MajorCommonEngine

Nissan Terrano: TD27 / TD27T injection pump seal leak and hard hot starting

TD27 / TD27T injection pump seal leak and hard hot starting is a common engine fault on the Nissan Terrano on the 1986–1995 cars, and we rate it major. Putting it right costs $900 to $3,500 at New Zealand independent workshop rates. Below is what goes wrong, the symptoms to notice on a test drive, where to look, and what to ask the seller before you hand over any money. It is one of 5 documented faults on the Nissan Terrano.

Vehicle: Nissan Terrano
Engine: TD27 / TD27-T
Years: 1986–1995
Fuel: diesel
System: Engine

This page covers the Nissan Terrano as a model. Some faults only affect particular engines or build years — enter a plate below to narrow the list to one car.

All Nissan Terrano faults5 documented faults on this model

What you are looking at

No photograph available

We do not hold a verified photograph of the High-pressure fuel pump yet. We would rather show none than show a picture of a different part.

What goes wrong

The mechanical injection pump on the TD27 diesel uses rubber seals that harden with age and with modern low-sulphur diesel, so they weep fuel down the back of the pump and let air into the fuel line. The first sign is usually a truck that starts perfectly from cold but cranks and cranks once it is hot, or that will not restart after a fuel stop. Left alone the leak drips onto the belt area and the truck eventually will not start at all. A pump reseal is a workshop job; a full pump rebuild or exchange costs considerably more, so a weeping pump is real money, not a minor drip.

What you would notice

Starts fine cold, cranks a long time when hot
Diesel smell and a wet, dirty film around the injection pump
Rough idle or a stumble for the first few seconds after starting
Corroded or damp fuel pipes running to the pump

How to check it

Where to look. Injection pump on the side of the engine block, fuel pipes and unions running to and from it

Ask the seller not to warm the truck up before you arrive, so you can hear the cold start yourself. Then drive it, park it for ten minutes with the engine hot, and start it again — that hot restart is the test that finds this fault. With the bonnet open and the engine off, shine a torch on the back and underside of the injection pump and run a finger along the fuel pipes: fresh diesel wetness, or a black oily crust where dust has stuck to old leakage, both count. Look for a pool or a drip mark on the ground under the front of the engine after it has been parked. If a workshop inspection is possible: ask for the pump timing to be checked and for the fuel system to be pressure-tested for air ingress.

Parts involved: High-pressure fuel pump.

What it costs to put right

$900 to $3,500 at New Zealand independent workshop rates. That is for this job on its own, not for the car.

An estimate, in NZD, for the repair as normally carried out. What a specific car costs depends on which part has failed and what it damaged on the way — treat this as the floor for a negotiation, not a quote.

Ask the seller

“Has the injection pump ever been resealed or rebuilt, and do you have the invoice?”
“Does it ever refuse to restart when hot?”
“When were the fuel filter and fuel lines last replaced?”

Now check the Nissan Terrano you are actually looking at

Everything above is true of the model, and it is free. What it does not tell you is whether THIS car has been looked after: its odometer history and whether the reading has ever gone backwards, whether there is still money owing on it, whether it has been reported stolen, how many owners it has had and what it is really worth today. That comes from the official records for that plate. Enter the plate for the free details, or get the full history and a market valuation from $13.49.

Not sure what you would be paying for? See what a full KickTyres check includes.

Where this comes from

The failure described above is documented in the sources below. The inspection instructions and the cost estimate are KickTyres’ own interpretation of them.

JDMBUYSELL Nissan Terrano WD21 buyer's guide
Offroad-Express (NZ) forum — 'TD27eti Injector pump' thread

Nissan Terrano buyer questions

Is td27 / td27t injection pump seal leak and hard hot starting serious on a Nissan Terrano?

We rate it major and common on the Nissan Terrano. The mechanical injection pump on the TD27 diesel uses rubber seals that harden with age and with modern low-sulphur diesel, so they weep fuel down the back of the pump and let air into the fuel line. The first sign is usually a truck that starts perfectly from cold but cranks and cranks once it is hot, or that will not restart after a fuel stop. Left alone the leak drips onto the belt area and the truck eventually will not start at all. A pump reseal is a workshop job; a full pump rebuild or exchange costs considerably more, so a weeping pump is real money, not a minor drip.

How much does it cost to fix on a Nissan Terrano?

$900 to $3,500 at New Zealand independent workshop rates. That figure is for this job on its own. A car showing the symptoms on this page is usually worth either walking away from or negotiating down by at least the repair figure.

Which Nissan Terrano years are affected?

Our research records this fault on the 1986–1995 Nissan Terrano. Build dates move around, especially on imported cars, so treat the range as the years to look hardest at rather than a guarantee either way. The official records tell you the exact build and first registration date for the car in front of you.