I just purchased this vehicle & wanted to know so I can plan accordingly for it's timing belt/ water pump/ spark plugs etc... for @ least another ~6 years of trouble-free operation

http://townhall-talk.edmunds.c...ec359

that forum state's that the engines on the 3.0L villager/quests are free-wheeling...

another link...

Quote »The way I've read it, the Nissan engine the Villager is based on is an interference engine -- read: significant likelihood of damage when the belt breaks -- but that Ford had the engine modified. According to their corporate philosophy, they don't want any Ford products out there with interference design, so they "modified the engine" to make it non-interference. Presumably, they just lowered the lift on the cam, and sure enough, the numbers show low horsepower (170 in 99) and fairly high torque (200 or 210 ft-lbs), which is what one would expect. The Gates list (root around on www . gates . com) also shows this engine as non-interference. [/quote]http://townhall-talk.edmunds.c.../1813

thanks in advance!

a little more digging, but still no concrete answer...

http://forums.caranddriver.com...74457

Quote »Great engine.Nice thing about the Quests/Villagers (and all 3.3's I think) is they are non interference engines. So a broken T belt doesnt kill the valves.[/quote]

From what I can recall, Ford modified the engines that went into the Villagers to be non-interference and Nissan kept the engine that went into the Quest as an interference style. I'm not 100% certain but I'm pretty sure that's how it went down.

thanks for taking the time to confrim this!

agh, i shoulda gotten the merc villager; since both models were coming out of the same US plant until 2004...

We were told that the quest was interference,but have never ssen one bent valve.Hellava maintenance seller if ya ask me.

So my suspicions were correct?

This discussion promted me to look in the service manuals. The 3.3L engine states in the T-belt section component diagram it is an interference motor. But In the 3.0L manual it simply has no caution about it. These are both quest manuals. However in both owners manuals there is no warning of it like there is in the pathfinder 3.3L manual.

I have seen a couple belts go on the 3.3L quest and never tag valves. Simply put a belt on and away it goes. Had one go in an xterra and several valves hit.

In conclusion I think even the 3.3L in the quest is built to ford standards as both the quest and villager were made in a ford motor company plant in ontario canada.

NISTECH wrote: In conclusion I think even the 3.3L in the quest is built to ford standards as both the quest and villager were made in a ford motor company plant in ontario canada.

You're referring to the engines only correct? I know for a fact final assembly was in Avon Lake, OH as I grew up about 5 minutes down the street from it. I have several family members retired from that plant actually.

It is the avon lake plant but both vans were made in it.

Wouldn't the people you know be able to tell you if they were putting 2 different engines in the van during assembly? They would have been specifically tagged for the different vehciles the 4f vin numbers would have gotten 1 engine and the 4n would have gotten another.

thank u again, guys for diggin into this a bit further...

from the other links i posted earlier, it's just a camshaft change between the two... but i'm wondering if NISSAN is just using that as a scare tactic to change the T-belt.... since the horepower & torque spec ratings are similar on a diff car site i was researching.

i had 2 dodge vehicles (4 cyl k car & v6 caravan) w/ free-wheeling engines & we would just drive it until it breaks, tow it home via AAA, and just put a new one on, (along w/ a new h2o pump) & it goes on it's merry way

going off topic: the oil filter is TINY! it's like a friggin motorcycle filter... is there a different part number i can use to have a bigger canister w/ more filter media? or should i make a different topic on this one?

my brother's chevy avalance had a similar prob & there's an ACdelco alternative for more capacity; it was longer & had same diameter & threads to the engine block...

another instance is when some 240sx people are using a bigger ford oil filter?

the quest 3.3 will bend valves. i have seen it happen. the oil filter from nissan, the part number ends in 9e000.

badda bump...

found out this is also Freewheeling! yay!