95 Nissan Timing Chain Guide broke

As long as it is just the guide and not the tensioner, you should be fine. I would think a replacement would need to be gotten from a dealer and special ordered to boot.

CW

the answer is no, I personally would not risk it.

All I want to know is how the broken guide was fished out through the small inspection holes on the front timing cover

I am relaying this information and will get an answer to this question but I remember hearing that the valve cover was removed. The vehicle is a 95 Altima but I could not find: alt.nissan.altima so I thought that I would pose the question here. Thank you for responding. I will share what is known about Nissans from my perspective as a automotive locksmith for the past 28 years. I service commercial accounts, car lots, body and mechanic shops, I am familiar with most automotive locks and keys and have made keys and repaired locks on thousands of Nissans as well as many other varieties. I am not yellow page as I do not need to be therefore without that overhead I can usually save a client some bucks and they appreciate it and continue to call me when they have a problem. I do not seek out clients, they seek me out and I like it that way.

I have told many a customer that if all vehicles used Nissan locks, I would almost be out of the repair work. The Datsun had terrible, terrible locks especially the ignition, the shoulder stop for the key in the ignition lock is a very weak metal and is basically a thin bridge in the front part of the lock. When this key stop breaks, the key will go in about an eighth of a inch too far and not start the vehicle because the key will not turn until you pull it rearward about an eighth inch.

I became really good at repairing the keystop by making a new stop for the tip of the key by inserting a blunt screw into the rear, filing the head off, pinching the back of the plug a little and using an automatic center punch to peen the area and then reassembling. A new ignition at that time was about $127. and they weren't any better. There was one model and probably still is somewhere, for the same price a Datsun single sided key ignition lock that was all brass, both the cylinder and plug was well made, good quality and sold for the same price. That was the only kind I would purchase, all others broke too easily in the key stop area. It's actually the same ignition lock that Jaguar used in many of their early vehicles of the same vintage.

On the Nissan, they redesigned the locks adding 2 more tumblers making a total of 8 and staggered them, 4 on top, 4 on the bottom. They are not brass but of a much better design than the Datsun/Subura locks. (Subura locks are the same basic lock as Datsun and Nissan)

I have never had a call to repair a broken key stop on a Nissan but there are a few problems that don't need to be problems with a little preventive maintenance on the part of the owner (note: in the late nineties on certain models, Nissan switched over to a 10 cut lock, meaning that there are 2 more tumblers than the previous 8 cut and 4 more tumblers that the earlier Datsun/Subura. Also the key blade does not have a shoulder, just a long key that uses the tip of the key as a natural stop. . The tumblers in Nissan vehicles are good quality brass and do not bend easily under normal use, they will last for many years if taken care of. I do not run into many people who actually lubricate their locks but I have solved so very many problems with lubrication, I have almost seen miracles with some of the problems a lube has solved.

As for Graphite, it is for fine brass mechanisms. If you happen to have a brass lock, squirt some in, graphite in effect is little ball bearings. If your lock is not brass then don't use it because all you will end up doing is making a paste, a hard, stiff paste. I dislike digging that crap out of non brass locks.

For locks like the Nissan, I use a teflon based lubricant, I may clean the lock out with a water displacement product, flush it then use a can of compressed air to blow the lock out and come in with my teflon. Makes a gigantic difference, your locks will love you and you will probably save some bucks and inconvenience down the road.

The other problem and it's fairly serious, fixed one today... the shoulders on the 8 cut Nissan key becomes rounded off with normal usage and tends to slide a little further into the lock than it should causing a lot of problems from the misalignment. In many cases the key will still turn the lock but it will not be smooth even with lubrication although that will help but not solve the real problem.

What you need to do is one of 3 things in no particular order, one get a new key made by code from your dealer, have title and i.d. ready. Unfortunately some dealers cannot cut jack shit and often times I will get a call from a customer who has just had a dealer key made by code and it will not work in any of the locks. Same problem from other new car dealers as well, Ford, Chevy, no discrimination, just about all makes of vehicles, some can cut it, others can't. There are some dealers who can consistently cut a good working key, you just have to find them. It's an employee thing, some know how, others have not a clue. Perhaps ask the dealer what their return rate of keys by code are.

Option two, go to a good locksmith, one who can look at your old worn key, decode and code cut a new key to the same factory original specs. This is not magic, it is fairly simple to do but not all smiths have the same knowledge, call and ask, get a quote for a decode and new key. If you are happy with the price go for it. Some Nissan keys are so worn that it's nearly impossible to decode, everything looks like a

4 cut (deepest). Don't wait for that point, a new key will cost more. For a quick one I will simply make a duplicate of the key using 28 years of experience to align both the key and the blank so the end result is a key that will work the locks and have a shoulder and all in the right place.

What happens, the shoulder will wear, the key will go in too far, a little force is used, a tumbler becomes jammed, the lock does not work. As mentioned I repaired a door lock on a mid nineties Nissan pickup, exact condition that I described here, first tumbler was jammed, mechanic handed me the lock upon arrival, I gently peeled the chrome face cap off for reuse, removed the keyed lock plug, removed and dressed the stuck tumbler, lubricated the lock, reassembled, handed it back to the mechanic who installed it. That was much less expensive than a new lock and would have been a waste if I or they had purchased one, would have taken 10 times longer to do the job. This job took 10 to 15 minutes depending on how many times my cell phone rang and once repaired and installed, you can't tell that anything was ever done to it, it's still stock, oem and looks and works like one.

The third option, there are hardware stores and such who cut keys, there may be a small percentage of them that actually know how to select and cut a key. If you know of one, you can take a chance on a simple duplicate for a buck fifty and hope for the best.

Those are the main problems with Nissan 8 cut locks, the 10 cut hasn't been in use long enough to tell what its problem will be but it looks like a good lock, so far no calls for repairs.

I also know a bit about latches and related items but this is the main message, take care of your locks or they may one day bite you in the rear.

That's about it,

Rod Williams

If it's the top chain guide on a 4 cyl twin cam, yes it is fine and leave it out. There is a service buletin about this and the later engines don't have either of the upper guides, only a tensioner on the upper chain. BTW you can't buy that part from nissan if you wanted to!

I bet they are talking about a 4 cyl upper chain guide. If it's a V-6, you're right don't drive it!

Thank you for the information, yes it is a 4 cylinder and is the top chain guide. The Altima started making a loud clicking noise under the valve cover about a month ago. Luckily all pieces were recovered, I have relayed the information making the owner a very relieved person.

Thank you all for your time.

Rod Williams

I am glad your a good locksmith, and if I ever need a locksmith I will look for you, however, when dealing with Nissan engines, it's not a good idea to post to a group that is used to dealing with Maximas, when you are actually seeking info on an Altima. Reason:

95 thru 99 Maximas are timing chain driven, therfore most Maxima owners of that era, do not worry about problems. They have been konwn to be error free pretty much for the lifetime of the car, there are people here that will disagree, but I have 2 of them , a 96 and a 97 both with well over 100K on the odometer. I have NO IDEA what they used in the Altima, so be careful of the info you get here. Everyone is assuming (and you know what you get when you do that) that you are talking about a Max.

Just a side note, I had a 79 280ZX that had a key that would fit an 80 model

280ZX, I knew the girl and we both worked for Lockheed, we would hide each others cars at lunchtime.......it was a riot! we had a blast......Good to know there is a good locksmith around....I may need you one day!!!! Hope this helps, and happy New Year to you and yours! 2Max

OH, and listen to Nisstech, he is probably the most informed person here when it comes to Nissans, he has helped me many times. HE DA MAN! I have gained more knowledge from him than from anyone else here.

2Max

The email address I use here is set up because I do not like spam. For this email address the letters zxymt must be in the subject line otherwise the message will go into the trash folder and I just delete them.

My main email is: snipped-for-privacy@doctorofcomputers.com

So is it okay for my friend to drive his 4 cylinder Altima with the upper timing chain guide omitted?

I am located in Phoenix, Arizona, am also a member of ClearStar Security Network, a online group of 1,200 or so locksmiths and safe techs from around the world. ClearStar has a public forum for all things lock related including safes and alarm systems. The system is password protected for non-members but anyone can post to the public area. My main interest though is philosophy.

Take care, guess I have to remember to write a different number on my invoices, would have seemed more logical to begin a so-called new year on a solstice but oh well, our ancestors weren;t the brightest and from the looks of humanity, neither are we.

Yes it is OK. As another poster commented, there is a TSB to take them off and throw them away on the Altima 4 cylinder engines.

No Bits, YOU DA MAN !!

:-))

How's it going dude ???

Long time no hear from, I trust all is well with you and the family, and that your holiday season was joyous one.

BTW don't be such a stranger.

If memory serves me correctly (pardon me if I'm wrong) but, didn't you get a new Trailblazer a few months back or do I have you confused with someone else?

I remember asking the person to check back in with me in a few months to compare notes.