2000 I30 Questions

My 2000 I30 has around 70K and runs well except for a couple of things:

1) My car makes a sort of scraping noise on cold starts. Basically, when I start the car after it was parked overnight, the rpms go up as usual with normal engine sound. At the end of the start, I hear a scraping noise for a very short period of time before rpms go down. The start seems to be OK except for the noise. It only happens on cold starts and only when it's below 65 degrees outside (It never happens in the summer). Is that a starter problem?

2) When I brake normally (not hard or anything), I feel a slight vibration just before the car stops. I don't feel the same vibration if

I shift to neutral before braking. What is that?

3) Again while braking, I sometimes here a noise similar (not exactly the same) to the one that comes from cold or wet rotors. If I accelerate a bit from standstill and then brake harder then usual, I hear that noise as well. Is that rotors? Mine were cut a couple of thousand miles ago.
Reply to
Steve B.
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The starters are known to dry out and get slow to disengage as they age. It sounds like that might be your problem. You can take the starter apart and re-grease it or just replace it. There is a re-greasing procedure posted in the maxima.org forums.

Probably the transmission's forced downshift to 1 just as the car stops is causing the shudder. It shouldn't do it, but it doesn't necessarily signal any major problems either. Has the transmission fluid ever been changed?

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E Meyer

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Steve B.

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JimV

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Steve B.

It should downshift as you stop to avoid stalling the engine. I call that a forced downshift. If the downshift is a little late or the lock up clutches in the transmission don't release soon enough, the engine can be forced to too slow a speed and almost stall. Watch the tach when it happens and see how slow the rpms go as as you are stopping.

Check the fluid level > So, why does it shudder?

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E Meyer

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Steve B.

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Steve B.

Its pretty hard to tell the level on the dipstick if you warm it up according to the directions in the manual. The easiest way to tell is probably to check it cold. Start it up, move the shifter through all the gears, one at a time, ending with "park". Keep the motor running & pull the transmission dipstick. The fluid should be in the "cold" range on the stick. Hopefully there is a picture in the owners manual to show you what to look for. If not, the marks closest to the bottom of the stick are the cold range.

If the fluid reads above the cold range it is probably overfilled. You will need to check it hot as well to make sure. Transmission fluid expands as it gets hot, hence the two ranges on the dipstick. Drive the car for several miles to get the transmission fluid heated, then check it the same way as when it was cold and the fluid should be in the "hot" range on the dipstick.

There is a drain on the bottom of the transmission pan, but the fluid will all run out if you open it. You best bet, if you need to let some out, is a narrow hose down the dipstick tube and some sort of vacuum pump.

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E Meyer

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Steve B.

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