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'01 SE 3.5 "Flare" and other problems.


Pmoore304
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I have a 2001 Pathfinder SE3.5 with 150k miles on it. I’ve had it about 6 years and it’s been a great car, one of the best I’ve ever had. I’m about ready to hand it down to my teenaged daughter, but recently it has been having what I assume are mass air flow sensor problems, or else transmission control module failure, or perhaps just a blocked fuel filter or bad fuel pump. The symptoms are:

 

On a cold morning, the car will start perfectly but if I don’t let it warm up for a minute it will bog down badly and not “accept” acceleration for the first 100 feet of driving. Then it kind of hiccups and cures... until higher speeds. In town it performs perfectly. At any time when I’m highway driving I have to accelerate gently to avoid what I believe is “flaring” between gears. It almost feels like it is slipping out of gear from one gear to the next, but I believe it’s more of an engine torque failure. I’ve had transmissions fail me before, and this feels different.

 

At high speeds over 70+ the car will suffer intermittent torque reductions, like it’s starving for air or fuel. It’s impossible, for instance, to put it in cruise control above 70 MPH. When I do, when the engine torque randomly drops the cruise control module tries to compensate by attempting acceleration, which makes the problem worse. Out of cruise control, once I reach speed it will do great for awhile and at random moments I’ll feel a tremble in torque and I’ll have to ease up on the accelerator until the “tremble” passes. It’s a pain to maintain normal speed touching on and off the accelerator all the time, not to mention abusive on fuel and safety.

 

The CEL is on, and has been coming off and on for years with no change in performance. Until recently, however, the car performed perfectly so I’ve learned to pay no attention to it.

 

About two weeks ago I sent the Pathy in for new front struts. My mechanic told me when I picked it up that he’d seen the CEL and checked it out, and that it was running lean. He adjusted it. I didn’t drive it for about a week after that, and then took it on a 220 mile trip, during which it ran pretty horribly and displayed all of the symptoms I described above. I’m not taking it on the open road again until I fix this.

 

I’d like to start easy and change the in line fuel filter. I’ve yet to look for it, but in case it’s evasive, could you tell me where it is? I’ll toss a new air filter in there too, just in case. Then, I’m thinking the mass air flow sensor will be my next fix. If the car is still malfunctioning at that point, I might brave an attempt to change the transmission control module. After that, I may throw caution to the wind and drive to the stealership, but I’d almost rather junk it than do that. Writing that make me cringe, because it’s a comfortable and until recently, reliable car, and the body, interior and all accessories are in great shape, but I don’t find dealerships have much incentive to help out a guy like me who is trying to squeeze every ounce of value out of a 10+ year old car.

 

I’ve been reading online and I see lots of entries about 01 Pathy’s with these types of symptoms. I guess I’m looking for reassurance that I’m on the right track. Thanks for your thoughts and any comments you may have. Patrick in Covington, Louisiana.

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Have you tried cleaning the MAF sensor? There is a write up in the "How To" section somewhere. Also, when was the last time you did a tune-up? Changing the plugs could make a world of difference. Make sure to check the #6 plug as it is pretty difficult to replace and is often "skipped". Probably not your problem but, :my2cents:

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If you decide to change out the MAF sensor, make sure to get the Maxima one, and not the Pathfinder one. It's the exact same thing, but loads cheaper. There's a thread on that here somewhere...

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What's the condition and level of the transmission fluid?

 

1. Drive around for 10 minutes in the city after the transmission is at operating temperature.

2. Park on level surface and apply parking brake.

3. With P selected, shift through every gear and return to P.

4. Pull transmission dipstick with engine idling, wipe clean, reinsert completely, and read level. It must be within the notched areas labeled "HOT". Check for fluid contamination after wiping on a paper towel.

 

The fluid should be red, and not smell burnt.

 

There is a technical service bulletin regarding 1-2 or 2-3 shift flare. Download it here see if the problem description applies to your vehicle.

 

Drive to AutoZone and get the codes pulled and post them here.

 

See here for a fuel filter replacement guide.

 

As said above, get this MAF sensor if it needs to be replaced.

 

Have you tried cleaning the MAF sensor? There is a write up in the "How To" section somewhere. Also, when was the last time you did a tune-up? Changing the plugs could make a world of difference. Make sure to check the #6 plug as it is pretty difficult to replace and is often "skipped". Probably not your problem but, :my2cents:

The 2001-2004 Pathfinders have the VQ35DE engine, and all plugs are accessible easily.

 

The spark plug replacement interval is 105k miles - if it hasn't been done, get it done! There's a guide here. You can obtain 6 NGK PLFR5A-11 (6240) spark plugs for $40.54 + tax at Advance Auto Parts if you order online with discount code RETMENOT123 and pick-up in store.

Edited by Towncivilian
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These replies are great!!! I'll order a new MAF sensor before I do the spark replacement. I sent the car in for a tune up about 9 months ago when these problems first started, and my mechanic cleaned the MAF and it ran much better afterwards, but I could tell it still wasn't 100%. Thereafter, it has slowly gotten worse, etc. He did not replace the plugs, which I had asked him to do, because when he cleaned the MAF the codes cleared. Hmmm. Time to roll up my sleeves, I think, and do the job myself. I used to rebuild engines in high school, so I know my way around the fire wall, but I confess to that being almost 30 years ago. I've done plenty of shade tree repairs since then, but nothing too involved after I became gainfully employed!

 

Before I start the job, I'll get the codes read and post them. I'll try to do that tonight and will pick up the plugs at that time.

 

I noticed no one mentioned the fuel filter as a possible culprit. I still want to R&R the in-line, both because it's cheap and to eliminate it as a possible culprit.

 

I've got some time off with Christmas approaching, so it is time to wake the mechanic in me and get dirty again. I'll let you know how it goes!!!! :)

Edited by Pmoore304
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The 2001-2004 Pathfinders have the VQ35DE engine, and all plugs are accessible easily.

 

Yay, first post . . .

 

I lol'd at this comment :) Easily accessible must be subjective, cause I changed my 02's plugs a couple weekends back (never been done by the previous owner, 152k on the odometer! Yikes!) and yeah, once everything is outta the way, they are accessible, though I wouldn't say easily.

 

Don't take this the wrong way Pmoore304, you can definitely change the plugs yourself, but be patient with it. It is going to take a little while to get access to the coil packs, and you are going to need a long and short extension for your socket wrench. I used the long+short combo to get down to the spark plug. If you do it this way, make sure you attach the short extension to the wrench in case they come apart while trying the pull the spark plug socket off the plug after install. That way you can still grab the long extension without it being down in the plug well.

 

The great thing about this engine is most every bolt head is a 10mm socket, and the other few are either 12mm or 14mm.

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Yay, first post . . .

 

I lol'd at this comment :) Easily accessible must be subjective, cause I changed my 02's plugs a couple weekends back (never been done by the previous owner, 152k on the odometer! Yikes!) and yeah, once everything is outta the way, they are accessible, though I wouldn't say easily.

 

Don't take this the wrong way Pmoore304, you can definitely change the plugs yourself, but be patient with it. It is going to take a little while to get access to the coil packs, and you are going to need a long and short extension for your socket wrench. I used the long+short combo to get down to the spark plug. If you do it this way, make sure you attach the short extension to the wrench in case they come apart while trying the pull the spark plug socket off the plug after install. That way you can still grab the long extension without it being down in the plug well.

 

The great thing about this engine is most every bolt head is a 10mm socket, and the other few are either 12mm or 14mm.

 

Very informative first post! Good call on the socket extension sequence as well. I wish that I had thought of that before mine came apart under the plenum. Thankfully the plug had already came out and I was able to use my mechanics magnet to retrieve the mechanism.

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Very informative first post! Good call on the socket extension sequence as well. I wish that I had thought of that before mine came apart under the plenum. Thankfully the plug had already came out and I was able to use my mechanics magnet to retrieve the mechanism.

 

Thanks Devonianwalk! I almost found out the hard way as well, but I noticed when the extensions came apart that the short extension would have been 'down in the hole' if I had it connected to the spark plug socket and I thought, 'cripes that would have sucked, better remember that for the next one!'. I thought myself smart until I cross-threaded the coil pack bolt on cylinder 5 and had to easy-out my way out of that problem. I even started the bolt by hand but apparently didn't get it threaded as much as I should have. Oh well, I re-tapped the hole after getting the sheared bolt out and all is good again.

 

My projects always seem to take twice as long as I expect :shrug::D

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  • 4 years later...

I just replaced my MAF sensor with the Maxima one and it is now running great. My 2001 Pathfinder SE was exhibiting all of the same symptoms described by Pmoore304 to include the transmission "flaring" problem that he described so well. I did first replace the fuel filter but that wasn't the smoking gun - the MAF was definitely the culprit. The truck was bogging down and loosing powder above 3K rpms, but before that problem got progressively worse to the point of nearly stranding me on I95, the transmission would "flare" and not go into the proper gear when accelerating. This could be alleviated by slowly letting off on the accelerator until the transmission felt like it found itself and went back into gear providing torque to the rear wheels. Who knew that a problem with a mass air flow sensor could cause such a major engine as well as transmission performance issue? I ordered the part (the Maxima one) from Courtesy Nissan shipped for about $90. I installed just the sensor into the existing air flow tube in about 15 min and problem solved. The truck now drives like brand new with outstanding acceleration and no transmission shifting issues. I just wanted to say "thank you very much" for all those that contributed to this thread and other similar ones on this site related to trouble shooting the MAF and providing an alternative MAF solution (the Maxima one) that saved me at least $400.

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