Same problem as you had tensioners replaced twice, 1st set noise worse, 2nd set noise better but still noisy. Kia say acceptable up to 5 seconds initially to us then changed their reply to 8 seconds. As a mechanic of 22 years I do not believe this is acceptable but cannot do anything anymore. Possible design fault with tensioners bleeding back oil to sump.

Have you had the same comments from them?

I just found this posting via Google. I have been waiting for other owners to discover this problem. It's patently a recall for Nissan but for obvious reasons they are trying to dodge this one.

We have two current model Navara TDIs. Both have almost identical speedo issues, being more than 10% out of true reading. We checked the speedo of one ute against the our precise RTK dual receiver GPS system. The surveyors out there know what this means but to the layman it'll give 2D coordinates to cm accuracy. The GPS you buy at Repco etc gives 2D accuracy to plus or minus 5-10m (although in practice it's usually better than this). From this we saw the speedos were reading about 10km/h higher than actual speed.

We took our utes to Nissan dealer and they checked the speedo's with their computer. Their computer indicated the speedo was reading correctly. Next we took both our utes to the only N.A.T.A. certified dyno in Sydney. This mob calibrate the highway patrols speedo's. The dyno readings confirmed our original GPS measurements, specifically that the speedo's were in Excess of the 10% variation allowed to vehicle manufacturers.

We took this back to Nissan dealer and requested repairs. After Much back and forth Nissan Australia advised the dealer to replace our speedo's. This did not fix the problem, at which point Nissan won the war of attrition and we gave up.

My Speculation:

Anecdotally, a friend of mine has the Pathfinder which I suspect is mechanically similar. I suspect Nissan has a different diff ratio between the Pathfinder and the Navara. I suspect Nissan saw that they were very close to being within the 10% speedo variation they're allowed and didn't bother making the required changes as a cost cutting measure. As I said, I’m talking out of my **** here but Nissan is a massive car company and I’m sure they are well aware of this issue and know exactly what the cause of it is. All they need to do is wait till the next model release and rectify it then. Much cheaper than a recall!

One thing to note is that the method Nissan use to check their speedo's in the workshop does not give a correct reading. If my diff theory is correct it might be because Nissan are testing the speed at the gearbox.

So that’s our story. If you’re experiencing similar speedo issues you’re not alone. We spent close to $400 of our own money to prove to Nissan that our speedo's were reading incorrectly. What this needs is someone to pursue Nissan to the dogged end but who the **** has the time or money for that?

So I figure that forums like this are the only method we have to remind Nissan they haven't exactly gotten away with this one.

Good luck all.

Hi mate I have a 2004 VY II SS Crewman and have had a multitude of problems. Firstly I did purchase it second hand but the list of problems to date are below:

1. leak in fuel tank from where the breather hose goes in the only solve is a new tank costing around $700 + labour. The only good thing is that the tray is easy to remove to get at the tank it took me about an hour.
2. the diff is had it, it whines and clunks, needs replacement.
3. the 6 speed turns. Just packed it in, needs a full rebuild.
4. very high fuel consumption, yes it is a V8 but my previous V8 a 2001 SS ute Manual used way less.
5. my fuel gauge doesn’t read correctly either but mine, according to the gauge uses 1/4 of a tank in just 30klm’s. Then when you stop it goes back to full again.

This lemon has only 143,000 klms and I am very disappointed in it as most of these repairs shouldn’t happen until 300,000 or so if at all.

Hi Scott, I can understand your frustrations with your car. Regarding the fuel rail needing to be replaced, your car has what is called Common Rail Injection for the diesel engine. The fuel pressures in these systems is approx 23,000psi.

If you replace the pump in these systems you Must replace the fuel rail also, or you will never get the new parts to seal to the old parts. This can cause rather large fuel leakage. The consequences of the fuel leaking at these pressures is bad. You will probably find that they will be replacing the injectors also for this repair for the same leakage reasons. I hope this has helped a little.

For the record I am a mechanic & am familiar with these cars.

Just bent my chassis on 2007 STX Navara, towing a Jayco pop top. No weight in the ute but I do have a Nissan canopy and outback drawers. Any advice would be helpful.

Hi Kristine. First of all turbos cannot shut off, they are an exhaust driven pump. It is more than likely an EGR valve problem or injector pump problem. How long did you let the dealer have the car for? Take the car to an independent repairer. Don’t use dealers they only want big money.

Having some problems with a shudder or knocking sound when turning, no one can find the problem. Car yard said it was the all wheel drive binding up. Can anyone give me an clue?

Hi

You will find a lot of cars with only one reverse light. It is normal and legal.

There should be some sort of light indicating what gear you are in somewhere on the dash. Go to a car yard and have a look at another Yaris to compare

Hope this helps.

We are experiencing a power loss in the form of the turbo cutting out, seemingly when the engine gets hotter. Engine warning light comes on when temperature gets upward of 85 degrees, turbo shuts off resulting in power loss, no good for towing. This vehicle supposedly has a towing weight of 3500kg, we are towing 1800kg (small 12ft.van). Jeep dealers say they can't find what is wrong as light needs to be on when hooked up to the computer. This first occurred while on warranty and is still a problem no one seems to be able to shed some light on. Are we left with this lemon?

Is it normal for a Yaris auto not to have its gears lit up? During the day it’s not so bad as I can see what gear I am going into or in (it’s auto) but at night I have no idea as it’s not lit up and there is nothing displayed on the screen. I just find it odd and not very safe. Is this my car or is it all of them? In my old car which was a 95 Lancer, the gear area was lit up and also the letter was red so you knew what you were in.

Also, on a different lighting issue... I was told by Toyota that the Yaris has only one reverse light at the back which is legal. Apparently you don’t need lights on both sides? True?

I purchased a 2004 Crewman VY II S in December 2007. I ran the vehicle locally and was amazed to find I only got 340klms from a full tank. The gauge said it was nearly empty and so did the low fuel warning indicator. On refueling, the tank only took 47.5 litres and the owner’s handbook says the tank holds 68.5 litres.

I contacted the local Holden dealer who said he had never heard of this problem before and maybe I should take it for a long run at a constant high speed of 100ks and the problem with the computer and fuel gauge might work it self out. I took it for a run up to Iluka and nothing changed much, got an extra 100ks, but still only used 47.5 litres of fuel. My local mechanic says the tank will have to come out to rectify the problem and now I have a fuel leak from the top of the tank. Has anyone encounter the same problem with their Holden ute, sedan or wagon?

Had 30,000 km service carried out by Ford dealer. They serviced gas system, all ok next day after service when the vehicle was cold it would run rough & stall. Return to dealer advice the gas converter was contaminated & need to be replaced with a new one & not under warranty. Has anyone have this problem please advise.

TOYOTA RAV 4 2001 1007,000 KM. ECU - TRANSMISSION ISSUES - I have had the same issues with the ECU as you all manifesting with the transmission suddenly slipping, literally an overnight phenomenon. I had the car checked by usual mechanic whith handheld computer diagnostics, no fault codes; however symptoms still there so stopped driving the car and started to ring around to inform myself.

The answers came back thick and fast, it was as if every one could diagnose the problem without even seeing the car. They literally told me what year and model car I had after briefly describing the problems.

"Change the ECU ($1700- $2100) and if you are lucky that may fix the problem, if unlucky and you drove the car without noticing in time the transmission will need replacing ($3500 -7500)" was the standard reply.

After reading all the posts on web about this and speaking to dozens of independent transmission workshop Experts & Mechanics, I have contacted NRMA, Dept of fair trading, and Channel Seven and Nine regarding doing a story on their "Current Affair", & "Today Tonight" programs as there are some massive safety issues related to this situation - my wife & two young children were nearly rammed by other vehicles several times at traffic lights because of transmission suddenly slipping, the media are interested in this !

I have several experts willing to go on record and speak about this issue. Let me know if you want to form a group to bring this issue into public awareness thus encouraging Toyota to take responsibility for their products and stop sweeping this under the carpet.

After my local Toyota workshop replaced the ECU ($1682) the vehicle seemed Ok, but as the transmission will not show up any fault code if it is damaged only time will tell! Confidence in the brand Toyota is now at a very low point with me.

Before paying my repair bill I contacted Toyota customer relations Sydney / Taren Point / Tel: 02 9710 3333 and made a serious complaint regarding this issue and informed them of my awareness of just how widespread this issue is and how the media is interested in doing a story on this matter (in 2006 these vehicles were recalled in the USA for software upgrade a free service). Anyway they spoke to the dealer, the dealer spoke to the warranty department and lo and behold they came to the party and reduced my repair bill by $800. This is a start however I am convinced that this should be a free recall service and if transmissions are damaged due to a faulty ECU that controls it the transmission is by definition Collateral Damage for which Toyota also should be responsible and prepared to assist their loyal (till now) customers.

If you have your car repaired by Toyota you could try to call customer service prior to paying your bill and hopefully this way you too can at least save some money and collectively we will eventually encourage Toyota to adjust their denial strategy about this matter.

Please raise awareness about this issue & tell everyone you know!

Welcome to Pain!

I too was getting on average 17-18lt per 100km and have found the only way to get it down is to leave the AC off drive with nothing in the car and like an old lady out for a Sunday drive. Then if you’re lucky you should get down to about 15.5

Hello, I own a 2.5 TD auto. The timing chain tension bolts stripped out of block and I took it in with a shocking loud rattle but the engine still ran fine. Dealership put in claim for complete new motor but there was talk of retapping existing holes etc. Should I be concerned about any damage already done and only accept a new motor. I'm not that mechanically minded and need advice.

I was getting 10.6 litres per 100km which is good from all the horror stories read on here so should I stick with the devil I know as a new motor could be worse etc. I really need good advice as I have no idea. I will also say that the dealership has been very helpful and I’m really leaning towards the new motor as I’m worried about bits of swarf in the engine from the stripped bolts. Please email or reply on here. Thanks for any positive input greatly as I’m really concerned as I should be.

100,000 ks and she is still faithful. Oh I forgot to mention on previous postings that I did run into another car after night shift one morning about two years ago (fell asleep) on the freeway. I feel sorry for you folk with these problems with your cars.

Navara 2007 diesel manual. On my first trip away with the car having done 17,000km, I lost the blinkers, wipers, driver’s electric window and the lights all in the same afternoon. When I say the lights, I could not turn them off when I reached my camping spot. After playing around with the control for 30 seconds they went off. Thinking all was ok I turned them on again to check and again could not turn them off, no matter how much I played with the control. So I was going to pull the battery to kill them, I turned the engine off and the lights went off. So I left it at that. The next day everything worked and has ever since (27,000km now). Will notify Nissan so it is recorded.

Have noticed clutch 'feeling funny' this week. Does not have the firm feel anymore. Will keep an eye on this one.

After reading all of these posts I feel the need to get rid of this car. Although I have confidence in my car so far, Nissan seem to be treating their clients like dirt.

Marco

This is our story and it's not pretty.

We bought a Kia Carnival in August 2003 which only had 30,000klm. By Feb 2004 Yes we needed a new motor. It went to Kia Ballarat as Bendigo did not have a dealer at the time, 8 week's later we finally get it back. Kia paid some of the amount but still we had to pay quite a bit, even towing costs to Ballarat.

When we got it back within days it needed a new battery as it hadn’t been used for a long time. But that is past now.

All this time we had it regularly serviced every 10,000 klm. Still had a few problems like the brakes pads etc. We were still paying it off and have just finished and guess what the engine has gone again.

Not sure what to do. Now we have to decide do we get another engine or trade in as is? But it's not fair you pay $30,000 for a car and expect at least something. Kia was supposed to be a cheap car for low income families but all it does is eat your money everytime you turn around.

Faye

Toyota Hilux SR5 Automatic transmission leaking oil (pushing oil out the breather) when towing within its capacity. Toyota says they won't fix it as they blame the bullbar for the problem.

Fuel economy has gone from 9.5 (New) to 12 litres to 100kms (20k).

Hi

Dale Morris I would like to write to our consumer affairs here in Queensland and lodge a complaint and also to Kia.

We bought our Kia Carnival LS 2001 in May 2nd hand. It had 72,000 on the clock. It is currently being assessed by KIA as we were getting conflicting advice so thought KIA would be able to give us the low down as to what is wrong with it and what the cost would be.

About 4 weeks ago I heard a thump noise, instinctively looked down at the dials the temp was way over pulled into a garage and topped up the water. Temp was fine for a few days then up again more water. Had its service then a week later no coolant at all topped that up then a few days later no coolant. Took it in again to the garage was told by mechanic no.1 that the thermostat needed replacing. Took it in for replacement was told by mechanic no.2 that the head gasket had gone. He told us to tide us over until the big job of repairing the head we could chemiseal it. Okay did that. Huge over heating problem can no longer drive it without it instantly overheating. There is creamy build up under the oil lid.

I know that this is a dead end street and we are going to have to write off the $17,000 we paid for it. I will Never buy a Kia again and will warn anyone not to buy one. We like all the others got this car because it was affordable and we are now paying dearly for our error.

Your help would be appreciated.

I too have regrets about our 2006 AWD Ghia.

So many suspension rattles, troubles, wheel alignment issues, rattles inside, back seat that drives me crazy as it rattles and shakes around. Have been told it’s a fault with the 06 model and can’t be fixed. In fact that’s what they tell me about all the problems... and so little help from Dealership. Disinterested and unhelpful, almost accusing me of imagining it. Have contacted Ford Australia, very nice on the phone but as far as getting the problem fixed... No Customer Satisfaction There Either.

Two simple things you can do.

Firstly charge a battery and see if the battery light comes on when the ignition is turned on. It should then go off when the engine starts. No battery light could be a fuse gone or a problem with the altenator. If that checks out OK then try step 2.

Make sure the battery is charged and connect the positive terminal but keep the negative not connected. Touch the negative terminal with the negative lead and see if there is a spark. Do this in a garage or at night for best results.

If there is a spark, something electrical is on and that could be draining your battery. A light in the boot or glove box are common problems that you can’t always see. Also, have the batteries tested just in case you have faulty batteries and no fault in the car.

Good Luck,
Mark.

Hi Dale I would very much like some info on what to write to Kia and to the department of fair trading regarding the head gasket/water in the oil problem we have like all the others.

Many thanks

Need help. Like to learn. I have drained 2 batteries, in the last week.
Can anybody suggest, where I start?

Ta

Dear Peter
Thank you so much for your email. Some of the stories I have been reading make me so angry at Nissan's behaviour and at their being allowed to continue to behave in this way. We have prepared a very large report for the office of fair trade in Victoria with explicit pictures of the engine as it was pulled down. We are waiting for contact from them but we too are telling everyone who will listen about what has happened to us. Over here, the bush telegraph works fast and what has happened to us is already being talked about by farmers in the area. It does not take long for this message to spread. As well, everyone we have email contact with will in the next couple of days receive details of what has happened to us as well.

We are off to Adelaide on Friday to look for a replacement vehicle. We lose money whichever way we go but living here, and with Ian a Crohn's patient, we need a vehicle we can rely on. It certainly is not a Nissan.

Take care Peter. I am sorry this has happened to you as well. And again, thank you for getting in touch. It does help.

Chris