Anyone else have the experience of looking out and seeing the hood 'flutter' at speeds of 80+ mph?

 

Discribe flutter,
Because mine moves a LITTLE bit but thats it.

 

is there any noise from the hood?

 

No discernable noise. Also, no movement at the latch (that I can tell) or at the hinges. Pretty much just the hood metal flexing in the area above and just to the rear of the wheel well. Something like watching a convertible top in the wind (but nowheer near that serious).

 

I see mine flutter a little every now and, not consistenly though. I'm not too worried about it. You could probably solve it by moving the hood lach down just a bit. I haven't taken a look at it but I'm sure it's easily adjustbale. I had this same problem on an Accord and this took care of it.

 

 

Yes! I thought it was just me.
I notice it rattle when I shut the front door as well.

 

Yes, this is a problem that Nissan has. It can't be fixed. It can be helped a little if they tighen your hood down more. If you notice, you only see it on the Drivers side, not the passengers side. I see it occassionally at 70mph+ but a little more often over 80mph.

 

THANK YOU, Nissan!!

 

Yes I do - when I hit about 65 mine starts to bobble up and down kind of in the driver side upper corner. It doesn't seem to be happening on the passanger side though. I'm going to bring that up when I take it in for it's annual check-up.

 

My first hood didn't do it, my second hood did, and I'm yet to see what my third hood does.

NISSAN

 

Whew. I thought I was the only one whose hood did this!

 

hood deflector seems to just exagerate the effect.

I notice more noise too. However, its done its fair share of preventing hood dings from rocks so I cant complain.

 

i remember reading something like this on the org before i bought the max, didn't notice it until i waxed the car and saw reflections of the sky dancing on the hood while putting along at 130km/h (~80mph)

scared me at first but i've become used to it...just as long as the latch doesn't give

 

Jaysus, at 80+ mph y'all need to be watching the road not yet hood! Anyway, I've taken her up to 85 or so but I wasn't watching the hood, i'll have to check and see if mine has this same problem...

 

I am glad I am not the only one to see this. I went to Florida last week and drove around 80 mph. I saw the flutter to, but the hood seemed to be down solid. I think its air getting under the hood somehow. On another note, I got over 28 mpg at one point. The car did great at high speed...

 

i've got the same problem. Mine happens over 80, but seems to go away around 120, but comes back at 145. :-)

 

hmm, i haven't noticed any flutter on mines. but i noticed that the hood doesn't close all the way...you can push down on the hood and u'll see what i mean. i was curious if it was a defect so i checked out the new maximas....same story. maybe yours is a little loose...?

 

Yep all the time, not too bad though

 

28 mpg is really really good. i was looking at the AAA new car catalog and the best mileage they ever got was like 23 or 24. but to get 28 mpg, u gotta be driving the EPA style...55 mph or something...according to good 'ol physics.

 

I was reading an old thread about hood flutter. Has a fix been discovered since the last time this topic was discovered

 

yep...noticed the flutter early on...drives me a little nuts too. Doesn't seem to be any room to tighten or adjust the latch or the rubber stops on the side of the engine compartment that the hood rests on. For this reason, I thought I just had the probelm....imagine that.

 

any fixes for this since I originally posted this thread...sorry.

Guess it is just the natural result of a thin and cheaply reinforced hood.

 

Nailed right on the nose! Same area right behind the driven side
wheel well. Usually starts up at 65 MPH.

 

No flutter here... (01 i30) maybe you can tighten the rubber stoppers by raising them a little?? may help...

 

Same thing for me. I did raised the little rubber stops under the hood (right and left front). But I did not noticed any real difference. I guess it's more a question of aerodynamic forces then adjustments.

 

plain fact is the metal itself is subjected to wind buffeting, not unlike a sheet in the wind on a clothesline. Like the clothespins, the stops are fine, it is just the resistance to flexing of the material in question...in this circumstance it is the hood metal itself.

 

Do you you that we can add something to the hood, in order to make it stronger and resitant to buffeting (such as a steel bar!).

Does anyone anticipate a problem, such as metal fatigue (like the body and wings of an airplane), or even paint begining to crack after a few years?

 

Hmmmmmm.....time to start brainstorming...

 

yea...i remember the string a while back. i was driving ave 90mph to vegas and stared at the hood for several seconds to see if there was any fluttering. nuttin'.

kinda noticed my gas mileage went way down, though...prolly b/c of the 4 girls and me and the speed.

 

I dont see any 2k2 owners on this thread. Is it a 2k1 problem?

 

The hood flutters because of its shape. The part that does the fluttering is pretty flat. There is slight lift being generated at 70, and gets greater as you go faster. At 100 - 105, the flutter is even worse, but it isnt anything serious. It is just Sheetmetal flex.
I wouldnt worry too much about it.

 

It's not just you guys. I've got a 2k2 and the first time a semi passed me going the opposite way, I thought I didn't close the hood all the way. Scared the stuff out of me. Pulled over at the next gas station to find everything alright.

 

I have a 2K2 and just noticed the hood flutter issue this past weekend. I hadn't really thought much of it until now though. I wonder if the flutter is only being seen on the driver's side becaus the driver's side lacks a plastic cover under the engine which IS installed under the passenger side of the engine. Could this situation allow an "updraft" from below the car? I'm pretty sure the part I have in mind does not exist on the driver's side . . . any thoughts?

 

So moving the rubber stops doesn't work? Bummer..... I ordered my gas protector bracket a couple days ago and it's in. I'm going to go in and have a fit because I don't believe I have to pay for it because it should have been on my car when I purchased it - Along with that, I'm mentioning the flutter.

 

THIS IS NOTHING GUYS/GALS.
WHEN I HAD MY TRIUMPH TR-8 AT SPEEDS ABOVE 80 THE WINDOWS WOULD BE SUCKED AWAY FROM THE CONVERTABLE TOP AND THIS REALLY INCREASED THE WIND NOISE.
THE TOP WAS EGG SHAPED BY THIS POINT!

 

He's right, it isnt really a problem. The best thing to do is ignore it. Also, make sure your hood is securely latched down.

 

I have a 2k2 Max and I noticed my hood was fluttering since new. The hood is latched tight.
Does not make any noise or anything. I just learn to ignore it. It does look like it just comes from the drivers side.

 

Just purchased 2k2 GLE fully loaded. Have noticed the hood flutter problem on drivers side at speeds over 70MPH and the hood does not latch tight. When you push on it it moves .25 in or so up and down. The Dealer Bill Frank in South Bend IN has looked at it (a horror story in and of itself) and has told me that the hood latch can not be adjusted to pull the hood down tight!!! They even sent it to their body shop.

I have owned in the last 10 years Lexus/Toyota, Accura/Honda products and have never seen anything like it. This is my first Nissan (for any Nissan Reps that may read this) and I love the engine and drive train but it appears to me they are not in the same class as far as material quality and build quality as the other two brands.

ANy ideas or help from the ORG would be greatly appreciated.