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The relay is probable shot.
Intermittent Oveheating Issue
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Hi everyone, I went into the dealership again - given all the circumstances and work done to it, they believe that the instrument gauge is faulty, and that there is no actual overheating of the engine. I might get the gauge replaced with a junkyard unit or mail it in to an electronics repair shop. It's a relief to be assured the engine never actually overheated, atleast.
Apologies, didn't read everything. In a hurry and shouldn't be on here but....
I'm a qg18de. The coolant sensor will read hotter than really is if burned by air or old and faded. A resistance test will still read as a good thermostat if it was burned by air.
1. Mixing coolants that reached their engineering standards through different chemicals will create conflict in performance & lifespan. It can also create byproducts or cause the coolant to gel up if you really screw up. Use the exact coolant every time or flush the system with distilled water first until it runs clear. Then add coolant, drain what you added as the water in the system diluted it, and then add more.
2. I am against chemical flushes and Prestone products but their flush is just citric acid, <-the acid in oranges, lemons, etc... I wouldn't do it in my motorcycle; however, your car will be fine. Don't mix it with coolant in your car. The acid is for the garbage on the engine. Mixingbit with coolant is silly. Mix it in with a distilled water flush. Get the engine up to temp. With healthy fluid intervals this shouldn't be necessary but after a rebuild or bad mix then it might be.
3. Asian cares don't like silicates in their coolant. This is why universal, Prestone, Prestone universal, and various brands that aren't regional, make, model, and year specific are not good coolants. I use Pentofrost coolant.
4. Coolant like brake fluid is hydroscopic. It absorbs water once opened. It starts to age. I keep any leftover in a container if I need it and come 2 years or 30k miles I drain my engine. I flush it with distilled water. Then add the old stuff still in the bottle as it will get mixed with the distilled water remaining in the engine. I will drain that off and now there is slightly diluted coolant but coolant in the engine. From there I add all new coolant. If my heater core blows hot in the summer then I know my temperature sensor isn't trying to cool the car thinking it is hotter than it really is. I take an OBD2 reader and make sure the engine temp is in spec while sitting, and I make sure the fans turn on to disperse the heat.
4. Your dash sensor and your ecu sensor are usually two different sensors. Your dash could be lying to you. Both could actually.
5. Tricking your sensor with a resistor is silly and reckless in my opinion unless designed for it. Changing coolants as if it matters is also ridiculous. You need to use a coolant design to protect you engine and transfer heat. The ecu manages the temperature and unless you code the the ecu/ecm on a dyno and redo the fuel maps and temps then other mods don't make a lot of sense unless you are ok with mild gains at the cost of wear and tear.
6. Probably have other stuff to say, but really need to pack. I have 5 days of travel for work. Let us know how everything is working out and your engine number. I'll try to help more later if I remember to go through previous posts assuming you haven't already fixed everything.
7. You replace the dash temp sensor not just the ecu/ecm temo sensor? Sonsors that work on resistance can read hotter or colder if broken depending on the type of resistance sensor it is. The engine sensor will think it hotter than it is as it deteriorates. This is a safer design. You engine may not perform well but you won't burn up the engine. If your ecu/ecm temp sensor works fine and the dash sensor reads hotter than it really is then when your engine regulated by the new temperature displays a dash temperature it may read a lot hotter than actual temperature.
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I'm a qg18de. The coolant sensor will read hotter than really is if burned by air or old and faded. A resistance test will still read as a good thermostat if it was burned by air.
1. Mixing coolants that reached their engineering standards through different chemicals will create conflict in performance & lifespan. It can also create byproducts or cause the coolant to gel up if you really screw up. Use the exact coolant every time or flush the system with distilled water first until it runs clear. Then add coolant, drain what you added as the water in the system diluted it, and then add more.
2. I am against chemical flushes and Prestone products but their flush is just citric acid, <-the acid in oranges, lemons, etc... I wouldn't do it in my motorcycle; however, your car will be fine. Don't mix it with coolant in your car. The acid is for the garbage on the engine. Mixingbit with coolant is silly. Mix it in with a distilled water flush. Get the engine up to temp. With healthy fluid intervals this shouldn't be necessary but after a rebuild or bad mix then it might be.
3. Asian cares don't like silicates in their coolant. This is why universal, Prestone, Prestone universal, and various brands that aren't regional, make, model, and year specific are not good coolants. I use Pentofrost coolant.
4. Coolant like brake fluid is hydroscopic. It absorbs water once opened. It starts to age. I keep any leftover in a container if I need it and come 2 years or 30k miles I drain my engine. I flush it with distilled water. Then add the old stuff still in the bottle as it will get mixed with the distilled water remaining in the engine. I will drain that off and now there is slightly diluted coolant but coolant in the engine. From there I add all new coolant. If my heater core blows hot in the summer then I know my temperature sensor isn't trying to cool the car thinking it is hotter than it really is. I take an OBD2 reader and make sure the engine temp is in spec while sitting, and I make sure the fans turn on to disperse the heat.
4. Your dash sensor and your ecu sensor are usually two different sensors. Your dash could be lying to you. Both could actually.
5. Tricking your sensor with a resistor is silly and reckless in my opinion unless designed for it. Changing coolants as if it matters is also ridiculous. You need to use a coolant design to protect you engine and transfer heat. The ecu manages the temperature and unless you code the the ecu/ecm on a dyno and redo the fuel maps and temps then other mods don't make a lot of sense unless you are ok with mild gains at the cost of wear and tear.
6. Probably have other stuff to say, but really need to pack. I have 5 days of travel for work. Let us know how everything is working out and your engine number. I'll try to help more later if I remember to go through previous posts assuming you haven't already fixed everything.
7. You replace the dash temp sensor not just the ecu/ecm temo sensor? Sonsors that work on resistance can read hotter or colder if broken depending on the type of resistance sensor it is. The engine sensor will think it hotter than it is as it deteriorates. This is a safer design. You engine may not perform well but you won't burn up the engine. If your ecu/ecm temp sensor works fine and the dash sensor reads hotter than it really is then when your engine regulated by the new temperature displays a dash temperature it may read a lot hotter than actual temperature.
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Hi Acklamay, thanks for your reply. Multiple trips to the shop determined it was not an issue related to the engine, but that most likely it is a gauge issue. I've just been dealing with it for now - when the dash reads hot, I tap on the dash, and the coolant gauge falls into the correct place. If the dash sensor can be easily replaced, I'll start with that, but other than that it looks like I'll have to send in the gauge cluster for a repair!
You'll be happy to know the engine light comes on when it starts to overheat so long as the primary sensor works correctly. It is a preheat light according to the fsm. Meaning it's not a good or safe temperature but you get a warning before it becomes catastrophic.
Also, no real elm 327 chips which give great response times and data feedback, but this chinese knockoff works with Torque and NDSII.
Torque has the best viewing for O2 sensors but NDSII has had the best straightforward interface and proprietary idle air relearn feature for your nissan. They have a trial version if you want to try.
play.google.com
play.google.com
The gauge sensor is cheap. Some coolant will pour out and you will need to top off your coolant and use the air bleeder screw above your thermostat, but it is a cheap and easy variable to eliminate.
I dont know your car's info but this is mine. NTK is NGK just different parts. They tend to both be manufacturer suppliers and likely some of their parts get rebranded to Nissan, Toyota, or whomever. Standard motor products has typically been reliable. Some people complain about the ocassional dud. I have gotten Nissan branded parts as dud so Standard Motor Products is still a safe bet. They've been good to me so far.
Also, no real elm 327 chips which give great response times and data feedback, but this chinese knockoff works with Torque and NDSII.
Torque has the best viewing for O2 sensors but NDSII has had the best straightforward interface and proprietary idle air relearn feature for your nissan. They have a trial version if you want to try.
NDSII - Apps on Google Play
The NDSII provides basic diagnostics for N i s s a n and I n f i n i t i cars. It is intended for newer cars that have a 16 pin OBDII connector and use Consult II protocol over k-line (DDL2). Those are usually cars build between years 2001 and 2007. The connector is typically located near the...
Torque Pro (OBD 2 & Car) - Apps on Google Play
See what your car is doing in realtime, get OBD fault codes, car performance, sensor data and more! Torque is a vehicle / car performance / diagnostics tool and scanner that uses an OBD II Bluetooth adapter to connect to your OBD2 engine management / ECU Layout your own dashboard with the...
The gauge sensor is cheap. Some coolant will pour out and you will need to top off your coolant and use the air bleeder screw above your thermostat, but it is a cheap and easy variable to eliminate.
I dont know your car's info but this is mine. NTK is NGK just different parts. They tend to both be manufacturer suppliers and likely some of their parts get rebranded to Nissan, Toyota, or whomever. Standard motor products has typically been reliable. Some people complain about the ocassional dud. I have gotten Nissan branded parts as dud so Standard Motor Products is still a safe bet. They've been good to me so far.
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