My 93 Nissan Maxima is sitting in a Nissan dealership who is trying to figure out why this car will NOT start in the a.m. but will start and run perfectly fine in the p.m.

Friday, the service manager tells me that this problem is either one of two things: 1)the grounded wire that connects from the fuel pump to the computer OR 2)the computer. Today he tells me that they are still trying to isolate the problem, but adds that they are leaning more towards the computer...

A bit of past car history: two years ago the computer in this car died
and the car spent around six months in shop while I called around various Nissan dealships and part stores to find a new one, they all told me that Nissan doesn't manufacture new computers and the only computer I could find was one that was rebuilt.

The first time the computer konked out, it had little to NO power and the check engine light was on 24/7...now the problem is that it JUST DOESN'T START IN THE MORNING, besides that the car is coo'. NO check engine light...

If it was the computer again, how come the light has never came on? And couldn't it be possible that there is something else in the car that is draining the computer?

Does anyone know anything about Nissan computers? I keep hearing that generally these things are supposed to last a lifetime, but why is this car about to go on three computers, again is there something else that could be killing the computer? Is a car even WORTH saving if it needs a new one? HEEEEELP I love my Nissan but DAYMN!

 

As for the morning and evening thing, However, it seems that you may have some electrical issue that is prematurely (sp) killing your ECU. Most likley, you have an intermittent short somewhere that is providing 12V to a wire that is not supposed to be recieving the voltage. The hard thing is finding the short.

Actually, now that I am typing and thinkng about this, dew and condensation combined with cold metal (metal contracts in the cold. This contraction could be causing the short and subsequent no-start. Later in the PM, as the metals expand from the heat of the day, no short) could be the reason for the ECU short. However, this is theory and a stab in the dark. But, somthing to think about.

 

My brother had this same problem in his wife's 92 Civic. The dealer of course didn't find any problem.

She would start the car just fine in the morning. BTW, I live in Las Vegas where it's 85 in the morning and 115 at 3pm. And in the heat of the day, it wouldn't start until after 10 minutes of constant trying.

The problem was definitely fuel related. But the fuel pump wasn't the problem. The ECU wasn't the problem. It was a little fuel pump relay that gets stuck when the 140 degree in-car temps heat it up.

My brother turn the ignition to the ON position and you would hear the fuel pump do this whining noise. Then, after sitting in the hot sun, the fuel pump wouldn't whine anymore. So he put a jumper wire to bypass this relay and the fuel pump worked JUST fine. He replaced this cheap little part and the car works great.

I'd be really scared of the dealer changing the ECU. Cause it's RARELY the cause for any problems. Make sure they aren't changing parts that you will have to pay for when it's only a $2 relay. Don't get robbed by the stealership. Good Luck!

 

Relay sounds better. Good addition Aaron.