please help my car is driving me crazy! =(

[elitemaxima]

ok guys i need ur help.
the nissan dealer are of no help....all there trying to do is rob me blind i swear.

ok im gonna list a bunch of the problems my car has and maybe you can give me some advice.
1) wheel shakes while driving usually after 50mph and when braking.
had the rotors and brakes checked and was told there good.
2) car jumps sometimes, like someone kicked the rear of the bumper.
3)i get rpm surges, rpm jumps from like 1k to 5k while trying to gas and then goes back to normal and car jumps and then it starts moving.
after the surge the cars stalls when gas until i gas hard and then it starts movin agian.
4)car runs better when the psi in all tires are 38 but when i put it to 32, i feel every little thing and all the symptoms come up.
i was in a accident like a year and a half ago and had to have the right passenger axle changed but i the repair shop never changed the engine mounts so 2 weeks ago i had the front and right changed because they where broken, i also had some belts changed and changed 6-7 quarts of the transmission fluid changed.

last week i took the car in and had them check it and all they said was that one of the tubes that connects to the engine was loose and they had to tighten it and that would fix my problems, where they charged me a $100 dollar diagnostic fee. pfft.

well that didnt do anything besides rip me off.

this is driving me crazy i really want to get it fixed without having to pay a arm and a leg.

i was planning on getting a alignment and balancing done thinking that would help with the shaking but id rather fix the other problems first before i do anything.

ohh and i did look at all the tubes to see if theres a hole or anythign and i didnt see anything.

please if you have any advice please help
really appreciate it.

ps:
pics of my car at:
http://cardomain.com/ride/2167277

[ramberg]

I would try to get a alignment and balancing done. Did they check your struts? Are you still under warranty?
Sorry I didn't notice your car on cardomain. lol

[elitemaxima]

i called pep boys to get a alignment and balancing done, told them what was wrong with my car and they said that it wont help with the kicking of the car and the surging but it might just help with the shaking of the wheel while driving, i really just want to fix the jumping and surging. i just drove it this morning and its frustrating.. it car even jumps when i try to gas. the 36k warranty is done i have 42k miles i still have the 60k and 80k warranty which should cover my transmission. took it to the dealer today and he wanted me to leave the car for a week im gonna see if i can try to see what the problem is myself if i cant get it i guess im just gonna leave it at the repair shop for a week and take the bus everywhere lol.

[elitemaxima]

but do you have any other suggestions? and is there a way i can reset the ecu myself?

thanks

[Apollos2]

1) wheel shakes while driving usually after 50mph and when braking.
had the rotors and brakes checked and was told there good. ----------- I would get those tire re-balanced, do alignment later, that shouldn't cause shaking. Your rotors may be warped, mine pulse now and need to be replaced, it's fairly common. Get them checked again.

Surging sounds like a fuel issue. List your mods please

[elitemaxima]

no mods with the engine, just got stuff on the car like chrome stuff all over thats about it.

[Apollos2]

Okay. Well that surging is going to be tricky. Probably gonna have to be a dealer thing unless you can find a shop that has the right computer equip. It sounds like a fuel issue, could be related to something with the ECU. Even so, it shouldn't take them a week to check out. How many dealerships in your area? I'd take it to a different one.

[elitemaxima]

i have two in my area, one of them screwed me out of fixing the engine mounts by keep pushing it until i was out of warranty and the other dealer is telling me a week, i was also thinking that the car is used to driving with the engine mount broken from before so thats why it might be kicking. is there anyway i can reset the ecu myself so it adapts to my new of driving?

thanks for ur time.

[elitemaxima]

if i take it to pep boys will they reset my ecu? if so any idea on price?

[VQ35MAX]

2) car jumps sometimes, like someone kicked the rear of the bumper.
3)i get rpm surges, rpm jumps from like 1k to 5k while trying to gas and then goes back to normal and car jumps and then it starts moving.


It sounds like your tranny is slipping, mine did the same thing. It would also buck when put in reverse. Check your tranny fluid for any burnt smell and have them drop your pan and check for metal peices. Get it replaced before your warranty expires. I was lucky I had 2k left on mine before it expired.

[Apollos2]

Hey if it's your tranny, you are covered to 60k. Resetting the ECU can be as simply as disconnecting the positive cable for about 10minutes.

VQ - why does it say "Newbie - Just Registered" under your name

[VQ35MAX]

VQ - why does it say "Newbie - Just Registered" under your name [/quote]

IDK ..i guess i JUST registered hey u gotta start somewhere

[elitemaxima]

if there happens to be metal parts in the tranny.. they need to flush it? because i just had it drained for like 6-7 quarts.

[Apollos2]

LOL, okay, There is more than one VQ35 id out there.

[VQ35MAX]

Originally Posted by elitemaxima

if there happens to be metal parts in the tranny.. they need to flush it? because i just had it drained for like 6-7 quarts.

If there are metal pieces in the tranny, it needs to be replaced. I would recommend going to another dealer and getting a second opinion on your tranny issue. Hope everything works out.

[gianic1]

If they needed to replace your motor mounts, chances are your transmission is next.

Read winterfaust's thread about "bad transmission.... what i have noticed"

[gianic1]

Originally Posted by gianic1

If they needed to replace your motor mounts, chances are your transmission is next.

Read winterfaust's thread about "bad transmission.... what i have noticed"

sorry, here is the link

Bad transmission? heres what I have noticed

[elitemaxima]

I took my car in yesterday to the dealer agian and they scanned it agian because the engine light came on, and they said that they need to change a transmission valve and they will order it for me. fortunately im covered under the 60k warranty and there gonna call me and let me know when the part gets in to setup a appointment. ill let you guys know what happens. ohh one question i have is, should i ask for my diagnostic $100 charge back since this is covered under warranty and they told me if they found out that its covered under warranty i dont have to pay the diagnostics fee.

[redls1]

heck yeah get back what you can. Who knows when it will be back in.

[po8pimp]

you know if both your front and side engine mounts were bad then your back one might be bad too. they should have checked when replacing the other two. If you are allmost up on warrenty and you haven't replaced your rotors I highly recommend doing so. That is probably #1 reason for vibrations and shuttering while braking. Mine warped at 20k miles. For a balancing I recommend firestone. They have a lifetime balancing deal for like 150 for the life of owning the car no matter what you do to suspension and tires. Also sounds crazy but you should get a fuel system cleaner and maybe some seafoam spray for your intake manifold. that should fix fuel issues as far as clogging. ECU reset might help also. these transmissions suck in these cars for the most part so you might need to get a new one. Good luck hope I helped out.

[elitemaxima]

Originally Posted by po8pimp

you know if both your front and side engine mounts were bad then your back one might be bad too. they should have checked when replacing the other two. If you are allmost up on warrenty and you haven't replaced your rotors I highly recommend doing so. That is probably #1 reason for vibrations and shuttering while braking. Mine warped at 20k miles. For a balancing I recommend firestone. They have a lifetime balancing deal for like 150 for the life of owning the car no matter what you do to suspension and tires. Also sounds crazy but you should get a fuel system cleaner and maybe some seafoam spray for your intake manifold. that should fix fuel issues as far as clogging. ECU reset might help also. these transmissions suck in these cars for the most part so you might need to get a new one. Good luck hope I helped out.

thx for ur advice,
couple of questions:
1)i already replaced rotors once 6 months ago out of pocket, so dont know if i should get those replaced, dealer said they checked them and there good, dk if there right cause car shakes alot when braking and driving and until what mileage is ur rotors warrantied?
2) i always use fuel system cleaners, (like once or twice a month) and whats seaform spray? where do i get it? and how to you use it?
3) is there anyway i can push the dealer to change my transmission? when i took it in yesterday they told me they will check my transmission for clogging and the only thing they told me was messed up is the transmission valve.
4) and are struts warrantied? if so for how long?

im gonna try to milk the dealer for all i can before the warranties are up.

[elitemaxima]

ohh and does anyone know where they sell different front bumpers for my max?

[aaroncv]

Wow it sounds almost word for word the exact same problem I had! I bought my 05 max used in the summer of 06 and it had 8000 miles on it. I thought wow what a good deal!.... what a mistake that was! All the same symptoms u described started happening. I felt like I was kicked in the rear when I accelerated above 45 mph when I was in the 55 mph range everything was ok, it was just that gear switch which seemed to be very harsh. I also noticed the same exact wheel shake u described, almost like I was getting too close to the divider on the road, it was crazy. My check engine light kept turning on for no reason. I brought it into the stealership who couldn't find the problem and gave me the run-around for about a month! They supposedly checked everything until as a last resort was to replace the tranny which they FINALLY did. I can't tell you what a nightmare I went thru dealing with that dealership, most horrible experience ever! I had even more drama then I'm describing here with them but I'll spare you the details. All I have to say is there's a certain stealership in Jersey City that EVERYONE should stay away from. I brought it to another dealership a few months later to check somthing else out. What a night and day experience, the second dealership was amazing compared to the first. While they were doing a check they found that:
A. last dealership had left some wires loose
B: the car, previous to my purchasing it had been in an accident which had never been disclosed to me. I now know I coulda looked up that info online, oh well u live n' learn.
Anyways, long story short. She's Prrrrrin' like a kitten now (knock on wood). Once the tranny was replaced all my issues were resolved.

[elitemaxima]

Originally Posted by aaroncv

Wow it sounds almost word for word the exact same problem I had! I bought my 05 max used in the summer of 06 and it had 8000 miles on it. I thought wow what a good deal!.... what a mistake that was! All the same symptoms u described started happening. I felt like I was kicked in the rear when I accelerated above 45 mph when I was in the 55 mph range everything was ok, it was just that gear switch which seemed to be very harsh. I also noticed the same exact wheel shake u described, almost like I was getting too close to the divider on the road, it was crazy. My check engine light kept turning on for no reason. I brought it into the stealership who couldn't find the problem and gave me the run-around for about a month! They supposedly checked everything until as a last resort was to replace the tranny which they FINALLY did. I can't tell you what a nightmare I went thru dealing with that dealership, most horrible experience ever! I had even more drama then I'm describing here with them but I'll spare you the details. All I have to say is there's a certain stealership in Jersey City that EVERYONE should stay away from. I brought it to another dealership a few months later to check somthing else out. What a night and day experience, the second dealership was amazing compared to the first. While they were doing a check they found that:
A. last dealership had left some wires loose
B: the car, previous to my purchasing it had been in an accident which had never been disclosed to me. I now know I coulda looked up that info online, oh well u live n' learn.
Anyways, long story short. She's Prrrrrin' like a kitten now (knock on wood). Once the tranny was replaced all my issues were resolved.

You know what im gonna do to save on the heartache in the future?
once they change the tranny valve im gonna keep telling them i have the same problems in order to push them to change my tranny.

[po8pimp]

go to another dealership and have them fix the transmission problems. I really want you to push this issue because if you don't you will be paying around 4000 for a replacement. As for the seafoam go to shucks or Autozone and ask at the counter they will show you what I am talking about. Amazing stuff. easy to follow instructions on the can. Take your car in for a free inspection from Firestone on your brake system, and do an alignment.

[elitemaxima]

K took my car in on wednesday to change the valve body, got it back thursday. drove 60 miles so far and the kicking and surging is gone, yeeepy!!!!
now i dk if i should keep hasseling them to see if i can get them to change my tranny? so i dont come into any problems in the future?

thanks everyone for there help.

[elitemaxima]

bump