Hey, everyone! I've been drifting in and out around the forums here for a few years getting some tips, dreaming dreams and wondering when I might leverage the power of this community to bring my 1993 manual SE 4DSC up to par. I think the time to get started is now! I'll give some back story:

I've owned a Maxima since I started driving. In 1996, I bought an '85 as my first car. In 2000, I upgraded to this one and I've owned it ever since. Since I also owned a work vehicle for 17 of those years, this car still has less than 200k on it. I've had to endure four years (and counting) of my wife wanting me to get rid of it since I bought another daily driver in 2018. But I love the classic body style and have had many people say don't get rid of it! I don't intend to - I intend to "restore" it! It's not trashed, but it could use some love to get it back to optimal. It is driveway kept under car cover to help minimize wear from the elements and Texas heat. I'm going to list some of the issues here and maybe start threads on each one so I can try to knock them out. Some of them are not a big deal, others are more. Apart from the wheels and radio, everything is stock.

Engine

The engine has a misfire. I've replaced all ignition coils - to no avail. I think it's cylinder number 5 as nothing changes with the engine when disconnected. The car will stall randomly. The car will sometimes jerk like I popped the clutch. Sure seems like it's the IAC, but I replaced it to no avail. My suspicion is that it has a vacuum leak somewhere. I did replace all the vacuum hoses I could find, but I may have missed one or two.
It will idle well at 750 RPM and randomly drop like it's starving for air and either rev back up again or just die. In the picture of the engine, you can see that there's oil all along the bottom where it doesn't seem it should be.

Interior

Hot air will only blow on the driver side. I've heard this is likely a blend door actuator? Or a heater core problem.
Cruise Control does not work - never has. I've started a thread about it here
The airbag light is on on the dash. It was in an accident prior and could either have damaged sensors or just needs to be reset. I don't know where to start.
The dash clock is on again, off again. I've heard this is common and can be repaired with a soldering iron, but I'm not handy with a soldering iron.
I've replaced the head unit and left the original Bose speaker and amps in place, but they are starting to fail - particularly the rear. I'm having a hard time finding working replacements. Should I even bother or just swap out everything?
Various rust spots and stains on the fabric and headliner. Any recommendations for good cleaning products?

Exterior

She has a few beauty marks from over the years, but it is what it is. My trunk is slightly bent from being rear ended gently at a red light and there are other dents here and there but nothing exceedingly unsightly. My front passenger bumper cover was torn after I hit a raccoon; I also need a new spoiler and a complete paint job. Until then, there are rust spots forming. How do I stop these from getting worse?

That's it. Let's save this baby from the junk yard! Any help you could offer would be greatly appreciated! Thanks!

 

Nice, a VE!

Have you skimmed through the FSM at all for any of your engine problems? I'm going to take a wild guess you have a bad fuel injector.

The Bose stuff is OK when it all works. At this point replace it with aftermarket.

Some stains come out with a spray bottle of warm water and a wet dry vacuum. I have used Tuff Stuff foaming cleaner with great results on stubborn stains. Don't forget to see what you have on hand already, baking soda, white vinegar, etc.

 

Thanks for the reply. Noted on the Bose system. I don't like trying to keep chasing down special speakers and amps. Any chance I can use existing wiring or do I have to run new wire? 😣

I haven't checked any of the FSMs. Are they on this site somewhere? I know I have the VTC problem that seems to plague these engines. It's just noise when the engine is cold so it doesn't bother me all that much. I don't think it would be a bad idea to replace all the fuel injectors, but I think the rear three can be a pain to get to, am I right?

 

Run new speaker wires, 16 gauge or so. The Bose audio wires are meant to carry low level pre amp signal.

Service manuals at: https://www.nicoclub.com/nissan-service-manuals
I see it only goes back to 94, could be close enough for your year. Maybe someone else can chime in for the correct year.

Replacing the rear anything is kind of a pain. It's also means time to plan for other maintenance such as valve cover gaskets, cleaning the EGR, and/or anything else that's in the area and would be easy to fix at the same time. BUT it's just a guess right now. You said you changed some vac hoses, double check those. If you still think it's a vac leak try a smoke machine to locate any leaks.Either way the FSM will help diagnosing the problem.

 

You can get the print manual too, https://www.ebay.com/itm/39289041571...cAAOSwlDNfIgHx.

 

Awesome, thanks JSutter! Economy downturn has me putting off any major or non-essential repairs for now. I'll nose through the manual for now and see if I can find some direction on things to hunt for.

 

Can anyone tell me what these are? Doesn't seem right that there is so much moisture in there. I don't know if it's oil or gas. I assume this could be causing significant problems since moisture should not be on connectors.

 

Those are your VTC solenoid actuators yeah they shouldn’t have oil since the solenoid are threaded into the head with an o-ring around it.

 

OK, thanks! Where in the world can I get these? And how do you take them out?

 

I believe you need a 25 mm deep socket or combo wrench they are screw in as far o-ring I do not think they are available anymore

 

Besides the fact the radiator needs to be replaced, where is this leak coming from? Assuming it's not hoses up top because I didn't see anything...

 

I thought they were pipe threads not orings?

 

You better fix **** fast because these cars have all but disappeared. Good luck even finding one in the junkyard.

 

Hey buddy, long time no see. Where'd all these cars go? How many VE 5spds were even built? If I knew how rare they are back in the day, I'd hold onto it like gold.

 

You can order connector pigtails from online eBay or Rock Auto.

 

OK, so I got the water pump replaced! She's back to drivable, but barely. I really hope you guys' experience can help me figure this out or else I have to sell this and get it out of the driveway.

Rough idle, stalls frequently while idling and driving, reduced HP when warm, feels like I'm popping the clutch at times with as hard as it jerks when accelerating. I took a video of me driving it from startup. Had some challenges with the camera at the beginning so I bookmarked some links for a view of what's going on. Key is to watch the RPM gauge. There's times while driving it will drop down to almost zero and the engine will not respond now matter how much I depress the gas. I've replaced the TPS Sensor. I'm thinking I should try to the PCV and the MAF sensor. I've also replaced whatever vacuum hoses I could find recently; trying to find a friend with a vacuum leak detector machine. Any other ideas?
EDIT: Friend I suggested I disconnect the MAF with the car running and if it died, I could rule that out. The car died, so maybe I can rule it out...

(start at 5:42) - RPM needle bounces, hesitation
(start at 11:44) - If I hold the pedal at 2000 RPM, it will drop and regain repeatedly. If I hold at other RPM, it will maintain. Don't know if it has to do with the actual RPM or the position of another sensor, cable, etc.
(start at 6:38) - Car will jerk, RPM needle drops, engine ceases to respond to gas pedal. I have to shift to neutral so the car will stall out and then restart to get it to respond again.

( I don't know why these vids won't start at my marker location...sorry)

Thanks, y'all! Trying to keep this on the road with as rare as they are.