I think I have one of the worst cars ever.

[a1b3c6]

I have a 2004 Nissan Sentra, 2.5 liter engine, 151k miles. I'll just go ahead and list some of the problems with it:

-It burns an insane amount of oil. I'm getting somewhere between 30-50 miles to each quart, and I have to buy oil like I buy gas.

-It's running rich. I'm getting roughly 20 MPG highway as measured by the car.

-It smokes worse than my f*cking uncle. You hit the gas hard enough, and it smokes enough to put any diesel to shame.

-The smoke comes in 3 different colors. Pure White, Blue-ish White, and Coal Black.

-The engine acts weird whenever I turn the air on. It's hard to describe, it's like something...shifts? Tries to go out? I'm not really sure.

-I think the wheel bearings are going out. The wheels make this weird noise whenever the car moves at all, and the back passenger side one squeals like a b*tch whenever I put the car in reverse.

-Etc.

Somehow, the engine doesn't knock or make any other indications that it's about to go out. It's really suspicious.

I know almost nothing about cars, and I'm too poor to afford something decent (or at least shitty). Is there any hope for figuring out what's wrong as far as the oil burning goes and cheaply fixing it? If not, can I atleast do something to make sure the engine doesn't die on me for at least a few more months? I don't know how much longer this car has.

 

[Zivic]

I have a 2004 Nissan Sentra, 2.5 liter engine, 151k miles. I'll just go ahead and list some of the problems with it:

-It burns an insane amount of oil. I'm getting somewhere between 30-50 miles to each quart, and I have to buy oil like I buy gas.

-It's running rich. I'm getting roughly 20 MPG highway as measured by the car.

-It smokes worse than my f*cking uncle. You hit the gas hard enough, and it smokes enough to put any diesel to shame.

-The smoke comes in 3 different colors. Pure White, Blue-ish White, and Coal Black.

-The engine acts weird whenever I turn the air on. It's hard to describe, it's like something...shifts? Tries to go out? I'm not really sure.

-I think the wheel bearings are going out. The wheels make this weird noise whenever the car moves at all, and the back passenger side one squeals like a b*tch whenever I put the car in reverse.

-Etc.

Somehow, the engine doesn't knock or make any other indications that it's about to go out. It's really suspicious.

I know almost nothing about cars, and I'm too poor to afford something decent (or at least shitty). Is there any hope for figuring out what's wrong as far as the oil burning goes and cheaply fixing it? If not, can I atleast do something to make sure the engine doesn't die on me for at least a few more months? I don't know how much longer this car has.

I'm guessing the damage is done. I have farm trucks that I never change the oil on in yrs and they don't smoke/use that kind of oil.

you have a car that likely hasn't seen almost any maintenance over its life. The engine is likely on its way out sooner than later due to the amount of smoke and oil consumption. the wheel noises, could be bearings, but I am going to guess a combo of bearings and lack of brake service.

news flash: owning a car means doing more than just refilling the gas tank

 

[a1b3c6]

I'm guessing the damage is done. I have farm trucks that I never change the oil on in yrs and they don't smoke/use that kind of oil.

you have a car that likely hasn't seen almost any maintenance over its life. The engine is likely on its way out sooner than later due to the amount of smoke and oil consumption. the wheel noises, could be bearings, but I am going to guess a combo of bearings and lack of brake service.

news flash: owning a car means doing more than just refilling the gas tank

That's what I was afraid of. I got it at a dealership last month and it didn't show any signs of these problems until a few days after I bought it. I honestly didn't do enough to test it though too.

 

[Zodiark1593]

In order, all of your problems sound expensive, very expensive, and time to start looking at financing options.

Sorry to say, but each problem alone points to something bad inside the motor. Perhaps a head gasket letting oil and coolant mix, but that's about best case scenario in your case.

Edit: Maybe look for some variant of the lemon law in your state if you just bought it from the dealership?

 

[a1b3c6]

Edit: Maybe look for some variant of the lemon law in your state if you just bought it from the dealership?

I got excited when you mentioned that, but according to this:

"There is NO statutory right to cancel the sale, even if done immediately. Likewise, there is NO used car lemon law."

I guess I should start looking for a junkyard to take it :\

 

[Zodiark1593]

I got excited when you mentioned that, but according to this:

"There is NO statutory right to cancel the sale, even if done immediately. Likewise, there is NO used car lemon law."

I guess I should start looking for a junkyard to take it :\

Was the car sold with any kind of warranty, or just "As Is"?

 

[a1b3c6]

Was the car sold with any kind of warranty, or just "As Is"?

As is. That's how it is with any used dealership car for under 10k around here.

 

[cbrsurfr]

Anything with high miles and you need to pay for a mechanic to inspect it before buying it. A simple compression test would have been enough to stay far away from that car.

 

[Vetterin]

Besides asking for the Carfax, the best $100 you can ever spend when buying a used car is paying a good mechanic to check the car over before signing ANYTHING!
I think all you can now do is go back to the dealer and see if they can at least help you out ANY as a good will gesture (but don't expect much).

 

[JCH13]

Get it to a mechanic for a real evaluation. If it needs an engine swap... you might have options. If many other things are shot (very likely) I'd just push it off a cliff and call it a very expensive learning experience.

 

[desy]

It doesn't look good Jim

 

[a1b3c6]

Get it to a mechanic for a real evaluation. If it needs an engine swap... you might have options. If many other things are shot (very likely) I'd just push it off a cliff and call it a very expensive learning experience.

It's not worth a visit to the mechanic, so I guess I'll do some research into local cliffs in my area.

I really wish my Cavy hadn't been wrecked right now.

 

[Midwayman]

I got excited when you mentioned that, but according to this:

"There is NO statutory right to cancel the sale, even if done immediately. Likewise, there is NO used car lemon law."

I guess I should start looking for a junkyard to take it :\

There is still typically an implied warranty of mechantability. From FTC-

Warranty of Merchantability
The most common type of implied warranty is the warranty of merchantability: The seller promises that the product offered for sale will do what it's supposed to. That a car will run is an example of a warranty of merchantability. This promise applies to the basic functions of a car. It does not cover everything that could go wrong.

Breakdowns and other problems after the sale don't prove the seller breached the warranty of merchantability. A breach occurs only if the buyer can prove that a defect existed at the time of sale. A problem that occurs after the sale may be the result of a defect that existed at the time of sale or not. As a result, a dealer's liability is judged case by case.

Varies by state, but basically if you buy a car and it won't function as a car, you might have a case. This sort of stuff typically has to be sorted very close to sale or you have hard time proving the problem existed at the time of sale.

 

[JCH13]

Very relevant: http://community.cartalk.com/discus...xcessive-oil-consumption-maxima-sentra-altima

And: http://ww2.justanswer.com/uploads/baddad1/2009-05-30_000012_Pages_from_NTB03-070c.pdf

Sounds like exhaust gas reversion sucked particles from the pre-cat into the engine. Sad times. This is a common complaint against that era Sentras (and a few others).

 

[eng2d2]

Try suing the dealership. Oil burining a quart every 30 miles is not good.

 

[NutBucket]

If it wasn't smoking when he bought it the dealer isn't responsible.

 

[z1ggy]

It's not worth a visit to the mechanic, so I guess I'll do some research into local cliffs in my area.

I really wish my Cavy hadn't been wrecked right now.

What? Why? For cheap, they can at least diagnose a few of the major problems, and tell you what your next possible steps could be. Although unlikely, there's a small chance it could be fixed for less than buying something new.

Anyway, if you do ditch it, next time get the Carfax on this thing, and pay a mobile mechanic the $100 or so it'll cost to inspect it first. You could have spent $100 and avoided this car altogether. Now it's going to cost you a lot more.

 

[rommelrommel]

What? Why? For cheap, they can at least diagnose a few of the major problems, and tell you what your next possible steps could be. Although unlikely, there's a small chance it could be fixed for less than buying something new.

Anyway, if you do ditch it, next time get the Carfax on this thing, and pay a mobile mechanic the $100 or so it'll cost to inspect it first. You could have spent $100 and avoided this car altogether. Now it's going to cost you a lot more.

Seriously. A test drive and a compression test could tell a mechanic a lot. If you can save this thing for 500 bucks isn't it better than scrapping it and buying another POS?

 

[Zodiark1593]

It's not worth a visit to the mechanic, so I guess I'll do some research into local cliffs in my area.

I really wish my Cavy hadn't been wrecked right now.

Hey man, I'm sorry for the bad news, and wish ya the best. Getting screwed over sucks,and I hope you're able to get on the road soon too.

That said, welcome to Anandtech.