Sorry for the double-post, but I'm needing an answer rather quickly 
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I have had my "service engine soon" light and Oxygen Sensor problem for 11 months now. Back in November 2007 when it first came on in my 2005 X-Trail SE, I took it to the dealer. I thought that maybe my wife did not screw on the gas cap properly, which is mostly a pain because it's typically loose and you never feel the "whoosh" that you get (or at least I am used to) when you open a gas cap. Well, it never reset by itself, so that's why I took it to the dealer. They said that their diagnostic test revealed that I had a faulty O2 sensor which was located in the manifold. I'm not a mechanic but I know the parts of a car . The problem was that if it was seized in the manifold, there would be a possibility that it could break part of the manifold it was attached or fused to. This would change a $500 bill to a $3000 bill as the manifold was also part of the catalytic converter. Wow!!!
Anyway, I went to get a second opinion from my GM mechanic that used to work on the Grand Am I had before. He also works on imports, and upon discovering that I used Shell gas, he said that some vehicle's O2 sensors did not like Shell gas. Apparently Shell has a cleaner that causes some O2 sensors to "fry" and that Chevron has a more suitable cleaner in Techroline. He reset my SES light at that time and I started using Chevron (87 regular) and it went away! That is until 3 weeks ago, when I was running out of gas and had to load with Shell. Well, the SES light went on again, so I went to my mechanic and he reset it again. It went away until today! My mechanic says that the reason Nissan dealers end up replacing the manifold/catalytic converter is that they DO NOT have enough time during the day to carefully work on removing the O2 sensor and just try and remove it, and if it breaks, then the customer is SOL.
So now, after reading this thread, my concerns are:
1. My car has been running great over the last 11 months, so do I just ignore this?
2. Would this problem lead to a bigger problem if I don't have it looked after?
3. Is there a way to RESET the SES light myself? My mechanic has the analyzer that resets this light. I might just take it to him and wait until it comes on again?
4. Is the statement that my mechanic is saying about Shell gas frying O2 sensors TRUE or FALSE?
I have owned the vehicle since it was brand new. I am an outside sales representative and I usually drive on the highway between stops. My 2005 X-Trail SE has 116,500km on it right now.
Your responses would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks in advance to those who reply!
.I have had my "service engine soon" light and Oxygen Sensor problem for 11 months now. Back in November 2007 when it first came on in my 2005 X-Trail SE, I took it to the dealer. I thought that maybe my wife did not screw on the gas cap properly, which is mostly a pain because it's typically loose and you never feel the "whoosh" that you get (or at least I am used to) when you open a gas cap. Well, it never reset by itself, so that's why I took it to the dealer. They said that their diagnostic test revealed that I had a faulty O2 sensor which was located in the manifold. I'm not a mechanic but I know the parts of a car . The problem was that if it was seized in the manifold, there would be a possibility that it could break part of the manifold it was attached or fused to. This would change a $500 bill to a $3000 bill as the manifold was also part of the catalytic converter. Wow!!!
Anyway, I went to get a second opinion from my GM mechanic that used to work on the Grand Am I had before. He also works on imports, and upon discovering that I used Shell gas, he said that some vehicle's O2 sensors did not like Shell gas. Apparently Shell has a cleaner that causes some O2 sensors to "fry" and that Chevron has a more suitable cleaner in Techroline. He reset my SES light at that time and I started using Chevron (87 regular) and it went away! That is until 3 weeks ago, when I was running out of gas and had to load with Shell. Well, the SES light went on again, so I went to my mechanic and he reset it again. It went away until today! My mechanic says that the reason Nissan dealers end up replacing the manifold/catalytic converter is that they DO NOT have enough time during the day to carefully work on removing the O2 sensor and just try and remove it, and if it breaks, then the customer is SOL.
So now, after reading this thread, my concerns are:
1. My car has been running great over the last 11 months, so do I just ignore this?
2. Would this problem lead to a bigger problem if I don't have it looked after?
3. Is there a way to RESET the SES light myself? My mechanic has the analyzer that resets this light. I might just take it to him and wait until it comes on again?
4. Is the statement that my mechanic is saying about Shell gas frying O2 sensors TRUE or FALSE?
I have owned the vehicle since it was brand new. I am an outside sales representative and I usually drive on the highway between stops. My 2005 X-Trail SE has 116,500km on it right now.
Your responses would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks in advance to those who reply!
