I know I know, another thread about the friggin light. I don't get it because I maintained my Max pretty well. I change my oil every 3,000 miles, put in 93 gas, and go easy on the car easy most of the time.

I started the car this morning and I noticed the light there. I was like "WTF!?". Got back in the house and called the Nissan dealer. Dropped off the car and they said it could be the sensors since they're so sensitive to everything.

Dammit, even my Stanza never gave me problems and that car had a cheaper build quality too.

Daniel B. Martin, where are you? Anybody?

[Edited by MaxPerformanceSE on 01-05-2001 at 04:17 PM]

 

problem, and your gas/oil changes, etc will have no impact on an electrical problem. $hit happens, and electronics fail. That doesn't mean a poor build quality. Maybe a bad design, but all things will eventually fail. If you have 2-3 more failures, then you're up $hit creek, but right now, I wouldn't be too upset.

 

Oh no, I'm not saying the Max has a cheap build quality. I was referring to the Stanza. So far I have experienced a bad timing chain/tensioner and a valve that was out of adjustment. Now it's the 'check engine' light. I guess you're right, I shouldn't be too upset but I'm just disappointed becuase my parents paid a lot of money for this car and it is screwing me around.

 

LOL! Man those Nissan techs are sharp!! "sensors are so sensitive"?? doh! And it "could" be a sensor?? Well the CEL can ONLY detect a sensor that is outputting an out of range voltage. You should have run your own ecu diagonstic and then run the code though your own FSM. It's exactly what the dealer does w/o the $70 diagnostic charge. They will end up just replacing parts until the light goes away w/o really digging into the problem. The problem is that they will continue to charge you for parts and labor until it's fixed.

 

Before I left the dealer the guy was like, "We don't give out 'surprise' charges or anything like that." We'll find out. Dealers are good at hiding things in the bill.

 

**shudder**

Well the diagnostic is $70 and it's something you can for free if you know how to.

 

The Check Engine Light is evidence that something is wrong. That "something" may be any number of things, some major and some minor. It might be nothing more than a loose fuel filler cap. The Engine Control Module (the computer) detected a problem and turned on the Check Engine Light. At the same time it stored one or more Diagnostic Trouble Codes. Doing a DTC readout is not a big deal, does not require specialized "dealer only" test equipment. When you know the stored DTCs, you will have a fair idea of what repairs are needed.

If you like to do your own "wrenching" you can do the DTC readout for yourself. Go to your public library and borrow a Chilton's or Haynes manual for your vehicle. It contains detailed instructions and a table which "translates" the numerical codes into words. No special tools are required. You will also find instructions to do a DTC readout and reset the Check Engine light at Steve Cutchen's excellent MaxFAQs page:
http://web2.airmail.net/scutchen/max_faq/

Your Stanza is an OBD-1 vehicle, and your Maxima is OBD-2. The Stanza's Engine Control Unit monitors fewer aspects of engine operation than your Maxima. That's one reason it is less likely to turn on that worrisome light. Example: a loose fuel filler cap on your Stanza won't turn on the CEL, but it will on your Maxima. The loose filler cap makes the Engine Control Module think you have a fuel leak. This is a "two trip" failure, so leaving the cap loose just once should not turn on the light.

 

Thanks a lot. I appreciate it. I remember one time I forgot to put the cap back on my Stanza for a week and nothing came on. The guy at my dealer said that the Maximas are getting too technological.

 

I accidentally triped the "Service Engine Soon" light on my '97 when changing the fuel filter yesterday and thought it would clear itself, but after checking the manual, I cleared the light as they described and have been fine since. BTW...I had pulled off the connector to the air flow sensor to get better access to the filter and forgot to re-connect it before I cranked the engine. I think the light will stay on as long as there is an "error" in its memory. The shop manual is priceless for us weekend mechanics! Good luck on yours!

 

Yeah unfortunately Nissan stores the codes in memory, so once the code is thrown the light stays on until it's deleted by the computer (or ECU is resetted, however Nissan doesn't recommend doing this because they don't get their $70 charge. They'll give you some crap about potentially frying the ECU and crap like that). I had a Mass Air Flow Sensor problem (who hasn't on a nissan) and I fixed the problem instantly, however the light wouldn't go off. I drove for about 400 miles with the light on (knowing there was no longer a problem), and finally I found Cheston's directions on resetting the ECU. I did it in about 1 minute and 30 seconds, and it hasn't come on since. It's been about 2000 miles.

 

Thanks for your tips guys. I will be picking up the car tomorrow and I'll let you guys know what was up with the car.

 

Well, when I put my CAI in about 3 months ago, my car was fine. But one morning about a month ago, I started my car and the check engine light came on. I said to myself, I will take it next week when I do not have work. Well, about 4 days later, I started my car and the check engine light didn't come on. I do not know what happened.....slash....do not want to even think of what it was, but my car works the same way it did before. Anyone know of the cause.

Erik
Southeast Maxima Group

 

When the Engine Control Module detects a problem it turns on the Malfunction Indictor Light (a/k/a Check Engine Light, and Service Engine Soon light) and stores one or more Diagnostic Trouble Codes for subsequent retrieval. The ECM will also detect a problem which "went away" and turn off the MIL. If your car runs well and the MIL is off, that is your cue to... Enjoy The Ride!

 

When the ecu sees an error code, it will store it. If the ecu doesn't see the same problem for about 50 turns of the ignition key, it will erase the error code and turn off the CEL. At least the 3-gens are that way.

 

While driving back from Florida, my service engine soon light went on, but the day I got back to Ontario it was off. Is it possible that a temporary error was detected and now it's resolved itself? Should I be worried? Can I find out what was wrong?

I never noticed a problem while I was driving, other than the paranoia.

- Andrew