# Sludge in my Engine! Very unhappy Customer



## KathleenF (Nov 13, 2021)

Has anyone had a problem with Sludge in the Engine. 
I have a 2017 Murano. Perfect condition. Well maintained and my car started blowing white smoke out of the exhaust. 
I took the car to the dealership and they tell me I need a new engine. 
I have an extended warranty and they are giving me a hard time because I did not get my oil changes done there. 
I am so upset over this. This was my first time purchasing a Nissan and I am so disappointed in the way I have been treated.


----------



## 2016 Versa (Sep 24, 2019)

Do you have receipts showing the oil changes have been performed on time? If so, you need to provide the receipts as proof. Another thing you could do is find out if the ones that have been doing the oil changes have reported it on a car fax. If they have get a copy of the car fax that shows the services. Either of these should be proof for warranty coverage. I don't know whether there's any known problems with your type engine or not but I'd be doing some research and if so it might be wise to speak with an attorney if they continue to give you problems. I do know the 1.6L engine that's used in the Versa has been known to have issues with piston slap.


----------



## KathleenF (Nov 13, 2021)

2016 Versa said:


> Do you have receipts showing the oil changes have been performed on time? If so, you need to provide the receipts as proof. Another thing you could do is find out if the ones that have been doing the oil changes have reported it on a car fax. If they have get a copy of the car fax that shows the services. Either of these should be proof for warranty coverage. I don't know whether there's any known problems with your type engine or not but I'd be doing some research and if so it might be wise to speak with an attorney if they continue to give you problems. I do know the 1.6L engine that's used in the Versa has been known to have issues with piston slap.


I gave the dealership receipts from the garage where I had the oil changes done and the service manager is giving me a hard time because it doesn’t have how many quarts of oil was put in. The receipts are not very detailed. I doubt he put them through car fax.


----------



## 2016 Versa (Sep 24, 2019)

It sounds to me like the dealership is just trying to give you a hard time because you didn't give them the business. It may be time to have a talk with an attorney. I do my own oil changes and any other maintenance I can to my own cars and have never had an issue with warranty work but I've never had any serious issues. If this is the dealer you purchased the vehicle from inform them if they don't take care of you when it comes time to buy another vehicle you'll take your business somewhere else. Was the oil level low when you took the vehicle to them? If not, that should be proof enough that the oil was being refilled properly. Lots of mechanics/shops will try to take advantage and especially of women. Regardless of whether the receipts show the amount of oil used or not, just proof of oil changes should be enough. Years ago I was on a trip to visit my parents and took my car to have the tires rotated. They probably saw my out of state license and claimed I needed new tie rod ends thinking I'd go ahead and have the work done since I was 500 miles from home. What they didn't know is that the tie rod ends and ball joints had just been checked about a week earlier and were fine. I ended up driving the car approximately another 100K miles and never did replace the tie rod ends. Good luck and please let us know the outcome.


----------



## KathleenF (Nov 13, 2021)

2016 Versa said:


> It sounds to me like the dealership is just trying to give you a hard time because you didn't give them the business. It may be time to have a talk with an attorney. I do my own oil changes and any other maintenance I can to my own cars and have never had an issue with warranty work but I've never had any serious issues. If this is the dealer you purchased the vehicle from inform them if they don't take care of you when it comes time to buy another vehicle you'll take your business somewhere else. Was the oil level low when you took the vehicle to them? If not, that should be proof enough that the oil was being refilled properly. Lots of mechanics/shops will try to take advantage and especially of women. Regardless of whether the receipts show the amount of oil used or not, just proof of oil changes should be enough. Years ago I was on a trip to visit my parents and took my car to have the tires rotated. They probably saw my out of state license and claimed I needed new tie rod ends thinking I'd go ahead and have the work done since I was 500 miles from home. What they didn't know is that the tie rod ends and ball joints had just been checked about a week earlier and were fine. I ended up driving the car approximately another 100K miles and never did replace the tie rod ends. Good luck and please let us know the outcome.


I totally feel like he is taking advantage of me being a Woman. 
my oil was never low. I asked them why my oil light wouldn’t have turned on if my oil was low. And he said this issue wouldn’t turn an oil light on. 🤷‍♀️


----------



## 2016 Versa (Sep 24, 2019)

Other than an attorney the only other suggestion I have is talking to Nissan corporate to see if they'll help. Are you sure it's white smoke coming from the exhaust and not steam? Steam would be an indication of maybe a bad head gasket and has nothing to do with oil changes. Most vehicles don't trip the oil pressure light until they are down approximately 2 quarts of oil so if you get it repaired I suggest you make a point to check the oil level at least every couple weeks and top it off if needed. If you don't know how to do this find someone that will show you how to read the dipstick and add oil as needed. I wish I had other suggestions but at this time I can't think of anything else.


----------



## KathleenF (Nov 13, 2021)

2016 Versa said:


> Other than an attorney the only other suggestion I have is talking to Nissan corporate to see if they'll help. Are you sure it's white smoke coming from the exhaust and not steam? Steam would be an indication of maybe a bad head gasket and has nothing to do with oil changes. Most vehicles don't trip the oil pressure light until they are down approximately 2 quarts of oil so if you get it repaired I suggest you make a point to check the oil level at least every couple weeks and top it off if needed. If you don't know how to do this find someone that will show you how to read the dipstick and add oil as needed. I wish I had other suggestions but at this time I can't think of anything else.


Thank you! I am having a lawyer deal with them at this point. So frustrating.


----------



## 2016 Versa (Sep 24, 2019)

KathleenF said:


> Thank you! I am having a lawyer deal with them at this point. So frustrating.


I agree it's frustrating enough just having car trouble but when they refuse to honor the manfacturers warranty that makes it even worse. White smoke sounds like it may have been steam coming from the exhaust instead of smoke. That could be caused by a bad head gasket or cracked head and could have allowed the coolant and oil to mix which would have given the oil the appearance of a milkshake (sludgy looking). That would not be the result of lack of oil changes and quite possibly the oil level would be over the full mark from coolant that had mixed with the oil. If the oil level was over full because of the mixing of the two fluids you wouldn't get an oil pressure light unless the oil was deluded and thinned enough to lower the oil pressure to an extremely low pressure. It sounds like letting an attorney handle this may be the only way to get a satisfactory resolution. They will likely have someone look at the engine and find out if it is something like a bad head gasket and whether there's been extensive engine damage done or not. Blaming the problem on lack of oil changes may have just been their way of trying to weasel out of doing a warranty repair. Please let us know what the final outcome is in case someone else runs into the same problem down the road. Good luck!


----------



## Boobtube (Apr 14, 2019)

White smoke and sludge sounds like a blown head gasket to me. The sludge is coolant mixing with the oil. Shouldn't be cause for a new engine, though. Just drain the oil, replace the head gasket and it should be ok unless you drove for a long time with this condition.


----------



## Marina K (11 mo ago)

KathleenF said:


> Thank you! I am having a lawyer deal with them at this point. So frustrating.


Have you ever figured out what was the cause of the smoke? Did you clean out the sludge and smoke persisted?


----------



## Jkotrides (23 d ago)

I now am in the same boat. 2019 Pathfinder I bought a year and a half ago. 65k miles so just out of warranty and “platinum level/bumper to bumper” 3500$ extended warranty is declining due to sludge??!! 14k repair bill for engine replacement and i still owe 3 years o the loan. Called dealer I bought from and Nissan and so far I’m out of luck and desperate. Dont know what to do. Did you have any luck with an attorney?


----------



## VStar650CL (Nov 12, 2020)

We've recently found a hidden problem on a few Pathy sludge engines that might be your issue. On two of them, the hose connecting the plenum to the rear valve cover was delaminated internally and collapsed on itself. This basically killed the PCV system and caused the engines to sludge up even though good maintenance was observed. Because the delamination was internal to the hose, the only external evidence was a slight "soft spot" in the rubber. The shop should check for this, and if found, it represents a component failure which your extended warranty should cover.


----------



## Gadair57 (10 d ago)

KathleenF said:


> Has anyone had a problem with Sludge in the Engine.
> I have a 2017 Murano. Perfect condition. Well maintained and my car started blowing white smoke out of the exhaust.
> I took the car to the dealership and they tell me I need a new engine.
> I have an extended warranty and they are giving me a hard time because I did not get my oil changes done there.
> I am so upset over this. This was my first time purchasing a Nissan and I am so disappointed in the way I have been treated.


----------



## NativeConch (8 d ago)

VStar650CL said:


> We've recently found a hidden problem on a few Pathy sludge engines that might be your issue. On two of them, the hose connecting the plenum to the rear valve cover was delaminated internally and collapsed on itself. This basically killed the PCV system and caused the engines to sludge up even though good maintenance was observed. Because the delamination was internal to the hose, the only external evidence was a slight "soft spot" in the rubber. The shop should check for this, and if found, it represents a component failure which your extended warranty should cover.
> View attachment 10169
> View attachment 10170


 Very interesting and thanks for posting this. Is this difficult to reach?


----------



## VStar650CL (Nov 12, 2020)

No, but you do need to take the engine cover off and take loose the Fuse & Relay Box at the righthand rear of the engine compartment. There's not much room, so getting the corbin clamp on the plenum loose can be a PITA.


----------



## NativeConch (8 d ago)

VStar650CL said:


> No, but you do need to take the engine cover off and take loose the Fuse & Relay Box at the righthand rear of the engine compartment. There's not much room, so getting the corbin clamp on the plenum loose can be a PITA.


Thats on a late model Pathfinder?


----------



## VStar650CL (Nov 12, 2020)

NativeConch said:


> Thats on a late model Pathfinder?


R52 Pathies, '13~'20.


----------

