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As a side note, he topped off my transfer case (I have 4WD) fluid with Dexron III/Mercon ATF fluid, which the service manual says is okay to use. But it was definitely a different color than the fluid already in there, which is most likely Nissan Matic D (the service manual says that automatic transmission fluid is put in the transfer case at the factory, so I'm assuming they used their own product).
Does anyone know if this mixing of transmission fluids is harmful? The dealer of course claims it's not, but I was considering replacing my transfer case oil with a whole new batch just to be sure.
--Howie
Scott
If you experience shifting problems, change the fluid. Otherwise don't worry about it...
I could get lucky: it might be just wheel balancing, but I wanted to see if any other new owners have similar vibration. Here is detail:
On smooth road, with slight incline, in 4th gear of Auto (overdrive engaged). Vibration Starts around 1200 RPM, peaks at about 1400 RPM, and smooths out around 2000 RPM. Speeds vary from about 35 to 50 mph.
Yesterday on the interstate I could feel it, just barely, at 70 mph. Don't know if it was the same vibration or not.
Made appointment with Dealer for Tuesday.
It doesn't seem to vibrate at idle, but it does vibrate during acceleration. It does seem to be getting worse...
Thanks for the feedback.
I plan to crawl under the truck this weekend and look for any bent parts. I'll let you know if I find anything, but I don't know if I'll be able to check the liquid filled motor mounts visually.
Their answer was essentially "they all do that"
Service Mgr said report it to Nissan.
Mechanic felt the vibration (so I'm not crazy), but said it is a result of the larger bore and stroke of the new 3.5. I don't beleive him and still think there is a problem. I will demanded to test drive a new one later this week and compare. They were unable to comply today because the sales staff was not there yet.
Does anyone else have an engine vibration around 35 to 45 mph (~1500 rpm) that shakes whole vehicle? I can feel the vibration in the seat, steering wheel, and pedals. Feels like it is coming from rear of vehicle.
Has anyone else experienced that their headlights do not turn off in the daylight?
Tom
the brake to move slowly, it would sputter. Could this be that the idling needs adjustment?. any suggestions? it only does it now and
then.
With what is going on, I would suggest that the dealer check the timing of the ignition. I know that we have direct-ignition but something is screwing with the timing to have the truck detonate so prematurely (As someone said: Check the ECU).
The only other problem that you could be having is that your gas is so dirty that it is causing detonation or extreme rapid build up of carbon (the second might just too out there for a motor with only 1500 miles on it).
Good luck and please let us know that the dealer says.
I would definitely ask a friend or co-worker to recommend a tire and brake shop that they like and then take your truck there to get a second opinion.
However, it sounds like the dealer is correct in telling you what needs to be done. How they went about doing the other stuff is another story.
The shakes from the brakes a probably due to a warped rotor or two. You don't have to go off-road to warp your rotors. It is simply a matter of your brakes heating the rotors up and then the rotors cooling down. If you drive aggresively or have to brake hard sometimes, that could be a small part of the cause. Another, more likely, cause is that maybe you were driving (using your brakes normally) and drove through some high water or in a sudden heavy down pour of rain. The sudden cooling of the rotors will cause them to warp. I'm just under 30,000 miles and starting to notice a little warping on my rotors. My Honda Accord has had slightly warped rotors since 22,000 miles. The dealer wants to do what is called "turning" the rotors. They will actually grind off part of the surface of the rotor where the brake pads touch the rotor to make it perfectly flat. Your other option would be to replace the rotors. No matter where you go, you will probably need to have this done.
Now for the tires. The tires could have worn unevenly for a number of reasons. Poor alignment is a main cause and is probably at least partly to blame for your tire wear. The other issue is that the Pathfinder just eats tires, regardless of proper alignment. I had to have my tires replaced at about 28,000 miles. I kept them balanced and aligned. As far as the vibration is concerned, I have only found a couple of places that can balance the tires on my Pathfinder. The one thing that all of those places have in common is the balance machine they use: a Hunter GSP 9700. If you go to this website: http://www.gsp9700.com/pub/features/
click on "Locate a GSP 9700" to find a shop in your area that has one of these machines. Even the Nissan place couldn't balance my tires in several tries, so they sent my truck to one of these places because the Nissan Technical Service Bulletin told them to.
Good luck with your truck. You will really enjoy it again when you get this taken care of.
the speedometer says 120 or 140 or whatever, this does not
mean the vehicle can go this fast.
nismofreak, i don't think i would worry too much about that surface rust as it is quite normal. most new cars at a dealer have some underbody rust that no one ever sees.
After lunch they called me and said the vibration is normal for pathfinders. The service mgr. supposedly spoke with engineers at Nissan that said nothing could be done. Hence he did nothing. Expecting me to be disappointed, the service mgr. said to call 800-NISSAN1 if I was unhappy. I called and got a friendly denial to help.
I drove another PF on the lot and it only vibrated about half as much. So I asked where they drew the line between normal and abnormal. The Service mgr was unable to answer and got quite angry.
Sorry for the long post, but how many other 2001 PF 4x4 owners have noticed slight vibrations. This vibration is felt from the drive train, but goes away when coasting. Mine happens at ~40 mph.
the pinion gear in the rear differential. Does your PF stop the vibration when coasting?
Steve
I called the dealer and they said you need to: 1. stop the truck; 2. put it in reverse; and 3. tap the gas. That works, but is a hassle. I guess that was the way you did it on older Pathfinders, but it's not the way it supposed to work on the 2001.
Any help is greatly appreciated.
Andrew
Tom
It's kinda frustrating because I feel uncomfortable using 4wd when it's so hard to disengage. For example, when the side streets are snow covered and I'm in 4wd then I'm getting on the highway and they're clear I need to disengage 4wd. I can't stop and put the truck in reverse.
I'll try the speed up and slow down trick. Thanks.
Although, this seems like something Nissan needs to work on. Not very comforting when you don't feel like you can easily disengage 4wd.
Andrew
I know that you and I are not the only ones that have the issue of accelerating from a stop on a snow covered side road onto a cleared highway. I generally leave it in 4wd until I get out onto the highway and then put the stick in 2wd. If you're in a lot of traffic and speeding up and slowing down 10 or 15 mph at a time is not feasible, just do it 3 or 5 mph at a time. This issue is just something that you have to deal with when driving a part-time 4wd system. The short amount of time that you're on clear pavement and in 4wd isn't really going to cause any damage...especially not enough to warrant risking the safety of you, your passengers, and your vehicle.
Meca2: My vibration goes away when I let off the gas or put it in neutral. Changing gears (3 or 4) doesn't seem to change much.
I crawled under the car Saturday and looked at the drive shaft. It looks like a big shaft inside a little shaft, surrounded by rubber. I unbolted the shaft and rotated it 180 degrees in relation to the pinion. Now the vibration is about 60% of before. Interesting... I guess I'll have to check the runnout, since the dealers don't have anyone trained to operate a dial indicator. I'll let you know what I find out.
I still suspect it is a driveshaft run-out problem, but it could be something else in the drive line...
Thanks for all the helpful input.
Seems like this is an old question for the folks here. And I have done my homework as far as reading posts on nissan newsgroups regarding the different symptoms of this problem. But I'm still having trouble telling whether or not my 95 manual pathy is one of the victims or victim-to-be.
My truck is an XE with 55K miles. It's not exactly quiet so I cant really tell if there is any "ticking noise". I was wondering if there is any other tricks to find that out without having to take the heat shield off. I'm able to see at least three bolts from the openings of the heat shield. Those bolts are rusty but seem still in one piece. The bolts on the heatshield are too rusty to remove with my limited tools.
I heard that the studs on 94-95 pathies have been replaced by 10mm (used to be 8mm) parts and therefore much stronger. I was wondering if there is anyone out there with these trucks on which the studs are still not broken.
Thanks.
Trent
Jeckles - Re: your posts #59, 90 & 99, I too have the dreaded shimmy which occurs between 30-40mph. I purchased a '01 LE back in late October. The vibration was barely noticeable then, so I thought I had escaped. But the vibration is only getting worse. I've printed out the posts that others have written regarding the shimmy & will take them with me to the dealer.
Other than that, I love the truck. I'll never go back to a car again. I bought it just in time. I was laughing as others were digging their cars out of the 15+ inches of snow we got in here in Chicago this past December. Hopefully, the dealer can fix this minor annoyance & with the exception of the high gas prices, I'll be a happy camper again.
Thanks. I'll give it a shot and see what happens.
I appreciate all your help.
Take care,
Andrew