Hey all, I've got a problem and I not sure what to do...

From the beginning...

I went to walmart to get an oil change... (don't beat me up!)
I got the Castrol GTX High Mileage (96k miles)
The guys put in 4.5 qt
Car ran a little sluggy after but went away.
The car sat for a week and this last saturday, a friend put in a can of Restore (http://www.restoreusa.com/) and I put in a half bottle of http://www.gumout.com/products.asp?products=1_11 all at the same time as I filled up with chevron 91 and drove off (normal)
Got to a red light and the car was really sluggish... and felt like it was gonna die
I got to a parking lot and sat there with the brake on in drive and same thing, it's really sputtery/sluggish sounding like it was running with misfires and there's a knocking sound not too hard but like the lifters... or whatever.
And finally, the Service Engine Soon light came on.

What's weird is I havent driven it since saturday. And today, I started the car expecting the same... but everything is running fine... though the Service Engine Soon light it still on.

What should I do?

 

I would suggest finding out what the code is related to. Go from there. It could be a number of things but i dont think it would be due to the oil change. Is this the first time this has happened?

 

I don't know about the 5th Gens but those symptoms sound like a bad knock sensor or O2 sensor, like I experienced on my 4th Gen. But now that I've re-read your post you may have put in too much lubricant. You said 4.5 qts of oil plus a can of restore then a half bottle of gumout. Check your oil level, then get the diagnostic codes pulled and go from there.

 

Run the code to see what it is complaining about first and foremost, secondly you had walmart put in too much oil and then you also added even more to the crankcase with that Restore junk...

 

I will go get the cp read and post the code.

The reason I even did all this is because for the last couple months the car feels like it's been losing power. I wanted to replace the MAF but apparently it's like 600 bucks

Mintv: you're right... all across the board... including the junk part.

I'll post the code in a couple hours.... thanks everyone

 

if you get an SES...never start a thread until you know the code.

 

Soonerfan: maybe I needed someone to remind me, which is what happened here.

Anyways... here's the codes I got from Autozone.... Checkers is not cool enough to provide this service.

CODES:

1. P0021
Intake valve timing control circuit failure
- bank 2

Probable Causes:
- IVT control solenoid open or shortened
- cam/crank sensors out of phase
- dirt buildup at control valve

-------------------------------

2. P0011
Intake valve timing control circuit failure
- bank 1

Probable Causes:
- IVT control solenoid open or shortened
- cam/crank sensors out of phase
- dirt buildup at control valve

----------------------------------

3. P0550 (weird no problem with steering)
Power steering pressure switch condition
- power steering switch defective
- check connector and wiring


Thanks everyone for your help (and reminders)

 

that's too much fluid in there, which is problem number 1... as far as the SES, get the code.. the excessive amount of fliud could have caused the code

EDIT: just saw your last post.. i dont know what those mean.. lol

 

That engine restore is garbage fyi...ive used it before and the car runs better without it.

 

That stuff is junk. They are so full of BS on their website. No actual facts. Just a bunk of crap.
Jay

 

who told you to put restore in your engine? The stuff is garbage. You don't need to add any kind of oil additives to the VQ engine...

 

never ever ever add restore to any motor trust me i work at autoparts store and i here so much bs bout them there so much addtive bs in them restore crap,enough to send out some crazy codes maybe even send a motor to bed :\

 

Those 2 VVTI valves are oil driven turbines and will trip a code for sure when oil is low.
Have had those codes, topped up oil and then i never sow that car again. Now as for overfilling i don't know as we do not overfill oil.
I hope that that stuff you put in did not internally damage those turbines (sollenoids) or you may be in for 7-800 dollar repair.
GUYS for god's sake never add anything to your oil. Oil itself has plenty of additives straight from the bottle to keep your engine running.
We do oil changes to replanish the additives in oil not cause old oil was not sliding on your fingers properly and also to remove minerals detrimental to your engine.
Engine restore? What does that do fill in the cracks in your cylinder walls? Does it have someone with a torch or a welder go in there and only weld the bad cracks and NOT the oil jets and galleys and oil passages that you need to properly lube your motor?
How could ppl believe that?

 

VVTI? Turbines?

...okay then.

 

I think he meant the compressor wheel on the stock turbos....

 

i hate you for making me put it in mine lol

 

and when i did the restore, i put it with the oil change after a seafoam and my car was sluggish too with the SES light on, but i never checked the codes i got lazy and after lik 40-60 miles it just went away and ran fine

 

So basically, I should just do another oil change? And in the future... I will NOT be putting crap in the oil. I just did because a friend suggested it, and becuase I was wondering why the car has been losing power... It's probably some sensor... any suggestions on troubleshooting power loss?

Thanks all

 

drain and refill with correct oil. don't over fill.

 

90% of addatives sold at auto parts stores are crap and dont do anything. they are cheap for a reason.

 

If you're going to use an oil additive, the only one you should use is MOA from BG products, tried, tested, and true. I've been using that in my cars, and trucks since 97 (since I got into the auto bizz), and never once had a problem, only smooth running engines. iThat's my dos pesos!

 

Well I am not sure if this is the case for you but I used to work as a mechanic and a customer came in complaining of knocking noises and poor run ability after a Walmart oil change. Our senior Mechanic comes over after I drive it in the bay and says I bet you 20 I can fix it in under 5 mins. I am like BS ok I will take that bet. he had not even looked at the car just heard it had an oil change at Walmart and that the engine was knocking afterwards. So he grabs a Wix filter unscrews the fram and starts the truck up knock gone. You see walmart wanted Cheaper and cheaper filters so frams quality went down and failures went up. Not sure if it would throw all those SES lights at you though but its worth a shot.


Peace

 

i have done the engine restore gunk to plenty of engines and never once seen any positive results. Last one I did was a 4 cylinder altima, after I added restore gunk to the old oil, followed the directions on the can, drain and refil with new oil and filter, car ran ban. I drained the oil, removed the valve cover and seen than the engine restore did NOT do anything to even remotely clean anything visiable and from the sound of the engine, didn't do anything good internally. That said, don't waste your money on the engine restore crap. And don't over fill you engine, the high mark on the dip stick is there for a reason.

Also, why did you drive with that restore gunk anyways, doesn't it say to drain and refill before driving? (I used another brand of engine restore stuff so not sure of the procedure of this stuff)

 

There ia a filter bypass valve that if filter cloggs up it will not starve your engine of oil. That bypasses the filter alltogether so no worry there.

 

I could have been more precise....
vvti =variable valve timing
This solenoid/valve is called many ways. Some call it a turbine some a cam sensor, even though there is another one, some a vvt solenoid even though a solenoid which is what i called it in the secomd part of my post.
IVT control
If you look at the pictures in the repair manual first one on top left is described as a vane. Just like a power steering vane pump. It works with oil pressure, turbine works with air (i guess) This is why you will get a MIL light if you run low on oil. Top it up and keep an eye on it and the DTC will never come back again.
This mechanism hydraulically controls cam phases continuously with the fixed operating angle of the intake
valve.

 

I bet you don't even know the principle behind the turbo other than it gives you more power.

 

http://forums.maxima.org/showthread.php?t=555698
The same thing happened to me.

 

It is most probably the coils. All the symptoms, specially the fact that they are all intermittent, indicate that you have a coil issue.

 

newbie,
why did you bump this thread by posting misinformation

 

This thread caught my eye. I've had P0021 SES a couple times over the past year. When it first occurred the dealer cleared the ECU, changed the oil, and told me they couldn't tell if it was a valve timing issue or not. It didn't happen again for several months so I figured I was in the clear. Two weeks ago it came back for no reason which makes me wonder if it has to do with the oil level or if something is up with the engine. This time I cleared the code myself and the SES is gone. Does anyone know if running regular vs premium gas could cause the P0021? Rising gas price is killin me, so i've been running low octane. Thanks.

 

saving some dimes vs. $XXX dollars of reparing, you do the math.

 

I used a can of restore on my 3.5 altima, car hesitated and poor idle, and my oil pump started making a whining sound. i also got your CEL codes for the valve timing. Engine oil was overfilled..i quickly drained all new filter and proper fill and problems vanished immediatly.
ps overfilling engine will cause vtc solenoids to malfunction, get an oil change fast and use mobil1 synthetic to clear it all up...

 

Note it will also set that code if you are more than a quart lower on oil too

 

If restore really worked there wouldn't be any machine shops working on car motors any more nor would we ever have too replace bearings or rings! Fix it all in a can...B.S.!!!!

 

Most of the restorers are total BS!
I use Seafoam once a year to clean internals and reduce buildup.
worked wonders the many years I've used it and ... the more buildup, the more smoke you see

 

I went to Precision Tune and got an oil change and I had them add Restore...When I received my car back there was a rough Idle and it shut off on me twice and also Service Eng Soon light popped on and at one time it started blinking...I went back to Precision Tune and let them know what happened, They scanned and gave me the code P0021, stating that the oil level should be checked and also IVT solenoid could be bad or dirty. Oil level was fine, I'm feeling that the IVT was dirty so I went a bought a container of SeaFoam put half bottle in oil idle calmed down couldn't even tell the car was started and runs really smooth, I'm going to run it like this for about a week and then get the oild change that people on here speaking about Mobil 1.