Just threw in the towel please help me

3588 Views 11 Replies 4 Participants Last post by HarshReality001, Aug 4, 2010

rod83

Discussion Starter · Jul 26, 2010

So I started doing the timing chain tensioner replacement 2 days ago. Thought i could get it knocked out in a day but was mistaken only got both the intake and exhaust chains and tensioners done. 2nd day started off bad cause this is when i realized i was off TDC by 180 degrees. with the new chain on i rotated the crankshaft to TDC and all the marks lined up except for the colored chain links but w/e. rotated the crankshaft around 4 or 5 rotations and nothing was binding so i figured everything is good. I put the timing chain cover back on and forgot the top guide, so pulled everything back off and got it together right. Everything good to go right? WRONG I must have cut one of the seals or something on the waterpump because when i put coolant in radiator coolant started leaking EVERYWHERE checked all the hoses and everything was good, thermostat looked good, but right under the thermostat between the timing chain cover and the block was wet. Couldnt identify the exact spot but i am assuming its coming from the waterpump. towed it to the mechanic on base because i cant miss work to mess with it and they said they normally would turn this away because its too in-depth. but in a week and a half they will take a look at it and let me know if they can fix it. If not i will be taking it to the german nissan dealership which will probably charge me more to fix it then it would cost to replace the whole motor.

Please if anyone knows what this might be let me know. I'm struggling pretty bad with it.

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ksbowhunter

· #2 · Jul 26, 2010

I took mine straight to the dealership but if you use and follow your chilton repair guid you"ll be home free.

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dubie2003

· #3 · Jul 26, 2010

ksbowhunter said:
I took mine straight to the dealership but if you use and follow your chilton repair guid you"ll be home free.

He is in a tight situation. He is deployed overseas with his Frontier in a country that only has Navara's. He can't simply take it to the local dealership expecting a warranty repair. They are going to charge him and on top of all of that, the rates overseas are a bit extreme and that is why it will cost him almost as much as a new motor would.

I know there is a gasket between the Tstat and the housing, is it leaking there?

Past that I would remove the Tstat and look around in there to see if you see anything out of place

After that, I would dis-assemble the front half of the motor again and basically start over and make sure you apply the proper amount of RTV to all surfaces needing it.

Side Note: Did you ensure that the RTV set-up before you added fluids and pressurized the system?

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rod83

Discussion Starter · #4 · Jul 27, 2010

dubie2003 said:
He is in a tight situation. He is deployed overseas with his Frontier in a country that only has Navara's. He can't simply take it to the local dealership expecting a warranty repair. They are going to charge him and on top of all of that, the rates overseas are a bit extreme and that is why it will cost him almost as much as a new motor would.

I know there is a gasket between the Tstat and the housing, is it leaking there?

Past that I would remove the Tstat and look around in there to see if you see anything out of place

After that, I would dis-assemble the front half of the motor again and basically start over and make sure you apply the proper amount of RTV to all surfaces needing it.

Side Note: Did you ensure that the RTV set-up before you added fluids and pressurized the system?

I am pretty sure the t-state is good. Its dry where it mates to the block. I am about 95% sure its the waterpump seal. I think it got cut or something when i put it in the motor. I am going to take it to nissan today, and have them take a look at it and hopefully fix it. If i can get it fixed for 1k bucks or less i will be happy. If not, I guess i will be taking a loan from the bank or something. I got in too deep and no one around here knows enough about nissans to give me a hand. This is the first time i've ever tapped out of a job, I guess i cant wrap my mind around these newer engines.

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HarshReality001

· #5 · Jul 27, 2010

this engine is so perfectly machined that the slightest nick in a gasket or mating suface can cause a catastrophe. there are also 2 gaskets in the water pump - inner and outer. were both replaced?

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rod83

Discussion Starter · #6 · Jul 27, 2010

yeah they were both replaced. I lubed up the seals with some soap before i tried putting it in, but it was still a *****. Had to pop it a couple of times with a mallet to get it seated. Think when i did that it cut the rear seal because its not leaking into the timing chain cover just from where the block and the back side of the cover mate. I took it to nissan today and the "nissan master" said they would pull the pump and check the o-rings. worst case they'll have to pull the panel again and he said that would run about 700 euro. not cheap but a whole lot better than expected. It just sucks that i'm an aircraft mechanic that works on multi-million planes, but screws up a $14K dollar truck. FML

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dubie2003

· #7 · Jul 27, 2010

700 euro is like 1.4k US so that is a bit of money but for your situation, its the price to pay.

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rod83

Discussion Starter · #8 · Jul 27, 2010

Also, here is a couple of things that i ran into for anyone who is going to attempt this. I used a 1/4 inch extension in the #1 piston to find TDC...I was 180 degrees off. take the valve covers off and ensure that both camshaft lobes are pointed up. I realized my mistake after i did both secondary chains, and tried aligning the primary chain and couldnt. nothing was binding when rotated the crank, but just a heads up. you dont need to take the oil pans off, but there are 2 bolts in the top oil pan that go in the timing chain cover. for you 4x4 owners the alternator sucks to get out. I would say you need 3 people to do this job, 2 for the mechanical work and one to clean RTV off EVERTHING. I think the only reason nissan uses bolts is to hold everything in place while the RTV sets. you can use a 15/16 wrench on the cams to keep them from rotating while you torque down the sprockets(figured that one out too late, i used a strap wrench and it sucked)....thats all i can really think of right now. If anything else pops up i will post it. This stuff might seem dumb to some people, but if i knew it going in it would have made the job a little easier.

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rod83

Discussion Starter · #9 · Jul 27, 2010

dubie2003 said:
700 euro is like 1.4k US so that is a bit of money but for your situation, its the price to pay.

no doubt, the exchange rate sucks really bad. 3 more months and i will be back in the US. cant wait. :fantastic:

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dubie2003

· #10 · Jul 27, 2010

rod83 said:
Also, here is a couple of things that i ran into for anyone who is going to attempt this. I used a 1/4 inch extension in the #1 piston to find TDC...I was 180 degrees off. take the valve covers off and ensure that both camshaft lobes are pointed up. I realized my mistake after i did both secondary chains, and tried aligning the primary chain and couldnt. nothing was binding when rotated the crank, but just a heads up. you dont need to take the oil pans off, but there are 2 bolts in the top oil pan that go in the timing chain cover. for you 4x4 owners the alternator sucks to get out. I would say you need 3 people to do this job, 2 for the mechanical work and one to clean RTV off EVERTHING. I think the only reason nissan uses bolts is to hold everything in place while the RTV sets. you can use a 15/16 wrench on the cams to keep them from rotating while you torque down the sprockets(figured that one out too late, i used a strap wrench and it sucked)....thats all i can really think of right now. If anything else pops up i will post it. This stuff might seem dumb to some people, but if i knew it going in it would have made the job a little easier.

This is the great thing about the internet and in this case, forums. It is people like you that post up your experiences and let others know what they may run into along the way. You go the step further and actually tell others what "tricks" will make the job a bit easier. This is why the forums are so valuable to DIYers.

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rod83

Discussion Starter · #11 · Aug 4, 2010

well, nissan figured the leak out today. When we were trying to put the waterpump in it was being stubborn so i popped it with a rubber mallet.....mistake. Looks like the rear timing chain cover cant take a hit. the seating surface where the waterpump and the rear cover mate was cracked. It was a spiderweb, like when something hits your windshield really hard. The german nissan dealer wanted to charge me 1k Euro for the new rear cover, but i bought it on-line for 196 bucks, went ahead and got a new waterpump too just in case the other one got jacked up. The one cool thing about nissan is that they have allotted times for every job so they cant over charge you. I asked a nissan tech from courtesy how long the job was and he said 11 hours, so it shouldnt cost me that much in labor.

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HarshReality001

· #12 · Aug 4, 2010

well at least you got it straightened out. hopefully it doesnt turn out to be that much and you have it back sooner rather than later.

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