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-   -   Coolant/ Antifreeze (https://x.nissanhelp.com/forums/maxima/17221-coolant-antifreeze.html)

cags 01-01-2011 12:00 AM

Coolant/ Antifreeze
 
The manual calls for Nissan Long Life Antifreeze, i don't want to buy an expensive bottle from the dealer. So is there an equivalent antifreeze that i can use. My radiator has antifreeze in it but my reserve tank is empty.

mpe235 01-01-2011 05:33 AM

You can use the regular green stuff available at any parts store.

cags 01-01-2011 05:44 AM

Cool will do that.

DCARLTON 01-03-2011 06:24 AM

Back up just a bit.

I don't know that things have changed a lot since 95, but, I just did a water pump replacement on the 95. The instructions with it indicated they recommended using Extended Life coolant to protect the water pump and the rest of the cooling system. I don't know what the specific makeup difference is between regular and extended life but I thought I would throw that in there.

bobflood 01-03-2011 07:09 AM

When I bought my Maxima (4 yrs ago, 130K miles) I had a drain and flush done with the regular green stuff. I just finished doing radiator/thermostat/hoses and replaced antifreeze with regular green stuff again, as old fluid and cooling system was fine. (I leaned on and broke the little nipple that the overflow hose goes on; impossible to fix so I had to replace the radiator. Decided that at 208K it was time to do hoses and thermostat, though all were working fine.)

DCARLTON 01-03-2011 07:30 AM

if you leaned on it and broke it, it was pretty brittle and probably ready to go. I replaced the t-stat a while back. Replaced upper radiator hose this summer when it split and then replaced lower one this past month when doing the water pump. Also ended up replacing the small coolant hose that goes to the throttle body when it split right at the throttle body and replaced the radiator cap (it wasn't sealing well and was letting steam out). It's all connected and when I made one part better, other older parts started failing LOL. So far now, it's holding coolant. I had replaced the radiator 3-4 years ago. A local mechanic thought I might need to replace it soon if I did all of the other stuff which may cause the radiator to become the weak link....will wait and see.

bobflood 01-03-2011 08:52 AM

Dcarlton: I think I saw a thread from you that talked about changing the thermostat w/o taking off the sepentine belt and tensioner bracket as called out in the FSM. I did it your way and it worked fine, though I had to use my 1/4 stuff to get in there. (Also removed the horn to give my catcher's mitt hands some more room!) Understand about weak parts now failing - I expect a heater hose to blow in the next month LOL.
How bad was the water pump replacement? I've read different comments ranging from "easy" to " really hard" on a couple of Maxima sites.

DCARLTON 01-03-2011 09:06 AM

Water pump replacement is tedious and takes time....don't get in a hurry. I read somewhere it takes 4-6 hours, I believe I had 12 in it. A mechanic indicated I saved about $800 doing it myself which would lean more towards 8 hours (the part is only $50 at Autozone with lifetime warranty).

To replace the t-stat, you found out you could remove as little or as much as you wanted to to make the job easier. The same goes with the waterpump. Certain things are required, some of it is optional. Since I was replacing the lower hose at the same time, it came off and made things a little easier (gave me more room - also helped drain cooling system).

I removed part of the motor mount, power steering reservoir was moved, horn was moved, fuse box was moved(had to do that to remove PS reservoir), did not remove PS belt although I can see where that might give a little more room. It's all about working room as opposed to actually water pump replacement.

I broke it into 2 jobs, removal one night, replacement the next day/night. This helped with the tedious and frustration part. Whatever you do, make sure you do not lose anything in the timing chain cover as that would add a bunch of time to the job. I tied fishing line to all bolts when putting them back in so I could fish them out if I did drop them. I took whatever precaution I could to insure success and is probably why it took me 12 hours to do it.

I don't see it as really hard except for the amount of time it took. It's not real easy either because it is tedious and required patience. If you follow the writeup to a tee, it is 'easy' so to speak as someone took the time to document the steps exactly as required. Considering 2 weeks prior to that I had replaced the #1 fuel injector, both jobs rank right up there to being tedious and challenging.

Edit: Do I want to do the water pump again tomorrow? No way!

bobflood 01-03-2011 09:56 AM

DC: Thanks for the information - always good to hear from someone who has done the job. I like the fishing line idea - I usually just stuff a rag in anywhere I don't want stuff to fall. BTW, what "writeup" are you referring to - is there a sticky??
BTW2: Where are you located?

DCARLTON 01-03-2011 10:30 AM

The original writeup that I referenced is located on Maxima.org at this link:Water pump replacement writeup (pics) - Maxima Forums

Someone added some additional hints at this link on : More hints on changing Water Pump - Maxima Forums

I am in Loganville, east of Atlanta off of hwy 78 and 316. Have two of this generation Maxima, a 95 and my daughter's 97. My oldest daughter drives a 2.5 2002 Altima and that's a whole other situation/car in itself. I wished she had gotten the 3.5 liter as it would have been similar to the 3.0 in the Max.

bobflood 01-03-2011 11:23 AM

Thanks for the links. I am in Powder Springs in West Cobb and work downtown at AT&T; used to live in Lilburn. We just have the one Nissan, which my 20 year old stepdaughter drives. It's a great car; still runs like a scalded dog if you punch it. I have surprised more than one punk in a Mustang when I am driving it.

Take care and Happy New Year.


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