Sorry for long post! I wanted to get some opinions on what you would do in this situation.
Here is the some history on my wife’s Xterra: 2002, 3.3L NA, ~165K, Original Owner. She kept the miles low using around college town for 8 years. Really started to put miles on as a commuter car when she graduated.
I have done a good job following all recommended maintenance doing the work myself(oil changes every 3K, trans and diff service, running sea foam every oil change, etc.) Two years ago over Xmass break I replaced the original timing belt, tensioner, water pump, thermostat, spark plugs, PCV valve, and accessory belts at ~100K. I also put on a set of bilstein shocks! Truck ran great up until ~130k we started having problems with E0300 (random misfire) and E0328 (knock sensor).
The belt I installed failed pulling out from stop sign ~133k. I felt so bad thinking it was my workmanship, but part of me wanted to blame the belt kit I bought from advanced. Luckily, no engine damage; I didn’t have the time to fix myself. I paid local shop ($360) for new belt job. I kept going back and forth about the random misfire and knock sensor problem. I couldn’t see paying ($800) for knock sensor replacement. So, I made the decision to do the bypass myself. The truck ran great for about one week; no CEL and no limp mode. Then E300 code (random misfire) shows back up. On cold day start I hear ticking noise until truck warms ups (sticky valves?).
Then hell breaks loose, timing belt fails again! This time ~165K, both cams are locked, crank moves freely. Truck was not running when it failed. I thought it was just a dead battery in parking lot. So, I jumped it off and the crank just spun and spun. I had it towed back to shop for them to tell me they can do nothing for us, needs motor. They blame the ruff idle and knock sensor, and that the belt failed when the cams locking up. You can see where the crank sheared the teeth off. Does the starter have enough torque to do that?
I had it towed back to the house and there she sits. The shop offered me $500 and I laughed at them when I picked it up. The Michelin tires and bilstein shocks are worth that much. I know it only needs a valve job, and knock sensor. But, the rest of truck still has ~165K.
What do you think? Part it out or fix it? I have two weeks off here for company shutdown. Should I get my hands dirty? Thanks, Stephen!
Here is the some history on my wife’s Xterra: 2002, 3.3L NA, ~165K, Original Owner. She kept the miles low using around college town for 8 years. Really started to put miles on as a commuter car when she graduated.
I have done a good job following all recommended maintenance doing the work myself(oil changes every 3K, trans and diff service, running sea foam every oil change, etc.) Two years ago over Xmass break I replaced the original timing belt, tensioner, water pump, thermostat, spark plugs, PCV valve, and accessory belts at ~100K. I also put on a set of bilstein shocks! Truck ran great up until ~130k we started having problems with E0300 (random misfire) and E0328 (knock sensor).
The belt I installed failed pulling out from stop sign ~133k. I felt so bad thinking it was my workmanship, but part of me wanted to blame the belt kit I bought from advanced. Luckily, no engine damage; I didn’t have the time to fix myself. I paid local shop ($360) for new belt job. I kept going back and forth about the random misfire and knock sensor problem. I couldn’t see paying ($800) for knock sensor replacement. So, I made the decision to do the bypass myself. The truck ran great for about one week; no CEL and no limp mode. Then E300 code (random misfire) shows back up. On cold day start I hear ticking noise until truck warms ups (sticky valves?).
Then hell breaks loose, timing belt fails again! This time ~165K, both cams are locked, crank moves freely. Truck was not running when it failed. I thought it was just a dead battery in parking lot. So, I jumped it off and the crank just spun and spun. I had it towed back to shop for them to tell me they can do nothing for us, needs motor. They blame the ruff idle and knock sensor, and that the belt failed when the cams locking up. You can see where the crank sheared the teeth off. Does the starter have enough torque to do that?
I had it towed back to the house and there she sits. The shop offered me $500 and I laughed at them when I picked it up. The Michelin tires and bilstein shocks are worth that much. I know it only needs a valve job, and knock sensor. But, the rest of truck still has ~165K.
What do you think? Part it out or fix it? I have two weeks off here for company shutdown. Should I get my hands dirty? Thanks, Stephen!
