Hi there:

I hope someone can help me out. My 1993 Maxima SE (120,000 miles) makes one heck of a weird noise at startup. It sounds a little like a baseball card in bike wheel spokes doing a 'rattle' sound. It only happens on cold starts and only lasts about 25 seconds while idling. After that when applying gas it lasts maybe 2 minutes. After which it purrs nicely

Someone suggested it could be a timing belt: does that even sound plausible? If it is, is this a dangerous problem?

Thanks in advance!

First off, welcome aboard.

Secondly, I would tend to lean more towards an alternator problem. I have seen one or two that when they wear, begin to get a little "off-center". This causes problems at first start. Take a look around the alternator, check for belt alignment, secureness of mounting and if there is any black dust present. You can always stop by your local parts house and have them take a look.

--Mike

Interesting. Ok, I'll check that out. Any explanation for why that would happen for such a brief time after startup?

When the starter gets bad on my 95, it makes noise especiallyduring cold weather but the noise quits after the car is started.The starters on the 95 are easy to replace.

Charge up the battery to make sure the starter has the juiceto start the motor.

Also check the belt and pulley. The belt could be slipping.After turning off the engine check and see if any of the pulleysare super super hot (bearings could be going out). You dontwant to tighten your belts too much or you can burn out pulleybearings but you dont want the belt to slip either.

The shop can check your starter under simulated load circumstancesif the above is ok.

that sounds almost identical to the noise my 92 makes on start up, except that it can last the whole time Im driving it. The noise does go away after a while now and I can hear it sometimes when im at the lights and its idling.

id asked this in another thread before but this sounds like it could be it. because the noise is happening after i got my sub put in. Would this be straining the starter motor and causing it to make this noise?

id just settled on the alternator belt needing to be replaced. I put dry lube on it but thios only shut it up for one or two drives. I was going to get the belt done when I get my major service done.

should I get them to check the starter motor too? is it easy for me to check?

mattjdohm wrote:Hi there:

I hope someone can help me out. My 1993 Maxima SE (120,000 miles) makes one heck of a weird noise at startup. It sounds a little like a baseball card in bike wheel spokes doing a 'rattle' sound. It only happens on cold starts and only lasts about 25 seconds while idling. After that when applying gas it lasts maybe 2 minutes. After which it purrs nicely

Someone suggested it could be a timing belt: does that even sound plausible? If it is, is this a dangerous problem?

Thanks in advance!

Your Maxima has three timing chains -- no timing belt.

My best guess is going to be that your VTCs are in the very early stages of failure. It is extremely common with 92-94 Maxima SEs. It could also be your chain tensioners are going out, or a combination of both.

Do a search for "ve30de VTC" or "VTC failure" and do some reading.

There have been a few documented cases of catastrophic VTC failure, but it is pretty rare. The engine will make that noise and it will get more and more annoying. It is also quite expensive to fix.

Chris92SE wrote:
Your Maxima has three timing chains -- no timing belt.

My best guess is going to be that your VTCs are in the very early stages of failure. It is extremely common with 92-94 Maxima SEs. It could also be your chain tensioners are going out, or a combination of both.

Do a search for "ve30de VTC" or "VTC failure" and do some reading.

There have been a few documented cases of catastrophic VTC failure, but it is pretty rare. The engine will make that noise and it will get more and more annoying. It is also quite expensive to fix.

Ahhh, this makes way more sense than a timing belt. So far I've read two things on boards to fix this problem without pulling the engine and replacing the assembly:1) Rewire the VTC solonoid to ground to disable the function (http://www.geocities.com/bracecraig/max ... vtc.html)2) Replace some spring in the VTC that's wearing out

Anyone have any success with either of these? I'm sure this is on the right track, now I need to know how to tackle this problem.

Many, many thanks so far.