[02XterraSENewb]

I bought my 02 X 4x4 about a month ago and have done a few things to it such as trans fluid, filter change, cooler add-on, rear diff oil change, rear shocks, new slotted and drilled rotors, ceramic pads, etc. The issues I have are as follows. First off I have a very slight miss that is only apparent when idling. I'm not sure what the cause is as there isn't even a code coming up to validate that it is even an issue. The previous owner changed the distributor cap, rotor, plugs and wires which I can visually see was true so I'm a bit confused here. Also I have a knock sensor code that I did find when I checked which I've learned isn't a major issue but I will have fixed anyhow as I still have to replace the difficult valve cover gasket and install intake manifold spacer I have ordered. I have mechanic that will do all of that for 250 parts included which is far lower than anyone else I could find and would rather not risk doing something wrong myself. As a result of this knock sensor or so I believe my MPGs are absolutely terrible like somewhere around 11mpg with maybe 13mpg on the highway if i'm lucky. I have run premium gas since i've purchased however im sure the owner before me didn't give the X this luxury. Lastly my X makes a weird belt-like whining sound under acceleration sometimes. The PO said the timing belt was changed at about 100k miles and it now has about 120k miles. Could one of the other belts make a similar sound under acceleration? or would it likely be one of the few belt tensioners? Anyway to troubleshoot specifically?
1)Slight miss for no apparent reason?
2)Poor MPG's due to knock sensor?
3)Whine under acceleration?

 

[porsche4786]

The whine could be an accessory belt too tight, causing too much pull on a bearing, which can cause the bearing to go bad. If you Rev the engine while stopped in neutral does it whine?

The knock sensor being faulty didn't cause my MPG's to change once replaced. This is a very common part to not work on the Xterra. Most do not replace it because the work involved is quite time consuming. I don't believe a mechanic can do it for $250. Unless they really know this engine. But if you are going to replace the valve cover gasket, you don't have to go a whole lot further to get to the knock sensor. While in there I would recommend replacing the coolant bypass hose if it wasn't already when the timing belt was done.

The missing I'm not sure about my guess would be a spark plug (would be nice to know if they actually replaced the #6 plug which some people skip) , bad wire or bad connection to the plug or distributor, cap or rotor.

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[porsche4786]

Also, running premium isn't necessary unless you have a supercharger

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[02XterraSENewb]

It does make the sound in neutral while accelerating and interesting you should say that because the Nissan Tech that performed the recall service said something along those lines but he said the timing belt may be too tight. Does that make any sense? As far as the 'miss' I also just read that the knock sensor once replaced could smooth out the idle if it was indeed bad which I believe mine actually is. So maybe it really isn't missing. The mechanic that I use is particularly cheap to me because I use him so frequently as I like to flip cars here and there.
On another note entirely I was wondering if you or anyone would know how I go about adding a stabilizer on the front and what all is involved? I recently bought another X to flip and it has one but has been modded so I can't tell how it was done originally. Thanks!

 

[porsche4786]

The steering stabilizer should be very easy to put on. You can get it from 4x4parts.com. Probably not necessary if you have smaller than 33's, plus they can hide problems in your steering.

I didn't notice any difference in the idle of mine after replacing the knock sensor. Which I only did because I had everything pulled off to the block.

The noise can be the timing belt. I would start with the easy and cheap stuff first. You can pull one belt off at a time to see the if the noise goes away. Can also use a long screwdriver up to your ear while resting in on various parts/accessories of the engine to try and find where it's coming from.

Might want to replace the fuel filter as well


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