Any high mileage R51's out there with little problems?

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Clay350
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Any high mileage R51's out there with little problems?

Postby Clay350 » Thu Jan 12, 2012 10:12 am

Granted sights like these are great for solving problems but it seems most of the things I read on this sight are problems with the R51 pathfinder. Do any high mileage R51's exist out there that weren't plagued with issues?


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BMXPath
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Postby BMXPath » Thu Jan 12, 2012 10:18 am

With my '05 having a 140K on it, I wouldnt concider it to have been plagued with problems.
I have seen some of the typical R51 problems though... Namely the IPDM module and fuel sending unit. I also had to replace the valve body.

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deermjd
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Postby deermjd » Thu Jan 12, 2012 11:41 am

I wouldn't classify mine as high mileage yet (94k) but most of the problems I had occured at 40-60k miles. I haven't had many problems lately.

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dawgn86
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Postby dawgn86 » Thu Jan 12, 2012 11:56 am

06' here 92k miles...couple of factory recalls..my first battery only lasted about 3 years..other than that, I havent ever had a problem. I change the oil every 5000 miles..I did do t he bypass several months ago as well. Would buy another PF in a heartbeat.

My daughter has an 02 Xterra with about 90k miles. Bought it used at 42kmiles..have only put one battery in it. Again, change the oil regularly. The first generation X didnt have the radiator issues. I did change the ATF fluid and filter in hers.

Baedarlboo
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Postby Baedarlboo » Thu Jan 12, 2012 12:04 pm

'05 4x4 that just rolled 100k....and not much to report. It's squeaking on cold starts so I'm assuming it's going to require a belt and tensioner replacement soon.

arkangel
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Postby arkangel » Thu Jan 12, 2012 4:01 pm

Aside from the transmission fluid contamination issue...

http://www.thenissanpath.com/viewtopic.php?t=6278

...I have 119000 miles and everything else is very strong

Ark

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Clay350
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Postby Clay350 » Fri Jan 13, 2012 7:42 am

Thats all good to hear. I was starting to think I bought the wrong vehicle.

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disallow
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Postby disallow » Fri Jan 13, 2012 10:26 am

My 05 (currently at 111k miles) has been pretty trouble free. U-joint there, wheel bearing here. I've done my fair share of maintenance, sometimes sooner than needed, but thats just me... :)

Wish the fuel economy was a little better.

t

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IcedTeasley
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Postby IcedTeasley » Fri Jan 13, 2012 11:22 pm

I have 112,000 miles on my '06 SE. It's still running very well. It's been lifted recently so my CV Axles are starting to complain a bit. Since they haven't ever been replaced, I'm not surprised. I've also had minor U joint issues but they're cheap to replace. I push my PF hard and it has rewarded me with years of fun and durability. It's also a handsome SOB.

skwerl
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Postby skwerl » Fri Jan 20, 2012 9:06 am

I loved mine from 50k when I bought it to 85k when I started having problems. First the fuel sending unit. Nissan had extended the warranty to 72mo/72k on that I believe which was dumb considering many people only had it go bad after that mileage. The dealer told me it wasn't right of them to only go to 72 because many people inside that mileage weren't having problems with the sender yet were coming in anyway to have it replaced and the people over 72 where it was failing the most were stuck with the repair costs. It really isn't a big deal if you have a little technical skill.

I missed the boat on the radiator recall extension to 8yr/80k as well. There's the possibility due to a defective radiator design that antifreeze/coolant will mix with transmission fluid. The transmission fluid line passes through the radiator for cooling purposes. I'm hoping I'm not too late to do the bypass.

Now at 120k I'm getting P0420/P0430 codes indicating "Catalyst system efficiency below threshold." The probable causes listed could be a large vacuum leak, a fuel system fault, ignition system fault, or failed catalytic converters. Pretty broad stuff to troubleshoot but I think most people have found it to be bad cat(s) and they aren't cheap either.

This will be the last Nissan I own.

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deermjd
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Postby deermjd » Fri Jan 20, 2012 9:25 am

skwerl wrote:
I missed the boat on the radiator recall extension to 8yr/80k as well. There's the possibility due to a defective radiator design that antifreeze/coolant will mix with transmission fluid. The transmission fluid line passes through the radiator for cooling purposes. I'm hoping I'm not too late to do the bypass.
I waited until my warranty was up to do the bypass. Since yours is up too, don't wait any longer. Check the fluid to see if any contaimination has occured. If you aren't having any problems with it now you're probably fine.
skwerl wrote:Now at 120k I'm getting P0420/P0430 codes indicating "Catalyst system efficiency below threshold." The probable causes listed could be a large vacuum leak, a fuel system fault, ignition system fault, or failed catalytic converters. Pretty broad stuff to troubleshoot but I think most people have found it to be bad cat(s) and they aren't cheap either.
I dread the day I will have to replace my cats. I have found that Advance has direct fit replacements for $150 a piece.
http://shop.advanceautoparts.com/webapp ... HAAMS_____

Not sure of the quality but for the price it's worth a try. I've used Walker cats and mufflers on my Jeeps with good results. Make sure the cats are the problem before you replace them and that they didn't fail because of some ignition or fuel problem or you'll be replacing them again.

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disallow
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Postby disallow » Fri Jan 20, 2012 11:21 am

depending where you live you could get away with hollowing out the honeycomb and putting dummy FA sensors in. Some here recommend against it, but if my cats ever go, thats what i will be trying.

skwerl
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Postby skwerl » Fri Jan 20, 2012 12:05 pm

deermjd wrote:
skwerl wrote:
I missed the boat on the radiator recall extension to 8yr/80k as well. There's the possibility due to a defective radiator design that antifreeze/coolant will mix with transmission fluid. The transmission fluid line passes through the radiator for cooling purposes. I'm hoping I'm not too late to do the bypass.
I waited until my warranty was up to do the bypass. Since yours is up too, don't wait any longer. Check the fluid to see if any contaimination has occured. If you aren't having any problems with it now you're probably fine.

I've checked the fluid by draining a little of it and it seems to be the right color still. I haven't noticed any of the signs of contamination but they way my luck has gone I'm going to do the bypass.
skwerl wrote:Now at 120k I'm getting P0420/P0430 codes indicating "Catalyst system efficiency below threshold." The probable causes listed could be a large vacuum leak, a fuel system fault, ignition system fault, or failed catalytic converters. Pretty broad stuff to troubleshoot but I think most people have found it to be bad cat(s) and they aren't cheap either.
I dread the day I will have to replace my cats. I have found that Advance has direct fit replacements for $150 a piece.
http://shop.advanceautoparts.com/webapp ... HAAMS_____

Not sure of the quality but for the price it's worth a try. I've used Walker cats and mufflers on my Jeeps with good results. Make sure the cats are the problem before you replace them and that they didn't fail because of some ignition or fuel problem or you'll be replacing them again.
The link is to the rear cats. You can gut them as long as you leave the primary one(s) alone that sit between the front O2 sensor (upstream) and rear (downstream) O2 sensor.

I haven't ruled out the vacuum/fuel/ignition problems so you're damn straight about that. Wouldn't want to have to replace the cats all over again. I found an article that seems to have some good info on how to troubleshoot cat problems to tell if they're bad or not. He mentions how to find which one(s) could be bad if you're having rough running but I'm not. Mine is running normal and getting the same gas mileage, etc.

http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index ... 830AAzOPz0

I just remembered, my wife was low on gas one day and accidentally put about 1/2 gallon of 2 cycle gas to get her to the gas station but that was several weeks ago. I wonder if that could've caused plug or sensor fouling? From what I've read, that little amount of 2 cycle gas driven for a short time then being diluted heavily after a gas station stop shouldn't ruin cats. That may explain why both codes tripped at once. I got the codes reset and ran some gumout injector or fuel cleaner through on the next fill-up but the codes tripped again a day or two later.

disallow wrote:depending where you live you could get away with hollowing out the honeycomb and putting dummy FA sensors in. Some here recommend against it, but if my cats ever go, thats what i will be trying.
I got a suggestion on another thread about doing that but be careful. I was told to only hollow out the two in the back since the front ones are between the sensors...but if you're buying dummy sensors anyway you may not have a problem.
Last edited by skwerl on Mon Apr 02, 2012 11:47 am, edited 3 times in total.

aadadams
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Postby aadadams » Fri Jan 20, 2012 12:06 pm

Anyone ever use the Walker Cats? Seem cheap enough and being a direct fit would make me want to tackle it. These are the secondary ones right... Should O2 sensors be replaced at the same time? Will the truck adjust on its own after replacing these? Dealer told me I had a bad cat code at my last oil change, but he indicated further diagnosis was needed to say which one or ones specifically.

skwerl
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Location: Birmingham, AL

Postby skwerl » Mon Apr 02, 2012 11:46 am

deermjd wrote:
skwerl wrote: I dread the day I will have to replace my cats. I have found that Advance has direct fit replacements for $150 a piece.
http://shop.advanceautoparts.com/webapp ... HAAMS_____
That is the rear cat not the front that is between the O2 sensors. The rear ones don't make a difference. You can hollow them out if you want.


The front cats are the two to be concerned with (there are 4 total) but the front two cats are between two O2 sensors. FYI, Advance Auto and Auto Zone are no help. Advance was going to sell me a rear cat and it wasn't labeled front or rear. When I asked them why that seemed to be the part # to the rear cat made by Walker they just told me they were sorry they had no more information.

Walker, Eastern Catalytic, and Davico are three reasonably priced brands I've been able to find (Magnaflow are expensive).

Here are links to front and rear cats from the Walker website and a few links to buy the cats. I would make damn sure my O2 sensors were all good, have my plugs replaced, and check for vacuum leaks before putting cats on. One way to check if a cat is functioning is to point an infrared thermometer on the front of the primary cat and on the rear of the primary cat and their should be about 100 degree difference in temp.

Front Driver
http://catalog.walkerexhaust.com/catalo ... tus=ACTIVE

Front Passenger
http://catalog.walkerexhaust.com/catalo ... tus=ACTIVE

Rear Driver
http://catalog.walkerexhaust.com/catalo ... tus=ACTIVE

Rear Passenger
http://catalog.walkerexhaust.com/catalo ... tus=ACTIVE



These Davico are the cheapest I've found from a reputable dealer:

Davico Front, Driver Side Catalytic Converter
http://www.autopartswarehouse.com/sku/N ... 18218.html

Davico Front, Passenger Side Catalytic Converter
http://www.autopartswarehouse.com/sku/N ... 18219.html



Eastern Front, Driver Side Catalytic Converter
http://www.autopartswarehouse.com/sku/N ... 40710.html

Eastern Front, Passenger Side Catalytic Converter
http://www.autopartswarehouse.com/sku/N ... 40711.html





Here's a site that also sells Walker cats (cheapest on Walker rear cats):

Front Driver
http://www.woodys-auto-supply.com/auto- ... =WAL-16468

Front Passenger
http://www.woodys-auto-supply.com/auto- ... =WAL-16467

Rear Driver
http://www.woodys-auto-supply.com/auto- ... =WAL-16400

Rear Passenger
http://www.woodys-auto-supply.com/auto- ... =WAL-16399


Article on how to diagnose O2 sensor problems:
http://www.aa1car.com/library/o2sensor.htm
A good O2 sensor should produce an oscillating waveform at idle that makes voltage transitions from near minimum (0.1 v) to near maximum (0.9v). Making the fuel mixture artificially rich by feeding propane into the intake manifold should cause the sensor to respond almost immediately (within 100 milliseconds) and go to maximum (0.9v) output. Creating a lean mixture by opening a vacuum line should cause the sensor output to drop to its minimum (0.1v) value. If the sensor does not flip-flop back and forth quickly enough, it may indicate a need for replacement.

My issue is my primary cats both show the 100 degree difference between front and rear leading me to believe one or more of my O2 sensors are bad but there are specific codes for bad O2 sensors which I'm not seeing leading me to believe I have a bad cat. It's a very tricky thing to diagnose if you don't know what you're doing. I wouldn't even know where to begin to hook up an oscilloscope like recommended in the article above.

I bought an OBD II code reader/diagnosis tool to record readings from my O2 sensors and this is what I saw. I was parked and snapped my throttle up to about 3k~4k RPM and back down to idle repeatedly for about 30 seconds and this is the readings of my O2 sensors.

Image

Image

Image

Image


If I'm reading this correctly, Sensor 1 bank 1 (drivers front O2) and Sensor 2 bank 1 (drivers rear O2) have bad readings.
To add to my confusion I believe if the ECM senses that the motor is running too rich in the case of a bad cat, the ECM will lean out the air/fuel ratio which would also affect the readings of the O2 sensors. That seems to me to make it even harder to tell whether an O2 sensor or cat is bad when the O2 sensors could be self-adjusting for a bad cat.

Furthermore, my vehicle gets the same MPG it has always gotten and doesn't run poorly or idle roughly. I sold the Pathfinder so good riddance Nissan!


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