Anyone having any Coolant problems? I keep having to top up my reserve. I never overheat or anything like that but atleast once a month I have to put some in. I have an appt tomorrow to get it checked along with the SES light that came on last friday.

Have you noticed any leaks? Any steam from your exhaust? Notice any "sweet" smells when the car is hot (almost like maple syrup, etc)?

The Xterras are known for coolant leaks at the rear of the passenger side cylinder head and lower intake manifold gasket. One thing everyone can do is check your radiator cap. If the rubber is swollen on the lower part of the cap larger than the surface it's mounted to then it may not release pressure into the reservoir. This causes higher than normal cooling system pressures and leads to premature leaks. Hope this helps.

P.S
Let us know what the code is for the check engine light.

Just heard from the mechanic....Thank God for Warranty. Head Gaskets need replacing , Knock Sensor , Vent Valve , Canister Valve as well.
Should take a day or two to have the X back.:heul3-big:

Just heard from the mechanic....Thank God for Warranty. Head Gaskets need replacing , Knock Sensor , Vent Valve , Canister Valve as well.
Should take a day or two to have the X back.:heul3-big:

Speaking strictly for me, I would get rid of that truck. Thats way too much work. Warrantee or not.

I can't complain, she's never giving me any problems. I love the old girl. The evap vent valve and canister I'll replace on my own. But on the bright side hopefully I'll get better gas mileage.

Whew... glad to hear it's under warranty. :dance-big:

I agree! That would make for a big repair bill.

I was up in Ontario, Can. one time in my suburban and blew a head gasket due to a cracked head. (And it turns out the other head was warped due to the the excess heat). Cost me almost $2k canadian for parts and labor plus rental car IIRC.

Damn, $2K canadian....that's like an entire dinner for two, blown on a repair!

:D

It would seem that I am going to have to raise BLOODY HELL with the warranty adjuster who wanted to verify the head mechanics diagnosis at the garage. When he performed his own test the engine was not losing any pressure, I think it had something to do with the fact that the F*%king engine was cold. When the head mechanic dude did the test the engine was warm, and was losing 5 - 10 psi in 2 minutes. The adjuster fella wouldn't wait a half hour to do the test again with the engine warmed up.
So tomorrow morning I have another appt with the local nissan dealership to have the test repeated with actual nissan gear to compare the findings. If the test fails I am going the fax the warranty company both copies to tryand get this resolved.
If not .....well I don't know if I will have access to a computer to post here from a jail cell/court room:biggrin:

Good Luck!

Finally after 2 weeks of patience my X will be on the road to recovery. After stripping down the engine and being along side the mechanic to see for myself the damage and actually getting someone in the warranty claims dept who has a conscience all is going to start on Monday. There were some other hitched as well that we came across, so I decided to get them fixed with everything else.

1. Head Gasket - internal/external leak.
2. Hoses - waterpump, heater core and one other one(?) - corroded.
3. Timing Belt - Would of replaced it soon anyway - 122,000 KMS.
4. 6th SPARK Plug w/ Wiring.
5. Knock Sensor.
6. Cylinder Heads - Plained Down & Cleaned.
7. Evap Canister & Sensor.

Saw all of this for myself except Knock Sensor. I told the mechanic to take his time putting her back together, so I wouldn't have any peices left over except for the broken ones.:auslachen2-big: I should have her back by middle to end of next week.Thank Christ.......or the Shop Guys.

wow. glad to hear its all getting done!

My X with the guts torn out.:heul3-big:

wow... nice pics. but DAMN.

Finally after 17 days my Xterra is BACK. In good working order as well but minus an Skid Plate for the oil filter and a screw for the air filter box. I gotta go in on Thursday to have the codes reset after I just put on another EVAP canister so I'll see where the missing parts are then I guess. I'm going to take another look at the entire engine this week to see if there is anything else they might of miss placed or forgot to put on.:biggrin:

Those pics look familiar. I would rather pull teeth from a live raccoon than do more Xterra head gaskets!

:aufkopfhauen-big:

OK - I have to ask - what's involved in doing Xterra Head Gaskets that would be different from other's?

(As mine is blown...but, temporarily repaired...)

A tonne of shit unfortunately. They pretty much have to take the top of the engine apart as seen in some of the photos. I'm still waiting on a couple photos that my buddy has when the X was torn half apart. I don't know exactly what the deal is but I did some research about the cost of repairs and I'm thankful for warranty.

Yeah - I assume I'm out of warrenty.

First, it's a modular engine with a special torque procedure to align the heads and intake. Enough vacuum and coolant lines to choke a horse. Hidden bolts in the front timing cover. Over head cams have to be removed. Two hidden bolts in the head that will damage it if removed without taking them out. Exhaust manifolds and catalyst that are tucked tightly at the sides of the engine. When it's all done the base timing has to be set and air purged from the cooling system. Not the most difficult but defiantly one of the most time consuming jobs on a Nissan. I have done 3 in the last year and still takes me 16 hours.

Damn Rusty, thanks.

:D

Hmmmm...the last one I did took all weekend in my driveway, but it was very simple compard to what you're describing.

If it takes 2 days to do in a properly equipped shop, that = 2 weeks in my driveway = not feasible.

Oh well.

Is there a TSB or anything like that on Head Gaskets?

I really take my time on these. When someone pays $1800 for a repair it should be perfect. I don't like to have extra parts when I'm finished and definatly don't want to take anything apart twice.

Too bad you're in St Louis.

:D

I have a local shop that will do the Head Gasket, Machine the surfaces, do the Timing Belt and Water Pump thing, for me...$2,300-ish.

ow

Ouch!! That is NOT cool.