We picked up our new Coromal magnum in Townsville on Monday off for the break in trip to visit daughter at Moranbah in Central Queensland. Van going beautifully and we had that lovely feeling you guys have had for years. Eeehah, this is our time. At a very busy intersection in Mackay involving 6 lanes our 2010 Nissan Xtrail with just 49000 on the dial went into limp mode. This is the second episode in six months. Don't know if anyone has experienced the feeling of loosing all power when towing across an intersection as busy as this one, but it sickened us and I am sure that it was only Homer's experience driving semis that prevented an horrific traffic incident.
Nissan dealers in Mackay did all the right things and put the car on the computer and of course the reading says there is no problem. When it happened 6 months ago NisSan roadside assist told us to turn the ignition on and off 3 times and this did return power to the car. However the mechanics inTownsville told us not to do that as it nullified any reading on the computany
Has anyone out there had this frightening experience with Nissan, any idea what DOES cause it, what have you done when it happens?
Seems to me that cigarettes are sold with a warning that they can kill you and yet car companies can sell you a car with no warning such as "Oh, and by the way, this car may loose power and cause a serious accident." I know that Nissan is aware of this problem as are other brand manufacturers. Go figure.
Homer and Marge
PS have a happy Easter and travel safe.
vk6tnc said
05:44 AM Mar 28, 2013
I googled "xtrail limp" and wow it does seem to be a common problem!!!
Two common suspects were fuel pump pressure sensor and believe it or not, wiring to the reversing lights.
Apparently the airflow sensor takes its power from the reversing lights circuit....
Some people had the check engine light come on, others didn't
PeterInSa said
03:12 PM Mar 28, 2013
If I owned your Xtrail and intended to keep if I would look at buying a Scan Gauge and keep it in operation until the fault is found. the scan gauge will hopefully show the fault/s when it occurrs. I would write down the fault codes and then do the reset especially if you xxxKm away from the nearest service centre. Supa Cheap sell scan gauges ( around $200?) but am not sure they will do the job on the Xtrail., and you may need some training/help in its use.
I understand all these sensors are to help mechanics deterinined what is wrong with a vehicle or the faulty sensor, but with a combination of error codes, it takes a good tech to figure it out, along with scan gauges than cost up to $20K.
I think you need to get the problem fixed under warranty, otherwise it could cost.
-- Edited by PeterInSa on Thursday 28th of March 2013 03:14:34 PM
-- Edited by PeterInSa on Thursday 28th of March 2013 03:15:33 PM
-- Edited by PeterInSa on Thursday 28th of March 2013 08:21:25 PM
Rip and Rosie said
04:01 PM Mar 28, 2013
It wouldn't do anything about increasing your confidence in the vehicle, would it.
I had a Nissan once that had a dodgy computer, and it died in traffic, like your Xtrail. No amount of repairs etc could stop all the warning lights flashing when ever is seemed to feel like giving me a scare...................... traded it ASAP!
spida said
04:04 PM Mar 28, 2013
I had that problem in the Navara after having a new suction valve in the diesel pump. After many trips to the (warranty) garage - they couldnt find the problem as it disappeared everytime you turned the key off and on again. Finally convinced them to ask Nissan - there is a reset switch - needs to be reset after any work done on the pump. Took the guy 10 seconds to fix! May not be your problem but worth asking about maybe.
neilnruth said
05:02 AM Mar 29, 2013
In defence of Nissan XTrails - we have a 2005 model, it has done 243000km and pulled our caravan many kms and it has never missed a beat. Sorry. it didn't start once when parked in the carport - and a new battery fixed that.
Duh said
10:04 AM Mar 29, 2013
Bear in mind there a different types of X'trail, 2WD, 4WD, both diesel and petrol. Each may have their quirks like any vehicle.
I had a 2006 Petrol Auto 4WD X'trail, used it to tow two small caravans (13' and 15') including a couple of round OZ trips and it never missed a beat, except a battery died in Carnarvon and had to be replaced, but it was old.
Always towed with Overdrive off, only sold it because I had moved onto a campervan. My son in law has it now and is very happy with it.
I still get pangs when I see one on the road. For a small tug they are ideal (not meant to tow large vans), and are very roomy inside for SUV's of their size.
This site has some good tech and other info about Xtrails, see;
-- Edited by Duh on Friday 29th of March 2013 10:06:08 AM
Cloak said
01:50 PM Mar 29, 2013
You're not towing in the 4WD by chance are you?
neilnruth said
04:42 AM Mar 30, 2013
Is Cloak's question asked of Homer and Marge or us? If us, yes, we tow with our 4WD XTrail - a 14'6" Viscount which doesn't weigh much. Fuel economy under 12lt/100km.
Wombat 280 said
04:30 AM Mar 31, 2013
Your intersection experience sounds horrific but at least you were in a place with help not far away. About 12 months back came across a family in a new Pathfinder half way across the Nullabour in the middle of absolutely nowhere in limp mode nothing I could do but phone roadside service when I got a signal some time later down the track
Homer and Marge said
06:36 PM Mar 31, 2013
Thanks Wombat and others who have shared their experiences. The technician at Nissan dealership in Mackay believes that the fault lies in the electric brake we had fitted to enable towing. He has been able to replicate the limp mode status which I believe is part of the reason why mechanics have trouble analysing the problem in the first instance. So at the moment the brake has been disconnected and we have taken the car but not the van over the weekend to put on some mileage to see if we have the same problem again.
He was able to replicate the problem in the workshop by accelerating while he had his foot on the brake. Each time he did that the motor went into limp mode. SOOOOOOOOOOOOO on the assumption that the fault lies in the brake, we will have a new one installed on Wednesday after the Easter weekend. It may be the case as the first incident happened not long after we had the electric brake fitted. So who knows , I guess it is just wait and see and hope that if it ever happens again it will be on a quite little country road!
I can only imagine what that family on the Nullabor in the new Pathfinder went through. We plan to head off in June for the big leaving from the Atherton Tablelands, so will one day be in those isolated places.
Maybe we should look for an old Holden/ford still in good nick with no blooming computer and all the problems they create!!! Remember the ones that the average guy with a bit of mechanical nounce could keep going.
If this reply doesn't sound technically accurate this is Marge standing in for Homer who thinks his hands will fall off if they touch a keyboard. However he does make a good cuppa so I will hang onto him for a bit longer. Drive safe everyone.
Marge
neilnruth said
10:26 PM Mar 31, 2013
I'm glad they've tracked down the problem for you. And if We have overlooked a welcome to you both, here's a big welcome from Us. You will always find wonderful helpful friends on this forum. Safe travels.
Homer and Marge said
11:30 PM Mar 31, 2013
Thanks so much. I think I have only made 4 postings, but spend many hours reading the experiences a of others and the amazing tips people have.
Marge
Wombat 280 said
02:03 AM Apr 1, 2013
Keep us informed if you have more problems with it I have filed the possible caused and fix in the memory bank. Thanks
Homer and Marge said
07:04 AM Apr 4, 2013
Well Wombat, that was a wasted exercise. I have posted on the general forum, hoping for some replies. So you might like to check out what I have written. Seriously it is shocking that manufactures are releasing cars which they KNOW have the potential to cause serious accidents, and not have the technology in place to read the computerised engines. At this stage I think we would swop the car for a good old reliable one made long before all this computer guff!!! Look pretty, but they don't go. Do I sound cynical? You betcha!!!!!!
Travel safe
Marge
Duh said
05:41 PM Apr 4, 2013
Marg, don't know if it is related, but see my post on General about a problem I had with my Xtrail, it was some time ago (I don't have the car now) and I had forgotten about it, was fixed at the time by an RAC Workshop and never happened again, my son in law has the vehicle now and has had no further problems with it.
Hi everyone,
We picked up our new Coromal magnum in Townsville on Monday off for the break in trip to visit daughter at Moranbah in Central Queensland. Van going beautifully and we had that lovely feeling you guys have had for years. Eeehah, this is our time. At a very busy intersection in Mackay involving 6 lanes our 2010 Nissan Xtrail with just 49000 on the dial went into limp mode. This is the second episode in six months. Don't know if anyone has experienced the feeling of loosing all power when towing across an intersection as busy as this one, but it sickened us and I am sure that it was only Homer's experience driving semis that prevented an horrific traffic incident.
Nissan dealers in Mackay did all the right things and put the car on the computer and of course the reading says there is no problem. When it happened 6 months ago NisSan roadside assist told us to turn the ignition on and off 3 times and this did return power to the car. However the mechanics inTownsville told us not to do that as it nullified any reading on the computany
Has anyone out there had this frightening experience with Nissan, any idea what DOES cause it, what have you done when it happens?
Seems to me that cigarettes are sold with a warning that they can kill you and yet car companies can sell you a car with no warning such as "Oh, and by the way, this car may loose power and cause a serious accident." I know that Nissan is aware of this problem as are other brand manufacturers. Go figure.
Homer and Marge
PS have a happy Easter and travel safe.
Two common suspects were fuel pump pressure sensor and believe it or not, wiring to the reversing lights.
Apparently the airflow sensor takes its power from the reversing lights circuit....
Some people had the check engine light come on, others didn't
If I owned your Xtrail and intended to keep if I would look at buying a Scan Gauge and keep it in operation until the fault is found. the scan gauge will hopefully show the fault/s when it occurrs. I would write down the fault codes and then do the reset especially if you xxxKm away from the nearest service centre. Supa Cheap sell scan gauges ( around $200?) but am not sure they will do the job on the Xtrail., and you may need some training/help in its use.
I understand all these sensors are to help mechanics deterinined what is wrong with a vehicle or the faulty sensor, but with a combination of error codes, it takes a good tech to figure it out, along with scan gauges than cost up to $20K.
I think you need to get the problem fixed under warranty, otherwise it could cost.
others looking into scan gauges..........
http://www.exploroz.com/Forum/Topic/101305/SCAN_GAUGE_INFO.aspx?ky=&sn=&p=%2fForum%2fDefault.aspx%3fpn%3d2
( copy an paste)
Peter
-- Edited by PeterInSa on Thursday 28th of March 2013 03:14:34 PM
-- Edited by PeterInSa on Thursday 28th of March 2013 03:15:33 PM
-- Edited by PeterInSa on Thursday 28th of March 2013 08:21:25 PM
I had a Nissan once that had a dodgy computer, and it died in traffic, like your Xtrail. No amount of repairs etc could stop all the warning lights flashing when ever is seemed to feel like giving me a scare...................... traded it ASAP!
May not be your problem but worth asking about maybe.
Bear in mind there a different types of X'trail, 2WD, 4WD, both diesel and petrol. Each may have their quirks like any vehicle.
I had a 2006 Petrol Auto 4WD X'trail, used it to tow two small caravans (13' and 15') including a couple of round OZ trips and it never missed a beat, except a battery died in Carnarvon and had to be replaced, but it was old.
Always towed with Overdrive off, only sold it because I had moved onto a campervan. My son in law has it now and is very happy with it.
I still get pangs when I see one on the road. For a small tug they are ideal (not meant to tow large vans), and are very roomy inside for SUV's of their size.
This site has some good tech and other info about Xtrails, see;
http://www.australianxtrail.com.au/
-- Edited by Duh on Friday 29th of March 2013 10:06:08 AM
Thanks Wombat and others who have shared their experiences. The technician at Nissan dealership in Mackay believes that the fault lies in the electric brake we had fitted to enable towing. He has been able to replicate the limp mode status which I believe is part of the reason why mechanics have trouble analysing the problem in the first instance. So at the moment the brake has been disconnected and we have taken the car but not the van over the weekend to put on some mileage to see if we have the same problem again.
He was able to replicate the problem in the workshop by accelerating while he had his foot on the brake. Each time he did that the motor went into limp mode. SOOOOOOOOOOOOO on the assumption that the fault lies in the brake, we will have a new one installed on Wednesday after the Easter weekend. It may be the case as the first incident happened not long after we had the electric brake fitted. So who knows , I guess it is just wait and see and hope that if it ever happens again it will be on a quite little country road!
I can only imagine what that family on the Nullabor in the new Pathfinder went through. We plan to head off in June for the big leaving from the Atherton Tablelands, so will one day be in those isolated places.
Maybe we should look for an old Holden/ford still in good nick with no blooming computer and all the problems they create!!! Remember the ones that the average guy with a bit of mechanical nounce could keep going.
If this reply doesn't sound technically accurate this is Marge standing in for Homer who thinks his hands will fall off if they touch a keyboard. However he does make a good cuppa so I will hang onto him for a bit longer. Drive safe everyone.
Marge
Thanks so much. I think I have only made 4 postings, but spend many hours reading the experiences a of others and the amazing tips people have.
Marge
Well Wombat, that was a wasted exercise. I have posted on the general forum, hoping for some replies. So you might like to check out what I have written. Seriously it is shocking that manufactures are releasing cars which they KNOW have the potential to cause serious accidents, and not have the technology in place to read the computerised engines. At this stage I think we would swop the car for a good old reliable one made long before all this computer guff!!! Look pretty, but they don't go. Do I sound cynical? You betcha!!!!!!
Travel safe
Marge
Marg, don't know if it is related, but see my post on General about a problem I had with my Xtrail, it was some time ago (I don't have the car now) and I had forgotten about it, was fixed at the time by an RAC Workshop and never happened again, my son in law has the vehicle now and has had no further problems with it.