound could be a bad bearing , and when your oil goes down like that, your engine is using the oil, or burning it up. this could be from bad valve seals or bad rings, maybe.

 

It could be your alternator. I had a smiliar problem with my '90 mazda 626. At 181,000 miles I started getting this whining noise. It just started all the sudden when I started up the car. I unhooked the belt off the alternator and that was the noise. I just replaced it with a new one. Two months prior to this my battery died.

 

Thanks for your advise. I had my mechanic look at it today and he said that it's most likely the tensioner bearing or the alternator. He has to take off the belt first to determine which one it is.


97maxx

 

Thanks for your advise. I had my mechanic look at it today and he said that it's most likely the tensioner bearing or the alternator. He has to take off the belt first to determine which one it is. The dealer price is like $535.00 Canadian for the alternator!

Thanks again


97maxx

 

hey --

could just be the belt...that was my guess.
DO NOT buy an alternator from the dealer -- unless you enjoy throwing money away

btw, are you on TorontoMaxima.com yet?
FLO_BOY

 

Hangon on that one...i don't know if its the same as the max, but all the G20's (sr20s) had MAJOR problems with guys using autozone or the like alternators. One dude went through 6 alternators then ending up getting OEM. I think it may be good to get a OEM one or if you do go aftermarket, get a GOOD one.

 

Welcome! FLO-BOY has a good suggestion. Go to Toronto Maxima.com, and find some guy's from Ottawa. I'm sure they will be more than willing to help you out, Proly cost you part's and Beer! BTW, I'm Jay93Se on TMEC.

 

Hi. I haven't been to TorontoMaxima.com yet.

I went to Partners Power (The best place in Ottawa hands down to get parts because there's low range to good quality (you specify) It's rare I find parts anywhere cheaper and in fact, my mechanic friend checked for a part for my old 85 Monte Carlo SS and Parters Power's price was cheaper that his garage cost!).
They said there's 2 alternators available for the 97 Maxima. A 125 amp for $230.00 and a 110 amp for $207.00. Since I couldn't see the alternator label from the top, I called the dealer. They said they have only 1 alternator available and their computer doesn' have the amperage! I went to Partners Power, picked up both the 125 Amp and 110 Amp alternators and had the dealer diognose the car (It was the alternator) and install the new one. He installed the 125 amp version. The one he took off (Don't know if it was factory or not @ 170,000 kms) was only 100 amps! The service technician said he put the 125 amp one in to have more power. He said it doesn't hurt because it has a regulator in it and if I need more power I have it. Sounds good to me.

By the way, while I was at Walkley Nissan here in Ottawa, while I was waiting for my car to get serviced, I test drove a few cars hehehhhh...

First I took out the 2004 Maxima SE. Too bad they didn't have any standards available! The door handle felt really cheap! I must say that the car has a good feeling of power for that size car. The automatic tranny is well suited for this car and the engine effortlessly moves the car around. I didn't find it super fast but it was very smooth. The steering I found more precise than my 97. The response was excellent. This was an SE and mine is a 97 GXE so I figured the suspension would be more stiff and it was. To tell you the truth, when I got back into my 97, I really liked the feeling but the steering felt really easy in comparison. Which brings me to the 2nd car I drove...

...The 2003 350Z Roadster!! Awe yeah baby!! This car shifts like a dream! The clutch is perfect. It's a man's clutch but not overly stiff. I find the level at which it catches and the tension to be perfect, unlike the 2004 BMW 325I I test drove a month ago!! I found that clutch travels to easily up until it catches and then it's like there's a 2nd stage of tension. I found it quite unnerving. Any way, the 350Z has a a nice, short travel stick shift which makes it really easy and fast to change gears. The sound of the engine is nice and not too loud. I think it sounds better though when you hear one go by being outside of the car. The handling is sharp and precise as well as the steering. The brakes are smooth as well. The speed was nice once you're in the mid to upper range. The traction control kept the rearend nicely in check when I booted that gas in 1st turning right from a light. It's a stiff car but I think can be driven daily whithout losing your teeth. I know the quarter mile times for the 350Z and the Subaru WRX(which I test drove about a month ago) are almost identical and it feels that way as well. The price for the Z is only $46,000.00. I think that's a bargain for a beautiful sports car like that. All it needs now is a turbo!! The only thing I didn't like was the noise from the air flowing in through the automatic top. I'd like to try out the hardtop next and then the Infinity Q35!! That will be my next car I think.

97maxx

 

glad it worked out...as an aside, I believe that there are two types of alternators on the Max.

a regular one, and a "heavy duty" one that is used for cars with the "Cold Weather Package", as that model needs more amps to power seat heaters/ heated mirrors, etc...

...now get to TorontoMaxima.com!!!

FLO_BOY