nelledge

Yes, sir. Which is the intention of the saying. There is no need to build a knowledge base from scratch. The groundwork has already been done. Let this thread be those 'refinements' rather than hitting the reset button.

DIYs are always time consuming and so rarely convenient. It would be a great help to the community if you could take some notes along the way with a few photos for reference. Having a helper or two should alleviate a few seconds to snap pics periodically. Looking forward to reading your results.

m3clubracer

So this BB thread is for a 35 motor and I am to assume identical to a 37?

nelledge

Several vehicles use these gaskets. 35's across the Nissan/Infiniti line(same area requiring a gasket in the 37's). The newer vehicles have seemingly been allocated a newer metal-style gasket from factory.

nelledge

Bocian, you could also provide another huge bit of diagnostic information that may help to give our community a broader view of the issue. Would you check your oil pressure values before and after replacement at a couple different RPM intervals(Maybe idle and 2500 at least)?

krazyfiend

The 3 or 4 iterations of the gaskets doesn't help matters in really knowing what gaskets you might have if you own one from 2011-2012.

I own an '11 that passed along the production line in March of that year.. I'm near the cut-off point of having the second to last iteration or possibly I have the newest version. Can't be sure. Some have said 2011+ is fine, but if you look at the chart someone posted with the gasket iterations and part numbering (appended with a letter for a change), it makes it look like 2012's and up are in the clear.

I have 43k miles now, and I'm not going to take any chances on assuming my gaskets are not the paper kind and of metal composition. I plan to get an oil pressure test at the local Nissan dealer about every 15k miles-- worth it as I have 3 years left on my Elite warranty.

The OPT is the same procedure on the Z and the G, according to the FSM's. There are ways of putting a gauge in to monitor oil pressure, and I really wish there was a way to read it through the ECU and a BT OBDII port dongle, but that doesn't seem to be the case.

nelledge

Great plan!

For general peace of mind, I own an 07 with almost 120k on the ticker. I do not drive this car like it has a lien or a lease. Mainly because... it doesn't. I know eventually this may be an issue I have to face, but I'm enjoying the car for what it is. I'll perform periodic pressure tests similar to krazyfiend to stay on top of things. My driving trends will remain the same, and I will have to hope my rec vehicle isn't torn apart if this ever does occur.

Black Betty

iTrader: (60)

OP asked me for details about the repair and I couldn't provide all the relevant details at the time. But today I have finished all my work and have time to waste at work, so hopefully this late info still helps.

The issue affects both VQ35 and VQ37 motors, mine is a 37 in a '09 G sedan. In doing the homework in finding out about this, I found out that it has occurred in Altimas, Maximas, and 350/370 as well that I know of, in addition to G35/37. I can't remember for certain but I know that my oil pressure was so low as to be almost nonexistent before the repair. I found the scan of my repair invoice for those who want definitive part numbers, I hope this helps everyone.

I elected to replace all of the the timing parts for about $600 in parts and the labor was already factored into the job for their removal/replacement in replacing the timing cover/gasket assembly. The Nissan dealership that worked on mine wouldn't simply replace the gaskets themselves, they replaced the cover assemblies which included the new upgraded gaskets. Some dealerships or independent shops might replace the gaskets only if you request it. That will save about 8-10 hours of charged labor I think. In retrospect, I would have also replaced the thermostat and water pump if I were to do this over again. It's relatively cheap insurance if your car has a decent number of miles and paying for this labor twice would be criminal when preemptively replacing them is not that much more expensive. I wasn't thinking as I clearly then as I should have.

Bocian

Well my cel light is on throwing the p0524 code as well as 0300 and it's downright scary what my car does at slightly above 2k rpms, bucks like a bronco, so I'm assuming my oil pressure is virtually nonexistent since after reading about this issue, I saw that the cel code for low oil pressure won't go off until it's really really low and being out of warranty, I'm honestly scared to do any further damage reving it up to any rpms if I really don't have to aside from a few blocks I'll be driving to the shop but I definitely will attempt to take pics and post them with info. I feel a duty to help anyone else out since this site has helped me out countless times and a major thanks to BB

m3clubracer

That is an awesome picture and awesome receipt with part numbers!

willguy

So what actually will cause this to happen? Does aggressive driving cause this or it'll happen even with normal driving? I see that some have this issue even when the mileage is not that high while other doesn't have any issue even over 100k.

35Sport

I've read that it doesn't matter if you're hard on your car or not, it will happen regardless. I've read that there have been those who had no idea their gasket was blown because they drive easy, but after an oil pressure test they found the issue. So there may be some that have no idea their gasket has been blown it seems.

Moral of the story is get your oil pressure checked, or better yet install a gauge and monitor it while saving for the repair.

Black Betty

iTrader: (60)

Nothing that you do to the car as a driver causes the failure. The fact that a gasket made of paper and constantly subjected to high pressure and extreme temperatures while soaked in oil is supposed to last the life of the engine is the problem. It's a simple failure to properly engineer the materials used inside the engine on Nissan's part.

astat4

a shop is gonna charge u big time for this repair. probably cheaper to even get a new motor.

willguy

So it's just a matter of time and luck I guess. Mine is a 2011 manufactured in July. Based on the all the comments, I guess mine is on the borderline between when they revised the gasket.

35Sport

I bought a used motor and swapped it myself and it cost me about $2600. There's no way a replacement engine with labor is going to cost less than this repair.

I'm contemplating doing this job myself after I practice on my old motor first. Should run me a couple hundred at most without replacing the timing chain guides and related parts. My motor has about 50k and won't need any of it replaced yet.