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Old 04-08-2013, 08:39 AM
oldvwguy oldvwguy is offline
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2004 Maxima
 
Join Date: Apr 2013
Posts: 7
Default 2004 Maxima ABS issues

Good morning folks.

I'm helping a friend of mine fix his 2004 Maxima with the V6 and ~95k miles in Omaha, NE that has the typical ABS issues of the 6th generation. I've been reading various threads on this site and I must say, you guys are really helpful and knowledgeable, like many of the folks I've met on the VW centric forum, thesamba. I'm mainly an aircooled VW guy or fixing my own or family members' radiator laden daily drivers. However I did work for a year for my late friend at his import repair shop so I know my way around a vehicle. Anyway here's what I've been doing with simple hand tools and a jack, like I've read in a few threads:


I replaced a bad right rear hub and ABS sensor (per what a scanner diagnosed at a local business) on a 2004 Maxima as per the Nissan TSB protocol. The diagnosis stated the rear wheel bearing was bad and the sensor wasn't reading correctly. This shop/chain wanted $750 to replace the 2 parts. $400 for the sensor and $200 for the hub/bearing with the remainder in labor and taxes. That's a bit steep, so I tracked the parts down online and we got them both for less than the hub/bearing alone. The knuckle was cleaned well and the notch added to it prior to installing these aftermarket parts from Autozone. The plastic dust cap was reused after a cleaning since it wasn't damaged upon removal. The hub bearing was indeed shot and didn't like to turn, while the sensor had a gouge in it from debris. We decided to try it with the new hub and old sensor, but to no avail. So I installed the new sensor as well. I also disconnected the battery for 30 min and pulled the ABS fuse block under the hood that's red with 3 sub fuses inside it to see if I could get the system to reset. I also took out the other 3 sensors and checked them for any damage, they were ok other than a cut left front ABS wire that had been repaired by the shop that scanned the car in the first place. All these things I disconnected were put back to normal after the half hour.

I did call the local Nissan dealer and they told me the rotors could be warped or the calipers bad if the problem continues after doing the TSB. The pads and rotors look decent to my eye, granted seeing a warped rotor is a bit hard with the naked eye but they appear to be ok to me. This was during a lunch break after driving it with the new parts installed before the ABS light came on.

When braking the ABS kicked in leading to a chattering/grinding of the front end indicative of the system malfunctioning prior to replacing the parts. The ABS pump ran for a second or two when the car was turned off previously, now it continues to run for long periods of time post key removal. The ABS lights were not on before these parts were replaced, nor did the computer have and codes stored in it. Now that the hub and sensor are replaced the ABS light on the dash is on intermittently and the car still occasionally does the chattering/grinding like it previously did. We will be trying to go to a shop soon to have the codes read for him. Does this mean the pump is also probably bad due to the persisting problem and continual pump running on after key removal?



Thank you all in advance.
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