Sup Yall, Yep Im new to this forum.
I recently purchased a 2003 Xterra. (3.3 liter/V6) Love everything about it. Except, when I start it every morning I hear 6-8 ticks coming from the engine then everything is quiet and smooth. (Yes the proper amount of oil is in the motor haha) Of course I know this is because there is not any oil pressure yet, Right. I would like to try some sort of oil additive or something that would take care of this problem and prolong the life of my engine. Is there anything that would alleviate the friction (additive or not) that I can use that anyone knows about and has used? Is this a common problem w/ Nissans? Xterras?
B~

Welcome A Board!

:wink-big:

Well, I use synthetic lubes throughout the truck, and usually Mobil1 for the engine.

That said, the ticking might be the exhaust noise as it warms up/builds pressure at first.

You could try blocking the tail pipe and doing that start where you get a tic, and see if its louder...if its louder, its exhaust.

:D

Other metalic things expand/contract with temperature, so a heat shield or other item can also be involved.

So, you have some experimentation to do.

:D

A lot of additives add sludge to the engine when they break down...so I'm not a giant fan of them to solve/mask problems...I'd rather fix the whole in the hull than get a bigger bilge pump.

:D

Mine rattles like a diesel when restarting the hot engine, after the oil runs out of the top end

You really shouldn't be rattling from oil depravation like that...it has nasty implications.

It would be better if it were dieseling for example.

:D

Welcome to the club and congratulations on you purchase of the Xterra. The tick sounds like it could be a hydraulic lifter bleeding down over night. If it were mine I wouldn't worry about it until other repairs are needed or it ticks all the time. It requires timing belt and camshaft removal. As far as additives, like someone else mentioned they add sludge to the engine and can cause oil passages to clog. Synthetic oils are great but expensive. They can save your engine if it overheats and will reduce wear. Best to pick an oil and stick with it.
Hope I was able to help.

Tics from a lifter?

Maybe the tic is a different noise to me?

A rattle or a bit of clatter maybe from the lifter I would think, or are the new X's lifters giving off a new set of noises?

Or maybe you know what he means, and I'm paying too much attention to the choice of adjective?

:fussball-big:

Welcome to the Club!!!. I see you are already gaining much advice.

Donald

TJ..you are right about the exhaust making a tick noise and there is a TSB in that issue. What caught my attention was that it was only 6-8 ticks at start up and then it would go away which about the time it takes for a lifter to build up oil pressure.

Hmmm. I like that.


Options.

OK, we have some home work for our new freind at least.

:D

Yep... Could go either way.
:cool-big:

Yep... Could go either way.
:cool-big:





Please, lets leave your personal life out of this, its a technical discussion.

;)

Found these TSB's.

http://www.nissanhelp.com/Ownership/Bulletins/Nissan/2004/NTB04-017.htm

http://www.nissanhelp.com/Ownership/Bulletins/Nissan/2001/NTB01-038.htm

Yeah - they say rattle for the lifter too.

Well, its good info, if there's a TSB, at least it might be a known problem, and he might get a break on the fix.

:D

You Sir are a very handy guy to have around.

:D

Thanks! :biggrin: I agree, since Buck just bought it he may be able to get a good deal on repairs. Defiantly worth looking into.

Someone told me it could be the "followers" is that the push rods?
Isint this a DOHC we are talking about?