28th Dec 2005, 14:49
I own a 2000 Nissan Maxima with only 48K miles and I recently noticed that the "check engine soon" light was on. The dealership informed me that I needed to replace the oxygen sensor as well as all six ignition coils. I have spoken to other Maxima owners who have had similar experiences. Why doesn't Nissan issue a recall? I owned a Toyota and a Honda and NEVER had problems like this!
30th Dec 2005, 20:58
I have a 2000 maxima with 42,000 and the "check engine soon" light recently appeared. I took it to the dealer and they recommended the 02 intake for $400. After replacing that, they said it did not fix the problem and I should replace all 6 coils for $800. They claimed they could not identify which one was the bad one and they come in packs of 3. This is the first real problem I have had with my maxima, but it reading all of these postings leaves me feeling like this is a problem Nissan should take care of.
Next car will not be a Nissan.
2nd Jan 2006, 22:18
I too experienced the same problem. I had to have two coil packs replaced on my 2000 Maxima around 37500 on the odometer. This infuriated me because of the cost. So, I hounded my dealer for the wording on why this was not covered as part of the 50,000 mile power train warranty. They were nice enough to give me a copy of the paperwork that they honor warranty work from. To my displeasure for the new 2000 Maximas, Nissan had dropped replacing the coil packs past the 36000 total car warranty. So, I called corporate Nissan and hounded their customer satisfaction department. Three phone calls and one week later, Nissan actually sent me a check for the cost of the work on the coil packs, around $720. So, if your car is relatively close to the 36000 mile warranty call corporate Nissan.
7th Jan 2006, 13:15
Hi Everyone,
I guess I have one of those 2000 Maxima GXEs that lasted longer than the others. AT 85K I had the SES light come on and had both O2 sensors replaced. At the time the local garage where I have my work done also stated I may need to replace the barometric sensor, but the SES light remained off. Now the light is back on and I have found out about the coils now as well from doing some research on the internet after I was given a 1100.00 estimate to replace the coil packs myself. So I'm in the market for trying to find out how to replace them myself. I'm told if you can change a spark plug you are 1/2 way there to doing the job yourself.
If anybody has any insight into this it would greatly be appreciated.
8th Jan 2006, 18:27
I am also having coil problems with my 2000 Maxima. As with many with this problem, I was told that the coil that is bad can't be detected, but they highly recommend that I replace all of them. I cannot accept that. I feel that Nissan should be replacing these at no costs to the consumer. These were faulty when they put them in and it should not be our financial responsibility to replace them. From what I understand, the replacement coils are different then the ones put in originally. I have not gotten Nissan to admit that the part is faulty, but I do not think that they would have changed the coil design if it wasn't. I loved my Maxima before all of this, but I am thinking different now. I am still hoping that Nissan will do a re-call, but I don't think it will happen. I am car shopping now, and I am sad to say, not for a Nissan. There are three Nissan's in my home, and have always sworn by them -until now-. My car had replacement coils -I recently found out- at 20,000 miles, and now at 48,000 miles it needs to be done again. If this was a normal wear and tear job, I would be fine with it. This has nothing to do with wear and tear, just faulty parts. Thanks for letting me vent.
8th Jan 2006, 20:37
I have the same problem with my Nissan Maxima 2000. My “Service Engine Light” went on about one year ago at 94,000 miles. The light occasionally goes off. However, the car runs very well. I recently changed my spark plugs at 104,000. The light is still on.
It is not clear from comments whether changing the coils will solve the problem. Is it possible that the problem is due to overly sensitive sensors? I have similar problems with my Toyota and Volo.
9th Jan 2006, 20:00
Well I had to replace my coils at about 50,000 miles a couple months ago. I got mine off of eBay for about $350 so that was nice. Recently my gas mileage has dropped to about 20 avg which is not good for this car. This thing is starting to irritate me quite a bit. The Maxima is supposed to be reliable, but I'm having some serious problems with emissions controls.
9th Jan 2006, 21:43
My Nissan Maxima 2000 SE had SES light turn on at approx 59K miles. The SLIP and TCS light also came on, but goes away sometimes. My mechanic advised me to change all the 6 coils (although he thinks only 2 of them are faulty) for approx $575. I hope Nissan would do a recall for this defect.
15th Jan 2006, 17:06
I have a 2000 Nissan also with a SES light on. I was told the coils might be bad also. Was thinking of getting a tuneup and changing spark plugs, but it appears from all the comments that replacing the coils is inevitable. Gas mileage is decreasing, car is shuddering and has a hard time staying on when cold outside. Glad I found this site, very informative. Will research replacing coils myself. Good card, but this problem is a pain.
Pennsauken NJ.
20th Jan 2006, 18:55
Is anyone else out there having this type of ignition coil problem with Pathfinders? I have a 2001 Pathfinder with about 60K miles and I'm running into the same problem. I think it's the same engine as the Maxima for those years' models. The dealer wants $800 to replace all six coils.
By the way, the same thing happened to my parents' 2000 Maxima a few months ago (about 55K miles). They opted to have an independent mechanic do the one bad coil instead of all six.
(if there is a forum for Pathfinders with this problem, please let me know -- internet searches have only turned up Maxima forums. thanks!)
20th Jan 2006, 21:39
I'm now apart on the coil replacement club. I'm not sure if I cause my problems. I added fuel injection cleaner to clean the intake. A few days later the service engine light and SLIP and TSC light came on. The dealer recommended replacing all six coils Code P1320 Ing signal - Primary.
27th Dec 2005, 23:02
Last week I bought my 2001 Maxima SE. Seems the dealer reset the Service engine soon light. It passed the emission test and he smiled as I drove off. The light is now back on. From this site I've learned the problem. I may try doing it myself as well and hope others will share any tips on doing it the easiest way and how to identify the bad coil. Keep me posted.