[NorCal 4x4]

Here's the site: www.nhtsa.dot.gov

Filed for my Titan's rt. rear seal leak at 37k. Good thing Nissan has a 60,000 mile power train warranty.

You make a good point: "Please if have a leak or had a leak on the rear axle seals, please report. This may help our case should we have seal failure after the warranty expires."

I also mentioned the breather element theory and tubing mod. My complaint doesn't show up yet and there were only 5 complaints under: POWER TRAIN:AXLE ASSEMBLY:AXLE SHAFT:SEAL

 

[NorCal 4x4]

It's easy for me to see why all of you are having rear end problem. Jacking the truck up, with or without offset wider wheels changes the geometry and puts a BIG strain on the rear end and suspension. The truck was not designed for all these mods, which look neat, but cause big problems down the road.

When I worked for Ford Parts and Service (1962-1995), any geometry changes including wide wheels and tires, or jacked up to the hilt voided the warranty. How can you expect Nissan to cover problems brought on by things you did to mod your truck?

My seal was leaking before I added any lift to the rear, only the front was leveled. I run OEM rims, and when I replace the tires I selected the stock size 285/70/17.

There appears to be issues with the design of the breather element, and it affects stock Titans too.

And btw, Nissan gladly replaced mine, and didn't even ask/worry about the new lift. I would guess that is another good reason to buy a Nissan instead of a Ford. Looks like you did, so that says a lot.

 

[NorCal 4x4]

Nissan dealers at least in this area (San Gabriel Valley, Ca) is trying real hard to fix the problems associated with a newly designed vehicle. Outside of brakes on my 05 LE CC, I've experienced no other problems.

So Nissan is going the extra mile for service fixes...take advantage while you can. A problem like this would be a CP (customer pay) item at Ford, GM, or Dodge with mods.

Well my experiences with Nissan dealership's service departments has always been very good, some of their techs were not hitting home runs, but they tried, and eventually succeeded.

But as Nissan vehicle buyers, we are paying for a 60,000 mile power train warranty. It is not out of the goodness of their hearts that they repair the seals, but out of a contractual obligation. If they didn't do this, many would simply take them to court.

As far as mods, the federal government's Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act clearly states the car manufacturer must prove that the mod caused the issue - an expensive proposition for them to prove this. And what jury would side with the manufacturer anyway. People have been mod'n for decades.

And if Nissan were idiots like apparently [edit: according to you anyway], the big three are, people not wanting to deal with court, would simply wait until the axle drained dry and it would cost Nissan 4x the price of a seal replacement to provide a new axle. It's called a power train warranty and that is what it is.

 

[NorCal 4x4]

According to the warranty bill when I got my 2nd one replaced last week its just about $400

Ya, my service guy said somewhere around $500 if I was paying. Glad there's a 5yr. 60K warranty on power train, (I was over 36,000 miles on my RR leak). I got the 100K extended warranty too, so $50 maximum if over 60K, but I went ahead and filed with the feds under the 2004, model year.

Has anyone with the vent tube mod to the tail light, or accordian mod had a failure yet?

 

[NorCal 4x4]

Here's what my axle seal leak looked like. Since the dealer drained my Schaeffers 267 Moly 80W90 synthetic-blend, (pic shows full synthetics don't climb like the blend does ??? The stuff sure kept the diff cover cool., and put in that Nissan Corp. full synthetic stuff, I think I might be posting on the rear-end failure thread before long. Well I guess a 4-pinion spider gear would be pretty nice, so I shouldn't complain.

 

[NorCal 4x4]

They did not drain mine, they just topped it off when they were done. No need to remove the diff. cover that I know of.

Did they crack off your old bearings and press on new ones on yours?

They had to send the axle, or some part of it, out to a local shop because the did not have a press big enough.

I can tell they took off the cover too, because there is some of that orange high temp RTV showing. I would have used black but no big deal. And they fill with the Nissan synth.