2008 Rogue AWD - Driveshaft U-Joint

Nissan Rogue forum - Includes Nissan Qashqai and Nissan Dualis as well.
08RogueAWD
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Joined: Sat Nov 23, 2019 12:22 pm
Car: 2008 Nissan Rogue SL AWD

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So my girlfriend's 08 Rogue has been making some very odd noises. At very low throttle and low speeds it makes an odd grinding/rattling noise. Also when it's cold it makes a chirping sound under throttle that immediately goes away when you let off the gas. Kind of sounds like a bad belt or pulley, but it does not make this noise while revving in neutral. Once the car's been driven for about a mile or two, this chirping noise disappears. The grinding noise at low speeds/light throttle is always present regardless of how long it's been driven.

I did some investigating, and I think I've narrowed at least one of those noises down to the driveshaft. Video link: https://i.imgur.com/VDahM4K.mp4 This is not normal, correct? The U-joint on this looks toast! The car was jacked up at all 4 corners for the video btw, I don't know if this affects anything. This leads me to a few questions...

1. Can the u-joint be replaced, or does the entire drive shaft have to be replaced? I don't know if it can be pressed out with a new one pressed in.
2. If I remove the driveshaft, is the car drivable without AWD? I really don't want her driving around with the possibility of her driveshaft exploding and taking other things out, but we're not ready to replace it right this moment unless totally necessary. It would also be nice to test if both noises go away or not.

Thanks!


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VStar650CL
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2004 Nissan Altima 2.5 S

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If that joint pops under load it will be big trouble. Think about the stuff under the car next to it, like the fuel tank. Since both ends of the shaft are flanged, it should be safely drivable in FWD with the shaft removed. The parts diagrams show OE U-joints unavailable separately, Nissan only sells the whole shaft. So if there are joints available, they'll be aftermarket. Some of the Rogue old-timers in here will know better than I do about that aspect.

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casperfun
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Car: 2009 Nissan Rogue SL AWD - Indigo Blue
Location: Mid-Atlantic States

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:mike Same problem with Ivan's wife Rogue. Great info. Watch all 3 videos. The followup. :mike

https://youtu.be/o8TnofLf1mU

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VStar650CL
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2004 Nissan Altima 2.5 S

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Very slick, Casper, good info! The only thing I would add is (if you have the right tools), since the old spider and cups are trash, in the final step, it's perfectly okay to carefully lop an ear off the spider with a bandsaw or air cutter and then knock the cups the final tenth of an inch with a punch and hand sledge.

08RogueAWD
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Joined: Sat Nov 23, 2019 12:22 pm
Car: 2008 Nissan Rogue SL AWD

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Thank you two! I'll pop it out tomorrow, see how she runs, and try to source a new driveshaft before winter. I don't have the tools to properly change the u-joints with aftermarket parts like in the video, plus it seems like that might just fail anyways. Thanks for the link though, it was very informative

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VStar650CL
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2004 Nissan Altima 2.5 S

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Rock Auto has an Ultra Power for $252 and a USA Standard for $353, both with 1 year warranty.

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casperfun
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Car: 2009 Nissan Rogue SL AWD - Indigo Blue
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Just in case others can’t find the follow up, because it does not connect to the 2nd video.

https://youtu.be/z2Ge6K0q5Aw

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VStar650CL
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casperfun wrote:
Sun May 30, 2021 10:13 pm
Just in case others can’t find the follow up, because it does not connect to the 2nd video.
YouTube cascaded them when I watched, I didn't need to hunt.

08RogueAWD
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Joined: Sat Nov 23, 2019 12:22 pm
Car: 2008 Nissan Rogue SL AWD

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Got the driveshaft out, WOW that was a pain in the rear. With a lift it wouldn't be too bad, but on jack stands with no leverage or good way to move, it's terrible. Why on earth did they bend the exhaust to purposefully cover one of the nuts on the center support brace?!? I'll definitely need an extra pair of hands or two when I go to put a new one in.

Anyways, her car is now the smoothest and most quiet it's ever been. Both noises, the low throttle grind and the chirping, are now gone. Thanks for the help, guys!

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casperfun
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How the project go?

Does it snow a lot there? Why not keep it fwd, better mileage. :woot:

TheRogue
Posts: 59
Joined: Mon Nov 12, 2018 11:15 am
Car: 2011 Nissan Rogue SL AWD

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Great thread.

Our Driveshaft in our 2011 Nissan Rogue just needed replacing last month.

There was a persistent squeaking noise that I couldn't lock down. I took it to 3 different garages to see if they could figure it out. But the problem was that after I'd drive the car down the street, the squeaking stopped. So by the time I got to any garage, there would be no squeaking left for them to listen for. :(

Well. Driving it over to a store, I guess the U-Joint finally seized and broke. The U-Joint just fell apart and it caused a loud scrapping (metal on metal) noise that was pretty easy to located after that. LOL.

The mechanic at the garage we usually take the car said the U-Joints weren't replaceable (or even serviceable / greaseable), so the entire drive shaft would need replacing.

I came and found this thread to get a feel for what everyone else's experience has been.

From the sounds of the 1st post, it sounds like what I was up against, but I wouldn't have even thought to read this thread before the mechanic specifically told me it was the drive shaft.

In the end, the mechanic gave me their price to source the part and fix. But he also said that I might be able to find a drive shaft myself for cheaper. I did a quick Google and was able to find a refurbished one for less than $400 CDN. So for about $750 we were back up and running! :)

While I waited for the part to arrive, the mechanic pulled out the drive shaft and I drove the Rogue (sans drive shaft) around town. But only for 1 week. No issues. But I only drove it when I had to. I noticed these threads cautioning about just pulling out the drive shaft and driving around.

converting-my-rogue-from-awd-to-fwd-t563721.html

2008-rogue-awd-sl-can-i-remove-rear-sha ... 98656.html

I suspect that this drive shaft with its U-Joints will probably last the rest of the life of our Rogue. LOL.

TheRogue
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Car: 2011 Nissan Rogue SL AWD

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Oh, yeah. I forgot to ask the question I meant to ask.

A while ago I would notice that when I got off the highway, if I came to a stop at a light (after a short off ramp)(There is one specific one when I go into the city that this would happen at.) that there would be a vibration for a bit, and then it would go away.

I was really worried that it might be the CVT transmission.

NOTE: When we got the car used 3 1/2 years ago, the first thing I did was have the CVT transmission fluid changed. And . . . our 2011 Rogue already have the auxiliary cooler.

Anyway . . . since our drive shaft has been replaced . . . I don't notice the squeaking noise anymore. (So I am assuming that the bad U-Joint was the culprit for the squeaking noise when the car first starts to move. And then by the end of the street the noise would be gone.)

But also, now I don't notice the vibration after getting off the highway and coming to a stop at a light (after a short off ramp).

Could this vibration after getting off the highway have been caused by a worn U-Joint in the drive shaft?

It would happen when I would be going 110 - 120 KPH and then get off the highway and it would be a really short off ramp that ended with a stop light that I would have to stop at and wait. When I'd stop and waited, after a couple of seconds there would be a vibration for a second or two, and then the vibration would go away and not happen again until I would get off at the same off-ramp the next day going into the city. It did not happen when getting off the highway and there was a long off-ramp with plenty of time to reduce my speed.

NOTE: I am hoping that is the case, in which it reduces my concern (a bit, but not much) that it was actually coming from the CVT transmission. LOL. :)

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VStar650CL
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2004 Nissan Altima 2.5 S

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The driveshaft isn't turning when you're stopped, so it can't be the cause of a vibration at a stoplight. Try cleaning your MAF and giving it an IAVL. A slightly miscalibrated MAF will often cause transient rough-idle conditions, and they can lose calibration over time simply because the silicon components drift with age.

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darylzero
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Car: Nissan Rogue 2009 SL AWD Premium Pkg.

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VStar650CL wrote:
Sun Feb 13, 2022 12:49 pm
Try cleaning your MAF and giving it an IAVL.
What is IAVL?

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VStar650CL
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Idle Air Volume Learn. It's a work-support procedure that recalibrates the MAF and Throttle Position Sensor (TPS) parameters in the ECM. Most good scanners are able to do it.

C-ya
Posts: 63
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Car: 2011 Nissan Rogue SV AWD

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VStar650CL wrote:
Tue Feb 15, 2022 8:44 am
Most good scanners are able to do it.
If you use an OBDII bluetooth dongle and your phone, the CVTz50 app has that functionality. $5 (or $6) for the full version seems like a bargain to me. I am using it with my daughter's Rogue to monitor the CVT as this is our (my) first CVT-equipped vehicle.

Disclaimer: I am not affiliated with the app or its maker. I saw someone here mention it so I looked into it. Very nice app.


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