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Infiniti I30/I35 Maintenance and Repair

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Comments

  • Mr_ShiftrightMr_Shiftright Member Posts: 64,481
    Yes if the brake light switch is bad it will not send a signal to the gearshift solenoid to unlock the gear shift lever. You could test this by by-passing the brake light switch with a jumper wire just momentarily to see if the lever releases. Also I guess you could have a loose fuse for the brake light switch, or a bad connection at the switch, or the fuse box....or the brake light switch could be hanging loose or not adjusted properly.
  • infinity19infinity19 Member Posts: 1
    I replaced my alternator once. 4 alternators thats crazy. I had a similar problem with my 97 i30 where i needed a jump. I had to replace the compressor. could that be the problem?
  • bcrisologobcrisologo Member Posts: 2
    This happens when the lights are on. When I step on the brake, the right brake light turns off. What could be the problem? Appreciate your assistance.
  • lori925lori925 Member Posts: 12
    Hey there...I went ahead and replaced the IACV and my car drove beautifully for three weeks. But sadly this past weekend, she started stalling and running rough and lurching again. I was SO bummed out. I believe my previous IACV burned up my ECM circuit board (this only happens in the 1996 model, which is the first year the ODB was introduced...subsequent models have a fail safe that prevents burning up the ECM...oh well). I'm going to have someone pull out the ECM and look at the circuit board. According to the Infiniti dealership (about 2 hours away), if the ECM is damaged, I will be able to see visual damage. If it looks fine (fingers crossed) then I might try the MAF, unless you have another suggestion? You had the same problem as I am experiencing...may I ask what resolved these issues for your infiniti? I am at my wits end...thanks so much! ~Lori
  • refugeescamprefugeescamp Member Posts: 43
    its your MAF sensor
  • jhayes9835jhayes9835 Member Posts: 20
    I have a 96 I30 that I just replaced the engine in with a used engind. It takes 3-4 tries before it will start. When starting, it will backfire. Once it starts it runs fine. All the sensors have been replaced. The mechanic says that it may have to go to the dealer and run some software to relearn the system at start up. Is there anyone that had to go and do this before? Do I have to have the computer reprogrammed? Any info or help would be greatly appreciated.
  • hossjrhossjr Member Posts: 3
    I leave the car for a week w/o starting it and it's dead.
    Battery and alternator have been replaced and check out fine.
    Any ideas?
  • brig7brig7 Member Posts: 5
    :sick: Hello
    My problem is that i got this i30t but in the cold weather it takes 10 min for me to warm it up. When i do the car will sometimes will shut down so i need to rev it up from time to time. If i dont do this and just drive off the car when stopping will start shaking and the rpm arrow will bounce around the 0. So every time i stop i need to put on park and rev it up. :confuse:
    If any more info need i will check for it.
    Thank you (if you will help me)
  • lori925lori925 Member Posts: 12
    I would have your technician (not mechanic) hook the vehicle up to one of their high tech hand held computers, the kind that can read all the sensors even if the check engine light is not on. This will tell them where the problem is. My suspicion is your mass air meter (mass air flow sensor) or your PCV valve. Have the technician confirm this before replacing those parts though, as the MAF sensor isn't a cheap part (although the PCV valve is)
  • escromotors2escromotors2 Member Posts: 1
    I HAVE A 1999 INFINITI I30 THAT U NEED TO CRANK IT 3 TO 4 TIMES BEFORE IT STARTS .BUT THE CAR RUNS GREAT .?? I DON'T QUITE FIGURE WHAT'S WRONG WITH IT I REPLACED THE MAF SENSOR , THE STARTER , AND EVEN TOOK DOWN THE TRANSMISSION AND REPLACED THE FLYWHEEL BECAUSE I THAUGHT IT WAS BAD , ANYBODY HAD THIS PROBLEM BEFORE ?? THIS CAR IS DRIVING ME CRAZY THANKS
  • riversrednoteriversrednote Member Posts: 1
    I've been reading these posts for a little while and follow most of the recommendations. My i30 '01 it's being acting up with the same problems for more than a year now and almost $3000 spent. O2 sensors changed, fuel injectors cleaned, MAF sensor cleaned, air filter changed. It's been on Brake Plus, on the Infinity dealer, on a local mechanic shop, and everybody knows what it is, but nobody have changed a thing. Love my car, but not the fact on going back to square one on the same problem.
    Any suggestions besides getting rid of it.
  • price1975price1975 Member Posts: 1
    Here is the deal.........I have a 1998 Infinity I 30 with around 135000 miles on it. I have had a problem starting my car for about a year now.......It refuses to crank smoothly! Its odd, in the summer it takes several attempts to get the vehicle to turn over and in the colder months it seems to start with fewer attempts. Nevertheless, the vehicle never wants to start right up! Over half the times that I do crank it the car just dies and the cycle starts again.......seems as if NOONE can figure out what the problem is.......ANY thoughts would be greatly appreciated!!!

    Thanks! :sick: :sick: :sick: :sick: :sick:
  • lori925lori925 Member Posts: 12
    When you try to turn it over, is it doing absolutely nothing until you crank it a few more times? Or is it starting okay, but then stalling?
  • lori925lori925 Member Posts: 12
    I just replaced the mass air flow sensor in my 1996 I-30 and it solved all my problems which included: terrible gas mileage, stalling, black smoke out exhaust, RPMs jumping around and hanging out down below 400, starting the car and having it instantly stall and having to start it over and over again while depressing the gas, etc...Some days it drove great, but over the past 12 months, those bad symptoms increased in frequency. You can get a remanufactured MAF sensor for $240 at O'Reillys but if you buy it new from Infiniti it is over $600. The good news is that this sensor is located right on top of the throttle body, connected to where the air filter goes and it is literally 4 screws and a plug. It's so easy to change, I wouldn't pay a mechanic $60-$90 for an hour's worth of labor, because it literally takes 10 minutes and if you have the right tools, you can do it yourself. Good luck!
  • lori925lori925 Member Posts: 12
    It was the mass air flow sensor. I put in a re-manufactured one and it has completely solved my problems!
  • martycrollmartycroll Member Posts: 1
    This was starting to happen last fall but then cold weather seemed to arrest it. Now hot weather is returning, it is happening almost every time the car is headed up hill, it hesitates and even stalls and won't downshift accurately, and in fact seems to disengage the transmission. When I stop it and turn it off and back on, and accelerate through the gears, it does okay until it needs to downshift again out of overdrive. I am thinking it might be my Mass Air Flow Sensor but don't know. Has anyone had similar issues? Any ideas how I can fix this?
  • lori925lori925 Member Posts: 12
    I just replaced my mass air flow sensor and it cured ALL of my symptoms including, black smoke out exhaust, stalling when foot is off accerator (like when approaching a stop sign), TERRIBLE gas mileage, RPMs decreasing from 1000 down to 400 and lower and acting like she wants to stall until I pop it into neutral and gas it up, and stuff like that. Do your symptoms seem like that? I have a 1996 I30 with 150k miles. There is also a mass air flow cleaner you could try before replacing it. This part is so easy to get to, since it's right on top of the throttle body and is literally 4 screws and a plug. It will NOT make your check engine light go on, and there will be some days that your car will drive just fine. How long has this been happening? Now, I am not sure about your symptoms when it comes to driving uphill, because I live on a small island off the coast of Georgia and we are pretty FLAT at sea level....
  • lori925lori925 Member Posts: 12
    Check that, SIX screws and a plug. If you have the right tools, you can totally do this yourself. A new MAF sensor from Infinit is $600 but a remanufactured one from O'Reillys is under $240 and has a $50 core charge you'll get back when you turn in old one. Be careful if you clean it with the MAF cleaner from Auto Zone, because the filament, it is made of platinum and apparently really sensitive.
  • jodimjodim Member Posts: 1
    I have '99 i30 with 137K miles. Sometimes when I am driving it feels like it will stall and sort of bumps a little. Like it is getting enough gas, not sure what it could be.

    Any ideas
  • lori925lori925 Member Posts: 12
    do you have black smoke coming out of the exhaust sometimes? Is this problem intermittent or is it happening all the time? When does it feel like stalling? Does it happen when you are approaching a stop sign? Or when you are giving it gas?
  • dh30dh30 Member Posts: 1
    I have a 2001 I30T and a couple weeks ago the idle speed was crazy. It would idle at about 1800 RPM or rev back and forth between 1500 and 2200 RPM. I took it in and they said something happened in the computer that fried the idle sensor and they replaced the idle sensor. It would then idle fine after that fix but when I would start the car when it was cold it would die unless I tapped the gas pedal a couple times which seemed to then get the car to idle fine. It is now 2 weeks later and the idle speed just went up to 1500 RPM again at a stop light but was fine the rest of my trip in to work. I am concerned the same problem is coming back and am at a loss for what may be causing it. Any help or suggestions would be appreciated! The guy that fixed it the first time said my computer may be fried and that would be $1,200 to replace plus an additional $290 to put another new idle sensor in again. HELP!!!
  • infinjiminfinjim Member Posts: 1
    I'm having this issue now too. The gearshift lever can be unlocked manually by removing the little cover just in front of the gearshift lever pushing a small diameter object (I use a pen cap) down while shifting out of park.

    Exactly where is the fuse for the brake light switch and where is the brake light switch itself? Mr. Shiftright, will you please weigh in?
  • stevenohstevenoh Member Posts: 3
    I have a 1997 Infinity I30 (145,000 miles) where the speedometer stops and restarts randomly. Any thoughts on what my be causing the issue?

    So far the speedometer restarts after anywhere from a few minutes to 20-30 minutes. The tack still works -- the speed and odometer stops and restarts.

    Stopping and restarting the engine doesn't automatically fix the issue.
  • Mr_ShiftrightMr_Shiftright Member Posts: 64,481
    Well you can easily diagnose this by having someone check if you have brake lights or not. If you don't then you look towards the brake light switch or fuse. If you DO have brake lights, then you have to look at the shift-interlock solenoid and its circuitry.
  • markpipenkomarkpipenko Member Posts: 1
    My i30t won't start. It turns on but when I try to start her up she makes a wierd noise thats barely audible. It's not the battery, and it's not the starter. I had a guy fix this problem 4 days ago, and he said that I didn't put her in park all the way. This problem came up last night as well. But I checked and it was in park all the way.
  • stevenohstevenoh Member Posts: 3
    edited July 2010
    I have an 1997 infinity I30 and periotically my speedometer stops or freezes for a period of time (sometimes from 10 to up to 40 minutes) and then just starts back up again. During this period the tach work fine and the car is running fine.

    Any thoughts on what could be going on?
  • runnergoalrunnergoal Member Posts: 1
    I have an I30 sedan 99 with 165000 miles. My service engine light is on. One place could not determine what's wrong with the car. Has anyone else has had this type of problem? If yes, what is the cause and the way to correct it? Also, the estimated price to repair it.

    Thanks
  • geminijergeminijer Member Posts: 1
    edited July 2010
    I just had a speed sensor replaced in my 1997 Infinity I30t. The speedometer always worked fine. Since the sensor replacement ( 3 days ago ), the speedometer will randomly work and then drop to zero. To coincidental. Does anyone have a clue as to what's happening to the speedometer. Almost sounds like a slipping cable as a result of the sensor work ???
  • hartleyburthartleyburt Member Posts: 1
    I have a very similar problem with my 1998 I30. I often have to tap the gas pedal to crank the car. It seems to happen more often when it's cold as you mentioned. And sometimes, right after I start the engine, the car idles unusually. Every time I take my car in, they tell me I'm crazy and that they have no trouble cranking it.

    Any updates to your problem? Any luck figuring out exactly what's wrong?
  • brig7brig7 Member Posts: 5
    I am almost sure that the problem is the generator. My question is:
    Is it hard to replace it myself?
    If it is how much would it cost to repair it (average price)?

    Any help will be welcomed ;)
  • outlawmoutlawm Member Posts: 1
    to change your generator all that is needed is a basic metric socket set your generator is located on the right side of the vehicle at the top above the air conditioner
    compressor. there is two bolts holding it. first you have to disconnect the battery then take off the drive belts by loosening the tensioner on that car it is a screw type. after the belts are removed you proceed to remove the generator mounting bolts once those are removed you disconnect the wires attached to the generator. now the generator is removed installation is reverse. cost depends on your location rebuilt cost here in Chicago $70 at both auto zone and Murray's auto parts
  • carproblems6carproblems6 Member Posts: 1
    I decided to join edmunds because i am spending too much money trying to solve a mystery problem. I need your help, please!

    I have a 1999, I30T with approx. 155K miles. About 3 weeks ago the car died on me while driving. Jumped it once, but that got me only a few miles. If i tried to start it, it would just click. I took it to the mechanic just this week and he told me the problem was a bad alternator. Normally, this would be an acceptable problem except this will now be the 4th alternator being installed my car.

    1) 2008/2009 original alternator went bad and 2nd alternator (first replacement) went in. (installed by an independent mechanic)
    2) May/June 2010 2nd alternator goes bad during a long trip. Fortunately, I got it towed to an infiniti dealership. 3rd alternator is installed.
    3) July 2010 - 3rd alternator goes bad. Independant mechanic says alternator is bad. Says the alternator was not a nissan/infiniti part. The good news is that I called the infiniti dealership from before and they said that if i bring the defective alternator in they will give me a refund.

    However, I am not convinced that the alternator is my only problem. I will rule out the battery because we have had it tested every time we had an alternator problem. It has always been good. The time I had it towed to the infiniti dealership they also told me that I had oxygen sensors that needed to be replaced. They said it was not urgent and that the car would still run.

    After reading many posts it seems like nissans/infinitis are prone to electrical issues, yet none of the mechanics have received codes for bad ignition coils or switches, bad starters, or anything else.

    WHAT TO DO???
  • i301997i301997 Member Posts: 1
    My I30 has 235,000 miles on it, and the check engine light has been on for over 100,000 miles (actually the bulb burned out, it's been on so long!)... never had the problem fixed and it never affected what the performance or gas mileage... it's probably a defective oxygen sensor which will cost $400-$500 to replace... what I did was just drive the car without inspection: ticket for no inspection is only $150 in my state IF the cop even notices.
  • Mr_ShiftrightMr_Shiftright Member Posts: 64,481
    Nah your car wouldn't run that well with a defective 02 sensor---probably something minor like EVAP control system, bad gas cap like that.....running with the CEL light on is risky because you don't know if it's serious or not until you keep running with it on---then either nothing happens or something bad happens.
  • smart2010smart2010 Member Posts: 2
    Does anyone knows the couse of the problem when the MIL light of the infiniti I30 2001 does not light up when i removed any sensor cable like engine cam shaft sensor ...etc and also the ECM does not communicate with OBDII scan tool to know exactly the problem.I had before an Air bag alarm when i did a maintenace of AC without removing the batt terminal then i reseted manually through ignition switch ON,OFF procedures.I really do not know wheather this way will disable the MIL light an couse not to light up. Please help
  • smart2010smart2010 Member Posts: 2
  • nik7nik7 Member Posts: 1
    have a coolant leak by catalytic converter, are there any hoses in that area. how would I know if it were the water pump
  • rbraden2rbraden2 Member Posts: 1
    I have a 2000 I30t and had 2 o2 sensors replaced and it was only about 200 each? But realize there are 4 of them. When my check engine light came on I simply went to autozone and they provided the problem. I live in Florida so we have no state inspections. My car has 170k and it is still running strong! I hope it lasts for infinity :)
  • witnessxwitnessx Member Posts: 11
    Our 2000 I30 has about 153k miles on it. I recently took the car in for an oil change, brake inspection, and general once over. The shop I took it to informed me that both outer CV boots were torn and recommended replacing the axles. I already knew one of the outer boots was torn, so this confirmed that both joints had been exposed to the elements for at least 2-3 months. The car is parked in our garage at night, and so far I have not noticed any sort clicking noise coming from the outer CV joints despite the torn boots.

    My question is this: is it better to reboot the outer CV joints or replace the axles altogether? According to Alldata, the labor times will be about the same either way, seeing as the axles have to be taken off the car in order to reboot them. I've spoken to some folks in an automotive IRC chat that I frequent and they have said that as long as there isn't any clicking noise coming from the outer joints, rebooting them should be fine (so long as direct replacement boots are used, not generic uni-boots); this is also the route that my dad is leaning towards, as money is pretty tight. The shop that we have talked to, on the other hand, really seems to want to replace the axles altogether, seeing as there is other, more pressing work that needs to be done on the front end.

    This is the only vehicle our family has available to us right now, and I am really clueless as to which is the better course of action.
  • nwolfepganwolfepga Member Posts: 1
    Anyone have trouble with this? Car faintly wants to start but just give a rapid clicking noise. All lights work perfectly as well as power seat, etc.
  • windowphobe6windowphobe6 Member Posts: 765
    I've always believed it was better just to replace the axle, on the basis that if the joint is already damaged, replacing the boot merely slows the rate of deterioration.

    My local tire shop replaced both front axles on my I30 this year for around $350; the Infiniti dealership wanted $600 for fresh boots.
  • Mr_ShiftrightMr_Shiftright Member Posts: 64,481
    I agree---replace the axles with an axle kit.
  • Mr_ShiftrightMr_Shiftright Member Posts: 64,481
    edited September 2010
    Battery cables are perhaps loose or dirty. It takes a lot less power to work accessories than to crank a starter motor--starter motors require hundreds of AMPS, whereas an accessory might require 2 or 3. Take off cables, clean them and the battery terminals, charge up the battery on a slow charge, and see how it goes. (never jump start a completely dead battery, it can be dangerous).
  • henrykim02henrykim02 Member Posts: 1
    Just purchased a 02 I35 with 133,000 miles. Car runs perfect. However, the vehicle is very noisy. Has anybody encountered a similar situatation? If you have, Please share your experiences with me. I really like the car but if the sound is going be this loud, I can't keep it.

    Thanx.
  • atma97atma97 Member Posts: 47
    What kind of noise is it? Exhaust, belts, or bearing?
  • keirakeira Member Posts: 1
    I purchased a 2000 I30 and smelled gas loudly inside and was told it was from a leaking gasket had it replaced. Then it started hesitating at start up and stalling out when driving, was told it was a faulty fuel pump and needed replacing, had it replaced and drove approximately 200 miles and the problem started again while out of town and was diagnosed as the fuel pump again; had it replaced again, but it was discovered that the housing unit appeared to be defective. I drove 200 miles back home and the same problem started again, took it to the Infinity dealership for a diagnostic and was told it was the mass air flow filter and not the fuel pump at all, I drove approximately 50 miles and the service engine light came on and the same problem again. This is the third fuel pump and one mass air flow filter and my car is still not starting up properly and losing pressure while driving as if it is not getting gas. Help!!!!!!
  • atma97atma97 Member Posts: 47
    Old cars smell gas - I've been there. I had a 1997 Nissan Altima with very close to 300k miles and it smelled gas badly that I had to keep window open all the time when driving. Then I learned from Youtube how to add Seafoam fluid to intake. After a couple times, the gas smell was gone and throttle response was much quicker. $8 a bottle of Seafoam from Walmart or Part Stores might get you out of the problem.
  • louisl2louisl2 Member Posts: 6
    go to carseatcovers.com- they are located in arizona and will make custom covers for yout exact vehicle. I had some made for my wife's 98 I30 and they fit like a glove and had velcro openings where the side aribags were. they weren't cheap ( about $300 for front seats and bench seat in back ) but they fit very well and are made in real upholstery material. they have been in use for 6 months not and still fit perfectly, no bunching up or moving, etc.
  • louisl2louisl2 Member Posts: 6
    If it was just water, and not water and coolant, then that is normal- condensation from the a/c system.
  • louisl2louisl2 Member Posts: 6
    If the mass airflow sensor is bad it will cause the engine to stall like this. Try some sensor cleaner from auto parts store- do not touch the sensor. Have someone show you where it is, it is easy to get to.
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