Micra K12 - Issues

[a18041967]

I have a Nissan Micra Mk3 K12 2003, 133,000 miles which I have three problems which I'd appreciate so advice on.

1. Reversing light not working - I've checked the bulb which is OK and I'm assuming that the issue is due to the gear box switch. I'm struggling to locate where the switch is located on the engine to enable me to check if the switch is the cause by shorting the wires.

2. When starting the engine from cold, it starts and initially struggles to turn over, even when pressing the accelerator to the floor the max RPM is 1k, after a minute possibly less the engine the ticks over as number and the accelerator works as expected, car then drives ok. Any suggestions, having researched this issue is it possibly linking to the timing chain/belt?

3. Oil level, there's no visible oil leak but the oil level reduces over time, any common problems that I should check?

The car is due for its MOT tomorrow and subject to no major issues and it passing I plan to get a service booked and hopefully fix the issues above as long as the cost is reasonable, what cost should I expect to fix the above.

I'll also need to get an additional key added and programmed, any suggestions or recommendation on companies that can supply this along with cost?

 

[John_D]

If the car is a petrol with manual gearbox, the reversing light switch is located on end of the the gearbox and can be accessed by jacking the car and removing the N/S wheel (do stick the removed wheel or a suitable axle stand under the car before doing any work on it!)
Before you do this you can prove the function of the gearbox switch by, with the engine running, putting the front wipers on then selecting reverse gear. If the switch is working (and there isn't a glitch in the Body Control Module software) the rear wiper will come on. A hard reset of the Body Control Module can be achieved by disconnecting the car battery for a minute or so, then reconnecting. This cures a surprising amount of CAN BUS related issues, so might be worth a try anyway. If you don't know the radio lock code, making sure that the radio is turned OFF before disconnecting the battery, usually lets the radio retain the code for the minute or so that the battery is disconnected (residual charge in the capacitors in the circuit board).
As for the oil 'loss', at 133K miles I would expect some oil use, due to engine wear. Define 'over time'. What oil are you using and when was it last changed? Back in the day a brand new 1275 Mini Cooper S used to drink oil at about 500miles a pint, due to the piston/bore clearances...........

 

[a18041967]

Thanks for the reply, sorry yes petrol 1.2l manual, oil loss is currently a little difficult to define as we're doing very few miles, car purchased for daughter to learn to drive in. When we took delivery 2 months ago oil level was correct, then I checked and it was below minimum level. I've topped it up using 5w-30 a few days ago and the oil level have remained between min. & max levels.

I'll try your suggestion regarding testing the reversing light. Just need to understand how big a job the starting issue maybe and if it's timing belt related.

 

[John_D]

No timing belt on the K12 petrol engine, it has a timing chain, which sadly on the pre 2005 cars is prone to stretching and causing problems...If I was you I'd buy a cheap OBDII code reader to plug into the car . This will give you a lot of information on what the likely cause to your problem is.....I have one of THESE and find it extremely useful.....

 

[a18041967]

Yes I've checked using OBDII and no errors, unfortunately the car failed it's MOT big time and I have to seriously question if I should spend any further money on the car. The cost to supply any repair the items is close to £500, yes its Halfords and I suspect I could reduce the cost but one item they could not fix is corrosion around the front suspension which will need welding.

Repair immediately (major defects):

• Front Headlamp aim too low both sides are low (4.1.2 (a))
• Nearside Front Anti-roll bar linkage ball joint dust cover no longer prevents the ingress of dirt (5.3.4 (b) (ii))
• Offside Front Coil spring fractured or broken (5.3.1 (b) (i))
• Offside Front Suspension component mounting prescribed area excessively corroded significantly reducing structural strength rotten, 30cm of shock top mount (5.3.6 (a) (i))
• Nearside Front Suspension arm ball joint excessively worn also boot dose not prevent ingress of dirt! and bush slightly deteriorated on same arm (5.3.4 (a) (i))

Monitor and repair if necessary (advisories):

• oil level low
• Nearside Rear lights slightly dim. possibly a bad earth
• Central stop light out
• reverse light out
• Central Exhaust has a minor leak of exhaust gases (6.1.2 (a))

 

[plmval]

Five major safety structural defects, as listed, & it would be remiss of the MOT tester to allow you to drive it away unrepaired?

Repair immediately onsite or trailer carry away are the only road legal options?

 

[a18041967]

Well if I hadn't of had the MOT done until 17th June I'd of been none the wiser. I did drive it home as it legally had an MOT but will not be driven again.

 

[John_D]

Well if I hadn't of had the MOT done until 17th June I'd of been none the wiser. I did drive it home as it legally had an MOT but will not be driven again.

A failure cancels out the previous MOT........

 

[a18041967]

Not sure thats correct, I did a search and a number of results indicate you can co tinue to drive.

 

[plmval]

The remaining old MOT is revoked immediately by MOT Major Faults test result documented on the DVLC computer data base?

Minor faults only & you can drive it away with the remaining valid MOT until expiry.

 

[umagumma]

As for the oil leak, it could be the camshaft sensor O-Ring. Have a feel around the camshaft position sensor and if it's oily it will most definitely need a new o-ring. It's a ten minute job.

 

[vexorg]

The rules are stupid nowadays, one of our works failed with a major point and we were told it was now unsafe to drive away. The failure was: a reverse light not working.

I'm also not convinced on the failure revokes the previous MOT. On car with failures then the MOT gov website still list the original date as the valid MOT period.

Though with structural rust problems then I'd look at another car. How much did you pay for it?

For the starting, a good serivce and intake clean might help. Engine temp sensor could be playing up?

If the oil drop is due to engine wear then you can try a slightly thicker grade, like 0w30 up to 10w40 oil to see if that helps.