CarComplaints.com Notes: The 2004-2006 Nissan Maxima has widespread transmission problems. It starts with the vehicle jerking when shifting, & progresses to full-blown transmission failure.
Maxima owners report spending $3,000 to replace the transmission, typically around when the odometer hits 100,000 miles.
There's a class action lawsuit filed in late 2011, & it is still in the "discovery" stage. Apparently, these things take time ... far too much time.
8.7
pretty bad
Typical Repair Cost:
$2,130
Average Mileage:
114,000 miles
Total Complaints:
14 complaints
Most Common Solutions:
new timing chain and tensioner guide (11 reports)
not sure (2 reports)
timing chain tensioner is broken cost is $4000 (1 reports)
This timing chain & tensioner issue is a well known & documented issue. There is currently a class-action lawsuit against Nissan Corp. for owners affected, however, only a few states are part of this suit. I live in Indiana & I'm trying to get Indiana on board with this lawsuit. I have contacted my Attorney General & provided information regarding this lawsuit. I bought my car used & only after I bought it did the problem start. I only paid $2,800 for my car & the repair cost $2,000! Nissan was fully aware of the faulty tensioners as early as 2004 but chose not to do anything about it. Rather than doing a recall and taking responsibility, Nissan passed the problem on to it's consumers putting us on the hook for a costly repair!
I purchased this car and had for a month before it started rattling at start up, got oil changed that did not fix it, mechanic friend said it was the timing chain. drove for a few more weeks when it started to make a even louder rattle at start up and while idling or stop at lights. ending up having to get the timing system replaced, cost me $850 dollars thanks to knowing a mechanic, other shops quoted me 1500-2400 to have it fixed. i missed mutiple days of work because of my car being in the shop for this problem
Just bought this 2004 Nissan maxima from a family member it had no issues and all of sudden the engine is ticking and from diagnostics, mechanics are saying the timing chain tensioner has to be replaced, which after some researching, I have found this is a common issue with these vehicles from 04 & up and i was wondering what are my choices? Or am i pretty much screwed and gotta pay out of pocket??
I'm having the same issue with my 2004 Nissan Maxima with the timing chain they replaced it once on Jan.10,2010. I now have the same problem again. This time it's not covered under my warranty. Please help. too costly of a repair.
I BOUGHT THE 2004 NISSAN MAXIMA 3.5 USED IN JUNE 2013.THE TIMING CHAIN TENSIONER MAKES A TERRIBLE NOISE. I GOT A $2,000 ESTIMATE TO FIX. I HAVE 146,000 MILES NOW & I use 10w30 synthetic oil. THE OIL WAS CHANGED EVERY 3000 MILES BY PREVIOUS OWNER AND MYSELF.
I was driving and suddenly the car stopped.
Didn't want to start.
At first I thought it was the gas pump, replaced it with a new Airtex pump $310.
Didn't work.
Replaced crankshaft position sensor (bank 1)
Nothing
Replaced crankshaft position sensor (bank 2)
Nothing
Replaced the sensor under the engine (not sure how's it called)
Nothing
By this time I spent around $600
By the end of the day I knew what was wrong.
Timing chain tensors. Broken.
I replaced it and that was it.
No engine damage.
Hello There - I purchased this 2004 Nissan Maxima last year with approximately 80K miles from the original owner. The original owner had done all the recomended scheduled maintenance (7.5K, 15K, 30K,45K, 60K, 75K). Nevertheless the car has a very anoying and concern noise coming form the engine as if the timing chain is loose. I found a dealership work order to correct the very same problem when the car had less than 45K miles. So apparently the problem was not corrected properly. I had a 2001 Nissan Maxima before and never had any problems with that car since I purchased it brand new. Should this problem with my 2004 Nissan Maxima don't end up being a recall, I will never again buy another Maxima.
not sure why a car with this type of mileage needs a timing gear. i'm almost thru paying for it, so i will pay for $1500 for a new timing gear and hope that that my last major repair for a while. Two major problems with this car have happened already (transmission had to be replaced now timing gear). As much as I love the styling (interior and exterior), mechanically the car is not sound.
I WANTED A MAXIMA FOR OVER 20 YEARS...AS A RETIREMENT PRESENT TO MYSELF I BOUGHT A 2004 MAXIMA BRAND NEW...THE FIRST THING TO GO WAS MY ALTERNATOR,AFTER THAT MY BATTERY WENT,,,THEN I FOUND OUT THAT I HAD 4 DRY ROOTED TIRES.....THEN MY TRANSMISSION WENT(FORTUNATELY I STILL HAD 3 MONTH WARRANTY ON IT)...MY BATTERY WENT AGAIN...NOW I HAVE A HOLE IN MY POWER STEERING LINE AND MY ENGINE IS SHOT....ALL THIS ON A CAR THAT HAS 55,700 MILES....AS YOU CAN SEE I DO NOT DRIVE A LOT..AND I AM THE ONLY DRIVER..I HAVE NOT DOGGED MY CAR IN ANY WAY...I AM SO UPSET..I HAD TO GO BACK TO WORK AND I NEED MY CAR....WHAT I THOUGHT WAS A DREAM COME TRUE HAS INDEED TURNED INTO A NIGHTMARE...
Like many others the Engine Timing Chain in 2004 Maxima makes ticking noise. It started giving the ticking noise. As I stated have all the service records. Every time ( less than 3500 miles ) oil and filter replaced with Synthetic fluid. This timing chain failure is a major design issue and lots of customer are suffering from this. Nissan even issued a TSB for this but no Recall. Dealer quoted $1100 to fix this. Have the diagnosis report.
this is a piece of sh*t car. I brought this car in 2005 2nd owner. problem started in 2006. car makes rattling noise from enging when you start it. started reporting the dealer in 2007 while under warranty. problem was found in 2010 when warranty was gone. The dealer gave me a $4000 estimate for the repairs
i brought the piece of sh*t car in 2005, in 2007 noise started. car was taken to Nissan south in marrow ga. they could not find the problem (car was still under warranty). problem continued making noise and i continued to complain. finally i noticed my co-workers maxima had the same noise in 2010. finally someone found the problem, timing chain tensioner guide. sad for me because warranty was gone and estimate was $4000 for Nissan south. this is my second Maxima i should have learned my lesson the first time.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
This timing chain & tensioner issue is a well known & documented issue. There is currently a class-action lawsuit against Nissan Corp. for owners affected, however, only a few states are part of this suit. I live in Indiana & I'm trying to get Indiana on board with this lawsuit. I have contacted my Attorney General & provided information regarding this lawsuit. I bought my car used & only after I bought it did the problem start. I only paid $2,800 for my car & the repair cost $2,000! Nissan was fully aware of the faulty tensioners as early as 2004 but chose not to do anything about it. Rather than doing a recall and taking responsibility, Nissan passed the problem on to it's consumers putting us on the hook for a costly repair!
- Trace D., Scottsburg, IN, US