I have a 1995 maxima its an automatic. Was not having problems starting or while driving it. I was going down the hwy, around 50mph, and the car died. No warnings or any unusual sounds. Now it wont start. It tries but has no fire or compression. After it quit on me under the hood is a few spots of oil on the engine. I replaced the air mass flow sensor when i got the car. Someone mentioned my problem being the timing chain but after reading other 1995 maxima discussions on here im thinking that the timing chain may not be my problem. I dont know where to even start to try to fix this issue. HELP ME HELP ME

 

Have you checked the fuel pump? Was there any kind of noise when the car died?

 

No noise at all, there was smoke coming into the car through the vents. Since the car quit and we got it home, we have only tried to start it 4 or 5 times. It doesn't sound any different when it cranks, just seems like its trying to crank faster than it did. Had no problems with it getting hot, temperature was always normal. I only had the car for 5 months but its in very good condition inside and out. The only thing that it did need when i got it was a MAS, which i replaced 2 days after i bought it. The other issue that it had was water coming from under the dash on the passenger side.

 

What type of smoke was coming through the vents? Did it smell like engine coolant?

Did you solve the problem with water coming from under the dash on the passenger side?

There is a heater core that is under the dash on the passenger side. If the heater core has been leaking, it could explain the smoke coming in through the vents. If you lost enough coolant that the engine stopped running, it could also explain the loss of compression and the reason the engine is spinning faster when you try to start it now.

 

No i have not fixed the water issue.

 

Was the water issue present when you bought the car?

 

The smoke did seem to smell like oil, but i did forget to mention that when the car died, under the hood, was several different spots of oil on the engine. I dont know if that was why i could smell oil.

 

Yes the water issue was present when i bought the car.

 

Can you post some pictures of the engine? Also, it will help if you can post a video of it (under the hood) when you try to start it?

You may want to get a compression tester like the one in the picture and run a compression test.

Are you prepared to do some mechanic work that will go beyond a tune up?

 

Honestly, i am seriously considering selling the car if the issue is more than a simple fix.

 

I will go beyond a tuneup, I don't really want to go very much farther than that.

 

Just out of curiosity, is a used engine fairly cheap, and is it complicated to take one out and replace?

 

"Complicated" is relative. We have no idea what your skill sets are and your mechanical experience wrenching on cars. Engines typically go for $350 to $500 depending on mileage and condition

 

If I was you I'd grab another motor and throw it in..

If you overheated and jacked the motor up it'll be way cheaper to swap out than to remove, open up and repair..

If the car is in great condition swapping the motor would make sense.. Then cruise around for another 150-250k..

 

^ this..

I've been down that road. I bought a 99 model where the previous owner had been using stop leak to cover up a bad radiator or possibly a blown head gasket. A few months after I bought it, the stop leak stopped working and I had a major coolant leak. I suspect the car had been run hot multiple times while the previous owner messed around with a leak, then decided to sell the car. After I replaced the radiator and coolant, a short time later, the car took on a problem with low compression, starter spinning faster than normal when it eventually stopped running.

I bought a motor with 85,000 miles from a wrecked 95 model for $350 + $150 for the salvage yard to pull it and put it the back of my truck. Then I paid a shop another $1,000 to install the engine and replace the water pump, half moon gaskets, and main seals. The replacement engine had been sitting for a while and I didn't trust the water pump and seals. It also needed valve cover gaskets. So I was out $1,500 right off the bat on that one.

Unfortunately, I the injectors and rails from the original engine moved to the replacement thinking they good. The injectors must had been leaking for a while so I ended up with cooked cats and other problems after the swap. After it was all said and done, I moved a flooding problem from the original engine to the replacement. That cost more time and money to figure out. In the end, I refurbished the injectors, replaced all coolant hoses, the thermostat, fuel hose, the EGR valve, gaskets, installed a new Warpspeed Y-pipe to resolve the clogged cat issue, cross member bushings, and a motor mount. You can move in a replacement engine, but consider the cost of everything around the engine that will need to be replaced once you start disturbing old rubber and related parts.

Here's a picture of the old engine heads. Can you guess which cylinders had the problem?



Also some cylinder walls were badly scored.



I love buying used 4th gens with between 150,000 to 225,000 miles with solid engines and good bodies to refresh and run for another 5+ years. But I also know I will be replacing a list of wear items (e.g. anything with rubber) in the restoration process. Suspensions, CV axles, O2 sensors, hoses, injectors, thermostats, EGR valves, gaskets, and some unexpected stuff that comes along with restoring a car that's old enough to vote.

For a 4th gen refresh project, I budget $2,000 for parts (with me doing the work) to put the car into a state that will easily return five or more years of great service. And that's based on starting with a good engine and transmission.