Tonight as I was leaving a store my car did something really weird, I started it and then it immedietly died. It kept doing this until I gave it some gas. Now for the rest of the night I have to rev the engine once or twice so it wont die. I drove it to and from work today and around my town and it was fine. I had left a restaurant(started fine) and then drove to a shop and when I came out is when it started. Any suggestions? I am just hoping that my car will start up tommorrow by a few revs so I can go to work. Could something be clogged or dirty? I checked my codes and came up nothing. But I think I may have reset it, see my check engine light always stays on. But has been tested by nissan and a few other places and they say its just a glitch with the light, but when there are problems it still gives the correct codes. Anyone dealt with a bad start like this before?

 

alternator maybe

hows ur battery?

 

Battery is fine I just replaced that and the starter about 2-3 months back. Do you think maybe I need a tune up I have had the car 3 years and put 70,000 on it...But I asked nissan a while back and they said no...

 

you could have clogged fuel injectors or fuel pump or fuel filter. seems to me that your car isn't getting enough gas to keep it alive. If you have indeed changed the battery n starter, and the alternator is fine, then it has to be the fuel system. i can't think of anything else. if the alternator isn't fine, you'll know in a few days that it is the alternator since your car won't even be able to be driven. You should do maintenece on your car rexpectively every 60k. i dunno what nissan is talking about

 

Okay here is a update. I got up this morning to go to work and my car fired right up. Someone told me that in the heat sometimes the condensation or something to that effect can effect the way your car drives. I live in Cali and it was over 100 degrees yesterday. I dont know...I know I am gonna have my car tuned up over the weekend. I just hope maybe it was a fluke.

 

check your plugs and fuel filter (normal "tune up"), but could have idle set a bit too low, or fuel pump could be on its way out.

 

Well has anyone heard of that gas vapor condensation with the heat. Someone suggested when it gets real hot outside the heat that collects on your car can turn the fuel in the fuel line into gas form and thats why I had a problem starting until I pumped enough liquid gas through the line? I dont know...Just a thought?

 

I'm having the same problem. First started in winter and I figured it was just the cold. Went away for a few months and recently its been doing it again. I'm at 63k miles so I just had the 60k tune up which included new fuel filter and had the alternator replaced a few years ago under recall. You may be onto something with the heat though cause its been really hot and humid lately. My battery is 4.5 years old though also so it could just be that

 

WOW you know that is weird because last winter my car was doing the same thing it is doing to me now and someone suggested on here that for me to clean the throttle body. So I did and that problem stopped, so I just thought it was a dirty throttle, though this time I checked the throttle and its fine. Thats when someone said about the heat condensation under the hood. Let me know if your continues, so far 2 days without it doing it to me.

 

charge battery if it still dies or marks low batt it's you alternator, had the same prob a few months back.

-Dexter

 

Okay well I just put a new battery in like 2 months ago, I dont think it is the altenator for after I give it a little gas it stays idle but I notice that at stop lights and such it idles at 500. I also noticed its starting to vibrate a little while at stop lights. Shouldnt the idle be a little higher? I'm thinking it has something to do with my idle or fuel system. I am getting my spark plugs ect changed today, see if that makes a diffrence.

 

check all your harnesses also. i had a loose one and it would work somtimes and not at other times. just an idea. and clean your tb and iacv also.

 

I kinda agree with what he says. I've experienced a similar prob with a few of my previous cars, and they all turned out to be a electrical problem. Of course I went with the new battery, alternator, fuel system first. But a problem like this that accures at random, I've found to be a electrical gremlin. Too hard to diag myself, so a run to the shop was my only cure.

 

I have the same problem here and there. Does it once in a while. Someone suggested replacing the coolant temperature sensor. Pretty cheap and easy. My fuel system is fine, TB is clean, electrical checked out fine as well. New plugs, always premium gas, new fuel filter.

 

It mgiht be a leaky fuel injector, ECTS, MAF.

The CEL is probably not a glitch, I'm guessing you're resetting it when trying to check it ...

 

No codes. I got a knock sensor code, replaced it. It happens less now since I cleaned the TB.

 

YEah my temp sensor went out and had that changed but found the problem!!! It is a bad vaccum advance pump. Completley shot have to wait till tommorrow to get part, was told by kragen ect..that it is a dealer part.

 

If that particular store doesn't carry it, they automatically say that ... search more, but first call Nissan b/c even i think they do not know what that part is ... are there any other names that this part may go by?

 

Not sure, my dad took part off of car and is going to take to Nissan tommorrow. Car still runs the same with it not on.

 

I would suggest checking for a restriction in the exhaust.

 

I wouldn't.

 

golly gosh! i had the same problem! turned out to be a vacuum leak in the throttle body. tiny rubber hose was disconnected. Have you taken your air intake apart lately? i also had a crack on my rubber boot that goes around the circular part of the intake "pipe." It would just die the minute the engine caught. also a new/clean air filter helps! so then it fixed!

 

I am going to post a response even though this is a 4 year old thread. It might be helpful. I had the exact same starting and stalling problem. Intermittant but got progressively worse. No CEL at all. When the car did run.. it ran fantastic and extremely smooth.
Turned out to be an extremely dirty fuel filter.

 

or it could be a loose idler tensioner... if it's not quite right itll hold the belt in place and then loose track and hop off, you should check this out even if you dont think thats it cause it sucks when it decides to fall off.... happened to me...