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2K3 - Oil consumption SOLVED!! Finally!!

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Old 09-27-2005, 05:15 PM
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2K3 - Oil consumption SOLVED!! Finally!!

Okay guys, after months and months of oil consumption tests, and no sign of leakages. As well as replacing gaskets etc..

I finally have a solution.

My motor request was denied twice but finally after faxing my history its been approved!! Brand new engine being installed and will be ready for friday!!

As a safety measure, I think i am going to bite the bullet and get the catmman headers (thanks Brian for helping me out with shipping info) and the ES bushings in a month or two.

There was NO solution to the oil consumption probelm. As well my precatts were in good condition. It is UNKNOWN why my 70,000 km motor was burning excessive oil (last time I checked the dip stick was DRY!!!)..

Just wanted to let you know
ED
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Old 09-27-2005, 05:42 PM
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Good job!! Would love to hear some wav files of the total cattman system (headers and exhaust) This is definatley a weird problem, hopefully Nissan will tear the engine down and determine a cause. I check mine every 1000 miles (47k total) but my engine does not have the consumption problem.
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Old 09-27-2005, 05:55 PM
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glad to hear that your getting a new engine...hopefully everything goes smooth.... :keeping fingers crossed:

2002 Maxima SE - if u want to hear how the cattman exhaust sounds...here is a clip of mine... http://www.nemuijokyo.org/maxrev.mpg *right click save as*
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Old 09-27-2005, 06:02 PM
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Took mine in today and they said everything was in spec blah, blah, blah. Good to hear that they are standing behind their engines. Good luck.


Edit: Forgot to ask: How much oil were you burning??
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Old 09-27-2005, 06:04 PM
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Originally Posted by steven88
glad to hear that your getting a new engine...hopefully everything goes smooth.... :keeping fingers crossed:

2002 Maxima SE - if u want to hear how the cattman exhaust sounds...here is a clip of mine... http://www.nemuijokyo.org/maxrev.mpg *right click save as*
Thanks steven. Is that all stock with Cattman muffler?
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Old 09-27-2005, 06:10 PM
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Originally Posted by 2002 Maxima SE
Thanks steven. Is that all stock with Cattman muffler?
Nope...cattman headers, test pipe, catback
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Old 09-27-2005, 06:11 PM
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Originally Posted by steven88
Nope...cattman headers, test pipe, catback
Sounds mean.
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Old 09-27-2005, 06:36 PM
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My car was burning in excess of 1L per week..

In about 10 days, my dip stick went from FULL to below LOW.
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Old 09-27-2005, 07:03 PM
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am i missing something? the title says oil consumption solved, yet there is no cause or explanation as to why the old engine was using excess oil.
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Old 09-27-2005, 07:05 PM
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who did you send the fax to? Nissan HQ?
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Old 09-27-2005, 07:28 PM
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Originally Posted by steven88
Nope...cattman headers, test pipe, catback
Sounds good. I like the hard hits towards the end. I am looking forward to getting that sound.
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Old 09-27-2005, 07:30 PM
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You know, the problem was never really "solved"...
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Old 09-27-2005, 07:59 PM
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Originally Posted by Metal Maxima
You know, the problem was never really "solved"...

DEK = most flawless/best VQ
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Old 09-27-2005, 09:29 PM
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Of course the problem wasnt solved. For months the dealer didnt do a compression test, and just went for a new motor. I cant complain though..

But to me its solved. A new motor wont consume anymore oil. god i hated filling up nearly 1-2L per week of oil.

At times i just said *** IT and let the VQ35DE rot in hell drove for weeks with 0 oil.

Its such a relief that they are fixing this.
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Old 09-27-2005, 11:48 PM
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3 words: Proper Breakin Procedure
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Old 09-28-2005, 06:28 AM
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Originally Posted by E55AMG2
3 words: Proper Breakin Procedure
I did do proper breakin procedures. This isnt my first maxima you know. I owned a 2k2 before this plus a 99 which is in the family (180,000kms and no hint of oil loss)
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Old 09-28-2005, 08:10 AM
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Originally Posted by MiniRX7
I did do proper breakin procedures. This isnt my first maxima you know. I owned a 2k2 before this plus a 99 which is in the family (180,000kms and no hint of oil loss)

Mind telling me what you did? Im curious because I have 73000 miles (LOTS of dyno and track time included in that) and I dont lose a drop.

The procedure is very specific. 1200 miles, nothing past 4000. No high speed highway driving, no long trips ( >250 miles), lots of varying rpms, no hard starts, no heavy loads (passengers/luggage), etc...
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Old 09-28-2005, 04:23 PM
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Originally Posted by E55AMG2
Mind telling me what you did? Im curious because I have 73000 miles (LOTS of dyno and track time included in that) and I dont lose a drop.

The procedure is very specific. 1200 miles, nothing past 4000. No high speed highway driving, no long trips ( >250 miles), lots of varying rpms, no hard starts, no heavy loads (passengers/luggage), etc...
Yes i did this for almost 2000kms... on my 2k3...But why do cars need to be broken in.

in case yo udidnt know, this VQ35DE oil consumption problem is not a rare case.. ITS HAS BEEN popping up on G35 boards, 350z boards, pathfinder boards, maxima and altima boards. It has NOTHING to do with break in procedures. Actually it seems to plague only a few of these engines.

My dealer in the past two weeks has REPLACED 2 VQ35's in a 2k4 maxima and my 2k3. QR motors have also been problematic with several dealers replacing these motors. And lets not talk about the pathfinders and the VQ issues inthose trucks (my boss had a motor die after 30,000kms), plus the dealer reported a few motor swaps as well.

I may be able to keep the older motor so i can probably see where it went wrong. Do a tear down maybe even build it up in the future.

On my 2k2 i beat the $hit out of it right from the dealer with 0 kms.
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Old 09-28-2005, 04:31 PM
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Originally Posted by MiniRX7
Yes i did this for almost 2000kms... on my 2k3...But why do cars need to be broken in.

in case yo udidnt know, this VQ35DE oil consumption problem is not a rare case.. ITS HAS BEEN popping up on G35 boards, 350z boards, pathfinder boards, maxima and altima boards. It has NOTHING to do with break in procedures. Actually it seems to plague only a few of these engines.

My dealer in the past two weeks has REPLACED 2 VQ35's in a 2k4 maxima and my 2k3. QR motors have also been problematic with several dealers replacing these motors. And lets not talk about the pathfinders and the VQ issues inthose trucks (my boss had a motor die after 30,000kms), plus the dealer reported a few motor swaps as well.

I may be able to keep the older motor so i can probably see where it went wrong. Do a tear down maybe even build it up in the future.

On my 2k2 i beat the $hit out of it right from the dealer with 0 kms.

It cant be luck for me, I take care of 5 vehicles (350Z (34000mi), 2k3(73,800), 2k4SL(39000), 2k4SE(32654), murano(40,100)) and none of them burn a drop. All 5 were broken in with that procedure, and each was gradually brought up to full utilization of power.
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Old 09-28-2005, 06:16 PM
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Originally Posted by E55AMG2
It cant be luck for me, I take care of 5 vehicles (350Z (34000mi), 2k3(73,800), 2k4SL(39000), 2k4SE(32654), murano(40,100)) and none of them burn a drop. All 5 were broken in with that procedure, and each was gradually brought up to full utilization of power.
I understand that, but why do you think that there are others that exhibit this problem? Why do you think that Nissan has just been approving new motors without investigating the cause? Something is wrong here.

I thought maybe it was just me and that I was just a one off situation, but there are a FEW members on this board that have this issue. Again my mom's VQ30DE never had a proper break in and for the first 100,000kms was driving like trash. Was not maintained properly, and was abused (engine on/off all the time, short drives, extereme conditions), yet no oil burn.

I suspect Nissan is now becoming aware about this situation as there are more and more VQ35DE replacements occuring. When you see multiple threads in multiple forums regarding VQ35DE oil consumption, then there must be an issue here.

You may just be lucky though. I beat the $HIT out of my old mazda protege (redline was 7200, but i shifted at 8000 (rev limited)) and after 220,000kms only slight burning.

I have never seen oil loss of 1 to 1.5L /1000kms in any car in my life. This is extreme. And I will tell you right now, I doubt it has nothing to do with the break in in the first 1000kms.

I was shocked when i found out that some of the G35 guys had this issue as well..
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Old 09-29-2005, 09:26 AM
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Originally Posted by MiniRX7
I understand that, but why do you think that there are others that exhibit this problem? Why do you think that Nissan has just been approving new motors without investigating the cause? Something is wrong here.

I thought maybe it was just me and that I was just a one off situation, but there are a FEW members on this board that have this issue. Again my mom's VQ30DE never had a proper break in and for the first 100,000kms was driving like trash. Was not maintained properly, and was abused (engine on/off all the time, short drives, extereme conditions), yet no oil burn.

I suspect Nissan is now becoming aware about this situation as there are more and more VQ35DE replacements occuring. When you see multiple threads in multiple forums regarding VQ35DE oil consumption, then there must be an issue here.

You may just be lucky though. I beat the $HIT out of my old mazda protege (redline was 7200, but i shifted at 8000 (rev limited)) and after 220,000kms only slight burning.

I have never seen oil loss of 1 to 1.5L /1000kms in any car in my life. This is extreme. And I will tell you right now, I doubt it has nothing to do with the break in in the first 1000kms.

I was shocked when i found out that some of the G35 guys had this issue as well..
The reasons they approve new motors is that they are MUCH cheaper than paying a dealer warranty work claim on a teardown to replace the piston rings which may or may not fix the problem (100% dependent on technician's skill level). Surmising there is a global problem by reading a few forums is judging the problem by using a biased sample of performance minded enthusiasts. If you can get some #s from a global perspective, i bet the problem is very limited in scope.
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Old 09-29-2005, 09:53 AM
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Well lets hope a new engine will solve both our problems
I get my 02 back friday with the new short block.
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Old 09-29-2005, 10:43 AM
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MiniRX7,
Since my engine is being replaced on Nissans dime,
I asked to have them replace the 2 drive belts and replace
all 6 spark plugs. at parts cost only (around 150.00)
They said them would.
I also verifed that they WILL NOT RECYCLE any fluids. Which this
Dealership does not.
So I get new oil and filter, new coolent, and new manual Tranny fluid.
At no cost to me.
Just some things you might want to think of.
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Old 09-29-2005, 10:46 AM
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Also you can check out your Fly wheel on the clutch to see how worn it is.
If your close, do it now for just parts cost.
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Old 09-29-2005, 11:49 AM
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Originally Posted by maxu2
Also you can check out your Fly wheel on the clutch to see how worn it is.
If your close, do it now for just parts cost.
is your friend.
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Old 09-29-2005, 12:36 PM
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Friend naughty??????
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Old 09-29-2005, 04:07 PM
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Actually i have a new clutch installed. I had the dealer install the energy suspension engine mounts and shifter bushings as well.

I doubt they will recycle old fluids (I am going back in tommorrow).. They better not use the same spark plugs, but i doubt they would considering the ENORMOUS amounts of oils that burned somewhere.

I maintain my car at the dealer on a routine basis. Infact even after market mods are also installed by dealer.

As for my assumption based on forums, this is ALSO from talking to several dealersships service departments regarding VQ35 oil consumption issues. I dont know if you are trying to say that I am at fault here, because ifyou are you have no basis to make this assumption.

I change my oil every 3-4K (thats kilometers not miles) on AMSOIL series 2000 sythetics (or Mobil 1, depending on temp). I change my tranny fluid every 25-30K with AMSOIL synthetics or Redline MT.

The dealer knows this, because they do all the work. Furthermore, there is nothing wrong with my aproach in saying htere is an ISSUE with the VQ35DE on select models.

My ex-bosses pathfinder had an engine SEIZE after 30K and it was a VQ35. I am also aware of other dealerships replacing VQ35's from oil consumption problems. Even the mechanics at several nissan dealerships tell me this as well. Some of these cars come from non-performance oriented drivers.

I am having my best friend and my cousin both check their G35's for oil consumption issues. We'll see
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Old 09-29-2005, 04:11 PM
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ALL 3.5 DO NOT BURN OIL. I am with E55 proper break in is a must. Love my 3.5 and not a drop of oil being burnt....
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Old 09-29-2005, 04:44 PM
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Originally Posted by boondoxmax
ALL 3.5 DO NOT BURN OIL. I am with E55 proper break in is a must. Love my 3.5 and not a drop of oil being burnt....
I never said ALL... and good for you that you havent burnt a drop of oil..

I said some of them do.
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Old 09-29-2005, 04:48 PM
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Originally Posted by MiniRX7
Actually i have a new clutch installed. I had the dealer install the energy suspension engine mounts and shifter bushings as well.

I doubt they will recycle old fluids (I am going back in tommorrow).. They better not use the same spark plugs, but i doubt they would considering the ENORMOUS amounts of oils that burned somewhere.

I maintain my car at the dealer on a routine basis. Infact even after market mods are also installed by dealer.

As for my assumption based on forums, this is ALSO from talking to several dealersships service departments regarding VQ35 oil consumption issues. I dont know if you are trying to say that I am at fault here, because ifyou are you have no basis to make this assumption.

I change my oil every 3-4K (thats kilometers not miles) on AMSOIL series 2000 sythetics (or Mobil 1, depending on temp). I change my tranny fluid every 25-30K with AMSOIL synthetics or Redline MT.

The dealer knows this, because they do all the work. Furthermore, there is nothing wrong with my aproach in saying htere is an ISSUE with the VQ35DE on select models.

My ex-bosses pathfinder had an engine SEIZE after 30K and it was a VQ35. I am also aware of other dealerships replacing VQ35's from oil consumption problems. Even the mechanics at several nissan dealerships tell me this as well. Some of these cars come from non-performance oriented drivers.

I am having my best friend and my cousin both check their G35's for oil consumption issues. We'll see


How do you like the Motor mounts? Vibrations?
What do the shifter bushings help with?
Too late on having the Dealership do it since mt car is done.
I pick it up tomarrow.
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Old 09-29-2005, 04:50 PM
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Mine burns oil and was broken in properly. That has nothing to do with the 3.5 burning oil. There was a poll before and quite a few do it. My 99 never burnt a drop, same miles. I like the car but won't get another Max........ The 4DSC days are gone.
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Old 09-29-2005, 05:22 PM
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Originally Posted by maxu2
How do you like the Motor mounts? Vibrations?
What do the shifter bushings help with?
Too late on having the Dealership do it since mt car is done.
I pick it up tomarrow.
I pick up my car tommorrow too!! LOL
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Old 09-29-2005, 05:46 PM
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Let me know how you like the bushings.
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Old 09-29-2005, 08:59 PM
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Originally Posted by maxu2
Let me know how you like the bushings.
Oh for sure!!!... I can't wait.. dealer foudn that my rear bushing was already shot, and was going to replace it with a stock Nissan one.. but i heard so many good things about these ES bushings
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Old 09-29-2005, 11:52 PM
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Originally Posted by Kevlo911
DEK = most flawless/best VQ
and i'm a proud owner of one
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Old 09-30-2005, 06:18 AM
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Which Maxima has the DEK? My 00 SE has a DE.
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Old 09-30-2005, 09:05 AM
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Originally Posted by MaxBoost925
Which Maxima has the DEK? My 00 SE has a DE.
00-01 North American maximas come with vq30dek's....if you have a vq30de in your 00, then it's not the factory motor
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Old 09-30-2005, 04:19 PM
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**UPDATE**

got the car back.. Rattling is still there.. Its a new engine... I have a feeling that it may be the precats.

I am on a break in situation so i cant accelerate hard or etc.etc.

ENERGY SUSPENSION MOUNTS: WOW!!! when i first started the engine, the whole car shook!! it is really stiff. My shifter feels twice as stiff as it was before.

BAD NEWS: aside from the rattle,i think the dealer fukkked up my alarm.. It no longer makes any chirps or sirens.. I am not sure why that is, but i will need to use a multimeter to determine if its the siren or the alarm siren output at the brain. There is also a new whistling noise.
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Old 10-01-2005, 08:26 AM
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Originally Posted by MiniRX7
**UPDATE**

got the car back.. Rattling is still there.. Its a new engine... I have a feeling that it may be the precats.

I am on a break in situation so i cant accelerate hard or etc.etc.

ENERGY SUSPENSION MOUNTS: WOW!!! when i first started the engine, the whole car shook!! it is really stiff. My shifter feels twice as stiff as it was before.

BAD NEWS: aside from the rattle,i think the dealer fukkked up my alarm.. It no longer makes any chirps or sirens.. I am not sure why that is, but i will need to use a multimeter to determine if its the siren or the alarm siren output at the brain. There is also a new whistling noise.
Try checking the PCV tube to see if it is too much oil entering the intake.
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Old 10-01-2005, 09:06 AM
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Originally Posted by 2002 Maxima SE
Try checking the PCV tube to see if it is too much oil entering the intake.
Sorry, I just got a new engine, oil isnt burning anymore (at least I hope not)
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