Nissan Problems

Surprisingly, yes it is a fairly common observation. The idea is that having the gauge tell you that the tank is nearly empty even though it has a few litres still sloshing around in it, is a great way to convince you to find a service station before you run out of fuel. In the old days, many cars had a reserve tank which had to be switched on when the main tank ran out of fuel. This reserve tank was your insurance against being stranded. The modern fuel gauge acts in the same way by ensuring you have a supply remaining even when the gauge is telling you you’re just about empty.

Normally, a car has around 50 to 80km of fuel left when the gauge reads zero (although don’t be tempted to find out the hard way). So the 20 litres remaining in your tank when the gauge is on empty is on the high side, but far from abnormal.

If the noise is a metallic rattling noise, then you might be on the right track here. But as well as the timing chain, it could also be the tensioner that keeps that timing chain tight at fault. The fact that the noise goes away after a few seconds suggests that the tensioner, rather than the chain, is at fault. But they could both be worn.

What’s happening is that the tensioner is hydraulically operated and needs engine oil pressure to do its job. When the engine has been sitting overnight, there’s a slight time delay between it starting and enough oil pressure reaching the tensioner to tighten the timing chain and stop the noise. What you’re hearing is the chain flailing around until the tensioner steps up and takes the slack out of it, at which point it stops rattling and goes silent.

Why doesn’t it happen every time you start the engine? Because the tensioner needs time for the oil to drain completely out of it. If the engine has only been stopped a short time, there’s sill enough oil in the tensioner for it to build up pressure quickly and keep things quiet.

If you mean shuddering and vibration when you take off from rest, then you’re possibly experiencing the same problem that many owners of this model Nissan have already reported. The problem is caused by wear in the CVT transmission which is allowing the steel drive belt to slip. As the belt slips and grips and then slips again, the driver experiences less-than-smooth acceleration.

The safety recalls (which were actually technical service bulletins) you’re referring to all occurred within the North American market and haven’t been extended to Australian X-Trails (that I know of). Unfortunately, US consumer law is quite different from ours and consumers have very different rights and obligations.

It would be worth having the car assessed and then approaching Nissan Australia’s customer service department to see if there’s any help on offer. But given the age of the vehicle, I wouldn’t be holding my breath. That said, I totally understand your point of view, and 11 years is probably not a suitable lifespan for a modern automatic transmission, given we’ve been making cars for more than 130 years, and Nissan (in one form or another) for the last 90 of those.

It depends on which engine your Navara has. If it’s a D22 with the 2.5-litre engine, the oil-change capacity is 5.6 litres. If your car has the three-litre engine, it will need 6.7 litres to complete an oil change. If your car is the later model D40 version, the 2.5-litre engine will require 6.9 litres. Those amounts should allow for an oil-filter change as well.

In each case, the recommended oil is a 5W40 semi-synthetic.

This is a typical car company response to the problem of pedal error which has raised its head many times since about the 1980s when car maker started getting sued by drivers who had pressed the wrong pedal, but claimed the car had accelerated of its own accord.

The solution was to make sure that if the driver accidentally pressed the throttle, if they also pressed the brake in panic, the car would stop accelerating. By pressing the brake and throttle together in your car, you’re reproducing that exact situation. So, really, there’s nothing wrong with your car, and it’s only doing what it’s programmed to do.

A lot of drivers don’t like this feature, however, as it means the slightest hint that both the brake and throttle are applied at once is enough for the car to cut its power and not move, as you’ve discovered. Many have found that when trying to enter fast moving traffic or make a quick lane change, and operating both brake and throttle at the same time for a quick getaway, this function is actually dangerous.

Unfortunately, there’s not a lot you can do about it other than learn to not even brush the brake pedal when you want to make a quick start.

Some markets have indeed experienced problems with the Nissan CVT transmission as fitted to many of the brand’s vehicles. It doesn’t seem as widespread in Australia, but some faults have been identified.

That main problems seem to be overheated CVTs which can cause juddering when driving and premature wear inside the transmission. According to some in the trade, the fault is caused by a problem with the way the transmission fluid is cooled, and when it gets too hot it can cause warping of the metal parts inside the unit.

Ultimately, the solution would be to fit an external oil cooler for the transmission fluid, but otherwise, a close eye on the level of transmission fluid and correct servicing is the key to making the CVT last.

This could be caused by any number of things, and an electronic scan of the vehicle will surely reveal some of its secrets and may point you towards the fix. It almost sounds as though the car is going into limp-home mode when you first start driving it, but then reverts to proper operation once the engine has warmed up a little. But this could also suggest a turbo-boost leak somewhere in the system that is closing up and disappearing once there’s some heat built up.

If there’s oil around the intercooler hose, you may have oil in the intercooler itself. This can cause all sorts of problems and is often caused by a worn turbocharger. I’d definitely be having a close look at the turbo unit, checking for wear and damage as this could be the root cause.

Actually, it’s none of those things. This model Pulsar came with the option of a six-speed manual. But if it was an automatic Pulsar, it was fitted not with a conventional automatic, but with a CVT or Constantly Variable Transmission. Instead of a series of gears inside it, the CVT uses cones of different diameters linked by a flexible belt. By altering where on the cones the belt rides, the gearbox can produce different 'gears'.

The idea is that by providing an infinite number of ratios, the engine can always run closer to its most efficient speed, therefore improving fuel efficiency. It’s a great theory, but not all drivers like the sound and feel of a CVT which can feel pretty alien, especially at first. Some manufacturers, in an attempt to make the CVT feel more familiar, electronically engineer in fixed `ratios’ but, in reality, this removes some of the CVT’s efficiency-boosting potential.

I take it the smoke is coming out the tailpipe when you crank the engine, even though the engine is not starting or, at least, not running to the point where the car can be driven. It sounds like you might have 'cooked' the engine as old school mechanics would put it. When the radiator started leaking, allowing the coolant to escape, the engine overheated and 'cooked'. Which means the severe heat inside the engine damaged something sufficiently that the engine now won’t run.

You could be dealing with a blown head gasket or a warped cylinder head, or even damage to the pistons. The smoke you’re seeing when you crank the engine could be oil smoke that’s a result of fired piston rings due to the overheating episode. The first thing to do is let a mechanic run a few tests on the engine to determine whether it’s retrievable or junk. From there, you can make an informed decision on whether to fix the car or cut your losses and simply walk away. If the engine is damaged beyond help, a second-hand engine from a wrecked Tiida might be an option if you decide you want to keep the car.

Many workshops would start with a simple tune-up and service to tackle this problem. Cars lose performance over the years and it’s often as simple as a good tune-up including a change of spark plugs, filters (air and fuel), spark plug leads and a check of the ignition coils (in petrol models).

If you have the diesel-engined version of the X-Trail, it would also be worth checking to see if the intake manifold has become partially blocked with black gunk that is a by-product of the car’s emissions-control system.

A good service and tune might bring performance back to how you remember it, but don’t ignore the simply things like a faulty accelerator pedal calibration, or slack transmission that is making the car feel lazy. Even low tyre pressures can make a car feel lethargic in terms of both steering and how it accelerates.