QR25DE Oil Consumption

[JOSH GARY]

"From: "Daniel Kort" <dkort3@netzero.net>
To: "SE-R List" <se-r@lists.deskmedia.com>
Subject: QR25DE Oil Consumption
Date: Tue, 18 Jun 2002 16:34:24 -0500

I have been researching the purchase of a 2002 Spec V and have been very
happy until I found a lot of posting on various message boards about the
QR25 consuming large amounts of oil in the SE-R's and Altima.  Now, I have
seen a lot of garbage on message boards before, but I have been on this list
for a long time and believe the list to have much higher quality information
on it.  I tried to search the archives but all I found was "Best Intake for
Spec V" and something about a 5.0 in a Ranger.

Can someone here shed some light on this for me?"

If any of this doesn't make sense; then someone please correct me...
I've recently come up with a theory on the oil burning issue.  From what
I've heard and this came from a Nissan tech.  About 100 or so cars got
screwed up on the assembly line.  The tech guy said that when they were
testing the emmisions; they got the O2 sensors connected backwards.  This
caused the car to run rich; which in turn pitted and burned the Catalytic
converter, the one closest to the engine.  What happens next is when your
driving the car and downshift and engine brake, pieces of the bad cat are
drawn back into the engine.  This in turn scores the sides of the cylinders
and cuases oil to burn.

One guy was having the oil burning problem and took his car to Nissan.  They
unscrewed the first oxygen sensor and stuck one of those mini camera things
down in there.  They found that sure enough, the cat was burned and there
were pieces of the cat missing.

I bought my Spec V on November 9th.  It burned a fourth of a quart of oil at
around 5500 miles.  I switched to Mobil One at 2900 miles.  I've now got
9300 miles and it hasn't burned a drop.

I did hear that one of these guys getting the new engine; his car was built
in January 02.  My car was built October 01.  I've only had one problem so
far and that was the trim piece around the a/c controls kept popping loose;
it's fixed now.  Oh yeah, and also I need to take it in for the hood prop
rod rubbing against the upper radiator hose.  There is a four inch rubber
piece of piping around the prop rod.  I think it is meant to keep the prop
rod from rubbing against the upper rad. hose.  But on mine, that piece of
tubing is pushed way up towards the top of the prop rod.

I also didn't break my car in very well either.  It had 57 miles on it when
I got; I know the sales people had been out having fun in it.  And also the
day after I bought it; I drove it on a 600 mile trip.  I did stop every 50
miles or so and let it cool down though.  I also very rarely engine brake in
my car.