OK, so I have been having electrical problems lately, and I can't find ANYTHING wrong. I was poking around, and noticed this weird wire that didn't look like it matched anything else coming out of a spiled bigger wire wrapped in electrical tape...well it's hard to explain so I have some detailed pictures here for you guys. It looks to me a LOT like the pics on Craig's site about grounding VTCs...any thoughts? Yes, no? Can some VE guys look and see if they have this? Thanks a bunch. I would be so mad if I bought a car with grounded VTCs and the guy didn't tell me!

Oh, I also took some pix of my JWT, PIAAs, and clear corners while I was out there for the hell out it, those pix are at the very bottom of the page

 

#1 - yea my VE is like that too
#2 - CLEAN engine bay
#3 - how are those PIAA lights? HID-ish, bright?

 

You're fine dude. That is exactly how a stock VE should look like. I thought the same thing too until I asked a few questions. They aren't grounded.

 

nope, no VTC ground there
the VTCs are a little further up towards the front of the engine bay; you'll notice that ground wire is going to a different set of wires wrapped in tape and not the big one where the VTC's wires go

 

Listen to Craig, he knows how to ground some VTCs.

 

Well that's very great news to hear...thanks! I think I'm going to have to (gasp) take my car to a dealer to figure out this electrical problem, I've taken it to two trusted mechanics who each had the car an entire day combing the electircal system and they couldn't find anything that would be causing such a drain! I'm hoping maybe the dealer mechanics know something specific to the car that general mechanics can't know...I really hate the Nissan dealer here though they are gonna rape me I just know it

 

1. That's good to hear!
2. Thanks I keep the engine very clean...however the hood is only 6 months old (a christmas tree fell on it off a home pick-up service truck in January...weirdest thing ever, luckily I have comprehensive insurance!). So, the hood literally still looks brand new, because it pretty much is
3. I LOVE the PIAAs...the visibility is definitely much improved, and they look clean and sharp. But, after driving at night in a new Audi with REAL HID lights, their nice-*** luxury ones, and I'm sorry to say no 9004 bulb can ever come CLOSE to real HID lights...they are so awesome but I'd say the PIAAs are as good as you can get for us Maxima owners.

 

yup, definately no ground there.

 

Love the sig quote

 

You seem to have a pretty hefty system in your car. You sure you dont have some faulty wiring somewhere in there? Doesnt hurt to check and make sure.

What exactly sort of problems are you having?

Taking stuff to a dealer to diagnose problems (especially electrical) is gonna rape you. They charge by the hour, and then mysteriously take several hours to 'find' the problem. THEN charge you for the repair/labor after the initial diagnosis rape.

 

As soon as it started having problems, the first thing I thought of was to totally disconnect the stereo - I have a 120amp circuit breaker inline with the 4ga right by the battery, I just flipped that, double-checked that there weren't shorts in the grounds, and am 100% sure it's not affecting the car at all now - didn't affect the problem at all, it's been progressivly getting worse, too. What exactly happens: the battery and brake warning lights on the dash sporadically flash simutaneously while driving, and also when you turn on any acessory (power windows, etc.) it will make both these lights turn on bright, but they don't stay on steady they flash randomly. After a while, the engine starts losing power, like you can't go freeway speeds because it misses and you have to pull over. It seems to be related to heat, on a cold night with the heater on it barely happens and I can drive 60+ for an hour before the engine loses power, but on a hot day it's really bad and I can't drive more than a half before it prevents me from driving totally.

 

Hmmm....

This seems somehwhat like a problem my auto had.

This is what would happen....I'd be driving along and suddenly my brake light and battery light would come on (they'd be kinda dim). The engine would lose power (or so I thought) and then after I shut the car off the car wouldnt start back up again. Had the symptoms of a dead battery, but it wouldnt start even with jumping it or anything like that.

I decided to check my under dash fuse box and noticed that my ENG CONT fuse was blown. Relieved, I replaced it and the engine started up fine and the car ran great.

Same thing happened the next day. Checked my fuse box again and the ENG CONT fuse was blown again. So, to get the car to restart I had to replace this fuse each time. I also realized that my car didnt actually lose power, but the tranny just threw itself into safe-mode for some reason each time this happened.

After many headaches and hours of searching my car over, I checked out my 02 sensor. The wires on the back of it were frayed and would short themselves out.

It'd short, blow my ENG CONT fuse, make my battery light and brake light come on, and throw the transmission into safe mode.

Your problem seems somewhat like this.

Check your 02 sensor, check the wiring coming out of the 02 sensor to make sure it's not damaged or frayed. And also next time this happens check the ENG CONT fuse in the under-dash fuse box and see if it's blown it.

It's a weird long-shot but worth a try.

-James

 

Wow, that sounds like it just might be the case...I was getting bad gas mileage before this problem started happening, so maybe it's my o2 sensor too! Thanks a bunch...I am gonna check as soon as I get home!