i was wondering if anyone out there could help me out... i'm a newbie to the maxima world. i just bought a 91 gxe with about 50K on the 2nd motor. it was running fine (by fine i mean a little sputter in idle - i assumed because i opened up the exhaust without changing the intake). yesterday evening it was running fine when i pulled into best buy. when i started it up to leave the little sputter hasd become quite significant. almost as if a plug wasn't firing or something. running it today and tinkering with the idle i noticed a small puddle and liquid coming from the exhaust tip. it has a very slight smell of gas. can anyone help me?

 

check your spark plugs

 

are bosch +4's ok for this or is there a specific brand that's best, also which wires are good to use... sorry for dumb questions... i can tear apart my 91 eclipse with a blindfold on but this is a whole new game for me

 

for the most part plugs are plugs. going from one electode to 4 doesnt do a whole lot. i have $2 plugs on my car, it runs great and it sits ALOT

 

It could be your plugs but most likely the ignition wires. Do you hear a clicking noise when the engine is on? Try to take the wires out one at a time and see if the idle (sound) changes. If the sound does not change it is probably that wire. Sometimes you could see the spark coming out of the wire.

The recommend plugs for the vg's are NGK BKR6E-11. They have these at Kragen for like $2. As for the ignition wires I would try courtesy nissan. They sell nissan parts cheap. http://www.courtesyparts.com/

 

Along with the ignition system, you will also need to check the distributor cap and rotor (why do people always forget to mention/check this part? ). Yes, check your wires, but they rarely go bad (at least for me). In my '94GXE, with 182,000 miles at the time, the original wires still checked good--about 5K ohm on the longest wire. The only reason that I changed mine was because I wanted the pretty, blue NKG wires to match my blue exterior. Most likely ignition components to fail are plugs, rotor, cap, wires (in that order).

Also, don't forget to check your injectors as they, also, are known to fail. Using an ohm meter, check the resistance (about 10 to 14 ohms). If an injector checks bad, that could also cause your problem.

As for the Bosch +4 plugs, they look nice and give you a feeling of "go fast" when you install them, but I have not noticed any difference in my VG engine. I have used all three of Bosch's plugs. The regular platinums, the +2, and the +4; I cannot tell a difference. I have yet to use them in them in my VE engine, though.

If you are already an experience tuner/maintainer, get the FSM (Factory Service Manual) for the Maxima. You can find them on e-bay for a reasonable price. With that in hand, you will be able to do anything your heart desires.

Good luck, and may the Max be with you. (okay, that was corny. )

 

thanks for all youh help everyone, gonna hit the wrenches now.