Can Anybody Help Solve My 2000 Nissan Frontier problem?
My 2000 Nissan Frontier king Cab truck showed a
"Service Engine Soon" light at about 100 miles. I
have had the car 10 days and actually drove it less
than 2 full days. The dealer is taking
instructions from the factory but, so far, none
have worked. I have demanded a new truck but have
no final answer as yet. Can anybody help? Has
anybody seen this problem before?
"Service Engine Soon" light at about 100 miles. I
have had the car 10 days and actually drove it less
than 2 full days. The dealer is taking
instructions from the factory but, so far, none
have worked. I have demanded a new truck but have
no final answer as yet. Can anybody help? Has
anybody seen this problem before?
0
This discussion has been closed.
Comments
I understand your frustration, but asking for a new truck is a little extreme. Especially since your truck probably runs just fine with that "Service Engine Soon" light on. On some other cars it's call a "Check Engine" light. In any case, the idiot light relates only to the ODBII emission control system and does not indicate the general mechanical health of your engine.
Welcome to reality. All vehicles are prone to the same workmanship flaws, including imports.
I have owned both and have to say my domestic is just as reliable, has more standard and OPTIONAL equipment and is much more reasonably priced at the original sale AND to repair and maintain.
Just my .02 observation. Sorry if it was way overpriced, but import owners don't seem to mind that much.
Other than the engine replacement when ANY vehicle would be due, the truck has had nothing more than normal maintenance done to it.
My brother in law has an 89 Chevy 4X4 with similar story to tell.
Buying Foreign is just a weak security blanket that costs way more money than what security it provides. Its false sense of security at a premium price.
Another good point to make is that the American vehicles are rebuildable when they do need it. Foreign vehicles usually must be scrapped and replaced with brand new engines. They are pretty much "throw away" engines. My mom found this out with her 89 camry. Engine blew at 90k miles in 98. 6 grand to get the engine replaced! FAT CHANCE! The whole car wasn't worth that. We sold it to the scrap yard for 2k. A factory NEW GM 350 engine costs $1,500.00. If you need it installed, it will cost ya another $1,000. Gee, $2,500 or 6,000?
Your theory doesn't fly.
archr
Ice
Having owned two domestic cars (Chevy, Dodge) and foreign (Toyota, Nissan) I have to tell you that you know nothing of reliability experiences. My Chevy Blazer was a piece of junk and especially the Dodge Stratus (bought new) taken to the shop 3 times the first month of owning it (odo 325miles). I have put 15K on my Frontier and it has not gone into the shop once. Toyota is just as good when I bought a 93 Camry for my wife 72K and still runs great with no problems.
For you other people who will not wake up and see America Quality lagging behind there are far more many Nissan pickups on the road than many of you will admit. Problems ratio is higher on Domestic end of the spectrum. If you don't stand up to the American Auto Makers (Chevy, Dodge, and Ford) then poor quality will continue to pour out in production.
Bring on the arguments of this one.
I have owned Ford trucks for 15 years, 8 all together (new) and never had ANY problems with ANY of them until I owned one lemon Ford in 98 so I traded for my 99 Silverado which also is a great truck so far after 9k miles.
I would have agreed with you 10 years ago when domestic quality was lacking. Quality is as good or better than imports today. Imports are still selling on past reputation, not present quality advantages. If you want to waste your money on a false security blanket, by all means, piss your money out the door, Linus. If you want a truck that will be less money initially, less money for parts if you do need them (THEY ALL WILL EVENTUALLY), more payload capacities, more standard equipment and optional equipment and still be just as reliable as the above mentioned Nissan that had a limp peter, buy a domestic.
I buy a new truck every two to three years and have owned "almost" all of them.
You know nothing.....typical comment when a person doesn't have a clue themselves.
Cooldog
My 89 1 ton Chevy 4X4 has 223k miles on it. Same engine. Same transmission. No problems still today.
Your trying to justify that false sense of reliability advantage. Imports are still selling the numbers they sell based on past reliability and loyalty, not because they are built any better. Most of the imports aren't even imports these days. Built right here in the US. There is no difference. Glad you feel secure though. Moreso, I am glad you can afford to throw money away to have that false security blanket.
Also, hope you never do have to rebuild that truck. The import engines are use once, throw away engines.
Good luck.
You don't see me over in the Chevy Truck section bad mouthing those trucks. If you ever owned a Nissan truck before it would all be relavant but you don't and continue to bad mouth nissans. Those are the only sections you visit it seems. Ususally people like you are searching for attention because you probably have had problems with your truck and blame us folks who have good reliable vehicles. If you have experience owning a truck, by all means tell us about why you like it and not why you hate others. Preaching hate begets hate and it is wrong and I apologize to everyone for doing it myself in earlier postings. I will only reply negatively to vehicles I have owned in future postings.
God Bless
The reason I keep comparing my truck/trucks to the imports is because I have owned both domestic and import. The import was a good truck for what it was designed, but it cost way too much and was no better a truck than the domestics I have owned.
My point being is....if you like the imports better, fine, I can respect the fact that you LIKE the import trucks better. However, I keep hearing all this crap about how the import trucks are so much more reliable than domestics and that is why people buy them. That is just a false security blanket. It holds no merit whatsoever.
Most import buyers don't keep their vehicles but a few years and then trade off for something else. How can they claim higher reliability and logevity in the vehicles if they don't keep them to a point where things start to break down?
I have over 225,000 miles on my 1 ton Chevy truck. It has never had any major work needed and I am not the original owner.
To add to that. When I so desire, I can easily and VERY CHEAPLY replace my 1 tons engine or even rebuild the one that is in it. The import vehicles engines generally are not "rebuildable" and replacement is more than twice the cost of the domestics.
These things are my only point, really. It wasn't until you got a little defensive that I dogged your Nissan. In import trucks, my preference will always be a Toyota. However, I doubt I could ever bring myself to buy another one, especially at the rediculous cost for much less truck (size, payload, towing, etc.)
My buddy had a 97 Ford F150 with the 5.4l. He just traded it for a Tundra. I would definately by a Tundra over another Ford anyday, but that is because Ford has royaly screwed the engine and transmission lineups on the new Ford trucks. Again, that is just my opinion. Never had any major problems or complaints with any Chevy I have owned.
It's a natural response, to relate past ownership experience to brand preference and loyalty. The problem with your sincere thoughts are you're not looking at the *real documented statistics* that show GM and Chrysler at the bottom of the heap when it comes to reliability. These are not my feelings, they are DOCUMENTED FACTS. Go look in Consumer Reports, to name one example. No automaker wants you to see these results because they all have problems, it's just some brands are worse.
Myself, I've owned a mix of domestic and foreign vehicles and haven't had enough problems to form a strong PERSONAL opinion about reliability. The few problems I've had have been frustrating, time consuming and expensive, which is why I put reliability near the top of my list when choosing a "make" of vehicle. One thing I have noticed though; Take two $20k vehicles, a domestic and an import, put 90k miles on them both then tell me which one rattles, vibrates and has an A/C unit that does not work. In MY EXPERIENCE the domestics are on the bottom of the food chain, but I have no "larger study" to back my opinion.
I feel a slight sense of shame for not buying American. My sense of supporting an industry that could do better is worse.
You do make an excellent point about cost to repair though. In my opinion the idea is to have as few repairs as possible. As mentioned, repairs tax your time and patients as well as your wallet.
To me it's just an odds game. I'll put the odds in my favor when possible.
Also, you have to realize that the imports sell less than 1/3 of the vehicles that domestics sell. Domestics sold being a much larger quantity than imports sold, there will be more domestics reported with problems. And how about the fact that the import cars you say have less rattles and such are assembled right here in the same US plants that domestics are made in. A ton of the domestic cars are using the same foreign parts that the imports are using, only in the imports they cost TWICE AS MUCH!
BTW, just to mention, the "women" of my extended family all buy Toyotas and I know from first hand knowledge that they are not as reliable as everyone claims. My sisters Avalon, a 28k car, had numerous driveline problems. She finally ditched it for another Avalon. She still insists that they are so much more reliable, even after she owned a Chrysler Labaron that she put 250,000 miles on before selling it. She ran the transmission dry on fluid and ran it for thousands of miles with it making noises before I got to take a look at it. I added fluid and it was running on the same transmission and engine when she sold it.
My mom just bought another Camry, a used 98 model. The 92 Camry she had was hit in the rear end from some gal at 30 mph. At only 30 mph, the car's frame was not repairable! That sure is a strong car frame! Yet she went and bought another one. I am sure glad it wasn't a head on collision. She probably would not be alive to tell about it. AT 30 MPH!
It's obvious you are foggy headed with so-called reliability advantages of the imports. You buy what makes you happy, but if you say that there is a single "fact" to your claim, you are either highly misinformed or you are just fooling yourself. I keep a close eye on who does the "consumer reports" type magazine tests. There is a lot of bias and a lot of deep pockets to be influenced. Don't trust those as "facts" or you will be disappointed. Go visit various dealerships for the different makes of vehicles. That will tell you quite a lot. Also look at the TSB's and Recalls of each. That by itself will shock you and totally blow away your security blanket in the import vehicles.
Take care.
Second, you're bringing up the "market share" theory. Domestics sell more therefore you will see more broken ones. The facts state *percentage* of those reporting problems, quantity has nothing to do with it. Why does Ford seem to have less problems (opinion) than GM, despite the fact that they sell slightly more trucks?
Third, you're still fighting with the same argument. Your point is always based on personal experience. There's nothing wrong with personal experience but I don't think it's a fair or honest way to judge a product, based on the fact that your experience is with a *very* small fraction of one percent. Is it possible that your experiences have been better than the average because of your knowledge of auto's, great maintenance and knowing how to drive a vehicle without thrashing on it as hard? Or were you simply delt a better hand?
I’m purposely leaving out my personal experience, such as the 85 Jetta I owned. Used to pull a 1000 pound boat and gear and commuted hard, over mountainous roads to work and got almost 300,000 miles out of it, etc., etc. The story isn’t worth anything because it was a very isolated example. VW’s don’t have the best reliability status. IT WAS AN ISOLATED EXPERIENCE.
My opinion on "country of origin".
I think poor quality vehicles are DESIGNED poor, not necessarily built poor. If you took Yugo parts and designs, to a BMW factory, do you think the quality would be on a par with the better cars of the world? I personally believe that GM and others spend most of their R&D money on getting the most power and economy out of every ounce of engine, along with bells and whistles like tow/haul mode, rather than make a something work better (more reliable). For the majority of the population what seems to sell vehicles is marketing, features, power etc. I think when people buy new vehicles they imagine and compare the vehicle as it sits on the lot, new, with no problems. I don't think many say to themselves "what will this thing be like in five years?". I think the big three recognize this and produce vehicles accordingly. It’s similar to the Windows operating system for computers. Why can’t Microsoft fix what they have before releasing new products with more features?
At one point I swore I would never own another Japanese vehicle. Because they are so "cliché" and boring. Every make has it's strong and weak points.
By the way. Every time I see a new Silverado, I think to myself “should I have bought one?”. It’s great truck with tons of great features. I have to use willpower to remind myself of what it’s like to have a vehicle in the shop.
By the way I don’t have a security blanket. Again, I’m just playing the odds game. It’s possible my Tundra won’t start today.
If you want to go back to using “personal experience” to compare vehicles I could tell you about all of my friends and families and their stories about their GM products. The fact is though, they fall under the market share rule that you brought up. Not really a fair argument.
I’m not trying to slam you, just trying to point out a more logical way to compare.
I know, it's beating dead horse.
And the Tacoma has headgasket problems, STILL with their 3.4 V6! This is ok though because its a Toyota right??
Should have bought a Ranger :-))
Enjoy the ride!
Even if you do have your oil changed somewhere, why would you go to the dealer and have it done. You really do like to spend money foolishly.
Vince, had you read my posts you would know that I don't think any manufacturer is perfect and that all vehicles break.
Had you noticed I never specifically said anything about Japanese vehicles. I was putting down GM and Chrysler for being last in reliability, and NOT according to my experience.
BTW, I do change my own oil. Others may want the service record for warranty or resale purpose.
complain about..."
Whatever. What comes standard on my Z71 is a hard to get "option" on your Tundra. The Tundra is less payload and tow capable, less offroad capable (can't even get a locking or limited slip differential), has less interior comforts, has smaller interior cabin and extended cab area, cheap and cheesy controls and radio equipment, brakes longer to a stop loaded and unloaded, and gets less fuel economy. It is just not a true competitor to a true full size truck and still costs more than 3k more than a domestic full size truck. Even looking at its exterior shows a mid-size Dodge Dakota like truck, which is fine, but not at the same cost of a true full sized truck.
When I looked at Tundra's to see what this so calleed big craze was all about, I saw the typical Toyota truck.....Plain and basic design, less useability and optional equipment and a truck relying on the Toyota name to sell at a way overpriced cost.
Not bitching, just comparing domestics to the overpriced imports. The reliabilty claims you make of Toyota over domestics is just not valid, period. You have provided us no facts whatsoever. Consumer Reports is not factual data. Not even close.
Not to mention that the Tundra copied the ugly looks of the Ford F150. Awful ugly. At least the Tacoma is "cute".
The ONLY plus I liked about the Tundra is its higher true ground clearance, which it is clear to have an advantage over the domestics in that catagory of offroad capability. However, also, trying to put a heavy object over the bed rails would be difficult and not always convenient to be loaded from the tailgate area so its all a matter of what you use the truck for most, offroading or hauling.
BTW: Keep your receipts of the oil and filter and document the mileage of your oil changes is just as good as spending more money for some highschool kid to do it at a dealership. Better in my opinion because I trust myself to tighten the drain plug, the oil filter, add the right amounnt of oil and I also know exactly what oil is going into the truck. Many times you think you are getting a certain oil make and viscosity, but you actually get whats in the bulk tank. I have personally known one Toyota dealership to used only Valvoline oils (a good oil). Another only uses Pennzoil (crap in my opinion). This was purely due to the dealers cost of the bulk oil. Period.
We can debate this Tundra Vs. big 3 all day, just as others do in 40 other topics here on Edmunds. neither of us are likely to budge on the issues.
I happen to agree with you about all of the nice options the GM offers and sometimes wonder whether I sould have bought a Sierra, they're very nice trucks. You bring up some valid points such as no limited slip on the Tundra and the fact that the Tundra can tow 7200 lbs vs GM's 8000 pounds. I guess what I'm trying to say is just because I like my Tundra doesn't mean I have to hate the competition. However the Tundra fits my needs better, 5000 lbs towing is adaquate for me, the bed is big enough for me, limited slip would be nice, but can't think of where I might actually NEED it (I have 4wd). I'm not using it for commercial use (a Ford would be my choice, though I think the GM looks nicer), I commute to work three days a week, I fish, boat, camp, offroad and screw around on my days off. I'm not hauling tractors!
Some of your points are not true, let's compare HALF TON Trucks:
Tundra 32 valve 4.7 V8
315 torque
245 hp
16 hwy mpg
Chevy 4.8 V8
less torque
less HP
same or better mpg
If you want to compare 3/4 or one ton trucks, I'll take the Dodge Cummins.
Even the 5.3 Chevy engine has the same power as the Tundra. The 6.0 Chevy is only available in 3/4 ton models.
MSRP is about the same for the two trucks, it's just the Toyota dealers won't deal as much as the Chevy dealers, which is worth about $2000.
I think the Chevy is right for some people, who need a slightly more cab space, a slighly larger bed and need to tow a bit more weight (and like their service tech.!). I'M JUST NOT THAT PERSON!! I do believe my Tundra will be more reliable than your GM, just my opinion. To me the reliability is worth more than all of the nice GM options. All of those options = more things to go wrong
BTW - you mention your opinion much about the Tundra's "cheesy" interior. I've heard many times the phrase, regarding GM, "Fisher Price interior", and would have to agree.
Regarding who's truck is faster, my thoughts:
Unloaded tundra wins hands down, even on the braking. Much of this is due to weight and the Tundra's standard 3.9 rear end.
As you start to pile on weight, especially after 4000 pounds I think the GM will be the better performing truck.
In my Tundra with people, gear, fishing stuff, camping stuff and boat, I'd estimate the load to be 3000 pounds. With that weight the truck performs very nice, more than enough power (I pass my share of sedan's, up hill) in the mountains and stops very nicely. I would guess after 5000 pounds of weight you would be safe and get to your destiny at the speed limit but would need more patients.
If you've noticed. I'm trying to give a fair point of view, not just slam you because you're the competition, I don't see things that way. For some, it makes them feel better to slam people with different taste and vehicles. I know I'm not going to change your mind, your closed minded, I think.
BTW - what do you do with your truck?
hmmm......
"The GM is bigger than the Tundra and has bigger AVAILABLE engines."
True
Ok, but what about Dodge. The Dodge RAM is bigger than the GM and has a bigger standard engine and an optional engine that can out haul anything (the Cummins).
Why aren't you all driving Dodges? I'll tell you why... You don't trust the transmissions and the overall reliability, right? You're willing to give up a bit of size for a truck you trust more and like better. Well us Tundra owners aren't driving the GM for the VERY SAME REASON!
Now I ask you, Zbad, what makes Tundra owners so wrong?
BTW - Dealerships don't cost as much to change oil as you think. Yes, my wife has them put in Valvoline. I know what good oil is just like I know what a good vehicle is as well. Funny thing too. Valvoline comes in the 1 QT containers at the Nissan Dealership. Not the big bad drum of oil.
Enjoy your free speech while I (when I return to the US) enjoy my Japanese truck made in the US.
BTW - I have experience driving a lot of Korean Autos as well. Hummers too. Military Police always seem to get stuck driving HumVees. That is topic for a different place.
Enjoy the ride.
Helicopter crewchief 85-89. Toured to Okinawa, Mainland Japan (crewed many flights over Mnt. Fuji), Seol Korea, Alongapo and Minilla Phillipines, and Tialand. Lost many of my Marine Corps bretheren in the line of duty. People don't realize that one CH-53 helicopter crash can kill more than 25 at a time. 8 years total service. 4 of it active duty. 2 years active reserves during Desert Storm (Mine Sweeping missions). 2 years inactive reserves, but still did mini missions on occasion because of my MOS.
Now, since you are in the Military, I did not know that and understand why you have your oil changed by someone. However, you claim to be doing some kind of heroic duty that keeps my right to free speech. You are not doing anything that I have not done already for myself and millions of others.
Enjoy your import "made in the US". The profits still ultimately end up in Foreign lands, where the American Military is there to help them and their country. The reward or payback is for them to treat the American people like [non-permissible content removed]. We lose American lives to help and protect them while they spit in our faces. This is another reason I woke up and realized the "one" import I bought was a huge mistake.
What branch are you in? What is your MOS?
They may LOOK bigger, but the GM trucks have more interior room AND ground clearance than both Dodge and Ford.
You need to do a little research. Dodge is last in the line of trucks, then Tundra, then Ford, then GM being #1. This is overall functionality and reliability.
GM's transmissions are the toughest and best in the truck industry right now. I can't even count how many loyal Ford owners have mentioned that they wish they could have a GM transmission in their Ford trucks. Dodge has even more problems than Ford. I don't know how you can slam the GM transmissions. They have had the best transmissions since the Turbo 400 back in the 70's.
I am glad you are ok with driving a less cabable truck for more money than GM. Have fun. I wish you many years of reliable driving experience. I hope you buy another Tundra too. Keeps the cost of the real trucks down with the competition.
Take care.
I think the RAM is crap too, and agree, for the displacement the engines are anemic and hog fuel.
Again, what do YOU do with your truck? Are you hauling 5000+ pounds? Be honest. I see that as the biggest advantage of the GM.
And I do understand that it's the many service people who make it possible for me to earn a living in our strong, free market.
I don't treat my truck like a common work truck, but I do work my truck. I have an 89 1 Ton Chevy with 454 that I use for heavy work, which I would match agains ANY new gas engined 1/2 ton or 3/4 ton or 1 ton. The only reason I havn't used it for some of the above mentioned is because it's down at the farm (I have another 400 acres about an hour away from my primary home) and I didn't want to have to go and get it. I use it more down on the farm anyway.
So now you know some of my common uses for my truck. I don't think the Tundra would be much help for me. Although I don't do this kind of work with my truck often, it DOES have to be capable of it for times like this and I don't think the Tundra is suited for the job. I can't see paying more money for something less capable.
Its like an SUV. The SUV's look good and would be nice to have, but are more useful for carrying passengers than going offroad or providing a payload need and cost rediculous prices. Thats how I see the Tundra. Toyota may come out with something of real competition soon, but not yet in my opinion.
Later.
US Army
Thank you for doing your part in the military Zbad. I also appreciate what you said Artp. I didn't mean anything bad by it. I was upset by the fact that Zbad does some name calling about someone he doesn't know, i.e. "yuppie". Making assumptions about someone based on what they drive.
I don't hate the Chevy Truck. My father-in-law owns 2 of them and a Corvette. Both trucks have been in the shop more times than I can remember. Fuel pump problem being one of them. He is a diesel mechanic and after exhausting his warranty efforts at the dealership worked on it himself. I haven't heard anymore about it since I am over in another country.
My Frontier is my vehicle of choice. When I get home I will have to somehow persuade my wife to give it up. Maybe I will buy her a Honda Civic.
Enjoy the ride!
A few points.
Consumer Union, the publisher of Consumer Reports really strives to be unbiased. Usually they are very good at it. In the area of motor vehicles they are severely lacking because of two factors. First, CU is still influenced by the attitude of a past director, Mr. Nader. Second, CU is headquartered in the New York city area. I won't say anything about Mr. Nader other than I disagree.
On the second issue, the view of 'the suitability for purpose' of a motor vehicle is vastly different in New York City than Dallas, Denver, Los Angeles or where ever. There's nothing wrong with the CU opinion of motor vehicles, it's just that their view isn't realistic when applied to other areas of the country.
Maybe what CU says is appropriate for New York City but it sure doesn't sell soap in Los Angeles.
As far as a 'quality' measurement for motor vehicles, I only know of two unbiased methods.
The first is to rent a car with 20,000 miles on the odo from any of the major rental companies. The condition of that vehicle is going to approximate what the same type of vehicle that you own will be at 80,000 miles. Some are good, some are bad and some are worse.
The second method is to observe the side of the highway during the summer driving season. The is especially true on the long grades like Donner Summit, Grapevine, Tejon Pass, Einsenhower Tunnel, etc. Watch and see what is dead on the side of the road. Is it Detroit, Japan, Korea or Germany? Maybe it's not a perfect system, but actions speak louder than words. I think that you'll be very surprised!
Rich
I've got four more words for the rest of you out there.
NISSAN: Enjoy the ride!
In my geographic local I see mostly GM and Dodge trucks on the side of the road, but GM is market share king here. What does seeing a stranded GM really say? Probably that they sell a lot.
Second, the information from CR that I based my opinion on was "reliability history". The RH is just a statistic stating how many owners (percent) reported problems with a particular vehicle. It's not an opinion, it's a fact. I too would agree that that CR OPINION and RECOMMENDATION are weak.
You just stepped on a lot of toes there, pal. There are a whole lot of Nissan truck drivers, yuppies and women included, whose automotive knowledge and experience as well other areas of expertise will put you 90 miles out to shame.
Debate all you want, but grind your axe somewhere else.