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Old 09-13-2009, 07:42 PM
shulsey1 shulsey1 is offline
Registered User
2004 Murano
2004 Murano
 
Join Date: Sep 2009
Location: Oklahoma
Posts: 3
Default How to replace alternator in 2004 Murano.

Greetings all, This is my first ever post on this or any other message board. Please excuse any Rookie mistakes as I am new to this.

The Problem. Loud, High pitched noise from the engine compartment while the engine was running. This Noise would change volume and pitch as the enging rpm's changed. It could even be heard at highway speeds.

The Solution. After failing to diagnose which component was the issue, I finally gave in and took the auto to the Dealership for Diagnostics. There answer was the Alternator. ($650.00) And as a side note. They also diagnosed my with a failed throttle position sensor which was causing me to have an extremly dangerouse problem of no throttle response and rough engine idle at start-up. I allowed them to fix this issue because they said that they would have to program the cars computer to work with the new unit. My cost was $494.00 after tax. :( This did solve the problem however. So after spending most my cash on that repair I was relegated to doing the repair of alternator myself.

The Fix. I have taken some photos which I will try to use to show you the procedure of removing the alternator. There are a few key things you should Know first. You will need to remove alot of plastic and components to make this repair. This is not an easy repair by any stretch of the imagination. There is a reason why the Dealership charges so much for this repair. it is very time consuming (took a total of about 6 hrs for me to do it.) My hope is that you can make this repair more easily and perhaps faster with the help of this post.

1. Remove plastic panels and intake duct. I removed the right wheel well plastic that you normaly remove to change the oil. I removed the two pieces that are at the from of the engine compartment. the left plastic panel covers the radiator cap. I removed the mirror image piece on the right side of the engine compartment. Next I removed the Plastic intake duct from the front center to the first connection behind the battery. I removed the black engine cover that has the Nissan emblem. finally I removed the plastic piece under the front nose clip that covers the bottom of the radiator and front axel. The following image should show the engine compartment with the plastic removed.



2. I disconnected the Battery. You will need to remove the Battery and the Battery Tray. There are some wires cliped to the tray itself and these are easily pinched with pliers and pushed back through the holes in the tray so that they can be reused later. there are 5 bolts that hold the tray to the frame.







3. Drain radiator and remove upper and lower radiator hose.

4. Now unplug the wires going to the two radiator fans. you will then need to remove the wiring harness that is connected to the frame of the fan assembly. I cut the zipties and and was able to zip tie the harness back to the frame when I was done. Be cautouse of the other wires and connectors that go to sensors on the engine. the fan assembly will want to grab these on the way out.




5. Cover the fins of the radiator with a piece of cardboard so as not to damage it while you work. There are two transmission cooling lines that are connected to the bottom of the radiator; IT IS NOT NECCESSARY TO DISCONNECT THESE LINES TO EFFECT THIS REPAIR. I lifted the left end of the radiator up and out of the way and hung it from the hood with a bungi cord to keep it out of my way. This is also a good time to blow the radiator out with compressed air. use a low enough pressure as not to bend the fins. the fins of this radiator will bend easily so be careful.







6. Next we need to remove the radiator resevior complely. You have already removed the overflow tube from the radiator and now all you need to do is unbolt the resevior from the frame.




7. Now we need to remove the fuse box that is next to the resevior and push it to the left side of the engine compartment. be careful, there are alot of wires going into this box. Dont be to rough with it. Use a good amount of patience and it will move out of your way. there are a set of clips on the rear of the box and a bolt at the bottom front. There is also a wire connection that goes to the AC Compressor that needs to be disconneted before the alternator will come out. this is hard to see but can be reached from underneath the front of the car. It is on top of the compressor and underneath the alternator.










8. Now we are ready to takle the alternator. You will now need to remove the fan belt that is attatched to the alternator. you can do this from underneath in the right wheel well. first loosen the Idler pully nut in the center and then go back to the top and loosen the tension nut from above through the engine compartment. this should be easier to get to now that the fuse box and resevior is out of your way.





9. Now remove the nut holding the alternator bolt in place. This was dificult for me as the nut was frozen on the bolt and was extremely dificult to break free. Next go to the top of the engine compartment and remove the second bolt that is holding the alternator in place. This bolt and nut is tough to see but it is tied to a bracket that was next to the Left radiator hose before it was removed. Sorry but I have no photos of this. You can now reach the first alternator bolt that you removed the nut from earlier. this bolt can be reached with a pair of channel lock angled pliers and pulled out.

10. The Alternator is now free to be pulled out of the bottom of the car. pull it towards the front of the engine compartment and then down between the frame and nose clip.

11. To place the new alternator back into position I went back the same way I came in. However. I found it to be easier to attach the top bolt of the alternator first in order to hold the alternator in place while I worked on putting the second and last bolt in. Also I placed an alen rench into the front lower bolt hole to help hold the alternator in place while I went back to back side of the alternator to re- insert the bolt. When the bolt goes in it will push the alen wrench out and you will be ready to tighten the bolts and work your way back throught the above steps in reverse. HEY! no one ever said it would be easy!







I was able to accomplish this because of help from all of you on this post. Thanks for all of your help.

Last edited by shulsey1; 09-14-2009 at 08:54 PM. Reason: pics wouldn't show
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