So I just got me a 2012 "Silver" w/ 106k.
It appears very well taken care of.. The obvious fluids ( brake, collant, oil) look good...But maintenance records dont exist.
Is it possible to check the conditions of the diffs and transfer case fluids before refilling them to see if they been done ever?
If they are fresh I can probably expect all else be good also..
Few folks remember to do the transfer case...
The radiator looks original... but this is a '12 so I am not worried about SMOD mixing...
But once u have that many miles a new rad is probably not a bad idea..
I have aftermarket warranty on it.. Will likely bring it to the dealer as well to see if they will find anything..
general comments/discussion welcome...
PS: The rear suspension seems fine when going obver speedbumps with a small load in back.. No squatting.. my Xterra is IMO too soft in the back even though I just put i brand new general Springs
What whould I check/do?
Moderator: volvite
Frankly the only way to tell the condition of the fluids without records is sending an oil sample of each fluid out to be tested but it really makes no sense to do that when it is just as easy to replace all fluids.
A new radiator is not a bad idea with the millage my Toyota 4Runner radiator went at about 100,000 miles. While you are at it if you can afford it do the following.... Serpentine belt, water pump, spark plugs.
The rear shocks may be new since mine are shot at 50,000
A new radiator is not a bad idea with the millage my Toyota 4Runner radiator went at about 100,000 miles. While you are at it if you can afford it do the following.... Serpentine belt, water pump, spark plugs.
The rear shocks may be new since mine are shot at 50,000
If you have a 2012, you should be running Nissan Blue coolant if it's original. It's service interval is 150,000 miles, so it doesn't make sense to do anything with it, especially replace the radiator! Unless the radiator is damaged, leave it alone. I say the same thing for the water pump, which is driven by the timing chain. You don't hear about a whole lot of water pump failures on these engines, so, again, if it's not leaking or making noise, leave it alone. Spark plugs would be due at 105,000 miles; I would remove one of the easier ones to take out and see if it's original or has recently been replaced. If they are original, replace them with the correct type, NGK spark plugs, which should be OE Laser Iridiums (not Iridium IX, which have about half of the service life). If you want to save a few dollars, the NGK Laser Platinums (#6240) will work and carry the same 105,000 mile service life and you won't notice any difference in performance. Oil sampling is expensive and it would make more sense to just replace the diff oil and transfer case oil. Supertech or Mobil One full synthetic 75W90 gear oil works well in the diffs and Valvoline Maxlife ATF works well in the automatic transmission and transfer case. Oil and trans drain plug washers are Nissan P/N 11026-01M02 and the transfer case and diff fill/drain plugs use Nissan P/N 11026-4N200. I would also check the air filter and cabin air filter.
I will check or replace all fluids soon.
Will likely replace rear diff fluid, front diff fluid, transfer case fluid, do a pan drop with transmission fluid (not a flush this time.. my Xterra suddenly needed a new valve body 500 miles after my last flush at Nissan dealer when dealer said the fluid looked real bad).
(Will skip the radiator based on the input on this board, though based on miles I am itching to do a flush... add a bottle of redline water wetter and thinning out the mix ever so slightly in favor of water.. maybe make it a 60/40..
This is a time honored trick by street racers to increase the total heat capacity of stock radiator (by increasing the %age of water which ahs greater heat capacity than ethylene glycol) and reduce cavitation at the water pump and improve heat transfer via reduced bubbles in the rad (thats what the RWW is for..))
I live in an apt complex so its hard to do all this on my own..
I might try to find a reasonably priced independent to do all this...then again I have a great relationship with my dealer service dept based on yrs of scrupulous maintenance on several nissans
Will likely replace rear diff fluid, front diff fluid, transfer case fluid, do a pan drop with transmission fluid (not a flush this time.. my Xterra suddenly needed a new valve body 500 miles after my last flush at Nissan dealer when dealer said the fluid looked real bad).
(Will skip the radiator based on the input on this board, though based on miles I am itching to do a flush... add a bottle of redline water wetter and thinning out the mix ever so slightly in favor of water.. maybe make it a 60/40..
This is a time honored trick by street racers to increase the total heat capacity of stock radiator (by increasing the %age of water which ahs greater heat capacity than ethylene glycol) and reduce cavitation at the water pump and improve heat transfer via reduced bubbles in the rad (thats what the RWW is for..))
I live in an apt complex so its hard to do all this on my own..
I might try to find a reasonably priced independent to do all this...then again I have a great relationship with my dealer service dept based on yrs of scrupulous maintenance on several nissans
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flat6symphony
- Posts: 56
- Joined: Sun Feb 16, 2014 6:44 am
You're a Pathfinder savant and we all apreciate you very much.smj999smj wrote:If you have a 2012, you should be running Nissan Blue coolant if it's original. It's service interval is 150,000 miles, so it doesn't make sense to do anything with it, especially replace the radiator! Unless the radiator is damaged, leave it alone. I say the same thing for the water pump, which is driven by the timing chain. You don't hear about a whole lot of water pump failures on these engines, so, again, if it's not leaking or making noise, leave it alone. Spark plugs would be due at 105,000 miles; I would remove one of the easier ones to take out and see if it's original or has recently been replaced. If they are original, replace them with the correct type, NGK spark plugs, which should be OE Laser Iridiums (not Iridium IX, which have about half of the service life). If you want to save a few dollars, the NGK Laser Platinums (#6240) will work and carry the same 105,000 mile service life and you won't notice any difference in performance. Oil sampling is expensive and it would make more sense to just replace the diff oil and transfer case oil. Supertech or Mobil One full synthetic 75W90 gear oil works well in the diffs and Valvoline Maxlife ATF works well in the automatic transmission and transfer case. Oil and trans drain plug washers are Nissan P/N 11026-01M02 and the transfer case and diff fill/drain plugs use Nissan P/N 11026-4N200. I would also check the air filter and cabin air filter.
Yes, he is ..I also noticed that from reading multiple threads!flat6symphony wrote:You're a Pathfinder savant and we all apreciate you very much.smj999smj wrote:If you have a 2012, you should be running Nissan Blue coolant if it's original. It's service interval is 150,000 miles, so it doesn't make sense to do anything with it, especially replace the radiator! Unless the radiator is damaged, leave it alone. I say the same thing for the water pump, which is driven by the timing chain. You don't hear about a whole lot of water pump failures on these engines, so, again, if it's not leaking or making noise, leave it alone. Spark plugs would be due at 105,000 miles; I would remove one of the easier ones to take out and see if it's original or has recently been replaced. If they are original, replace them with the correct type, NGK spark plugs, which should be OE Laser Iridiums (not Iridium IX, which have about half of the service life). If you want to save a few dollars, the NGK Laser Platinums (#6240) will work and carry the same 105,000 mile service life and you won't notice any difference in performance. Oil sampling is expensive and it would make more sense to just replace the diff oil and transfer case oil. Supertech or Mobil One full synthetic 75W90 gear oil works well in the diffs and Valvoline Maxlife ATF works well in the automatic transmission and transfer case. Oil and trans drain plug washers are Nissan P/N 11026-01M02 and the transfer case and diff fill/drain plugs use Nissan P/N 11026-4N200. I would also check the air filter and cabin air filter.
Thanks a bunch for all respones!
^^X2^^ what disallow says. There is no need to drop the trans pan. You're not going to get much more out to make it worthwhile and Nissan recommends replacing all of the transmission pan bolts if you do remove them (they are coated with thread sealant). The Nissan pan gasket is a lot better than the cheaper, aftermarket gaskets. So, it's just a lot of added work and expense to drain an extra pint of ATF.
Today had the following done.
At Nissan Dealer:
- Inspected brakes , Power steering fluid , coolant and ohm'ed battery all ok.
- Alignment. Turns out my newish tires on the truck were already getting ruined by a bad alignment.. Truck tracked fine but the tech showed me the cupping on the tires..so it appears it did need that alignment despite tracking well.
- Brake system fluid replace
- Oil Change since the pre existing oil filter seemed to weep a bit
- They wanted almost $100 to replace the in-cabin filter. Declined.
At smaller and much more affordable independent:
- Removal of Running Boards (less than half of quoted dealer cost)
- Trans drain and fill (once). Half of dealer cost. I declined a flush.
- Also got an estimate from the independent for plugs, front diff, rear diff and transfer case together for less than the dealer wanted for just the plugs...
At Nissan Dealer:
- Inspected brakes , Power steering fluid , coolant and ohm'ed battery all ok.
- Alignment. Turns out my newish tires on the truck were already getting ruined by a bad alignment.. Truck tracked fine but the tech showed me the cupping on the tires..so it appears it did need that alignment despite tracking well.
- Brake system fluid replace
- Oil Change since the pre existing oil filter seemed to weep a bit
- They wanted almost $100 to replace the in-cabin filter. Declined.
At smaller and much more affordable independent:
- Removal of Running Boards (less than half of quoted dealer cost)
- Trans drain and fill (once). Half of dealer cost. I declined a flush.
- Also got an estimate from the independent for plugs, front diff, rear diff and transfer case together for less than the dealer wanted for just the plugs...
Spark plugs aren't due until 105,000 miles. The original plugs are NGK OE Laser Iridiums. They are pricey; if you want to save a couple of dollars, go with NGK #6240 Laser Platinums. They are also good for 105,000 miles, about $5 per plug cheaper and you won't notice any difference in performance.
The cabin air filters are something you can do yourself, just be careful with the plastic clip that holds the access door as they occasionally have been known to break. The access door is behind the lower glove box. Remove the access door and pull out the first filter (I find a dental pick with a 90 degree bend at the end to be very helpful). Then, slide the second filter to the left and pull out. Before installing the new filters, look on the side for an arrow indicating the air flow direction (which should be down). Insert the first filter and slide it to the right (I find a long, straight, flat-bladed screwdriver is helpful in pushing the filter all the way over to the right). Squeeze the end of the second filter a little to help it slide into the case and then push all the way in. Re-install the access door and glove box and you are done!
The cabin air filters are something you can do yourself, just be careful with the plastic clip that holds the access door as they occasionally have been known to break. The access door is behind the lower glove box. Remove the access door and pull out the first filter (I find a dental pick with a 90 degree bend at the end to be very helpful). Then, slide the second filter to the left and pull out. Before installing the new filters, look on the side for an arrow indicating the air flow direction (which should be down). Insert the first filter and slide it to the right (I find a long, straight, flat-bladed screwdriver is helpful in pushing the filter all the way over to the right). Squeeze the end of the second filter a little to help it slide into the case and then push all the way in. Re-install the access door and glove box and you are done!
All you need to fix this is a 6MMx1 bolt and a spring nut like what I linked to below. You can get these at your local hardware store. The case was originally designed for this type of fastener but I guess at the last moment, they ditched the idea figuring the clip was "good enough." The hole for the bolt already exists in the door, as well.heckler40 wrote:Damn clip broke on mine. I just duct tape it closed every time and appears to work fine.
http://thumbs.ebaystatic.com/images/g/A ... s-l225.jpg
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