Hello,

My 2004 Maxima reads -22 on the console. I purchased a new sensor but my mechanic said he could not find the sensor on the radiator support or behind the bumper.

Does anyone know the location of the sensor ? Pictures would be great. Thanks !

 

http://boredmder.com/FSMs/Nissan/Maxima/2004/ATC.pdf

The ambient sensor is attached on the radiator core support (left side). It detects ambient temperature and converts it into a resis- tance value which is then input into the unified meter and A/C amp.

And it goes on and on showing locations for all the other sensors

 

Thanks. Would a reading of -22C indicate bad sensor or could it be something else ?

 

I still cant figure out where the sensor is. My mechanic and I looked for it on the behind the radiator core support but we cant find it.

The only sensor we found was below the hood latch (it was bolted on in a grill). Is this the sensor ? Let me see if i can post of picture of the sensor we found

http://s18.postimg.org/jxib4lbo9/sensor.jpg


(edited : to attach picture)

 

The manual states it is located at the "front bumper reinforcement." If you can't find it, then it's missing. That explains the -22 I guess.

 

That photo you posted looks like it. See the drawing in the service manual on page 91 in the link below:

http://boredmder.com/FSMs/Nissan/Maxima/2004/ATC.pdf

 

costee and dennis. thank you.


Like I said, the picture i posted was right below the hood latch bolted securely. I know the temperature was working fine in the past. There is no sensor on the radiator core support and there are no loose wires anywhere. I wonder if my (04 model) had it in a different location.

Edit : Interestingly the sensor I purchased from O'Reilly looks entirely different.

 

When the ambient sensor indicates -22º, it is dead or missing. Things go bad, nothing lasts forever.

Nissan changes the location of the sensor with each generation of Maxima. The 4th gen Maxima had the ambient sensor bolted to the hood latch support. The 5th gen Maxima had it bolted to the lower corner of the radiator frame. And Nissan moved it again with the 6th gen. The service manual is not detailed enough to show exactly where it is at, it could be on the hood latch support again.

However, the sensor used by Nissan did nor change. It has the same part number for the 4th, 5th and 6th gens. Doing a little more research, the sensor that you posted the photo of is not the correct part. It is less than half that size.

Here is a photo of mine:



and a photo from rock auto for the 2004:

 

Thanks. The part I got from O'Reilly's looks exactly like you posted. So i got the right part but now I need to figure out where it goes on mine.

I really appreciate your help so far. I feel I am a little closer now than before. Atleast I know I got the right part.

I called the dealer and they wanted a minimum of $100 just to take a look. Additional charges for parts etc. I asked them for the location and they gave me the same standard response. Behind core support.

Any of the 6th Gen owners take a picture of the sensor and post its location ? I know I am asking for too much.

 

Seems you have to remove the under cover and take a peep into the inner recess of the bumper--the driver's side most likely.

 

The service manual says this about the location: "The ambient sensor is attached on the radiator core support (left side)". This is on page 89 in that link I posted earlier.

The left side is the driver's side. My 2000 Max has it on the radiator core support, the right side at the bottom. So look along the driver's side of the radiator, at a spot where it would be in the air flow coming through the grille, which also means that you can see it when looking through the grille.

 

Sorry for the mix-up. I was actually quoting from the 2006 manual. I've observed too that the two model years do have different part numbers for the sensor.

 

When I go on-line and look at the 2006 manual, it says the ambient sensor is on the radiator frame, same exact words as in the 2004 manual. The 2007 manual has a different location. I wonder if there are 2 versions of the 2006 manual.

Nissan started using a different sensor with a different part number in Nov 2004. So early production 2005 Maximas have the older part and later production 05 have the newer part. From what I can tell, the two sensors look the same with the exception that the older one has an additional plastic tab.

2004 -----> 2006

.

 

Very right. This is actually the additional information: "Release the ambient sensor from the front bumper reinforcement."

 

Some of the differences in the service manuals is probably because we are in different countries. Nissan manufactures the car differently for different parts of the world and the ones for the United States seem to have a lot of differences from the rest of the world.