1990 Q45 timing chain, unrepairable? (Turned out to be 1994 Q45)

[aliciaford]

Plot thickens.... I spoke with the mechanic who actually looked at the car. He said that the previous owner brought it in as a "wont start" claim. He checked a few things, then checked the compression. He said either there was none, or it was low (couldnt recall), but advised her that a timing chain could be to blame, among other things. She told him she was given the car from her ex father in law and didnt have any $ to fix it. She tried to sell for 7 months, to no avail, thats when the mechanic called me. She is moving and needed to get the car out of the yard. What do you guys think? Maybe not the timing chain after all.... Still trying to figure out how to post photos will post when I have a little more time. Thanks

[slybydesignq45t]

You know come to think about it, it may have something to do with the rods, or oil sludge issues. It may look nice, but the previous owner obviously didn't maintain it. I would check the oil. Believe it or not something as simple as skipping oil changes will build up sludge and at some point causing catastrophic engine failer, which then yes the chain will pop no matter what year the car is.

I just re-read the thread and feel it maybe indeed the oil changes weren't done. Imagine a V8 engine running on no oil change or proper change for 70,000 miles. A long with all the other known issues that the 94's have this was a domino effect. Bad coil, bad injectors, no oil, engine seized up. I'm also guess this thing was smoking before it broke down. Something that would help is not asking when she got the car, but what was she doing at the very moment it broke down. How fast was she going? Did it just stop, or did it limp home and was still driven anyway. These types of questions will determine what the engine was exactly doing at the time of break down, then you can pretty much go backwards from there and pick apart the issues.
Modified by slybydesignq45t at 12:06 PM 4/20/2009

[aliciaford]

I think I will just take it to Infiniti of Fife, they should be able to diagnose the problem and tell me what it will cost to fix, and if the car is worth it. This mechanic also advised me to take it to Infiniti as he said he could spend hours trying to diagnose and an infiniti tech would be well worth the $ to figure out whats wrong with the car. I just thought we could check a few things before I haul it two hours away...I will feel bad if I just took this poor chicks car for $100 and it turns out to be something minor...I better not get my hopes up, hubby says hes not paying $4000 to support my love of Qs.

[slybydesignq45t]

Alicia, to be quite honest, I feel that the worst is you buy a running Q for 900 to 1200 in your area swap the engine for 1000, and that is the 2500 I was talking about. Before you take it to the Infiniti Dealer, try to find out what this other lady was doing the moment the car broke down. Was it progressive, did she have ruff idle, smoke from tail pipe, or was she driving in a mad rage over ex-boy friend and it seized. These minor questions, will help you save a lot of money. The only way you will spend $4,000 is because you would rebuild engine which is not needed. the G50 engine, from 94 to 96 in your case, is a great strong tank of an engine, so finding a low mile used car with horrible body damage, but good engine wont be hard at all. Once you do, toe both to have engine swapped. Actually, if you can take pictures of the engine bay and post here, we could help further. Also do you see signs of oil by the wheel wells, or burn or oil on top of the hood when you open it? I really feel like you can save a lot of money by posting pix of the undercarriage and as many angels of the engine bay. Looking at the condition of all fluids and such. I love my mechanic who has helped me for years, but I wouldn't take a G50 with serious engine problems to him, so its not a bad thing. Your doing this right and we are here to help.

[aliciaford]

I had my husband look at the fluid levels before we bought the car, oil, ranny fluid, ect. everything looks great. One spark plug looked like it was removed, probably when they checked the compression. What has me holding on to hope is that when we moved this car out of the gravel driveway where it had been sitting for 7 months, no fluid on the ground! We parked it in our shop on Thursday and nothing has leaked on the concrete. I will post photos soon. Just finished washing it, I'm in love...

[slybydesignq45t]

ok nice, your on to something. BTW, that would be my dream color combo as well. I had the Pearl Q45T that was sweet, but sadly crashed it.

Yeah, maybe a $500 investment at the shop will do. Has anybody checked the fuel pump. You should be able to hear the fuel pump engaging when you turn the key to the #2 position. You wont have to crank the car to here it engage.

[aliciaford]

Fuel pump is making normal noise. What would cause no compression besides timing chain? Having a heck of a time posting photos, I will try again soon. Finally got them uploaded to photo bucket, but cant get them onto my post.

[slybydesignq45t]

You need to cut and paste the image link from photobucket into the two brackets when you hit the "Yellow Mountain Icon". img] http://pasteimagelinkhere [/img. In my example I deleted the first and last bracket only to show you where to paste, so don't delete those brackets when you do go to past.

As far as the compression I would have to let one of the more experience members answer that, but it sounds like your on the right track. Also if the fuel pump it making a normal noise, you now need to ask yourself what noise would that be, is it like a buzzing, humming noise?

If I am not mistake lost of compression has to do with the injectors. It maybe that you have too many that are shot, and the engine got flooded. If thats the case then it seized up and you will have to replace the engine.
Modified by slybydesignq45t at 2:17 PM 4/20/2009

[aliciaford]

Sorry, trying to add photos[IMG][/IMG]

[aliciaford]

How do you like the $100 Q.... Heres a photo of the motor, see anything unusual?[IMG][/IMG]

[slybydesignq45t]

How do you like the $100 Q.... Heres a photo of the motor, see anything unusual?

Sorry the link wasn't messed up....LOL....ok well prospectively speaking except for the break fluid it doesn't look like it had any topside oil leaks or anything.

I'm about to leave work now, but I will try and log back in later, hopefully one of these seasoned vets can help you further. Good Luck Alicia

Modified by slybydesignq45t at 2:56 PM 4/20/2009
Modified by slybydesignq45t at 2:58 PM 4/20/2009

[Q451990]

That's a fine looking $100 Q!

I'm surprised the mechanic who diagnosed the whole compression issue put the car back together that well. I seriously doubt that he did much in the way of diagnostics...

Heath

[aliciaford]

Ok.... Update. I spoke with the gal I bought the car from. She said she drove it to work, ran as usual, then next am came out and the car would not start. Fluids look good, fuel pump is working, nothing is leaking from the car. Mechanic said he did a quick compression check and nothing. From what I can tell, he only checked one cylinder to make this ruling. Doesnt really sound like a timing chain to me anyone else got any ideas on what to check next? I have an apt. at Infiniti of Fife on Friday, I would love to save a trip to the dealer but I am sure it will be worth every penny. Thanks so much!

[goody90q45]

Here's a quick check to see if your fuel pump control unit (FPCU) has gone bad. Find the FPCU from the trunk next to the passenger side rear speaker. You can see it in the background in the pic. Unplug the connector and run a jumper from the connector pin shown in the pic to ground on the chassis (fuel tank frame). With the jumper connected the fuel pump is running on high speed only. If she starts it tells you the FPCU is shot.



If that doesn't work go to the opposite extreme and check if the engine is flooded. Depress the gas pedal to the floor and then crank the engine for 30-60 seconds until it (maybe) starts.

Good luck. Even if she doesn't start you got a great deal for $100.

[aliciaford]

HOLY SH****! SHE STARTED! Hubby drove it up the block, lots of white smoke. He pulled it in the shop and the engine is smoking a little and it smells hot. Now what??? Why do I feel like I just stole this ladys car????

[maxnix]

Check coolant level and listen to gurgles when cold. YOu could have a blown headgasket form overheating (air in coolant) or it could just be a flooded engine.

You stole it fairly.

[slybydesignq45t]

HOLY SH****! SHE STARTED! Hubby drove it up the block, lots of white smoke. He pulled it in the shop and the engine is smoking a little and it smells hot. Now what??? Why do I feel like I just stole this ladys car????

WOW, thats great. Turn it off, determine the smell, and recheck all fluids as others mentioned. Also did anyone look under the carriage to check hoses. Making sure the two hoses leading from the transmission to the coolant system isn't loose or worn. When you do take it down to Infiniti, have them change all the filters no matter what condition you may feel its in. Also, all the belts. That will be the cheapest and safest. I know you said all fluids look good, but change them anyway. Like this you start from scratch with those things, and if any of the belts are good or just ok, you will have a spare in the trunk.

You did good for yourself. I paid a lady $500 for a L-Continental, she thought the transmission was bad, ended up she had no fluid, I drove that thing for 1.5 years before I let her go.
Modified by slybydesignq45t at 4:24 PM 4/21/2009

[goody90q45]

HOLY SH****! SHE STARTED! Hubby drove it up the block, lots of white smoke.....

White smoke could also be a leaky injector o-ring so be careful about driving too much especially if the smoke doesn't diminish.

What did you do to get her started? Flooded or jumper the fuel pump?

Buy a couple of lottery tickets and see if your luck continues. Congrats.

[Q451990]

How does the smoke smell... sweet (indicating coolant) or like gasoline (indicating flooding - probably injector issues)?

Heath

[96Qowner]

Yes, be VERY careful about the possibility of a leaky injector O-ring. Something caused that no compression reading. If it wasn't a bum timing chain, then something is still causing that cylinder to leak compression, IF the mechanic is sure about what he did.

A leaky O-ring will allow the cylinder to fill with fuel after you turn it off, from the fuel pressure that remains in the line. If that cylinder is still full of fuel when you try to start it again, it usually bends a rod in the process - poof, destroyed engine.

Any strong smell of gas?

I recommend that you get it to Infiniti before you mess with it anymore.

[aliciaford]

Wow, I am still in shock. I read another post from a 94 Q owner about his car not starting, (which I have had happen to my 90 recently) and someone wrote in and said that history predicts either flooding or FPCU. So, we tried putting the pedal to the floor and starting it. It cranked for about 45 seconds and then she started, like I said there was a lot of white smoke, it smelled like gas as well, but we let it idle for a few minutes and the smoke and smell disapated. We left it overnight in the shop, I came in this morning and she started up like she was new. No fuel smell, no smoke. Yesterday, after my husband drove it around the block and pulled it back into our shop the motor seemed to be smoking a little and it smelled hot, but it too disapated after a few minutes. The whole thing was just like what had happened previously to my 1990, battery was not fully charged when I tried to start it and I flooded it. The 94 acted identical..... I have an appt. at Infiniti on Friday, let you know what they say. By the way, when does the timing chain need to be replaced? Something I should do right away? Also, the TCS and SLIP lights are lit on the screen. I went into the "How to" on this website but its hard to read the diagnosis... Maybe just needs to be driven, its been sitting since October. Thanks again guys, I cant wait to drive it!!!!

[maxnix]

Look at the alternator and battery when it is in the shop.

Timing chain should go 250K, minimum with a little stretching.

[Denver90Q]

Moral: Always get a second opinion when your mechanic says your engine is shot.

Congrats on your score. Q's don't like weak battery or fuel system. Haven't had a problem with my TCS but the relay and fuse are always a good place to start. As Manix said, timing chains are pretty bulletproof.

[Q451990]

The timing chain should not require replacement on your '94Q. The guides are of a different design than the ones that came on your 1990, and are good for the life of the engine.

The "burning" smell you noticed on the engine is probably oil leaking around the valve cover gaskets and dripping on the exhaust manifold.

Heath

[AdamLowther]

A big Congrats!

If it was flooded, that would explain the no compression, as the gas washed the oil off the rings.

If it was flooded that bad, might want to change the oil.

Great score!

[aliciaford]

Aha. I think we found where the smell is coming from... Looks like there is a leak. Forgive the poor photo but its hard to get the camera in there...[IMG][/IMG]

[96Qowner]

Yeah, typical of an older Q45 - leaking valve cover gaskets.

Heheh, but you never have to be upset about putting some money into this car - whew, nice score!

[Q451990]

Looks like you need a road shield too.... there should be a big black plastic cover that goes over the whole bottom of the engine bay to help with airflow and protects everything from water and dirt off of the roadway.

Heath

[JCunningham]

OK everyone that mentioned to buy it and keep it as a parts car is somewhat wrong because it will take TIME and lots of it. I bought a 1991 Q45 and still have the majority of parts that I am not keeping as personal spares.

But also like its been said before 1994-1996 Q45 are really different from a 1990-1992 Q45, 1993 Q45's share the interior and exterior colors with the 1994-1996 Q45's.

And the parts that I know will work: MAF, FPCU, ECU and TCU.... all have to be checked to make sure there in OK condition or at least working, especially the first two.

And the window motor regulators will fit on your car, but the 1994-1996 Q45's have thicker windows which stress the regulator more. I know they changed part numbers for at least the 1990-1993 and 1994-1996 Q45's.

But since the car has been sitting your chances sound good that most of everything is OK.

Do you still have parts or the car left? Im looking for parts for a 1990 Q45?

[Infinitiguy19]

I do have parts left from it, see the link in my signature please.