the Nissan OEM I am pretty sure is the exact same thing as a regular fram filter if I remember correctly when I was reading up on oil filters. I am currently using M1 Filter.

 

very true, nothing can be done except maybe replacing all the lifters.

If it was rod knock or piston slap there would definitely be more problems with my car now since i've put 20k on it since i had the noise checked out. 20k on a knocking rod wouldn't go over. The piston would have probably lost all compression by now if it was worn enough to knock 20k ago also.

So if you think about the miles people are putting on these engines there isn't a way it could be something like that. I was skeptical at first but now that i have a good deal of miles with no change in the noise i'm sure it's ok. My compression test came out perfect also.

 

First off it is hard to do problem solving over the net. What I would do if this was mine is to eliminated the possibility of piston slap. If it happens to be the lower end of the engine then you have a choice to either do an engine rebuild or live with it which is what I would probably do if the noise goes away without any other issues present. Again the frequency is one way to tell where the noise is coming from since the bottom end has a different frequency then the valve train. If it is the valve train then I would definately find what is wrong and fix it. The reason is it is a relatively cheap fix in many cases that can lead to a very expensive fix later.

It may be something as simple as a tensioner. Part of a key could have broken, a failing link in a chain, and so on.

Rod knocks usually don't last long but piston slap that goes away when the engine is at operating temperature can go for a long time. A lot of GMs and Fords come from the factory this way and last the lifetime of the car. This is because in many cases the pistons are no longer matched to the cylinder. The assumption is that if everything is within tolerances it doesn't matter. Of course if you get one at one end of the scale and the other at the other end then you may well have an issue early on with noise.

 

Have you changed the oil filter yet?

There is another noise that should be easy to locate with a garden hose and that is a problem with your thermostat, but you stated that it started right after an oil change so I doubt that, but the garden hose will eliminated that as a possibility.

 

From previous research that I have seen they are not the same, not even close.

In the case of the M1 it used to be made by Champion (around the year 2000) but that may no longer be the case. The problem with filters is that what you really like and for good reason one year may well be totally different the following year with the end user having no idea that a major change has taken place, even the source may be completely different.

 

Mobil1 filters are supposed to be one of the best at filtering small particles.

As far as the problem, **** I just started to notice it too and I'm at 70k. can the valves be adjusted to solve the problem?

 

I decided to resurrect this thread with an update.

When I brought my car into the dealership (Riverside Infiniti) I also brought a copy of the video that I posted on youtube ready to play on my laptop. I showed the video to the service manager and he mentioned that he has heard that noise before on other G's and he was suspecting it could be a normal engine noise for the VQ35DE's. Soon one of the techs appeared and inspected the video.

I explained the theory about the timing belt tensioner to the service manager and he seemed to indicate that it could be a logical cause, but didn't commit to any one answer. Of course they wanted to withhold judgment before actually hearing in person and examining the engine. The engine was in for a valve cover replacement under warranty (see more about this here) and the techs were going to gain a good view of the engine anyways.

So I left them my keys and my blessings and went on my way in a very nice 09 G37 loaner.

After a day or so they called and told me that they had replaced the defective valve cover and were waiting for Infiniti to provide authorization to perform further warranty repairs. Next, about 8 days later I received word from the service manager that he had received authorization from Infiniti to replace my engine.

It seems that my engine had already lost .5 quarts of oil in the last couple of days (since I changed my oil only 2 days before bringing it to the dealership) and there were unusual metal shavings in the engine when they removed the valve covers as well as scratching and scoring on the camshaft and other internals. They saw it was consuming oil and the wear was unusual so infiniti agreed to replace the engine. This of course means epic win for me since I came to the dealership with only 30 mi of powertrain warranty left.

So all and all I cannot explain definitively what that metal-on-metal cold startup noise is since I'm getting a new engine. But it seems very likely that it could be a normal operational noise. My particular engine had other sad issues with it as it turned out, and I'm looking forward to my new engine.

As a side note, this has really changed my perspective on the Infiniti's warranty service. I am blown away that they decided to stand by their product the way that they did and issue a very costly warranty fix to me (with 30mi of remaining warranty, lol).

Even more, I was very impressed with Riverside Infiniti's service. Its clear that I wouldn't have had such a great experience without great people. After having a rough time getting warranty service done right with my local dealership I was not planning on buying another Infiniti, but now I think its very likely. If I do, I know what dealership will be getting my business.

 

wow, those are some crazy findings. I'm glad they stood by it and replaced the motor.

I wonder if they tear the motors down later to find out what the issue was with the metal shavings and soon to be engine failure.

 

I have heard in most cases infiniti requires the dealership to send them the failed components in order to authorize payment for the warranty work. I'd imagine that they would take the opportunity to tear down the engine and find out what went wrong so they can know what to fix in the upcoming model years if there becomes a pattern of the problem being commonplace.

 

TTT, original post updated with invoice from dealership and solution.

 

LOL. Epic thread. Everyone was giving excuses and saying it was the ABS, or the timing chain or everything is NORMAL. Because Infinti stands for Quality. Our car would never have issues.

Turns out, the car needed a new motor.

I bet all the 05+ needs a new motor.
--------------

Do you hear this every time you perform a cold start? Because I only hear this once in a while. I think I should drop off my car soon and get me a new motor. Do you ever redline your car?

When did you start to get this noise? After 60k? Also, I notice that you did in fact have oil seeping thru the spark plug gasket and your mileage is at 60k+..

So that means at 60k+, we all have to check our plugs. Kinda BS how the same #6 plug would leak oil.

Design flaw from 03-07. And pistons/rings failure from 05+

 

but my car's an 04 and it makes this noise sometimes on cold starts

 

Was this an Auto or 6mt?

 

My car is an automatic, I had forgotten to mention that. Thanks for bringing it up.

 

No, it started out around 35k-40k miles and began very infrequently (think maybe 1 out of every 20 starts). Then over the life of the engine it became more and more frequent (2 out of every 5 starts or more) and was accompanied with a rougher idle as well as decreasing fuel economy.

Sure, if you get a new motor more power to you. I hope you do if there is a mechanical issue that infiniti needs to fix for you. That's why I posted up my invoice, to help others who are experiencing the same problem get their engines fixed as needed. The real key in me getting a new motor was the dealership finding the metal shavings in my lower oil pan and the scoring and pitting being spotted on my camshafts.

Now that I have a new engine in break in, no. With my old engine I had been known to pin down the gas petal from time to time. I think its good for your engine to clear it out. Of course I haven't let it sit on the rev limiter except for maybe once or twice for a split second when I was exploring the manumatic mode.

Like I mentioned above it started somewhere between 35k-40k miles. It became more and more frequent after that.

Yes I did, it was actually quite a bit of oil. It was completely covering the porcelain of the spark plug. There was no white down the tube, I could only see the very top of the spark plug connector. The plugs that were leaking for me according to the dealership were #6 and #2.

Yes, we all must check our plugs before the powertrain warranty expires. Its clearly a design flaw. At least in my case the removal of the valve covers was what tipped off the dealership of larger problems with my engine.

NOTE: If you happen to find oil in a spark plug gap in your engine, DO NOT CLEAN IT. Simply replace the coil pack and bring it to the dealership as soon as is convenient. You want them to see exactly what you witnessed when you removed the spark coil.

According to the service consultant, Infiniti corrected the piston problem with the final iteration of the VQ35DE engine (happily the one which is currently under my hood).