Nissan Runaround on '05+ Xterra's: Evap System Flaw

[bdcooley]

I own an '05 X, S, MT, 4X4, with nearly 60,000 miles. A buddy of mine owns an '05 Off Road. Both vehicles have been great on and off road -- which is good because I think Nissan (the manufacturer) has a long way to go when it comes to service to serious customers.

My issue? A design flaw in the fuel Evap system, now tacitly admitted by Nissan (see Service Bulletin NTB07-058). Between us, my buddy and I have had our evap canisters and vent control valves worked on or replaced some 6 times. We created records with Nissan Help, went back and forth with regional reps, all the while knowing that Nissan had a design flaw on their hands. Which finally Nissan saw, issuing NTB07-058 last September.

In short, Nissan has had to create a modification to address the fact that the evap system gets clogged (DTC P1446, among others), especially in dirty conditions. That is, in off road conditions.

Before the NTB in September, I had reached an impasse with Nissan and my dealership. Both refused to cover work from my latest MIL ON, DTC P1446. Nissan technical agents told my dealer to refuse because I had "clearly driven in dirt".

The service person at the dealer delivered this message standing beneath a sample from the latest ad campaign, a poster with the slogan, "Life Looks Better Through a Couple Layers of Dirt".:confused::censored:

He could only shrug when I pointed out that four-wheel drive should only be used in low traction (ie. non-pavement) conditions, of course I'd driven in dirt.

When I ran across NTB07-058 and presented it at the dealer, they agreed to do the work. My dealer submitted the work to Nissan, who kicked it back (I'm out of warrenty, duh), so the dealer has had to eat the cost on this one.

And here's the kicker, DTC P1446 was thrown on my vehicle within 200 highway miles of the service. We've since reset twice, each time with the code being thrown within a couple hundred miles. In short, the fix doesn't work, Nissan won't invest anything to find a proper fix, and I'm driving around not knowing if my ECU is trying to tell me something important.

Anyone on this board have a tip?

[CurtissAnn]

I was told today by a rep at a dealer that the Evap canister and vent control valve flaw goes across the board in all Nissan vehicles. I had been making inquiries because the dealer replaced the Evap canister on warranty at 32,000 miles. Here at 63,000, and it's happened again. Seemed odd to me, so I've been digging for two days.

The first thing the service guy asked me this time was, "Do you drive down dirt roads?" Well, yes. I lived down one when I bought the vehicle-- in late '06, when, according to your info, it was known there was a problem. When the dealer replaced on warranty, they did not put on a filter kit, and according to your info, those were available.

I live down a much shorter dirt road now, but the rep today told me I will continue to have problems, even if a filter is installed. As you said-- the filter doesn't solve the problem.

BTW: I am an older woman. None of the service managers volunteered this info. It was a woman manager of the warranty department who told me these facts flat out.

[xterramexico05]

the main problem with the carbon canister is the breather hose, its simply attached to the inside of the xterra frame wich gets polluted with dust and dirt over time.
the carbon canister purge valve has a spring that eventually gets stuck with a tiny rock or dust causing the service engine light to come on.
most dealerships will simply replace the valve when indeed you can clean the valve with brake cleaner and test the valve with your car battery and 2 long wires...... i keeped my 1st valve when dealer replaced it and after having the issue come up months later i read on the xterra repair manual how to test the valve.... the 1st valve worked fine after i cleaned it and un stuck the spring.
i also ran some compressed air thorugh the center fitting from the carbon canister and it blew out a lot of dust out of the valve opening.
i think an easy fix is to run the breather hose into the engine compartment area where there is less dust moving around.

[CurtissAnn]

Appreciate the info. Have read similar instruction, and yours helps to back it all up.

[frontier05]

I'm going through the same Evaporative Emission Control System issue with a clogged filter and small leak in the canister with my 2005 Frontier (NISMO) at 32,000 miles. With so many people having issues with the vapor storage canister and filter assembly getting destroyed by dust and fine particulate, then it is clear that Nissan engeneering in this area is a total failure.
The service tech and customer service personnel never volunteered any of this info or the fact that they could possibly clean the filter. Instead they ordered an evap canister and filter assembly that is very $$$$ with $247 in labor and a $99 diagnostic fee imposed for a problem they are well aware of. The big question is what can we do to force Nissian to except their failure in design engineering and build a better part that will not fail. What can we do to force Nissan to absorb the cost we are incurring for bad engineering. From the posts on other forums, its clear that the new part will also fail for the same reasons the 1st one did and so-on....