Intermittant problem - Nissan 2001 Almera loosing power\acceleration

[shabbaranks]

Hi All,

Ok so Im having an issue with a mates Nissan Almera. When it goes on long journeys (seems to get hot) it'll lose all its power\acceleration as if the cars in neutral. The only way to sort it is to pull in and let it cool down.

Only recently the engine management light came on so I used my OBDII gadget and pulled the error code off its said the error was with crankshaft position sensor A - strangely the engine management light has gone off since.

Now Im convinced these cars are belt not chain driven - as I can see a belt on the side of the engine. But various searches indicate they are chain. Im no mechanic just a tinkerer so if anyone can offer some assistance it would be gratefully appreciated.

Ive found the sensor to the left of the engine how easy are they to replace, and is this the problem?

Thanks

 

[thebigman]

sensors are simple to change but it's more likely to be the timing chain stretched.

 

[miggy]

Hi All,

Ok so Im having an issue with a mates Nissan Almera. When it goes on long journeys (seems to get hot) it'll lose all its power\acceleration as if the cars in neutral. The only way to sort it is to pull in and let it cool down.

Only recently the engine management light came on so I used my OBDII gadget and pulled the error code off its said the error was with crankshaft position sensor A - strangely the engine management light has gone off since.

Now Im convinced these cars are belt not chain driven - as I can see a belt on the side of the engine. But various searches indicate they are chain. Im no mechanic just a tinkerer so if anyone can offer some assistance it would be gratefully appreciated.

Ive found the sensor to the left of the engine View attachment 74589 how easy are they to replace, and is this the problem?

Thanks

It could be just dirt on your sensor however you could change the sensor to eliminate the problem. You do realise that it was a common fault on Almera's for the timing chain to stretch as the bigman states. If the chain is stretched by more than 10mm your chain and tensioners will need changing. Not a cheap job unfortunately. Your sensor could be telling the ecu that the timing is out due to a stretched chain. Always try the easy route first mate and change that sensor first if the problem persists then it could be anything up to 900.00 to repair which in my opinion and that year of car wouldn't be worth doing. Sorry

 

[shabbaranks]

It could be just dirt on your sensor however you could change the sensor to eliminate the problem. You do realise that it was a common fault on Almera's for the timing chain to stretch as the bigman states. If the chain is stretched by more than 10mm your chain and tensioners will need changing. Not a cheap job unfortunately. Your sensor could be telling the ecu that the timing is out due to a stretched chain. Always try the easy route first mate and change that sensor first if the problem persists then it could be anything up to 900.00 to repair which in my opinion and that year of car wouldn't be worth doing. Sorry

Thanks guys, and yes unfortunately Ive read up about the chain stretching. He only paid £700 for the car so with todays motoring standards and the fact he's had the car for a years motoring running into the second year now he's done alright. The car only cuts out on long journeys and last happened when he came back down the M5 so it'll be difficult to tell if its fixed or not once the sensor has been replaced - unless as I understand it I remove the engine cover to measure the chain and tensioner gap (is that correct??).

Off to replace the sensor in a sec so we shall see. Again thanks for all your motoring knowledge

 

[miggy]

Thanks guys, and yes unfortunately Ive read up about the chain stretching. He only paid £700 for the car so with todays motoring standards and the fact he's had the car for a years motoring running into the second year now he's done alright. The car only cuts out on long journeys and last happened when he came back down the M5 so it'll be difficult to tell if its fixed or not once the sensor has been replaced - unless as I understand it I remove the engine cover to measure the chain and tensioner gap (is that correct??).

Off to replace the sensor in a sec so we shall see. Again thanks for all your motoring knowledge

Give that tensioner a good examining shabba mate they do wear down due to the chain slack rubbing it. It may even be a worn tensioner. Remember any slack in that chain and your sensor will show up as the timing out. Good luck with the sensor mate and I sincerely hope it cures the problem for you. Keep us posted.