Cross Country Altima- an introduction...

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CrossCountryAltima
Posts: 8
Joined: Fri May 10, 2019 12:37 pm
Car: 1997 Nissan Altima GXE

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Have you ever hopped into a vehicle with 220,xxx miles on the ODO and said, "Yep, I'm going to take this thing across America!" ? (97 Altima GXE)
A brave few might say "Yes, I have!" The folks at the shop where I took my car for the rare and few things that I didn't want to do in Washougal WA kind of gave me a blank, introspective, skeptical look when i brought it in to get the snow tires swapped out for the regular all season rubber and told them I was heading east. It was pretty much the, "Well go on with your bad self! / Hmmm... that's a bad idea..." kinda look that you'll get from just about anyone that doesn't have that inner adventurous and risk taking beast within their soul.
I wasn't worried. I've had a few Nissan vehicles throughout the years. Yeah, it leaks coolant, the suspension bushings pretty much do not exist anymore, the fuel pump is on it's last leg, and the exhaust cam seal is leaking all over that CPS sensor in the distributor.... and the valve cover gasket is done too..... No worries!
I took it from the Columbia River Gorge in Washington all the way to North Carolina. The car didn't even break a sweat. If anything, it was more difficult to keep it from accelerating over the speed limit. It still does this, it hates gong slow. It's never happy until it hits at least 60mph.

I bought this car for 800$ on "Shady 2nd Street" (82nd) in Portland OR. It's the used car "motor mile" of Portland. This thing was hiding in the back of the lot and every employee was terrified, I don't even think they were comfortable giving me the keys for a test drive. Not one of them was even willing to ride along. I'm pretty sure they all thought it was a breakdown waiting to happen... they obviously aren't familiar with Nissan's.

So, fast forward to now. I've replaced the wheel bearings, fuel pump, brake overhaul, and distributor, some other minor stuff.... still haven't taken care of that valve cover gasket... ehh whatever, I only lose about half a quart every 1000 miles.
It still has some issues which I'll probably ask about here, and I'll appreciate anyone that cares to chime in.
I bought her as a beater... she carried me for 3000 miles... now I have this strange unspoken duty to keep her good and clean and healthy.... ahghhh!! it'a a money pit... shhh! be quiet she might hear you!....

Here's some pics from the trip. The first gen. Altima is a noble beast. May the many fallen RIP.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/163681812@N05


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MinisterofDOOM
Moderator
Posts: 34350
Joined: Wed May 19, 2004 5:51 pm
Car: 1962 Corvair Monza
1961 Corvair Lakewood
1997 Pathfinder XE
2005 Lincoln LS8
Former:
1995 Q45t
1993 Maxima GXE
1995 Ranger XL 2.3
1984 Coupe DeVille
Location: The middle of nowhere.

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Great story, fun car!

I always liked those first-gen Altimas. Much better chassis that the later models, even if they were less powerful.

I'm just stunned the RE4F is still kicking. Those things are made of Crisco and Kleenex.

CrossCountryAltima
Posts: 8
Joined: Fri May 10, 2019 12:37 pm
Car: 1997 Nissan Altima GXE

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MinisterofDOOM wrote:
Sat May 11, 2019 6:37 pm

I'm just stunned the RE4F is still kicking. Those things are made of Crisco and Kleenex.
I apologize, I truly have no clue what part, "RE4F", is.
I've got a ton of practical hands on car repair knowledge but I'm, admittedly, sadly deficient in particular part numbers etc.
Gimme a clue and I'll tell you how much duct tape and prayers are holding the part together.

User avatar
MinisterofDOOM
Moderator
Posts: 34350
Joined: Wed May 19, 2004 5:51 pm
Car: 1962 Corvair Monza
1961 Corvair Lakewood
1997 Pathfinder XE
2005 Lincoln LS8
Former:
1995 Q45t
1993 Maxima GXE
1995 Ranger XL 2.3
1984 Coupe DeVille
Location: The middle of nowhere.

Post

Hahaha yeah some more info than the model number would make a little more sense.

RE4F is the 4-speed automatic transmission model used in most FWD Nissans in the 1990s. They were notoriously unreliable and pretty much all explode by 150,000 miles.

CrossCountryAltima
Posts: 8
Joined: Fri May 10, 2019 12:37 pm
Car: 1997 Nissan Altima GXE

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Haha! Yeah I don't really know if this thing has the original transmission or not. I'm guessing that it's been replaced at some point because the fluid looked pretty clean when I got my hands on it. It also has a weird sticker on the top of the bell housing... that in itself kinda points towards rebuilt and/or replacement.
I went ahead and did a two-times normal drain and refill anyway.
A lot of things made me pick this particular car from that shady car lot. The majority of the vacuum lines, coolant hoses, etc. look pretty darn new. There's also a handwritten note on the interior door plate where the engine mfg date is that places the engine as a 96. Which is perfectly normal really. A 97 would have been built in 96.... but a note handwritten.. makes one wonder...
There's several mysteries in this car. I'll probably never know all the details.


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