Nissan VQ40 engine characteristics
| Parameter | Value |
|---|---|
| Decherd Powertrain Plant | Decherd Powertrain Plant |
| Engine make | VQ40 |
| Years of manufacture | 2005-present |
| Cylinder Block Material | aluminum |
| Power system | injector |
| Type | V-type |
| Number of cylinders | 6 |
| Valves per cylinder | 4 |
| Piston stroke, mm | 92 |
| Cylinder diameter, mm | 95.5 |
| Compression ratio | 9.7 |
| Engine displacement, cc | 3954 |
| Engine power, hp/rpm | 265/5600, 269/5600 |
| Torque, Nm/rpm | 381/4000, 390/4000 |
| Fuel | 95 |
| Environmental regulations | – |
| Engine weight, kg | – |
| Fuel consumption, l/100 km | – city: 18.7, – highway: 10.5, – mixed: 13.5 |
| Oil consumption, gr./1000 km | to 500 |
| Engine oil | 5W-30, 5W-40, 10W-30, 10W-40 |
| How much oil in the engine, liters | 5.1 |
| Oil change is carried out, km | 15000 (better 7500) |
| The operating temperature of the engine, deg. | – |
| Engine life, thousand kilometers | – according to the factory data: -, in practice: 400+ |
| Tuning, hp | – potential: 400+, – without loss of resource: – |
| Motor installed | Nissan Pathfinder |
| Nissan Xterra | |
| Nissan Frontier | |
| Nissan NV | |
| Suzuki Equator |
VQ40DE engine troubleshooting and repair
The largest member of the VQ family was developed in 2005 for SUVs, produced in the U.S. and based on the 3.5-liter VQ35. To create a new 4-liter engine was taken cylinder block VQ35HR, increased its height, inside placed a long-stroke crankshaft (piston stroke 92 mm) and new connecting rods. This block was covered with two slightly modified heads from VQ35DE with the system of changing the timing on the intake camshafts C-VTC. Shaft specs on the VQ40: 240/244 phase, 10.0/9.6mm lift.
There are no hydrocompensators on this motor, valve adjustment is required every 100 thousand kilometers. VQ40DE engines were equipped with an electronic throttle, a lower plastic intake manifold, a different exhaust system.
The VQ40DE used a chain, which is quite reliable.
Together with the VQ40DE, the VQ series included other engines: VQ37VHR, VQ35, VQ30, VQ25, VQ23 and VQ20.
Problems and disadvantages of Nissan VQ40 engines
Oil addiction
Owners of Nissan with this unit more often complain about fuel consumption, rather than breakdowns, but it still has one weak point. Due to low-quality fuel, the catalytic converter is destroyed, the crumbs of which are drawn into the cylinders of the dvs, causing scuffing and oil build-up.
Overheating
The cooling system of this engine is not well thought out and it overheats quite often. If you do not carefully monitor the cleanliness of the radiators and the condition of its fans, the gaskets of valve covers will quickly become blistered and oil will pour into the plug wells.
Small breakdowns
Also not very high resource here is characterized by a viscoil of the cooling fan, and because of the lack of hydrocompensators in the motor, the valve clearance will have to be adjusted.
The manufacturer declares the life of the engine at 300,000 km, but it can pass 500,000 km.
Tuning the Nissan VQ40DE engine
Compressor
Since the motor is installed on off-road vehicles and was originally created grassroots, it is not quite logical to make it a high-speed atmospheric. The most correct option would be to buy a compressor kit for VQ40. Such kits are produced by Stillen, installing their kits on the engine, you can get an increase of about 90 hp. This will be more than enough for an off-roader, you can put exhaust, camshafts and squeeze out another 20-30 horses, but it’s not worth it.
MOTOR RATING: 4+