Timing chain "death rattle"

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smj999smj
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Timing chain "death rattle"

Postby smj999smj » Sun May 20, 2012 1:19 am

Driving my 06 LE home today when I started to hear a clicking noise...which soon became a loud chain rattle! Looks like at 98000 miles I got bit by the upper tensioner bug like so many others! At least it went before I installed the new radiator I got. I guess I can kill two birds with one stone. Might do the spark plugs while I'm there, since I already have them. Also going to replace the slack side guide; at almost 100,000 miles, it's probably got some wear on it. I see the updated tensioner shoe is a whopping $2 each; all that work for a couple of parts worth less than $5!


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deermjd
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Postby deermjd » Sun May 20, 2012 3:20 pm

Hope you get everything replaced without any trouble. Take some pictures of the timing chain job. Have you considered replacing the secondary timing chains as well? I had the same issue with the tensioner shoes and when I had it fixed under warranty, the dealer also replaced the secondary timing chains. That's also what is listed as the required repairs for TSB NTB07-042a. Here's a list of what was replaced if you need it.

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Postby smj999smj » Sun May 20, 2012 5:50 pm

Thanks, I have the TSB as well as access to ALLDATA. I'm replacing the tensioner "shoes" and both secondary chains. Since I have almost 100000 miles on it, I'm also going to replace the "slack side" chain guide for the primary chain; I figure there's got to be some wear on it and now's the time to replace it. unfortunately I don't have the tools nor the time to wait for them. So, I'm going to pull the upper plenum (need to replace the spark plugs soon, anyway) and the valve covers (replace the gaskets while I'm there) so I can use a wrench to hold the cams in place while I torque the cam gear bolts. I have access to a lift and air tools, so that helps a lot.

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Postby smj999smj » Tue May 22, 2012 10:57 pm

UPDATE!: Well, I pulled my front cover and found out is wasn't the secondary chains that was the problem; they had already been replaced by a previous owner as I suspected when I bought the vehicle at 84000 mi. and noticed the Nissan red RTV at the timing cover seams. Turned out the bolt for the primary chain tensioner broke, causing the primary chain to slap around. My guess is whoever worked on the chain overtightened the bolts, but, I have noticed Nissan superceded the part numbers for the tensioner bolts, so who knows? I looked at the "updated" tensioner shoes for the secondary chains and I'm still not impressed. They still look a little flimsy, IMO, and they already showed a good deal of scoring on them. Since, I already had those parts and get a shop discount from the Nissan dealer, I went ahead and put the new tensioner shoes and chains on. The primary tensioner got damaged where it mates with the block, so I'm installing a new primary tensioner, slack guide and upper guide (it's scored, as well). New NGK plats spark plugs were installed with new valve cover gaskets. This made it a lot easier to remove and re-torque the cam bolts since I didn't have the special tools. To install the new tensioner shoes, I depressed the tensioners and locked them with a tensioner pin tool that I have. I couldn't get the shoes to press on by hand, but I did have a set of Channel locks with "soft" covers on the jaws (originally designed for the Sears Robo-grips) that made the job a piece of cake! Wish I had the $$$ and time to wait for an XTP plenum spacer, but that'll have to wait for another time! New radiator is ready to drop in (what a pain in the butt getting the old one out with those side brackets hanging up on the A/C lines!). I order new foam for the radiator. Two of them attach to the radiator, itself, while the other two attache to the side brackets. The ones on the side brackets were pretty beat up, so I'm glad I got them. I'm going to try leaving the driver's side radiator bracket off until I get the radiator in past the AC lines (and then install it) to see if it makes the job a little easier. New thermostat is installed. Biggest pain of the job, so far, is cleaning the old sealant off of the front cover, getting the P/S bracket off & trying to find the rear bolt for the A/C compressor and getting it off! New tensioner should arrive in a day...

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Postby smj999smj » Mon May 28, 2012 10:24 pm

The primary tensioner got special ordered and back-shipped but finally arrived, but tensioner bolts didn't show. I noticed the bolts for the upper intake collector were the same as those for the tensioner, so I used them as I had to get the job done. I installed temporary bolts (same size, slightly lower grade) on the intake until Nissan got the new ones to me. I ordered the Threebond sealant from Nissan; my advice is don't waste your money. The sealant was so thick in consistantly that it blew out the back of the tube while trying to apply it to the cover! There is a special tool that is available to apply the sealant using the tool, but it isn't necessary. I used black RTV sealant in the pressurized "cheese whiz" can you can get at any auto parts store and it worked great! It's definately a lot easier than the conventional "squeeze tube" RTV since there's so much RTV that has to be applied to the front cover! Installing the radiator is a major pain! I tried installing it with the right bracket installed on the rad and the left bracket installed off of the radiator, but in the vehicle. It took some jostling, but installed easier than the way it came out. It was still a pain! In the end, my Pathy is back on the road and runs great! Hope it'll be awhile before I need to do this job again!


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