2001 Nissan Xterra Gauges Drop Out

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JANELL
  • MEMBER
  • 1 POST
i bought a 2001 nissan xterra 4x4 3.3v6 with 106,00 miles. i do paper routes. alot of idle driving. when idling, sometimes i will lose all gauges which are needle gauges and the led crystal odometer. and along with that sometimes the car will not accelerate past like (i'm guessing cause i have no gauges, 20miles per hour) other times it will accelerate fine even though i have no gauges. sometimes it won't do it for a week sometimes every day. sometimes several times, sometimes once. if you shift it into neutral when it's doing it the engine will rev fine. but any way when you lose gauges for the most part the engine runs rough and won't accelerate. other than that it runs very good. i have changed oil regulary, changed the plugs, the cap , the rotor, the wires. it had a manifold leak which i also had fixed. it did (with the manifold leak) have antifreeze showing up on the plug boots in the block but that appears to be fixed. but i do still smell antifreeze but see no leaks. what dio you think the guage and run rough problem is? and what do you think the antifreeze smell is? thank you very much! Janell
Dec 30, 2006 at 12:50 AM
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RASMATAZ
  • ✓Experienced Mechanic
  • 75,988 POSTS
Have the ignition switch check for the gauges and the heater core and drainage tube for the smell.

Also your charging system.

Good Luck! Happy New Year
Dec 30, 2006 at 8:07 AM
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JPSWAD1
  • MEMBER
  • 1 POST
I know this was posted a while ago but mine is doing the same thing did you figure it out..
Mar 2, 2010 at 9:23 AM

Suggested Repair

Have the ignition switch and charging system checked for the intermittent gauge loss and rough running or limited acceleration. Inspect the heater core and its drain tube for the antifreeze smell with no visible external leak.

Conversation Summary

A 2001 Nissan Xterra with about 106,000 miles intermittently loses all needle gauges and the odometer, often while idling. When the gauges fail, the engine sometimes runs rough and will not accelerate past low speed, though it revs normally in neutral and sometimes still accelerates. Plugs, cap, rotor, wires, and a manifold leak were already addressed. An expert recommended checking the ignition switch and charging system, plus the heater core and drain tube for the remaining antifreeze smell. No confirmed fix was reported.

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